Although presidents, prime ministers, and kings swear allegiance to the cause of
peace, war persists—ironically, in the name of peace. Peace pacts and treaties continue to be signed, yet the arms
industry keeps on churning out war weaponry, efficient killing machines that
get more and more sophisticated with each new invention. “Every gun that is
made, every warship launched, every rocket fired, signifies in the final sense
a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not
clothed”—these are sensible words from Dwight Eisenhower. At best war brings a false peace; at worst, it makes murderers of
men. Either way, it is the deception
that wins in war, not nobility of heart.
In
our own country, barely four months ago, we witnessed the ugly aftermath of a
war that pits Filipinos against Filipinos and unsettles innocent
civilians. The botched Mamasapano
operation cast aspersions on the president and his friend, the suspended PNP
chief, and uncovered loopholes in the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) that point to
bad faith and stealth in the contracting parties. Mamasapano has been snowed under with one bad news after
another, so that now it seems just like one faintly remembered nightmare;
meanwhile, the BBL is being doggedly pushed by Malacanang.
Why
the rush? Pray tell, who stands to
benefit from a “peace agreement” that is apparently motivated by a desire for
something other than true peace?
Is it worth pursuing a peace agreement that dubious assumptions have
doomed from the start? If the BBL
were as commendable as its authors and promoters claim, why are there still so
many voices reasonably opposing its passing? That even the religious leaders seem divided on the issue
makes one suspect they may be reading different versions of the draft. How many versions are there,
anyway? The issue is yet wrapped
in obscurity, but why is the Palace bent on passing it?
As
of press time, a Senate hearing has revealed that the Sultanates were not
consulted at all in the crafting of the BBL—what a monumental faux pas! Again, why? Don’t the Sultanates count at all in the peace process? Passing the BBL will definitely affect
the future not only of some Mindanao residents but also that of the whole
country, so why exclude anybody?
Why were the sultanates ignored, and yet Malaysians have their fingers
in the BBL pie. Why? If Government sincerely believes BBL is
for the good of the country, the least it can do is to translate the BBL draft
into the vernacular in order to be understood by every Filipino, especially the
youth who will reap the effects of this “peace agreement”.
Truth to tell, I have never really believed politics alone can
bring us peace. As a citizen of
this predominantly Catholic nation in Asia, though, I believe that faith in
Jesus Christ can bring us peace.
All anomalies, injustices, chaos, tragedies—indeed, all the evils
displacing peace in our midst stem from the fact that despite our Christian
posturing, our leaders’ bumbling interventions prove that Christ is not in the
equation. Overly self-assured in
their knowledge, power, and ability to control things, these leaders regard
Christ as a superfluity in men’s affairs.
How can faith in Jesus not bring about peace when Christ is
Love? And Love does not exclude
the gentiles, the pagans, the sinners.
We must challenge ourselves—we may be baptized Christians but do we (as
Sunday’s gospel Mt 28:16-20 says)
observe all that Christ has commanded?
Lasting peace comes at a price, of course—and that is dying to our self
in order to become authentic followers of Christ. If it seems an impossible ideal, perhaps it is because we
have yet to validate it in our own private microcosmos.
Lasting peace is possible.
Humbly we seek Him, and in His promise find the courage to follow Him:
“I am with you always, even to the end of the world.” Christ’s peace is the only the peace we can trust and must
desire, not the “peace” being peddled by the princes of a blind and greedy
world. And that’s the truth.
