Sad to see the erosion of moral values in the Philippines
By Pol Derilo
Thank you for the series of insights on the governance of the Philippines. In light of current times and events that seemed to be constantly sending messages, the state of morality of both the governor and the governed was so apparent.
You know one of the things I noticed since returning and staying longer in the country is the erosion of the moral values that used to be engraved among the mainstream of Filipinos. Disappearing are some of the good practices, customs and traditions that exhibit deep expressions of reverence to elders, words of honor and delicadeza that you talk about in your articles. It is really sad to see them happening. The family and religion are two institutions where we can trace for the breakage and weakening of moral values. The thrust for material survival that resulted from population explosion contributed to the mishap. The church I thought also was kind of complacent, unduly passive in asserting the responsibilities that accompany the free will of its flock. As a result, one can observe today that religious teachings lack their consumation in the very lives of the laity in their everyday living. People tends to leave what they heard from the pulpit and return into their unreformed old self once they step out of church yard. It simply means lack of strong moral conviction, understanding and application.
So what does everybody needs if I may be asked the question? Perhaps we have to go back to the basics. We have to rethread our moral fabric so that they become more sturdy and strong. Thus we can resist the short and long strains of our lives and thus avoid the short and temporary conveniences of compromising our belief over the long and much more rewarding response to our faith, the teachings of our church. And this applies to all ladders of society since we are all accountable. Perhaps the "have nots" will be more blessed since that is what has been declared in the beatitudes. The Lord is more compassionate with them.
But what about the "have all" segment of society? Is it not also a reminder of their chance to partake in whatever means they deemed appropriate so that they stripped of themselves the unnecessary burden in meeting their Creator? They are likened to camels that ought to pass through a needle eye in order to deserve eternal destination.
I'm afraid that I've shifted my arguments more on the religious aspect. But if we come to think about it, is this not supposed to be the guiding principle of how we have to tread our lives. If it is, then we may still have time to change our behavior and reform the country as a whole. We just need to start very soon and with every tiny step patiently, everyone may contribute to a real nation building, morally strong and lasting. This may go on for a long, long time but if we fix our vision with our faith, we will get there in time, though remote in our own lifetime, but we have started.
We still need a lot of prayers, sacrifices and every bit of help from everyone to make up for our negligence. It does not seem easy at all but there should be joy in doing it for the right hope and faith. May we not take off our eyes on the right vision.