us or US?
A Reaction for the Dr. Gumersindo Garcia Memorial
Lecture
NATIONAL COUNCIL OF CHURCHES IN THE
PHILIPPINES 24TH GENERAL CONVENTION
Prepared by: EUNICE “Nicee”
B. JUMALON, CYF National
president, UCCP
The
mere thought of being a delegate to this much awaited National Council of
Churches 24th General Convention thrilled me to the bones. For I
know, I will have the chance to listen and talk with the looked after
ecumenists in the country and even abroad. And now being tasked to be one of
the reactor to Dr. Gumercindo Lecture in front of this body is a something that
I will forever treasure.
Allow
me to bring in the greetings of the Christian Youth Fellowship of the entire
Philippines, the youth arm of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines.
Maayong hapong kanatong tanan.
My
two day attendance here in the General convention have brought me to cloud nine.
Fact to tell, I am still rookie in the National ecumenical platform, so much
more with the international. I was also able to appreciate the vibrant life and
works of the NCCP. Yet being someone who wants to make things happen, you have
all left me at a quandary of how to put things into pieces. I always take time
on analyzing how we materialize the wisdom in a collective way, as one nation
and soon as one world. It has always been a dream that we can all do things
harmoniously, just like how a choir does, diverse voices yet singing the song
in harmony.
Now
allow me to share with you that state of dilemma, for all of us to reflect. I
will be looking into these through the lens of the young people of our society
and the middle class (petty bourgeois) where most of my colleagues belong.
The
life of a medical surgeon, Dr. Gumersindo Garcia Sr. exemplified how it was to
be actively working in our chosen career pathways yet continue to be part of
the struggle of the people. If I may, I would wish that there would be more Dr.
Garcia’s around today, on second thought, I think we already have, but then we
were not able to make them all be a part of the greater picture, the work for a
peace based on justice. If you would look at the lives of the people now, you can
see that they too are doing something in their own little ways. This line, “own
little ways” made me remember my level of thinking when I was in grade school,
now I think we are all supposed to level up. Young people’s organizations are
now really very varied and have probably been affecting the very lives of their
constituents, their thinking and how they do things. Churches, on the other
hand have been sprouting out of nowhere and in their own judgment, they too are
doing “Missio dei” (God’s Mission). True, I was once a part of an organization
that conducts feedings, visitations and etc to the least of the community
members. It felt so good! I felt so blessed that I was able to help in my own
little ways. But hey, “In our own little ways” are things that are done by
grade school pupils.
We
are all guilty at times, for being contented in doings things “in our own
little ways”. This is usually happening among our local churches, we get things
done only when we can see it through our own eyes. Needless to say, we are very
much involved in the community works in our locale, yet not in the whole plight
of journey towards justice and peace. This could probably be the reason why
majority of those who are working to fight the injustices for the masang Pilipino, are also themselves, or
ourselves- the least. What if we were are just viewing things through our own
lenses, our own prejudices, our own biases, just ours, not “OURS”, us and not
“US”. Maybe we were not able to see the context of the other parts of the society.
Perhaps we viewed ourselves as the only victims of the trash systems of our
nation. Furthermore, we were not able to look at it through the lens of the
middle class (petty bourgeois).
As
someone, who have been dwelling in the context of the middle class society
allow me to share their images. The usual picture of working daily to be able
to sustain the life of their families in a much comfortable manner is common
among the middle class. The Filipino culture of working for our families, have
grown really big, that the mind set of everyone is for us to be able to help
our own families. It has always been about our
families. Young people are taught to do good in school so that when they
are already working, they will be able to help their own families. This system
of thinking is killing the Philippines. The leaders in position these days, is
the best example. Look at how our national leaders in the Philippine government
have taken care of their families. They tried hard to make the lives of their
very family- BETTER. Now this mindset is like the cancer cells in our bodies.
We all have it, and then sooner or later it will be triggered by some factors,
then the disease would progress. Now, when these cancer cells have already
eaten us up, we have no other way but to combat it to the point of killing the
other parts of our own bodies. The carcinogenic thinking of the Filipino about
our families, would all leave us fighting with each other just to sustains our
own bodies- our families,
THE BRUTAL INHUMANE SYSTEM- in line of
the struggle of the middle class society, aside from being brainwashed and
dehumanized by system of their respective communities. They were not able to
see themselves as part of that struggle. As someone, who can have their three
full meals and can even have some more funds for recreation purposes, one may
think that this is the kind of life that God, has promised. It is a sad reality
that we were not able to make them feel, that indeed, they are a part of the
greater picture of the society that we are all fighting for. They were not able
to see that as they continue working for this large companies, as they continue
serving the ruling class, they are also killing humanity. They were not able to
see that as we continue on ignoring the cries of the Mother Earth, we are just
like the large scale mining companies who always put the icing on our broken
piece of cake- our own lands. They were not able to realize that our dear
lumads or indigenous people are actually fighting for the whole humanity, when
they defended the lands, and not just for themselves. The cancer cells of
individualism is killing each and everyone one of us. The struggle for fittest
made us focus to live for ourselves, rather than living as one community.
But
then, let us also remember that it is also innate in our amazing human bodies
to have the receptors. When we experience something new, it is our receptors
that make us realizes that we have something going on. Our bodies, are greatly
affected by what it can feel, hear, touch and see. That is why as members of
the National council of Churches in the Philippines, we ought to make them
realize the same sensation that we already have. Only when the humanity can
perceive that we are but one body of Christ, it is only when we can work
together to one direction. And it is my fervent prayers that we will be able to
let them feel that before mother earth have totally died.
Sometimes,
in our advancement in the field of theology and in the ministry, we tend to
forget the fundamentals. Which is now, being focused by the fundamentalists
which is just but a frontline of our imperialist society. In fundamentalism, we
are taught to seek God, to worship God and to make ourselves anew for God so
that our God would be happy. We taught to focus on making our own selves
better, rather than making the world better. The social media platform-
facebook, twitter, instagram, pinterest and the likes, is a very good machinery
of this ruling class. If you may have noticed, it is actually shaping us to think
only for ourselves, to boast about what we have, to tell the world to follow
what is the trend, to fake the memories- they are making us all very
individualistic, contrary to what they call themselves to be- social media.
And
we are all affected by this rubbish media. The Philippines as an example have
garnered around 24 billion tweets for #aldubnation. If we look at it on a
larger scale, we were actually just being played by, because we are but the
playing field of the others. The #prayforparis, in a matter of hours have been
viral in the social media, and most especially in the Philippines, that made me
really jealous for our advocacy to #stoplumadkillings, which was never even
given the attention of the netizens, even after the Lumads of Mindanao have
walked from Mindanao to Luzon, to voice out the concerns of our lands, our
lands and our people. Maybe it was just us
and not US.
As
we launch out into the deep waters, it is my fear that we would forget those
who were left on the shore waiting, my fear that we focus on the bigger things
and forget the small and equally important things. Sometimes, as we progress
too much in our progressive theology, we forgot to take care of our
relationship with our God. As we go more active in the plight of our struggles
of a peace based on justice, we forgot that there are still many people who
needs to know God first. The same God that we worship, that God who said, “That
all may have life and live it abundantly.” We ought to continue preaching about
the God, who loves “US” all. When I say us, it is not just us who are now
involved in the ecumenical movement, but “US”
the whole humanity.
Because,
friends, there are indeed many workers in the field, we just have to make sure
that we are all working towards the same goal- JUSTICE and PEACE. Let us forget
“in our little ways” have a paradigm shift to “COLLECTIVE EFFORT”, it is ECUMENISM in its truest sense.
