A PARTING MESSAGE

The Radio Maria of Tuguegarao City invited me yesterday to share something of myself in their Radio Program “TRUE CONFESSIONS”. Towards the end of the program they asked me to give a Parting Message. The following is the message I gave.

This year 2011 I shall be reaching the age of 83. People at this age are usually considered to be already at the departure area. Before I depart, however, there are two (2) things which I strongly suggest the Filipino people will consider seriously.

First, is in the field of Religion.
Today, June 12, 2011, we are celebrating the Feast of Pentecost. Pentecost is considered the Birth of the Church founded by Christ. Our Church in the Philippines, I believe, needs to be reborn. Rev. Fr. Horacio de la Costa, SJ, in one of his homilies said: “In our country we are confronted with the problem of restoring Christ to a society no longer Christian. It may call itself Christian, it may even call itself Catholic; but its standards of action of both public and private life are certainly not those of Christ. Such a society is beyond repair. It must be reconstructed from top to bottom; it must be, in a sense, reborn. Christ must be reborn in it. His truth, His way, His abounding life, at every level, in the home, in the shop, in the office, in the councils of government.”

For the Church to be reborn, Rev. Fr. Catalino Arevalo, SJ, speaking at the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines in 1991 said: “The Church must be like GOD. GOD in Latin is DEUS. Like God, there must be Diversity, Equality, Unity and Sharing. Hence, in the Church there should be a Diversity of Functions, but Equality in Dignity, and true love should lead to Unity and Sharing of resources. In our Church today, there is still too much of division, instead of unity. If only we could truly practice what Christ said: “Love one another as I have loved you”, I believe we can become a Church, a Community of Believers, like the model of God Himself.

Second, is in the field of economics.
In our country we have been grappling with the problem of poverty. I believe that a very effective way of addressing this problem is the COOPERATIVE SYSTEM. In the cooperative system, it is man that talks; while in the Capitalistic system, it is money that talks. In the Cooperative system, the main motive is service, while in the Capitalistic system, the main motive is profit. In the Cooperative system, the net savings are distributed equitably to those who contributed to the income of the Coop, while in the Capitalistic system, the net profit goes mostly to those who provided the capital or investment. Hence, it is in the Cooperative system that a just and fair distribution of wealth can be realized, while in the capitalistic system, the rich become richer and richer and the poor become poorer and poorer.

This, therefore, is my parting message. I wonder how many will listen to this message and how many will consider it seriously and take the necessary action towards its implementation. I would like to believe, however, that it may be like a seed that I planted today, and hope that somehow it shall be watered by others who agree with me, so that with the grace of God, our Church in the Philippines will be reborn, and our people shall be lifted up from the oppressive burden of poverty.

by: Salvador 'Buddy' Cagurangan
June 13, 2011

WHO AM I?

“WHO AM I?” This is the question I have asked myself time and again in order to find meaning to my life. My reflections have made me realize important facts about myself.

My very existence is a fact. But how did I come into existence? I realize that I could not have come into existence by my own power. Before coming into existence I realize that I was simply nothing. Someone, then, must have brought me into existence. That someone to me is “GOD”.

In bringing me into existence, God must have a reason. It is in this reason that I must find the meaning to my life.

God, certainly, is the greatest mystery in this world. No human being can ever fully comprehend him. But, somehow, we can get a glimpse of Who He is from what He has created in this world. This whole world is, indeed, a great universe full of creatures with immense powers and capacities. Be that as it is, they all depend for their existence in the creative power of Almighty GOD. Hence, God must be Someone greater than the whole universe – whose being is a MYSTERY beyond any human understanding. However, our Christian Faith, tells us that God has revealed himself thru his own beloved Son, Jesus Christ, who became Man like us, so that we could become like Him a Child of God.

Jesus Christ, during his historical life here on earth, taught us that GOD is our FATHER, that He loves each and everyone of us, and that He has destined us to be with Him forever in His kingdom where there will be everlasting peace and joy.

From these revelations of God Himself, I must find the meaning to my life.

If God is our Father, then as His child I must obey Him by doing whatever He wants me to do. Doing His Will in all circumstances and at all times must be the reason for my existence. This is what Christ Himself taught in the Lord’s Prayer: “Thy Will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

The above reflections actually dwell on what spiritual writers, like Rev. Fr. Horacio de la Costa, SJ, consider to be the most important truth in the world, namely, about God and man. In his homily at a Baccalaureate Mass of the University of the East, Manila, Fr. De la Costa said: “The most important truth in the world is the truth about God and man. Though you should learn all things else, if you fail to learn that, you have learned nothing. For that, and that alone, is what gives value to our knowledge and meaning and direction in our lives. It is the map that tells us what the harbor is to which we must steer our ship across the waters of this life.”

Knowing who I am – one who was nothing but brought into existence by the creative power of God – I realize my complete dependence on God Who created me and continues to sustain my being. I, therefore, have no other reason to exist but to do whatever God wants me to do.

Realizing the greatness of God, His immense power and His infinite goodness and love for all mankind whom He has created, I surrender myself entirely to Him, put all my trust in Him, fully convinced that God, indeed, is the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, and with Him everything will turn out well.

by: Salvador 'Buddy' Cagurangan
June 12, 2011