Out of context

It is very interesting to see how a simple recent visit to the Pope elicited so much interpretations and reactions.

It could have been just an ordinary visit, preparatory to a family holiday outing (passed off as official travel, according to critics). The official expressed goals for the Papal visit were articulated by GMA's spokespersons.

GMA, however, came out of that simple visit acting as a spokesperson for Pope Benedict who was obviously delighted with the gift of the recent passage of the abolition of the death penalty in the Philippines.

GMA interpreted and extended the Pope's remark about that gift as total approval for her governance style and policies. She even went beyond that.

The Pope's encyclical gifted to her, GMA said, clearly stated that the Filipino church officials should not interfere with government ( Read: Her government). Did she make that comment after having completely read the full encyclical that the Pope gave her? Apparently not. She seems to have made her comment shortly after just having visited the Pope. What was her basis then for that pointed remark intended for her critics among the Filipino church officials?

A paragraph here, some sentences there, that she quickly read and lifted from the encyclical?

Of course, this is the same person who said "I am sorry" on national TV but did not explain why. This is the same GMA who, until now, has not spoken the full truth, the full context of this Garci episode being awaited by the Filipino people.

This is also the same person who said there was no martial law but who went ahead just the same to challenge our freedom of speech, press, and assembly.

This is the same person in whose term so many have been arrested, abducted, or killed without due process.

There is no point in repeating the numerous commentaries written and said about the credibility and integrity of this official who recently went to Rome to visit the Pope.

Now the CBCP has clarified the true and full context of the encyclical of the new Pope. By doing so, GMA is admonished by the CBCP to put her interpretations of the Pope's remarks as well as her understanding of the role of the church and the state in proper context, not out of the true, complete context of the encyclical.

It seems to be GMA's style to insist on her own interpretation and her own defined context for her interpretations.

For instance, she interprets that the Senate is hostile and rude to her cabinet members, the military and other government officials. She only sees the rudeness and hostility; she seems not to have seen that the hostility and rudeness were responses to the earlier refusal of her subordinates to truthfully and completely answer simple questions about alleged anomalous deals and transactions entered into by her administration.

GMA does not seem to be alone in putting things out of proper context. Is it true that GMA's husband tried to "broker" with the Pope the case of two Filipino saints he claims to be his relatives? If so, did he do this because he is so used to the patronage and the palakasan system in this administration in this country that he thought he could do the same in Rome? If what they alleged about the brokering for his relative-saints is true, now, that is truly a classic case of behaving way, way out of proper context.

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