GOOD FRIDAY REFLECTIONS

REFLECTION
It mustn’t be long enough for Jesus to suffer the shameful crucifixion at Mount Golgotha and he finally died of exhaustion and loss of blood. While hanging on the cross in between the two other convicts he uttered at least seven sentences or words that described fully his humanity and relationship with the God whom he called “Father”. In John’s Gospel the narrative of the minutes after his death is detailed in this manner:
Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who had been crucified with him. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once blood and water came out (Jn 19:32-24).

The Roman soldiers in order to make sure that the execution is total they had to break the legs and piercing of the side of the body with a spear. The very act of piercing on the side would make a fatal wound on the stomach, liver and the heart. Death becomes inescapable. They made sure he was killed. Gintipok gid nila sya in Ilonggo language while gitiwasan gyud nila siya in Cebuano. Tagalog expression would use sya ay pinatay/pinaslang nila. In the three Filipino languages the act of killing is intention of killing somebody, which we may say premeditation. What is uglier in the act of killing or murder in the Filipino mind is that first the victim has been fatally wounded but without mercy has been killed- gitiwasan or gintipok gid sya.

The more than 800 persons who were killed extrajudicially by government security operatives and the hundreds who have been desaparacedos during the incumbency of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in connivance with the fascist police and military commanders are fiercest than that of the Roman imperial soldiers. The grim reality in Philippine society is always as it had been a Good Friday and not so much of Easter Sunday. The poor and struggling masses of people are kept hanging on the cross and the soldiers continually use their brute means of killing those who resist or may want to escape death.

Good Friday can only be good for the more than 60 million poor Filipinos when the government would allow Easter Day to come. However, the moral bankruptcy of the government will never allow Easter Day to come. The Church especially the Catholic Church in the Philippines as the harbinger of Christian hope for salvation especially social emancipation must do beyond what it is doing right now to proclaim the coming of Easter Day, the historical era when the majority of the Filipino people have a government that institutes social justice and punish those who have squandered the resources of the nation, those who have commandeered the extrajudicial killings and arrested those who raised dissent to the monumental human rights violations. Only then that the nation can truly live in Easter Day.

Maundy Thursday Reflections

1. Every Maundy Thursday comes many things come to mind. For ten years of pastoring in Iloilo City UCCP Maundy Thursday is the day when the communion table is moved from the elevated chancel to the nave of the same level of the pews in front of the pews or put in the center and the pews are arranged in a semi-circle. In my mind it signifies God’s accessibility to the world and Christ incarnation and humility. There were regular attendees to Maundy Thursday service every year. With a congregation with less than 200 members and only 40 percent regularly comes to church, the less people attending the Maundy Thursday service the more the ambience becomes dreary and Jesus’ experience of betrayal and desertion becomes real as the service tapers in the dimming of lights. Immediately after the service, the sorrowful music from the band accompanying the Maundy Thursday procession of the nearby parish of the Philippine Independent Church grew louder as it passed by the church along Delgado Street.

2. All of these episodes were in the backdrop of the Feast of the Passover a Jewish celebration commemorating Israel’s freedom from the bondage of slavery in the hands of the Egyptians. It was such a great celebration during the time of Jesus because the Roman officers would release some prisoners especially those who were sentenced to die by crucifixion, the equivalent of capital punishment in contemporary times. It was also the same occasion when Jesus gathered his disciples for dinner. John disclosed that Jesus already knew that God has determined that he has to depart and go to the Father and that Judas has as well determined to betray him. That very night Jesus made the Passover meal very dramatic such as the washing of the disciples’ feet and the last supper.

3. The drama in the life of Jesus that occupies the celebration of Maundy Thursday is filled with contemporary issues and concerns. First is the washing of feet of the disciples in the Gospel of John tells of the necessity to practice humility and not just think about it. Interestingly Peter wish not to be washed and later wanted to be washed on the head and feet and Jesus told him that humility is about servanthood and not about cleaning somebody else’s dirt. The washing of the disciple’s feet excluding their heads and their arms shows that servanthood that Jesus represents is one that enables the disciples to walk in the grace of God, rather than thinking and feeling superior to those whom they serve.

4. The Last Supper is another dramatic episode of Maundy Thursday wherein Jesus supped with the disciples in an upper room and where the conversation of betrayal took place. The episode shows that Jesus was telling them that he is sent by God, meaning the Savior. However he knows that all of the disciples have their doubts and some have really doubts and that doubts would lead one to betray him. The last supper was the moment of truth for Jesus and the disciples. It was the moment when Jesus has to face the fiercest human predicament, treachery, violence, greed and death. He was shaken, but his fears was allayed by his connection with God and a firm faith that even in this direst moments, freedom, peace and love will be birthed.

A Letter to a Friend Journeying to the Light: In Memory of Carmen Rio

Dear Tita Carmen,

There were many Sundays in your life, but you have chosen a particular Sunday to come and attend our worship service in that UCCP Iloilo City church in Delgado Street. You said that you made a resolve the day before Sunday that you would try to experience once again the ambience of a church service similar to what you had experienced in your student life at Silliman University. That was a new beginning for you—meeting old friends, establishing new ones and getting into the life of the local church. You have indeed made a difference in your involvement in the local church.

You are not just a church member, you have been a loving and caring friend to us and you called us by our names Frank and Glo. Our friendship is one that allows us to grow and be nurtured by your generosity. You always think of many special things you can do for those you love and for your friends. You see, on that church luncheon, you brought three kilos of grapes, and the poor kids who came to the church, had the chance to eat those sweet grapes laid on the table. You told us also that you want to be of service to the poor, but you could not be Mother Theresa. You are just Carmen Rio, a mother and a Christian. You know what you can do and you have the unmatched exuberance in spite of your physical limitation.

The many times we sat around your dinner table are heartwarming to recall. As we always reminded you that it’s not the food but the cordial spirit and gentle conversation among those who sat at table that matters most. Oh yeah, we laugh together when we were eating a bowl of malunggay soup, because you told us about that high-hat Filipino-American woman who pretends not to eat it, but her guest discovered she had just eaten a meal with malunggay because a green malunggay leaf still sticks on her teeth.

The many occasions that we had converse with you in your cozy sala were filled with new discoveries and realizations that human beings are indeed connected to each other and that there is an inescapable common desire for love, respect, acceptance and peace. Whenever we’re in your sala, we forget not to see the layers of picture frames on the bookshelf and your conspicuous portrait on the wall. Those pictures are your masterpieces of art, telling their own stories—the joys, the pains, the aspirations, the anguish and hopes for the future. On all those pictures shone the light of eternity.

We thank God for bringing you to us. You are a wonderful friend, Tita Carmen. Our hearts feel sad that you have to go this early. However, we look forward to seeing you again. This hope makes us happy.

In your journey to the light, we wish you a meaningful sojourn. Take good care.

Sincerely yours,

Frank and Gloria Hernando
Seoul, South Korea
December 9, 2009

Statement of the World Council of Churches on Morong-43

Letter on the abduction of church and health workers in the Philippines

To:
President
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo
Office of the President
The Philippines

Geneva, 11 February 2010

Your Excellency,

It is with deep concern that the World Council of Churches (WCC) received a report of the arrest of Dr Alex Montes, a church worker for the United Churches of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP) and official of the Community Medicine Development Foundation as well as 42 other health workers by the Philippines Army and the Philippine National Police.

I am distressed by the reported news that the detainees have been subjected to cruel and inhumane treatment amounting to torture and that they have been deprived of their basic human rights while in custody. Dr Alex Montes, a committed church worker has been a long-time staff of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines, which is a member of the WCC world-wide fellowship of churches. The WCC has a strong association with the UCCP and its leadership and in that capacity I am familiar with the activities of the church. Dr Montes who served as the coordinator of the Health Mission of the Christian Witness and Service programme of the UCCP was instrumental in developing community-based health programmes of the UCCP Visayas Community Medical Center in Cebu City. It is therefore more than unfortunate that Dr Alex Montes’ and his coworkers were arrested and detained while they were involved in legitimate activities of humanitarian services as part of their Christian witness.

In these circumstances, Your Excellency, the WCC calls for the respect of the human rights of Dr Alex Montes and the 42 other detained health workers, including their rights to legal counsel, access to visitors, and due process, as guaranteed by the Philippines Constitution and international human rights Instruments to which the Philippines is a signatory. I urge the authorities to ensure the immediate release of Dr Montes and his co-workers.

Yours faithfully,

Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit
General secretary
World Council of Churches

cc:
Atty. Agnes Devanadera, Secretary, Department of Justice
HE Norberto Gonzales, Secretary, Department of National Defense
Atty. Leila De Lima, Chairperson, Commission on Human Rights
Bishop Eliezer M. Pascua, General Secretary, UCCP
Gen. Avelino Razon, Ret. PNP, Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process

Statement of the National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP)

NATIONAL COUNCIL OF CHURCHES IN THE PHILIPPINES
February 9, 2010

PRESS STATEMENT

Free the 43 Health Workers

The National Council of Churches in the Philippines expresses extreme alarm over the arrest and continued detention of forty three health workers who participated in a training conducted by a non-government organization, the Council for Health and Development. Reports say they were arrested in Morong, Rizal on February 6 in the residence of Dr. Melicia Velmonte.?Since their arrest, they have been denied visits of relatives and friends. It was only through the intervention this morning of Commissioner Leila de Lima of the Commission on Human Rights that some of the relatives were able to see their loved ones. Reports said that the detainees were tortured. The detained health workers include Dr. Alexis Montes, a member and former national health program coordinator of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines. Dr. Montes was a member of the NCCP’s Commission on Faith, Witness and Service at one time. A news report stated the AFP accused Dr. Montes as a member of a special unit of the New People’s Army (NPA) formed to liquidate General Jovito Palparan.

This latest assault on human rights is a manifestation of a dysfunctional system claiming democracy yet denying basic rights to its citizens. It is a system where warlords are entitled their rights if not coddled by the powers that be while members of NGOs and people's organizations are not. It is a system where those who cause people's pain are allowed their maximum day in court and are even set free while those who ease the people’s pain are labeled members of the NPA, leftists, communists, ad infinitum, arrested and tortured then denied any right, constitutional or otherwise.

Such is the intention of the anti-insurgency policy of the state through Oplan Bantay Laya II. There can be no better ingredient for more social and political dissent than the brazen affront to human dignity like, illegal arrests and detention, extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances. The best ingredient to quell any further dissent is to resolve once and for all the festering issues of corruption, poor governance, agrarian unrest, development aggression and political degeneration that have confined the people in this republic in a state of misery and poverty.

We appeal to the authorities to release these health workers. With a dwindling budget for health, the least the government could do is to support non-government initiatives whose leaders and constituents, more often than not, represent the ideals of genuine community service and Christian selflessness. We also reiterate our call for the government to adopt and heed the recommendations of Prof. Philip Alston, the Special Rapporteur on extra judicial, summary or arbitrary executions, particularly to review its counter-insurgency program. Oplan Bantay Laya is an instrument for terror. It has no place in a democratic society.

To our partners around the world, please continue to uphold us in your prayers and be unceasing in your solidarity with us.


REV. REX RB REYES, JR.
General Secretary

Statement of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP)

UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST IN THE PHILIPPINES
L.M. Vasquez Street, Malate, Manila
Tel. # (02) 536-8005; Email Add: uccpnaof@yahoo.com



Release Dr. Alexis Montes and other detained health workers!

“Freedom is what we have—Christ has set us free! Stand, then as free people and do not allow yourselves to become slaves again.” Galatians 5:1

Dr. Alexis Montes, a lay leader in the health ministry of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines, is a victim of illegal arrest, disappearance and detention. The United Church of Christ in the Philippines resolutely calls for an end to de-facto martial law tactics on the part of the Armed Forces in the Philippines and the Philippine National Police. We call for the respect of the human rights of Dr. Alex Montes and the 42 other detained health workers, including their rights to legal counsel, access to visitors, and due process. The ludicrous allegation that Dr. Alex was involved in a bomb-making training is deplorable; Dr Alex is a respected leader in the healing ministry of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines. We stand united and call for his release!

In the early morning (6am) of February 6, 2010, Dr. Alexis (Alex) Montes was illegally arrested and detained by the 202nd Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army and the Rizal Philippine National Police. The Community Medical Foundation, Inc. (COMMED), where Dr. Alex Montes is currently employed, co-sponsored a First Responders Training for health workers in Morong, Rizal beginning February 1, 2010; Dr. Alex was assigned in the conducting of the training. Initial reports say that more than 300 military and police raided the retreat center at gunpoint. They arrested the 43 participants before even searching the premises. They later showed a shoddy search warrant for a certain Mario Condes as supposed basis for their raid. Dr. Alex was blindfolded and taken away in a military truck and we have not been able to confirm his whereabouts. It is suspected that Dr. Alex and the others are being held Camp Capinpin, Samaploc, Tanay, Rizal, but access has been denied to lawyers, family, colleagues and pastors who have tried to visit them.

The military alleges that the training was actually on bomb making. They claim to have found C4 explosives, a pistol, a revolver, three grenades, three Claymor mines and an improvised landmine. (Philippine Daily Inquirer, February 7, 2010) However, Dr. Melecia Velmonte who owns the retreat center where the training was being conducted asserted that the military had no witness to their search operations and would have easily planted the ammunitions. Dr. Velmonte also gave a lecture on infectious diseases at the training, but was not arrested with the other participants.

Dr. Alex Montes has been a long-time staff of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines. From 1988-2003, Dr. Montes served as the Health Ministries Coordinator of the Christian Witness and Service program of the UCCP. He also served as Executive Secretary of Bishop Elmer Bolocon from 2001-2002. Dr. Alex has been instrumental in the development of UCCP hospitals, but his passion as always been providing health services to the underprivileged. Dr. Alex Montes has helped develop the community-based health programs of many of our institutions. Immediately prior to his service with The Community Medical Foundation, Dr. Montes was developing community-based health programs of the UCCP Visayas Community Medical Center in Cebu City. He served as Assistant to the Administrator for Internal and External Programs and Projects from 2007-2009.

We appeal to your support through the following actions:• Pray that Dr. Alexis Montes and the other 42 health workers will be surfaced and released.
• Write a letter to the following addresses and appeal for due process of the 43 detained health workers and especially for Dr. Alex Montez, respected UCCP lay leader.

You may send your communications to:
H.E. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
President of the Republic
Malacañang Palace,
JP Laurel St., San Miguel
Manila Philippines
Voice: (+632) 564 1451 to 80
Fax: (+632) 742-1641 / 929-3968
Cell#: (+ 63) 919 898 4622 / (+63) 917 839 8462
E-mail: corres@op.gov.ph / opnet@ops.gov.ph

Gen. Avelino Razon, Ret. PNP
Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process
Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP)
7th Floor Agustin Building I
Emerald Avenue
Pasig City 1605
Voice:+63 (2) 636 0701 to 066
Fax:+63 (2) 638 2216
osec@opapp.gov.ph

Norberto Gonzales
Secretary, Department of National Defense
Room 301 DND Building, Camp Emilio Aguinaldo,
E. de los Santos Avenue, Quezon City
Voice:+63(2) 911-9281 / 911-0488
Fax:+63(2) 911 6213
Email: osnd@philonline.com

Atty. Agnes Devanadera
Secretary, Department of Justice
Padre Faura St., Manila
Direct Line 521-8344; 5213721
Trunkline 523-84-81 loc.214
Fax: (+632) 521-1614
Email: soj@doj.gov.ph

Atty. Leila De Lima
Chairperson, Commission on Human Rights
SAAC Bldg., UP Complex
Commonwealth Avenue
Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines
Voice: (+632) 928-5655, 926-6188
Fax: (+632) 929 0102
Email: chr.delima@yahoo.com


For Reference:
Bishop Eliezer M. Pascua
General Secretary
0917-8057167

Statement of Solidarity from the Presbyterian Church in the Republic of Korea (PROK)

18 February 2010

SOLIDARITY STATEMENT

“Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick…”
Mark 2:17

The Presbyterian Church in the Republic of Korea (PROK) expresses solidarity to the forty three (43) health workers who were illegally arrested on February 6th while attending a seminar conducted by a non-government organization, the Council for Health and Development, in Morong town, Rizal province in the Philippines. The health workers were brought to Camp Capinpin, Rizal where they were detained and tortured. Since their arrest, they have been denied visits of relatives and friends. It was only through the intervention of Commissioner Leila de Lima of the Commission on Human Rights that some of the relatives were able to see their loved ones on Tuesday, February 9th. A writ of habeas corpus has been filed by the family members of the detained health workers in the Supreme Court.

The detained health workers include Dr. Alexis Montes, a member and former national health program coordinator of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines. The arrest, detention, torture and false accusations hurled on him are intended to malign the Christian commitment and service Dr. Alexis Montes has been giving to the poor, deprived and oppressed communities in the Philippine society.

In this situation of the 43 detained and tortured Filipino health workers, we assert the statement of Jesus Christ, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick…” which is an ethical assertion of attending to the health needs of the poor and sick people that these 43 health workers have unselfishly responded to. Therefore, we join the World Council of Churches, the Christian Conference of Asia, the National Council of Churches in the Philippines and our partner church the United Church of Christ in the Philippines in calling for the respect of the human rights of Dr. Alexis Montes and the 42 other detained health workers, including their rights to legal counsel, access to visitors, and due process, as guaranteed by the Philippines Constitution and international human rights instruments to which the Philippines is a signatory. We urge the authorities to ensure the immediate release of Dr Montes and his co-workers.


REV. BAE TAE-JIN
General Secretary
The Presbyterian Church in the Republic of Korea (PROK)