Holy Week reflections

This is the week of atonement for the past year’s sins. Penitents flog themselves in public or are nailed to crosses. Devotees go on mountain pilgrimages. People suffer through their neighbors’ ululation, complete with loudspeakers, of Christ’s Passion.

With so much religious fervor in the only predominantly Catholic country in Asia, you wonder why there is so much corruption in government and so much dysfunction in Philippine society that we are on the brink of being tagged as a failed state.

If all that passion for doing good could be sustained beyond one week and channeled into civic responsibility, our country will be a much better place.

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For sure there is a lot of Christian goodness out there that is being affirmed this week as the suffering of Christ is remembered. And for sure there is a lot of genuine remorse out there for sins big and small, and there are many spirits in genuine need of redemption.

But we also see a lot of superficial devotion, and seasonal passion that could be put to better use if translated into long-term responsible citizenship.

That superficial devotion must have been handed down from the Spanish colonial era, when the faithful reserved a seat in Heaven through "indulgences" obtained through donations to charities or, more specifically, to the Church. Obviously the system gave an edge to the upper class; for unfortunate peasants, Heaven had to wait. I don’t know how the system could be reconciled with the teachings at the Sermon on the Mount.

We see the system carried over in devotees like Imelda Marcos, a regular churchgoer who during her days in power kept a collection of priceless religious icons studded with precious stones and pearls at Malacañang.

Former Calauan town mayor Antonio Sanchez kept a similar though less extensive collection and was a proclaimed devotee of "Mama Mary." I bet he has not lost his faith now that he’s locked up for life for rape and double murder.

We’ve heard stories – entirely believable in our culture — about political warlords who walk on bended knees in church before ordering a hit on their enemies.

Don’t vile deeds weigh on the conscience of the devout? Sure. Except for criminal acts that require imprisonment such as murder with rape, however, Catholic sinners have a convenient way of redemption: repent and confess, then recite three Our Fathers and 10 Hail Marys, or whatever is recommended by the priest at the confessional. And voila – your soul is good as new.

Penance is possible as often as once a week. I don’t think there’s a special place in Hell for recidivists.

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When we were children we memorized the Seven Deadly Sins and dutifully confessed every infraction to priests. Then there were the 10 Commandments. While we knew the odds were small that we would kill someone, we learned early on that stealing was a big sin, and there were many ways of taking the Lord’s name in vain and dishonoring our father and mother. Those sins were added to our confessions.

By the time we grew up, however, many of us routinely bore false witness against our neighbors, coveted our neighbors’ goods, took the Lord’s name in vain, ignored our parents, and no longer considered the Seven Deadly Sins worthy of confession. Anger, greed? It’s called human nature.

We see so many government officials who cultivate a devout image in public but keep several mistresses that we have come up with a joke: if a man has four wives, he’s a Muslim; if he has more he’s a Catholic.

We fail even in little things that matter. From childhood we are taught that cleanliness is next to godliness. Yet as people prepared this year for Holy Week vacations, the head of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources found it necessary to remind everyone about proper garbage disposal. Secretary Michael Defensor said that in previous years, discarded cigarette butts have triggered brush fires along the roads leading out of Metro Manila.

Last year Mt. Banahaw, a popular pilgrimage site, had to be closed to tourists after volunteers collected 11 truckloads of garbage from the area. The garbage consisted mostly of discarded food containers. Roads leading to tourist destinations are also littered with soft drink cans, discarded tissue paper and even half-eaten sandwiches.

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Other countries without religion have strong traditions or social codes that encourage honesty, cleanliness, discipline and commitment to the greater good. These are cultures where government officials have an acute sense of honor and public accountability. They don’t talk of delicadeza, but they readily accept blame for failures and resign when accused of impropriety, even when they are blameless. These are cultures where citizens have an equally acute sense of civic responsibility.

These traits we fail to develop even as we study our Catechism and memorize the 10 Commandments and the Seven Deadly Sins.

The Church has reminded the faithful that Holy Week is not just a time for beach parties and grand vacations but also for reflection. There are many points for reflection as we watch penitents being nailed to crosses this week.