I cannot help but cringe whenever people reduce an extremely complex social issue, such as a large number of poor families living in hazardous informal settlements, to a simplistic, unidimensional cause: an attitude problem. My response would be one of exasperation, especially when this reasoning comes from our so-called “public…
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The recent Supreme Court decision on the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act of 2012 has charted a middle ground. On one hand, the Court ruled that the law was “not unconstitutional.” On the other hand, it struck down provisions that would have infringed on freedom of conscience. How then…
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Almost 51 years since his canonization was first proposed, the pope dearest to my heart, John XXIII, born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, is now a saint. It has been long enough. I confess I have looked upon John Paul II’s rapid rise to sainthood with some pique. John XXIII would chide…
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I am uncomfortable with throwing around the word “miracle” too easily. In many cases I prefer to speak of Divine Providence, working in history and bringing together a series of contingent—might have been different—events and human decisions to bring about a definite outcome. Let us look at the Edsa 1986…
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Prof. Randy David has written recently (Inquirer Opinion, 1/9/13) on the Black Nazarene devotion and the contradictions it reveals regarding the role of faith in Philippine society. As always, his is an insightful and incisive analysis. He pulls no punches in taking the Catholic Church to task for failing to…
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In a coauthored book “On Heaven and Earth,” the future pope, then Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, hit the nail on the head by offering an alternative understanding of the oft-abused and misused term “charity.” From a Catholic perspective, he says, “Christian charity is the love of God and neighbor. It…
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While surfing the cable channels one Saturday afternoon, I chanced upon Karen Davila’s interview with 60-year-old singer Freddie Aguilar about his romantic relationship with a 16-year-old girl. This piece of news was something I belatedly came to know about over a lunch conversation with colleagues at work but did not…
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Don’t expect Pope Francis to soften the Church’s teaching on abortion anytime soon. In a talk last Sept. 20 to gynecologists, he insisted: “Every unborn child, condemned unjustly to being aborted, has the face of the Lord, who before being born, and then when he was just born, experienced the rejection…
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When in his State of the Nation Address President Aquino paid tribute to acts of citizenship by ordinary civil servants and citizens by telling them “Sona mo ito (This is your Sona),” I wished he had cited one program of his administration which for me epitomizes the idea of the government…
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Fr. Jack Carroll and his theories of change
We remember our dearly departed relatives and friends especially in these days of November. I believe I can speak in behalf of my colleagues at John J. Carroll Institute on Church and Social Issues (JJCICSI) that among those we remember is Fr. John “Jack” J. Carroll, SJ, who passed away…