Walk for Life

Cardinal Tagle delivering his message during the Walk for Life 2018.
 (Photo courtesy of CBCPNews)

WALK FOR LIFE is in its third year and it has already taken a name in the consciousness of many people. It was organized by the Sangguniang Laiko ng Pilipinas, an organization of about 50 national Catholic lay groups and another 50 diocesan councils of the laity all over the country. After more than 6 months of unabated extrajudicial killings in the name of the Drug War the lay faithful sought a way to express their stance for life. Thus the first Walk for Life was hastily organized in February of 2017. It was the first of such event and there was not enough time to organize it, but it was amazingly participated in by several bishops, priests and many lay organizations, even as far as Bontok-Lagawe from the Cordilleras. Those not religiously oriented but are concerned to protect life and basic human rights also joined in.

A conservative estimate of 15,000 people participated in Luneta event. It is a Walk and not a Fun Run to show that it is an activity not only for the young and the athletic but for the whole family. By going out and standing up, the event is meant to show our common stance for life. It is held early in the morning, at four o’clock, so that it may not conflict with any other schedule of the day and it will really show the intentionality of the participants to take join in. Anyway, in the Catholic tradition in the Philippines we have many early dawn activities that are well participated in by the people, such as the monthly dawn processions in many parishes, the Misa de Gallo masses in the Christmas season, the Salubong during Easter, and in some places the dawn Way of the Cross on Good Fridays. Truly enough, the early morning schedule did not prevent, but instead promoted the participation of the people.

The next year, in February of 2018, the Walk for Life expanded to other places. Besides the one in Manila, which was again well participated, other Walks for Life were done in Tarlac City, in Gumaca, in Cebu city and in Cagayan de Oro—all organized by the lay people in those places. This year it further expanded to more cities, now Tarlac City and Dagupan City in Luzon, Cebu City and Palo and Ormoc in the Visayas, and in Cagayan de Oro in Mindanao. Slowly the lay people are standing up to their mission of promoting Christian values in society.

Not only has the Walk for Life expanded to more places. More issues are also included in the Walk. We are concerned for life and its fullness. Hence we denounce all practices and policies that deprive people of life’s fullness. There is still the continuing issue of the EJKs, but now we also look at the orphaned spouses, parents, children, and siblings who are victimized and traumatized by these senseless killings. We also denounce abortion and attempts to promote abortifacient contraception drugs. We speak out against policies that destroy the environment. The sufferings of the poor are being aggravated by economic policies that victimize them, like the continued contractualization of labor, the continued inflation that painfully hit the poor, the slow implementation of agrarian reform, and the oppression of the coconut farmers. We also include the breakdown of the peace talks which brings a lot of harassment and even death to the farmers and the lumads,  and now the acts of terrorism in the bombings of churches and mosques. Human rights are still continually violated. All of these and still others are issues of life.

We ask all people of good will to participate in the Walk for life, which this year will be done in Quezon City Circle on February 16, still at 4 o’clock in the morning. Our evangelical brothers and sisters and the faithful of other faith persuasions support us in this. It is a space by which we can together express our position to stand for life. It will also be a time to pray for life, for the policy makers, and for the advocates for justice and peace. Cardinal Tagle and several bishops, priests and religious will join in this expression of solidarity for life because Jesus our Savior has come that we may have life and life to the full.He is the Life of the world.

Free for Greater Service

BY baptism we enter the fellowship of believers. We become members of the Church, which is both a spiritual and a temporal entity. The Church is our family in the faith. Being part of the family each one of us is to support it, both materially and spiritually. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states: “The faithful have the duty of providing for the material needs of the Church, each according to his abilities.” (CCC #2043) The Code of Canon Law, which is the law of the Church, also says: “Christ’s faithful have the obligation to provide for the needs of the Church, so that the Church has available to it those things which are necessary for divine worship, for apostolic and charitable work and for the worthy support of its ministers.” (CCL 222) These teachings are grounded on the Scriptures which tell us that we support those who proclaim the Good News to us.

·      “It is written in the law of Moses, ‘You shall not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.’ Is God concerned about oxen, or is he not really speaking for our sake? It was written for our sake, because the plowman should plow in hope, and the thresher in hope of receiving a share. If we have sown spiritual seed for you, is it a great thing that we reap a material harvest from you?” (1 Cor 9:9-11)

·      “Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, ‘You shall not muzzle the ox while he is threshing,’ and ‘The laborer is worthy of his wages.’” (1 Tim 5:17-18)

How the Church is supported by the faithful has evolved in history and is exercised in different ways:

·      Before, in the Philippines during the Spanish period, by the Patronato Real System. The Spanish crown materially supported the work of the missionaries.

·      In Germany even in our days, by taxes taken by the government from the faithful and given to their Church.

·      In the Philippines now, by the Arancel System, that is, fixed amount whether seen as dues or donations, given for certain services rendered. The amount is attached to the service requested.

·      Many religious groups now in the Philippines now make use of the tithing system or the pledge system to maintain their operations.

During the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines in 1991, after much debate, the body came out with this decree: “Tithing, after a good pastoral catechesis, shall be introduced with the end in view of the gradual abolition of the Arancel System.” (PCP II decree 118) That was 28 years ago!

Why the move away from the Arancel System?

·      Many get the impression that the services of the Church are for sale because of the amount attached to it. We cannot avoid this perception in our highly commercialized mentality.

·      Many poor are kept away or shy away from receiving the services of the Church because of the amount attached. Although the amount does not comprise all the expenses people put into the celebrations, which has become a social event in the family, nonetheless they add to the cost.

·      People perceive favoritism towards the rich because they have the means to pay. The rich have no difficulty meeting these obligations even if we raise the amount to discourage “special” considerations. They can always afford our “special baptisms” or “special marriages.”

·      This system of the arancel is open to many abuses and misperception, even in our parishes.

Pope Francis asks that “in every Christian community the poor feel at home. Would not this approach be the greatest and most effective presentation of the good news of the kingdom?” (Evangelii Gaudium 199) He wrote that “the worst discrimination which the poor suffer is the lack of spiritual care. The great majority of the poor have a special openness to the faith; they need God and we must not fail to offer them his friendship, his blessing, his word, the celebration of the sacraments and a journey of growth and maturity in the faith. (Evangelii Gaudium 200) In fact he emphatically stated: “Our preferential option for the poor must mainly translate into a privileged and preferential religious care.” (Evangelii Gaudium 200) We manifest this preferential religious care by making available to them all the services of the Church for free.

As Church in the Philippines we affirm the decree of the PCP II to abolish the arancel and we strive that this be our situation by the time we celebrate the 500th anniversary of the coming of the Christian faith in the country in 2021.

Required for this shift to happen?

1. Adequate catechesis both for priests and lay faithful. This catechesis promotes

the spirituality of stewardship and evangelical poverty for all, including the priests, because the Church of the Poor embraces and practices the spirit of evangelical poverty; it combines detachment from possessions with profound trust to the Lord.

2. Transparency in our churches and organizations. The people will gladly and generously support the Church and its activities when they are made to feel that the Church is their family. They know the situation of their family and its programs.

3. Improved services to the people in our parishes. When the people feel that they are welcomed, served, and nourished by the Church, they will support it.

Let us courageously serve the Church and make the people be responsible for the work of the Kingdom, trusting in the promise of Jesus: “Seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides.” (Mt 6:33)