EDITORIAL - Pacquiao is not God

The problem with Manny Pacquiao preaching is that, taken by itself, there is nothing anyone can say against a person turning to God and sharing the Good News with others. A person who does so is to be emulated, not criticized.

But the Bible is not the only thing on Pacquiao’s plate. Aside from minor distractions, of which there are many, at least three major ones preoccupy much of his time — as the country’s greatest pride in boxing, as a promising politician, and as a father to four young children.

Early this June, Pacquiao will be fighting Timothy Bradley. But he is not going full-time with his training and has been shunting between boxing and preaching, after shelving legislative duties as a congressman.

Pacquiao does not appear worried by his “lack of focus” and is confident God will give him strength. Filipinos are devout Catholics but probably do not share his confidence. God may be all-loving, even to those who do not preach, but He still helps those who help themselves.

It is not clear why it never occurred to Pacquiao that he was already truly blessed even in those times when preaching was still not part of his expanding horizon. To God, it was enough that he trained religiously and then dropped sincerely to his knees in prayer in his corner.

Pacquiao cannot train haphazardly on the belief that God will give him strength through his preaching. God is not greedy and understands the capacity of every man he chooses to play a particular role.

Maybe Pacquiao does not think too highly of Bradley. And being the one who will climb the ring against the American fighter, maybe he knows what he is doing. Still boxing is boxing. All it takes is one punch to change the course of one’s destiny.

As a recently self-discovered Bible preacher, Pacquiao ought to be well aware of that passage from Ecclesiastes 3:1 that goes — “there is a time for everything...” Pacquiao has to choose his one great undertaking. He cannot be many things at the same time. He is not God.