Whom shall I fear?

Friday, 17 October 2008 17:48 Fr. Robert Reyes

28^th Week in Ordinary Time

I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who put to death the body and after that can do no more. But I will tell you whom to fear: Fear the One who after killing you is able to throw you into hell.

Luke 12:1-7

28th Week in Ordinary Time I work for an NGO that monitors human rights violations in South Asia and South East Asia. My daily fare is news about the unrelenting and even increasing violence in countries as reported by colleagues who are actually citizens of these countries. One of my colleagues comes from Pakistan. The situation in Pakistan under former President Musharraf depicted the dangers of one man rule which led to the rapid deterioration of the rule of law. Militant Pakistani lawyers took to the streets and fought for and with a Chief Justice who became a symbolic pillar in a floundering justice system. Supporters of the President harassed lawyers and judges, who instead of buckling down, stood up and fought valiantly for an institution that was not only their bread and butter but also the guarantor of people's rights and liberty. I have often asked myself, what if Filipino lawyers were as courageous ?

Another colleague of mine is from Sri Lanka. He told me about the Christian Solidarity Movement which has taken up the plight of the Tamils in the North. A few weeks ago, the CSM went to a parish where a priest preached about and against the persecution the Tamils were suffering in the hands of the Sinhalese military. After mass, members of the CSM left the church and went to the people to beg for donations for the thousands of displaced Tamils because of the war. This priest is now under threat. One Sri Lankan official even said, "Don't force us to lose our respect for you as priest!" I asked my Sri Lankan colleague whether the Catholic Bishops were supportive of the CSM. His answer was a quiet and disappointing, "They have merely given priests and religious the freedom but they are not part of CSM." The Bishops of the South are quiet. Only priests and religious are actively involved with the CSM. This reminds me of what happened in Burma during the most recent "Saffron Revolution." While the Buddhist monks were being beaten up and some murdered, the Catholic Bishops kept quiet and even issued a pastoral letter discouraging priests and nuns to get involved.

How are we in the Philippines today? Have we grown in courage and conviction or are we quickly becoming mere shadows of what we are called to be?

President Musharraf made every effort to intimidate the lawyers, from the Chief Justice to the youngest lawyers of the land. The Burmese Military Junta does the same while the world watches with sadness the quiet protest of Aung San Suu Kyi and the non-violent protests of peaceful monks. Fear seems to have once more descended upon Burma, recently ravished by a killer typhoon but for several decades mercilessly ravaged by a Military Junta.

We are witnesses to Buddhists and Christians whose faith are a source of courage and inspiration in the struggle for justice and peace. We have seen the same in the past but also see the opposite happening today. Jesus' warning then could not have come at a better time, "I tell you friends, do not fear those who put to death the body and after that can do no more."

Jesus, fearless prophet, prince of peace, fill us with your spirit of courage and conviction so that we can speak and act with and for those crushed and oppressed by the violence of cowardly and greedy leaders. You criticized and denounced the Pharisees of your time. Teach us not to fear the Pharisees of today and if need be denounced them as you did . Amen.

Photo "Medo/Fear" by xaimex on flickr; licensed under Creative Commons License BY-NC-SA-2.0.

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