Be the change

Moderate their greed.

Permissible zone. I’ve tried to live with these phrases all week. It’s crazy, isn’t it, once it’s laid out that way? We have reached such a state of acceptance and resignation that our internal moral compasses have calibrated to accommodate corruption. It is as natural as brushing your teeth. Corruption is the norm in government and business and the players keep raising the stakes. I know people who refuse to pay their taxes. Isn’t the reason crystal clear? They know their money is going to somebody else’s pocket — somebody who least deserves it. Jun Lozada’s permissible zone for kickbacks was $65 million. The numbers are dizzying.

I don’t admire Lozada for having a permissible zone, but I admire him for not allowing his soul to die. It takes courage to do what he did. It is proof of the unifying power of human transformation. Our nation is so starved for a public and authentic show of goodness. We are thirsty for the life-altering triumph of good over evil. People like Lozada soothe our longing for the human spirit to shine again. Despite his permissible zone, there was a part of Jun Lozada that refused to be corrupted and that little pinprick of light is what touches so many of us today. This is why there is such a strong move to support and protect him: in him we recognize that in us which is incorruptible. That is the Christ in us and if one has the moral strength to work and live out of that space, the possibilities for humanity and the world are endless.

I was listening to the Senate hearing two Fridays ago, on my way to Baguio for a PAGASA workshop. When names started popping up and Lozada was saying that he actually had conversations with people in government during his abduction (oh please, don’t even try to tell me otherwise), my partner kept shaking his head at the sheer stupidity of them all. How could these high-profile goons expose themselves so? The answer is frightening: arrogance. They are so sure that no matter what else happens, they will be able to manage it. They are certain of success and immunity. It is not carelessness. It is arrogance. It is hubris. It is pure evil.

It does not take a genius to see who is innocent and guilty in the hearings. You see it on their faces, through their body language; you see it in their eyes. That is nature: what is inside seeps through. Though Jun Lozada is tormented, the truth really has set him free. He is the only one who seems able to breathe. His face, despite his still obvious turmoil, is clear. Really, there is nothing that sets things straight faster and more deeply than coming into the light. It is a pity that truth is wielded as the last resort in this town, yet we embrace it gladly no matter when it comes.

It is clear this madness has to stop and we are all scrambling to figure it out. Though I am thoroughly disgusted by the evil that has taken hold of this country, I can’t help but feel even more hopeful that a big change is finally coming through. The perpetrators continue to spin their web of deceit, thus showing us who they really are. There is no denying evil now and I am confident that the sight, sound and stench of that will rouse even the most apathetic citizen from his sleep. Now it is up to us to make sure we see clearly and act accordingly because we cannot allow them to go on. For as long as these people run the country and continue to sow greed and dishonesty, we are not free. It is that simple. For as long as people are unable to live in truth without fearing for their lives, there is no freedom. It is 2008, yet the Filipino is not free, still held hostage by our own.

I do not know how this particular crisis will end, but I do know, with my own eyes and ears — my very heart — that the true moral revolution has begun. During our PAGASA workshops, we see how everyone is beginning to see that change must begin inside him. We know that lies — if we do not want them to poison our children — must be quelled within us. Truth, if we want that to be the norm, must live and breathe in us. There are no permissible zones.

How have you contributed to the moral poison that runs in our society today? This is a question everyone needs to address. We cannot sit in the comfort of our homes, judging the sleazeballs on television, without first taking a good look at ourselves. Have you broken any laws lately, bought a license plate from the PNP or any other organization that exempts your vehicle from color-coding, lied to your children, unleashed something in your area of work that you know to be detrimental to the Filipino soul, cheated on your spouse, or been anything other than honest, truthful and upright? Hard, isn’t it? But that is exactly what is needed to turn our country around. We need to have the will to manifest change in our lives first.

There are many good Filipinos who will not see this country pillaged. Many are willing to work on themselves to see these changes take hold at last. We realize that systems cannot be changed until each one is willing to take responsibility for being the change, no matter what it takes. Many of us are already doing our share today. In our world, greed is not moderated; it is transformed into service. The days of fighting on the strength of mere indignation are over. We realize that every effort must come from us today.

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Are you ready to be the change? Join our ongoing workshop, “Inner Change for Societal Transformation.” E-mail us at pagasa@mac.com or call/text us at 0906-5002747. Let us begin the journey of authentic change, healing and restoration today.

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