Everything for the good

Reviewing 2005 as it draws to a close evokes a mixed feeling of gratitude or ingratitude, optimism or pessimism, calmness or anxiety. Any which way however, there are always enough reasons to be thankful for the year about to end and to be hopeful for the year about to begin. We should just bear in mind that "in everything God works for the good of those who love Him, whom He has called according to His plan" (Romans 8: 28). This is a reminder reiterated in more contemporary times by a great Saint who has helped and enabled so many Catholic faithful to cope with the hardships and to endure difficulties with his reassuring words that "God allows things to happen to draw out the good from them" because "everything is for the good" (Omnia in Bonum, The Way, by St. Josemaria Escriva).

"Everything is for the good" may really be the most appropriate slogan for our people during this seemingly endless period of political turmoil caused by our feuding politicians. Something good may indeed be in the offing from the adverse reactions to every unfulfilled expectation of our warring public officials belonging to opposite sides of the fence. Later on when we look back to this turbulent period, we will understand and appreciate all the seemingly unfavorable events happening in our country today.

Looking at the bright side of the happenings in our country should not however push us into complacency and passivity. The good in everything that takes place only comes out if and when we act to prevent the occurrence of what is clearly evil or wrong. What is important is for us to take a stand and to act in the face of what we perceived to be wrong. The prospects of failure should not deter us from doing what we believe is right. If things do not turn out the way we want them to be, maybe we should try again because our efforts are not enough or maybe our failed expectations are not based on reality. The confluence of events and circumstances will tell us when to stop. It is better to have acted and failed than not to have acted at all.

There is one person I know who has lived up to this saying that everything is for the good. He is not a politician, he is not famous and he goes about performing a task called for by his profession, quietly, dedicatedly, resolutely and without so much fanfare. He is my person of the year because for so many years now he has spearheaded a very important activity that is considered one of the pillars in our criminal justice system–the prison ministry. He has inspired other religious and lay people in the community to do spiritual and corporal works of mercy inside the Quezon City jail by organizing the Preso Foundation which undertakes regular monthly legal, medical, and other social services for the inmates. He is Fr. Anthony Ranada, SVD. Fr. Tony, as he is fondly called, believes that the detainees in that over congested jail deserve a better treatment because they are not yet strictly speaking convicted criminals as the charges against them are still pending trial. They are presumed innocent until proven guilty. Statistics somehow proved him right as about 70% of those inside are later on invariably acquitted after so many years of languishing inside because of an excessively protracted trial. Year in and year out, Fr. Tony has fought for the improvement of the sub-human conditions of the jail and for the protection of the human rights and dignity of the detainees, sometimes almost single handedly. He believes that our penal system should not be anchored on the principle of retributive justice but on reformative justice; that imprisonment should be imposed not so much as a reprisal for the harm done to the victims and to the community but more as a rehabilitation of the convicted offender. Hence Fr. Tony Ranada, SVD, not only deserves to be commended but to be supported for his works in the prison ministry. He is one of the many unsung heroes working silently but making a difference in this world so that it will be a better place to live in.

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