Our unity amid diversity

By Fr. Roy Cimagala *

THERE’S that funny part in the gospel where some leading Jews were accusing Christ of being “possessed by Beelzebul,” and “by the prince of demons he drives out demons.” (Mk 3,22)

Christ, of course, saw the blatant contradiction of their reasoning. “How can Satan drive out Satan?” he said. “If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand,” he continued. (Mk 3,24-26)

We have to realize more deeply that the very principle of truth, unity, freedom, charity and everything that is good and proper to us can only be God. Only with him, can we have them even amid our unavoidable differences, diversity and conflicts.

We have to be wary of the possibility of being driven by unbelief, if not by hatred against God, that would surely lead us to fall into self-contradictions. Clearly, when one is driven by unbelief and hatred, his reasoning can go off the rails, and even the simplest of logic is thrown out. 

We need to do everything to always strengthen our belief in God, the very cause, origin and pattern of unity amid the vast and increasing diversity and variety of elements we can have in this world.

Nowadays, we are seeing the intriguing phenomenon of asserting what is right and moral as wrong and immoral, and vice-versa. What is clearly an expression of true freedom is now called slavery, and vice-versa. What should clearly be considered as taboo is now regarded as a human right. The forms of self-contradictions go on and on.

To correct this situation or, at least, to deal properly with it, we need to take care and strengthen our belief and our charity. We cannot take this duty for granted, especially now when the world is sinking in confusion and error as it distances itself farther from God.

We have to realize that truth does not only make us free, as the gospel tells us. (cfr. Jn 8,32) The truth that comes from God also makes us live charity and unity among ourselves, even amid our severe differences and conflicts.

In fact, with this truth, we can manage to take advantage of our differences and conflicts, since a lot of good can actually be derived from them, even if we are not exempted from being pained and mortified by them.

Our differences and conflicts can actually occasion genuine love and many other virtues to develop and grow. They can purify us, smoothing out the rough edges of our personality, and fine-tuning our views, opinions and preferences.

They can give rise to the development of patience and compassion, and the pursuit for the truth and justice is guaranteed to be more authentic even if it is also arduous.

They can actually expand our world of knowledge and understanding, and trigger the dynamics of a more meaningful unity among ourselves, not in spite of but rather because of our differences and conflicts. The unity we are speaking of here is not uniformity, but one that is richly nuanced and capable of accommodating everyone.

Most importantly, they can give a tremendous growth in our spiritual life, freeing us from being at the mercy of our personal, earthly and temporal conditions. They contribute greatly in our effort to make ourselves more and more like Christ who is the pattern of our humanity and the savior of our damaged humanity.

* Chaplain Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE), Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

4 provinces under Alert Level 4 starting January 21

THE Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on Emerging Infectious Diseases escalated the alert level in four provinces in the country from 3 to 4 due to the increasing number of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) cases.

In a statement, Cabinet Secretary and acting presidential spokesperson Karlo Nograles said the IATF approved on Thursday, January 20, 2022, the escalation of alert level in Kalinga, Ifugao and Mountain Province in the Cordillera Administrative Region, as well as in Northern Samar in Eastern Visayas.

These areas will be under Alert Level 4 from January 21 to 31, 2022.

The IATF, meanwhile, placed more areas under Alert Level 3. These include the following:

LUZON

* Apayao

* Puerto Princesa City

* Masbate

VISAYAS

* Siquijor

MINDANAO

* Zamboanga del Norte

* Zamboanga Sibugay

* Lanao del Norte

* Davao de Oro

* Davao Oriental

* North Cotabato

* Sarangani

* Sultan Kudarat

* Surigao del Norte

* Maguindanao

* Basilan

Under the country's Covid-19 Alert Level System, level 4 is considered when case counts and hospitalization rates are high and/or increasing in certain areas.

Nograles said earlier that the IATF looks into the two-week growth rate, average daily attack rate and hospitalization rate as indicators in deciding whether to escalate the level or not.

Prohibited under Alert Level 4 and 3 are face-to-face classes, all contact sports (indoor and outdoor), cinemas and movie house, funfairs, karaoke, casinos, and gatherings in residences with individuals not belonging to the same household.

In areas under Alert Level 4, venues for meetings, social events, amusement parks, recreational venues, and tourist attractions are allowed to operate at 10 percent indoor venue capacity for fully vaccinated individuals only and 30 percent outdoor venue capacity provided that they have been issued a Safety Seal Certification.

Churches, dine-in services, spas and salons, and fitness studios, meanwhile, are allowed to operate at 10 percent indoor venue capacity for fully vaccinated individuals only and 30 percent outdoor capacity provided that all workers of the establishments are also fully vaccinated against Covid-19.

In areas under Alert Level 3, those establishments are allowed to operate at 30 percent indoor venue capacity and 50 percent outdoor venue capacity, the IATF guidelines stated. (LMY)

Lower House approves bill for recovery of ailing music, film industries

by Ben Rosario, Manila Bulletin

Among the hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, the country’s film and music industries are the beneficiaries of tax exemptions and assistance in a bill unanimously passed on third and final reading in the House of Representatives on Monday, Jan. 17.

With Pangasinan Fourth District Rep. Christopher De Venecia as principal author, House Bill 10541 or the Film and Live Events Recovery Act will be transmitted to the Senate which has a few session days left to either adopt the De Venecia measure or pass its own version.

HB 10541 proposes to amend Section 140 of Republic Act 7160 or the Local Government Code by reducing the amusement tax rate on gross receipts from admission fees in movies, concerts and other entertainment events identified under the law.

Under the bill, amusement tax collected by local government units will be lowered from the current ten percent to the proposed five percent.

HB 10541 also suspends for two years the power of local government to levy an amusement tax as provided under RA 7160.

Such suspension may be extended for a minimum of two years subject to the approval of the Department of Finance.

The measure also exempts from payment of amusement tax all locally-produced operas, concerts, dramas, musical plays, recitals, painting and art exhibitions, flower shows, musical programs, literary and oratorical presentations and local film productions so long as Filipinos own at least ten percent equity of such local entertainment productions.

De Venecia, chairman of the House Committee on Creative Industry and Performing Arts, filed the bill noting that the local movie industry is in grave danger as evidenced by the dismal performance of the recent Metro Manila Film Festival, which recently returned movies to the local cinemas.

“We need to embolden movie producers to keep churning out content by the very least, relaxing the 10% amusement tax levy in cinemas and earmarking collections for this purpose for the development of the Philippine Creative Industries, De Venecia said in sponsoring the bill.

De Venecia, a former actor, director and producer, is being hailed in Congress as champion of the creative industries, which include the film and music industries.

What is normal in the Philippines but is considered delusional in the rest of the world?

Bisaya

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One thing that is normal in the Philippines but considered delusional in the rest world is the belief[1] in lucky charms and superstitions. In the Philippines, it's not uncommon to see people wearing amulets or talismans around their necks or carrying good luck charms with them. Some people even believe that leaving garlic cloves under your bed will bring you good luck.

Superstitions are also common in the Philippines. For example, many Filipinos believe that crossing your fingers will bring you good luck, knocking on wood will keep bad luck away, and making a wish while blowing out candles will come true. While some of these beliefs may seem like nonsense to people from other countries, they're taken quite seriously by many Filipinos.

One reason for this is that, because of the heavy influence of religion[2] on everyday life and culture, superstitions and lucky charms are often seen to keep things like illness and poverty away. They're also viewed to ensure good business and school performance. Many Filipinos believe very strongly in superstition because it gives them hope that things will go their way and improve life.

Another reason why superstitions are so popular in the Philippines is because of the country's location and history. The Philippines has been hit by many natural disasters[3] throughout its thousands of years of recorded history. This, combined with the fact that it was colonized and occupied by different countries throughout the years, is why many Filipinos believe that higher powers are trying to help or harm them. Religion plays a huge role in this belief.

The Philippines has one of the most Catholics per capita in the world. Over 80% of Filipinos are Catholic, and most family social gatherings center around weddings, funerals, baptisms, and masses. It's not unusual to see firecrackers set off outside churches or crucifixes hanging around people's necks.

Lucky charms are seen to bring good luck to these religious events. However, with the success of many Filipinos living overseas, there is also an increasing number of Filipinos who have a more Westernized perspective on superstition and the supernatural. Many Filipinos of this group don't necessarily believe in superstitions, but they do respect the beliefs of their family members who have different views.

Superstitions also hold a special place in Filipino culture because they express one's personality or character. In many cases, people who believe in luck charms and superstitions are often viewed as creative. They may also be considered more optimistic than those who don't practice these beliefs, which can be a good thing if you're looking for an adventure buddy.

Finally, many Filipinos have superstitions because they see them as part of their culture. After all, the Philippines has a rich history and culture of its own. Some Filipinos believe it's essential to respect this history and culture by practicing some age-old customs, including superstitions and lucky charms. Whether these people realize it or not, they're also respecting their family members who have practiced these rituals for generations.

On a final note: By looking into superstitions and lucky charms, we may not only learn more about Filipino culture but also more about ourselves. After all, these beliefs are an intense part of who we are as Filipinos. We should cherish them and pass them down from generation to generation so that they can live on for centuries to come.

Footnotes

[1] The Wacky World of Filipino Superstitions

[2] Simbang Gabi: Keeping Faith During the Pandemic

[3] The Spirit of Being Resilient in Filipino Culture

CTA: Virus growth rate ‘accelerating’ in cities outside 'NCR Plus'

By Gaea Katreena Cabico - Philstar.com

Members of the InterAgency Council for Traffic check vaccination cards of commuters at the EDSA Carousel Busway Monumento Station in Quezon City as they continue to strictly implement the "no vaccination, no ride" policy of the Department of Transportation on Tuesday, Jan. 18, 2022.

MANILA, Philippines — The growth rate of COVID-19 cases slowed down in Metro Manila and surrounding provinces but the spread of virus continued to accelerate in other highly urbanized cities, OCTA Research said.

“While growth rates have slowed in NCR Plus, they are still accelerating in many highly urbanized cities outside NCR Plus,” OCTA Research fellow David said, referring to Metro Manila and neighboring provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Rizal and Cavite.

According to David, the capital region recorded only a 10% growth rate of cases from January 12 to 18. Metro Manila’s reproduction rate—or the number of people an individual positive for COVID-19 can infect—was at 2.07.

Based on OCTA Research’s data, the cities with the highest growth rates from January 12 to 18 were Tacloban City (469%), Cebu City (378%), Davao City (305%), Iloilo City (281%) and Baguio City (269%).

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said Tuesday that the Philippines remained at critical risk from COVID-19 even if the increase in cases was slowing down.

OCTA’s David also reported that the downward trend in the City of Manila is “now clear.”

The seven-day average of new cases in the capital city decreased by 23% from 2,152 to 1,658, and the reproduction number also went down to 1.5.

“Apart from Manila, San Juan and Malabon also had negative one week growth rates. NCR residents must continue to remain vigilant in following public health guidelines to sustain the trends,” David said.

Daily cases in the Philippines have reached record highs in January as an Omicron-driven surge in infections rips through Metro Manila and surrounding provinces.

The Department of Health reported Tuesday 28,471 additional infections. There are currently 284,458 active cases.

DepEd eyes expansion of face-to-face classes in February for vaxxed personnel, students

by Merlina Hernando-Malipot, Manila Bulletin

The expansion phase of limited face-to-face classes eyed to start in the first week of February will only include vaccinated participants, the Department of Education (DepEd) said.

During President Duterte’s Talk to the People aired on Monday, Jan. 17, Education Secretary Leonor Briones gave updates on the pilot run of limited face-to-face classes and its possible expansion by next month.

Briones reported to the President that the pilot run of face-to-face classes held from Nov. 15 to Dec. 22 had been “highly successful” given the “high level of attendance” among students.

A total of 287 schools and 15,000 learners participated in the pilot run. Briones said that there were “no confirmed” coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases among the participants during the pilot implementation.

Given the positive outcome of the pilot run, Briones said that the DepEd is recommending the “progressive expansion” of face-to-face classes in areas under Alert Levels 1 and 2.

“Expansion will commence not earlier than the first week of February,” Briones said.

During the expansion phase, the DepEd is recommending that only vaccinated teachers and non-teaching personnel be allowed to participate.

Briones added that the “participation of vaccinated students shall be preferred.”

She noted that the framework of shared responsibility that includes the concurrence of local government units (LGUs) and parents’ consent “will remain a requirement.”

However, Briones clarified that those schools under Alert Level 3 areas — such as the National Capital Region (NCR) and Region IV-A — will not be included in the expansion phase due to the surge in COVID-19 cases in these places.

The self-righteous tend to be fault-finders

By Fr. Roy Cimagala *

THIS observation is clearly illustrated many times in the gospel. Many of the leading Jews in the times of Christ did not believe in Christ, and their idea of what is right and wrong was simply very subjective, held with a certain consensus among themselves. As a consequence, they always found fault in Christ and in his disciples for what they considered as violations to the law as they understood it. (cfr. Mk 3,1-6)

We have to be most wary of this spiritual anomaly that can come to us anytime. It usually takes advantage of our natural inclination to seek the truth, the good and the beautiful in life—in short, what is right—and corrupts that inclination because it is not properly rooted on the ultimate source of righteousness who is God himself. It’s so blinding that it can even assume the appearance of holiness.

Most prone to this illness are those with some special endowments in life, be it intelligence, talents, wealth, fame, power, health, beauty, etc. When all these gifts are not clearly grounded and oriented toward God, the source of all righteousness, the problem starts.

This is the irony of ironies because one can earnestly pursue the path of holiness and does practically everything to be good and holy, and yet ends up the opposite of what is intended. That’s when one practically has the trappings of goodness and holiness and yet misses the real root of righteousness who is God.

Nowadays, there is so much surge of self-righteousness, such that the source of what is good and evil, fair and unfair, human and inhuman is not anymore God the Creator, but us. The distinction is not anymore made by God, but by us. We are now in the world of pure subjectivism.

Everything is now based on our views and opinions, our preferences and current understanding of things. If we can manage to have some kind of consensus, then that’s it! We can now consider as good what actually is inherently bad, and we make a world of make-believe that sooner or later will burst.

People now follow their own light, a very beguiling and unreliable light. They have forgotten what Christ said: “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (Jn 8,12)

Because it is an understanding of righteousness that is not based on God, it is lived and pursued also without charity. It is always accompanied by the tendency to be fault-finders, negative and critical thinkers, etc. It tends to generate contention and division in society.

We should always be wary of this common tendency of ours, and fight it everytime traces of it start to appear. This, of course, will require a lot of humility among us, so we can always feel the need to refer things to God rather than considering them solely according to our criteria and standards.

We have to understand that since God, being the Creator, is the standard of everything, we should regard him as the very substance of what is good, true and beautiful, what is fair and just, what is perfection itself.

Thus, to combat this tendency to be self-righteous that would lead us to be fault-finders, etc., we really need to develop an abiding and intimate relation with God!

* Chaplain Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE), Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

134 higher education institutions declare academic break, 126 more 'to follow' — CHED

by Merlina Hernando-Malipot, Manila Bulletin

Amid the surge in coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases in the country, the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) said that at least 260 higher education institutions have declared and will declare academic break.

During President Duterte’s Talk to the People on Jan. 17, CHED Chairman Popoy De Vera said that a total of 134 universities and colleges have declared an academic break from Jan. 1 to 13.

Of this number, 16 HEIs are located in the National Capital Region (NCR) and 53 HIEs in Region IV-A. These regions have been placed under Alert Level 3 status due to the high number of COVID-19 infections.

De Vera said that a total of 126 HEIs have also expressed “intention to declare academic break” this January 2022.

Meanwhile, he noted that there were no HEIs in regions V, VIII, X, XII, and Mimaropa have declared academic break.

De Vera explained that the policy on declaring academic breaks “has always been a decision of individual HEIs.”

The decision whether or not an HEI will declare academic break should be based on health conditions on the grounds, the situation of their students and faculty, their academic calendar, learning continuity plans, and consultation with local government units (LGUs).

“It is their respective boards who discuss this,” De Vera added.

Humility amid greatness

By Fr. Roy Cimagala *

IF there’s one precious lesson we can learn from our devotion to the Sto. Nino, it should be about how we should be humble even if we know we have the greatest dignity among God’s creatures. Such humility would truly liken us to Christ who is our everything in life, since he is the very pattern of our humanity and the savior of our damaged humanity.

Christ illustrates this point as he presents himself as a child dressed as a king in the image of the Sto. Nino. Yes, Christ’s humility would prevent us from getting spoiled by all the wonderful endowments God has given us—his grace, our intelligence and will, our freedom, our talents, etc. When we are truly humble, we would never feel entitled. In fact, what we would rather be most conscious about would be our duty to serve.

More than that, when we have the humility of Christ, we would be willing to suffer and die for the sins of men in general. We would be willing, like Christ, to be the expiation for sins.

Such humility would always help us realize that we need to be in constant conversation with Christ, referring everything to him, asking him for the answers to our questions, clarifications to the many issues we have to grapple with in life, strength for our weaknesses and temptations, contrition and conversion after our falls, etc.

We should do everything to keep this state of humility alive in us all the time. We know very well how easy it is for us to take this virtue for granted. We have to realize more vividly how vulnerable we are to the ways of pride, arrogance, self-centeredness, desire for power and domination, etc. Humility keeps us guarded against these dangers.

And when we happen to receive praises and honors from others because of our good works, let’s keep our feet firmly stuck to the ground, not allowing ourselves to be intoxicated. We should not allow these praises and honors to go to our head and cast some evil spell over us.

Instead, we have to thank God profusely. All praises and honors belong to him. What we should realize also is that those praises and honors given to us are actually a sign that we have to give ourselves more to God and to others. Our sense of duty and responsibility should become sharper.

Those praises and honors that we receive are actually some kind of a test to see if we would still remain with God or we would now choose ourselves as our own god. We have to know how to pass that test, and so we need to really grow and deepen our humility.

We should never feel sad because we have chosen to deny ourselves to grow in humility amid the praises and honors. That self-denial is actually a big opening for the grace of God to come to us. That realization should make us very happy with a joy that would keep us simple, not proud and complicated.

We have to learn not to get spoiled by whatever praises and honors would come our way. Instead, let these honors trigger the urge to deepen our humility, to enrich our gratitude to God and to others, and to sharpen our sense of duty and responsibility.

What a beautiful world we would contribute to build up if we remain humble amid great honors!

* Chaplain Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE), Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

Temperatures in the Philippines are dropping

 

by Charie Mae F. Abarca, Manila Bulletin

Amid the continuous surge of the northeast monsoon, locally known as “amihan”, a record-breaking temperature of 19.7 degrees celsius (°C) was recorded in Science Garden, Quezon City around 5:30 a.m. on Sunday, Jan. 16, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said.

This has been the so far lowest temperature that the city has experienced since the onset of the northeast monsoon on Oct. 25, 2021.

The State weather bureau said the following weather stations recorded the top 10 lowest air temperatures in the country as of 8 a.m.

Baguio City, Benguet (11.0 °C)

Tanay, Rizal (18.0 °C)

Casiguran, Aurora (18.6 °C)

Laoag City, Ilocos Norte (18.6 °C)

Malaybalay, Bukidnon (19.0 °C)

Basco, Batanes (19.1 °C)

San Jose, Occidental Mindoro (19.1 °C)

Sinait, Ilocos Sur (19.5 °C)

Science Garden, Quezon City (19.7°C)

Abucay, Bataan (19.8 °C)

Meanwhile, in a public weather forecast, PAGASA weather specialist Samuel Duran said that the shear line or the convergence of warm and cold winds may bring cloudy skies with scattered rain showers in Mindanao.

No weather disturbance is expected to develop and affect the country in the next 24 hours, PAGASA said.