Just
before I wrote this I was browsing through the various viands at my favorite turo-turo near the Pro-Life office in
Legarda. Hard to imagine that a few days ago I was casually dining at a posh
Spanish restaurant, taking my pick among the different tapas, munching on
croquetas and pollo and several other food items whose names I cannot remember.
I was smug that I and my team of web developers, graphic designers, and writers
will be working for a very rich man, and that we will soon be paid handsomely.
He paid for our lunch by the way.
Our
would- be employer told us his plans for the team over lunch on that fateful
Saturday afternoon. I, in particular, was given a very specific job: to travel
to his new manufacturing plant somewhere in Asia, spend a week or two taking
pictures of the new plant, its people, and the scenery, then write a book about
it. (I won't tell you where, but I Googled the place and found these pics:
.jpg)
Never mind if I knew next to nothing about SLR photography, he was going to
provide me with the camera, process my passport, and give me the money to buy
the tickets going there plus some extra cash.
The pay will
be good (which, out of modesty, I won’t post here – suffice to say that it was
VERY sufficient ) but the perks will be awesome. We will have our own office,
apart from all his other employees, but we can work from home if he wasn’t in
the country, just as long as we were able to deliver. On top of that, he was
also planning to rent out a place for us near the office, so we could be nearby
if he’s around. We will be free to work almost whenever and where ever we want,
and will be paid lots of money. Ah. Life is good! So we reported for work first thing Monday morning.
There
was, however, one catch.
Our
employer was into the manufacturing business, and one of his products was the
IVF, or In Vitro Fertilization, machine. The Catholic Church has always
maintained that IVF, a process that produces what many people know as “test
tube babies” , is immoral. After a few days of working for him, the team
decided that enough was enough.
Just
before I wrote this I was browsing through the various viands at my favorite turo-turo near the Pro-Life office in
Legarda. Hard to imagine that a few days ago I was casually dining at a posh
Spanish restaurant, taking my pick among the different tapas, munching on
croquetas and pollo and several other food items whose names I cannot remember.
I was smug that I and my team of web developers, graphic designers, and writers
will be working for a very rich man, and that we will soon be paid handsomely.
He paid for our lunch by the way.
Our
would- be employer told us his plans for the team over lunch on that fateful
Saturday afternoon. I, in particular, was given a very specific job: to travel
to his new manufacturing plant somewhere in Asia, spend a week or two taking
pictures of the new plant, its people, and the scenery, then write a book about
it. (I won't tell you where, but I Googled the place and found these pics:
.jpg)
Never mind if I knew next to nothing about SLR photography, he was going to provide me with the camera, process my passport, and give me the money to buy the tickets going there plus some extra cash.
The pay will
be good (which, out of modesty, I won’t post here – suffice to say that it was
VERY sufficient ) but the perks will be awesome. We will have our own office,
apart from all his other employees, but we can work from home if he wasn’t in
the country, just as long as we were able to deliver. On top of that, he was
also planning to rent out a place for us near the office, so we could be nearby
if he’s around. We will be free to work almost whenever and where ever we want,
and will be paid lots of money. Ah. Life is good! So we reported for work first thing Monday morning.
There
was, however, one catch.
Our
employer was into the manufacturing business, and one of his products was the
IVF, or In Vitro Fertilization, machine. The Catholic Church has always
maintained that IVF, a process that produces what many people know as “test
tube babies” , is immoral. After a few days of working for him, the team
decided that enough was enough.
The team thought we had made our objection to
IVF clear, and also thought that we could make some sort of compromise: we will
do our utmost to work for the boss on everything except things related to his
IVF machines. Yesterday, however, he secretly asked two of my teammates to go
abroad ASAP and help out in promoting his IVF products. What the boss didn’t
know was that the team made a pact: we remain faithful to the teachings of the
Catholic Church no matter what. We will have to refuse to work for a man who
will lead us to sin. We shouldn't have made any compromise to begin with. The
Gospel of Mark (8:36) made it crystal-clear for us: For what shall it profit a
man, if he gain the whole world, and suffer the loss of his soul?
I am a
Catholic. Son of Mama Mary. Son of Don Bosco. With all my heart I turned my back
on the empty promises of fortune and walk away with my head held high.
Our
choice was clear, but was in no way easy. I for one have been looking for
financial stability all my life, and the work offered gave both artistic
freedom and the answer to my financial woes. The job could have given me
everything that I didn't have so far – lots of money, good clothes, gadgets,
perhaps even a car or two and my own condo unit in a few years’ time, and still
have some money left in the savings account to give my future wife the wedding
she always wanted. All proved to be elusive dreams once more.
I am
reminded of this movie I watched a few months ago, “For Greater Glory”. It
tells about the Cristero War in Mexico (1926-1929) when the government suppressed religion. There
were two very poignant and touching scenes:
This
first scene is where a young boy, Jose Sanchez del Rio, says goodbye to his
mentor, Fr. Christopher, who was about to be shot by the soldiers of the
government. The dialogue goes something like this –
Jose: Padre, the soldiers are coming! You must hide! Come with me, you
can hide in our house!
And this.
Jose Sanchez del Rio was beatified in November
2005 by Pope Benedict XVI.
His sacrifice, as well as the sacrifices of
millions of Christians everywhere, puts my experience into perspective. I am
sure that I am not alone nor was the first one whose life is affected by
standing up for the faith. Many have done so, and have paid for their
witnessing with martyrdom. This new post is dedicated to all Catholics all over
the world suffering from persecution, discrimination, abuse, and torture
because of their faith in Christ. I salute their courage and selflessness to
give their life for Christ.
I cannot compare myself to the Catholics all over the world who are being physically and emotionally hurt because of their faith in Christ. I have not been tortured, beaten up, held at gun point, or made to suffer in any way, shape, or form; nevertheless, now that the promise of wealth was now lost again, I have to make ends meet once again. The bills are piling up, and I have some debts to pay. My shoes are getting all worn out and I need a new
pair ASAP. I am coming down with a bad case of colds and would need some
medicine and proper food to get well. That wedding I promised my girlfriend
would have to wait a little longer. It doesn't help to hear stories about how
greedy politicians have made a profit by forgetting their baptismal vows to
reject Satan and all his deeds and succumbing to corruption.
However, I have never been so at peace
with God and myself after deciding to turn our boss down. I started last
weekend with thoughts about ending my poverty, and start this weekend still
hoping that God would not let me down, that I would not be a modern-day Job.
I am sure God will lead me out of this
financial rut I am still stuck in. There will be other clients that our team
can serve. There is a moral way of doing business. Bread, work, and heaven was
Don Bosco’s promise to us. God will provide as long as I keep searching for the
answer to my problems.
I commend my teammates for remaining faithful
to Christ and the Church’s teachings: Alvin, Queenie, Mary Ann, Jerome, and
Aries. May God bless us all.
Between heaven and earth
VIVA CRISTO REY!
The team thought we had made our objection to
IVF clear, and also thought that we could make some sort of compromise: we will
do our utmost to work for the boss on everything except things related to his
IVF machines. Yesterday, however, he secretly asked two of my teammates to go
abroad ASAP and help out in promoting his IVF products. What the boss didn’t
know was that the team made a pact: we remain faithful to the teachings of the
Catholic Church no matter what. We will have to refuse to work for a man who
will lead us to sin. We shouldn't have made any compromise to begin with. The
Gospel of Mark (8:36) made it crystal-clear for us: For what shall it profit a
man, if he gain the whole world, and suffer the loss of his soul?
I am a
Catholic. Son of Mama Mary. Son of Don Bosco. With all my heart I turned my back
on the empty promises of fortune and walk away with my head held high.
Our
choice was clear, but was in no way easy. I for one have been looking for
financial stability all my life, and the work offered gave both artistic
freedom and the answer to my financial woes. The job could have given me
everything that I didn't have so far – lots of money, good clothes, gadgets,
perhaps even a car or two and my own condo unit in a few years’ time, and still
have some money left in the savings account to give my future wife the wedding
she always wanted. All proved to be elusive dreams once more.
I am
reminded of this movie I watched a few months ago, “For Greater Glory”. It
tells about the Cristero War in Mexico (1926-1929) when the government suppressed religion. There
were two very poignant and touching scenes:
This
first scene is where a young boy, Jose Sanchez del Rio, says goodbye to his
mentor, Fr. Christopher, who was about to be shot by the soldiers of the
government. The dialogue goes something like this –
Jose: Padre, the soldiers are coming! You must hide! Come with me, you
can hide in our house!
Fr. Christopher: Can I hide from God? Jose, who are you if you do not
stand up for what you believe? There is no greater glory than to give your life
for Christ.
Which of course led to this.
And this.
Fr.
Christopher’s death had such a profound effect on the 14-year-old boy. He was
eventually caught by government soldiers, tortured, and made to renounce his
faith. This scene in particular was hard to get over with. His torturer carved
holes at the soles of the boy’s feet, and Jose’s blood-curdling screams of Viva Cristo Rey! as he was being
tortured echoed at the halls. The torturer then ordered the boy to be paraded
all over town, with him walking every painful step, until they reached the spot
where he was to be buried.
He was
given one last chance to renounce his faith, just before he died, in the
presence of his family. His only words were: Viva Cristo Rey! and the angry soldiers bayoneted him to death,
with the officer finishing him off with a bullet. Before he died, he did this:
He traced a cross on the ground, which was
filled with his blood, and kissed it. His last words before being shot and
thrown into his grave were: “I am going home.”
Jose Sanchez del Rio was beatified in November
2005 by Pope Benedict XVI.
His sacrifice, as well as the sacrifices of
millions of Christians everywhere, puts my experience into perspective. I am
sure that I am not alone nor was the first one whose life is affected by
standing up for the faith. Many have done so, and have paid for their
witnessing with martyrdom. This new post is dedicated to all Catholics all over
the world suffering from persecution, discrimination, abuse, and torture
because of their faith in Christ. I salute their courage and selflessness to
give their life for Christ.
I cannot compare myself to the Catholics all over the world who are being physically and emotionally hurt because of their faith in Christ. I have not been tortured, beaten up, held at gun point, or made to suffer in any way, shape, or form; nevertheless, now that the promise of wealth was now lost again, I have to make ends meet once again. The bills are piling up, and I have some debts to pay. My shoes are getting all worn out and I need a new
pair ASAP. I am coming down with a bad case of colds and would need some
medicine and proper food to get well. That wedding I promised my girlfriend
would have to wait a little longer. It doesn't help to hear stories about how
greedy politicians have made a profit by forgetting their baptismal vows to
reject Satan and all his deeds and succumbing to corruption.
However, I have never been so at peace
with God and myself after deciding to turn our boss down. I started last
weekend with thoughts about ending my poverty, and start this weekend still
hoping that God would not let me down, that I would not be a modern-day Job.
I am sure God will lead me out of this
financial rut I am still stuck in. There will be other clients that our team
can serve. There is a moral way of doing business. Bread, work, and heaven was
Don Bosco’s promise to us. God will provide as long as I keep searching for the
answer to my problems.
I commend my teammates for remaining faithful
to Christ and the Church’s teachings: Alvin, Queenie, Mary Ann, Jerome, and
Aries. May God bless us all.
Between heaven and earth
Between light and dark
Between faith and sin
Lies only my heart
Lies God and only my heart.
VIVA CRISTO REY!
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