Brother Associate Roland Suyom,MBPH - RIP

We are sadden by the death of one of our Brother Associates Roland Suyom. We where truly blessed with his presence in our lives.

Roland always love to do the small tasks at our San Alfonso Monastery in Naval, Biliran. He was always happy to do his work, cleaning, cooking and even doing the laundry.

A prayerful man of God. He died very young , still in his twenties. God has called him to His presence in Heaven.

May his soul and all the faithful departed rest in peace. Mother of Perpetual Help pray for Roland Suyom - Brother Associate of MBPH

The Bishop and His Lady Imelda....

Abuse and Corruption meet - Bishop Bactol of the Diocese of Naval and Former First Lady Imelda Marcos. This explains much in view of Philippine History. - The Edsa Anniversary this last week and the Church has two faces - one pro the other against.

A Reminder to Bishop Bactol from Philippine Bishops in the Past...

In connection with his point we would like to specially consider the following: In the sins of homicide, adultery and detraction restitution of the thing taken away is impossible. Restitution must, therefore, be made through an equivalent compensation so adjudged by prudence. But, in theft, restitution is almost always possible, be it through the return of the very thing stolen or its just value. Let those, therefore, that have stolen or its just value. Let those, therefore, that have stolen and still retain valuable things belonging to others, against the will of their owners, bear in mind that, as long as they do not restore them or their value, they remain in a continuous state of mortal sin, that may not be forgiven them, even if they should go to confession, until they have first made an efficacious resolution of returning them as soon as they find themselves in a position to do so. The lapse of time, however long, does not matter. At all times and everywhere, the adage will still hold true: "Res clamat domino suo.": All things call for their true owner.

The thief will never acquire a legitimate right to the thing stolen, for the ownership of things can only be transmitted through a legitimate title. He could, perhaps, ignore human justice; but, he will not escape the justice of God, Who has said: "And I will come to you in judgment and will be a speedy witness against sorcerers and adulterers and false swearers and them that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widows and the fatherless; and oppress the stranger and have not feared me, saith the Lord of hosts." (MALACH., III, 5).

Why people are leaving the Catholic Church in the Philippines....

Why people are leaving the Catholic Church in the Philippines....
Posted From ABS-CBN Community 2/13/07

I can remember when at the Cathedral in Naval, there was a VIP person's funeral going to be held there. The poor people always come to bring their dead for a blessing in the afternoon, the same time this VIP's Funneral Mass was to be held. Bishop Filomeno Bactol told me to go out and "get rid of the poor people" before Mass would begin. I blessed the poor peoples love ones (outside of the Cathedral) and prayed for them. It is a image I will never forget. I felt so sorry for the poor people and how the Diocese and Bishop Bactol care so little for the poor. Maybe this is a good sign as to why people leave the Church.

When it comes to Baptism - the poor are turned away unless they can pay the stipend. No stipend - no Baptism. (There are Canon Laws that prohibit such practice - but that is under the control of the local Bishop). Again Masses are provided with a stipend - or no mass will be said. If the Bishop offers that Mass - he will wear his Miter for a price, use his Crosier (staff) for a price. All for the greater Glory of God.

When people come begging for help - the Bishop would tell his staff to send them away. (I know I lived there for six months at the Bishop's Palace).

People leaving the Catholic Faith...

I have many more examples to offer...

Again - call the Nuncio Ask the Holy Father's Representative in the Philippines :Telephone: (63-2)521.03.06/7

HOW WILL BISHOP BACTOL FACE GERRY ESPINA WITH THIS FROM THE CBCP

Catholic bishops have expressed alarm over the continuing dominance
of political dynasties in the country as they vowed to address
this "growing problem" down to the local level.

Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) vice
president and Cagayan de Oro Archbishop Antonio Ledesma said they
will campaign against political dynasties as part of a drive to
ensure credible and violence-free elections in May.

But Ledesma said the Church cannot directly act on the issue by
dictating to voters since "there is no such thing as a Catholic
vote."

"Bishops have observed in their own localities that only people from
the same family are getting into public office," Ledesma told
reporters. "One way to address this is the formation of concerned
citizens movements that can effectively address this issue at the
local level."

He also said the bishops lamented that voters choose candidates
based on family background or popularity rather than competence and
integrity.

Despite this, he said the Church maintains its belief that
credibility and goodness alone can put a candidate in public office —
even if the candidate comes without a family background in
politics.

He cited the example set by Isabela Gov. Grace Padaca, "who did not
have any relative in public office when she ran for governor — she
made it because of support of the people and the media without any
strings attached."

The CBCP on Sunday said it would not, as a body, endorse any
candidate in the upcoming elections, saying candidates "were not
discussed" during the semiannual plenary assembly of bishops over
the weekend in Manila.

But CBCP president Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, of Jaro in Iloilo,
admitted that bishops are given the freedom to individually endorse
candidates.

"I heard about some dioceses that support candidates who are pro-
life, anti-gambling or pro-poor," Lagdameo said.

Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz, for instance, earlier urged
the faithful not to vote politicians who are involved in jueteng
operations.

Cruz, an anti-gambling advocate, said the People's Crusade Against
Gambling is set to conduct a survey in various areas in Luzon and
Visayas and will issue a manifesto of support for candidates who are
found to be against jueteng or gambling.

"We are going to support them, since we believe that, if they are
anti-gambling, there is a presumption of honesty and integrity of
life," Cruz said. "Integrity is what we need so much (of) in the
political community."

Cruz, however, said they would not identify candidates who are
supposedly supporting jueteng: "We want to be fair to them and we
might also commit mistakes during the survey."

Caloocan Bishop Deogracia Iniguez Jr., on the other hand, has hinted
his opposition against the election of celebrities in the May polls.

In an interview with reporters, Iniguez said most bishops are now
cautious about electing celebrities after the poor performance of
some popular showbiz and TV personalities who won in earlier
elections.

"At present, we feel that people still tend to elect celebrities.
Honestly, we were disappointed with them, so we think it should
serve as a challenging lesson," Iniguez said.

He said popularity as the main standard during elections is causing
enough alarm among the bishops to warrant the CBCP's decision to
push its voter education program.

"It's just right that we're alarmed over this, because voters really
(put a) premium (on) name recall — they go for celebrities. If only
these celebrities seeking public office were equipped with the
proper qualifications and capacity to perform their duties, then we
won't have a problem," Iniguez said.

He also said it is necessary for voters to know their candidates —
specifically their qualifications and platforms.

He also advised the electorate to consider the programs presented by
the candidates on poverty, economy, political situation, graft and
corruption and political dynasties.

The Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV), the
Church's elections watchdog composed of lay leaders, has already
released its guidelines for voters dubbed the "10 Commandments for
Responsible Voting."

Based on the standards set by the PPCRV, it is wrong to vote for
candidates who "use guns, goons and gold; have records of graft and
corruption; or live (an) immoral life."

The guidelines were included in a manual that will be used in a
massive education campaign to issue moral guidance and equip voters
for the May elections.

PPCRV chairman Henrietta de Villa said the "commandments" will be
used by priests and nuns, lay leaders and volunteers in facilitating
the formation program for electoral education.

The PPCRV also supported Iniguez's stand and encouraged voters "not
to be blinded by popularity of celebrities or by mere competence in
speaking of politicians who are joining the elections in May."

Special Treatment for Bishop Bactol

BILECOs letter of apology to Msgr Bactol

October 16, 20068:30 a.m.
MOST REV. FILOMENO G. BACTOL Bishop,
Diocese of Naval Naval, Biliran

Dear Monsignor Bactol:
We deeply regret the occurrence of the 1 hour and 20 minutes power outage last night due to busted sub-station protections attributable mainly to an equipment failure particularly the tripping off of a 25 KVA distribution transformer connected to our primary distribution line in Biliran Poblacion, Biliran, Biliran.

Said incident have affected the entire Feeder 1 (Biliran-Naval-Almeria-Kawayan-Culaba Backbone Line). For the immediate restoration of power services in the entire feeder, our Technical Services Department (TSD) have immediately dispatched two crews from our main office to conduct isolation of the affected transformer before conducting manual closing of our medium voltage protection at the Biliran 5 MVA Power Sub-Station.Our apologies for the inconvenience brought about by said incident.

Truly yours,(Sgd)
MARLON B. ROA
General Manager


BiliranIsland.com Newbie

Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Bahrain
Posts: 1

Customer first!
(Hope to be applied to everybody though)
Nice gesture from Bileco management.
I wish, though, nga this kind of concern for Msgr Bactol (as a customer) will be applied to everybody. I mean and I hope, should such power blackouts happen they should endeavor to restore the service and at the same time reach out to their customers (perhaps through the brgy captains, for example) to express their concern against service failure. They do it to Msgr Bactol might as well do it to everybody.

Cardinal Levada Speaks - Will he Follow?

So That This Tragic Cycle Will Not Recur: Clergy Sexual Abuse

By Archbishop William Levada

"We are suffering for the sins of priests who preferred their own pleasure to the safety and protection of children entrusted to their care. And we are suffering for the mistakes of bishops and administrators who did not place the future protection of children above their desire to protect the reputation and service of priests who had proven themselves unfaithful in their duties," Archbishop William Levada of San Francisco said in his homily March 26 for the chrism Mass at St. Mary's Cathedral in San Francisco. Some 400 priests and a congregation of nearly 2,000 were present.

In a discussion of "the tragic revelations of the priests who have betrayed the church's trust by molesting children and teen-agers," Levada examined steps needed to restore trust and bring healing. And he said, "We must achieve a new openness in speaking out against the abuse of children in our church." Three steps needed to assure "that this tragic cycle of abuse will not happen again" were discussed by Levada. First, he said that "we should make sure that present admissions policies for our priestly and diaconate formation programs do their best to screen out persons at risk for sexual misconduct with minors and persons who show any indications of sexual immaturity." Second, he said that "we should revisit our seminary programs to guarantee the appropriate formation of future priests in this area."

Finally, he said, "I believe that we bishops will also have to address how to deal with the misconduct of bishops and present our conclusions and recommendations to our Holy Father through the apostolic nuncio and the Congregation of Bishops." Levada noted that "many speculate about the causes of such abuse," and he said that "as a church we will need to commit ourselves to the best possible review of the causes, with the assistance of the best expertise we can find to assist us. But we must also pay attention to Christ, who promised that he would be with his church all days." Levada's homily follows.

Holy Week is sometimes called the "great week" of the church's liturgical year. During these days the paschal mysteries, the "work" that Christ continues to do year in and year out in the liturgy of the church, his body, is approached in slow motion, in memory's eye, so that in our rituals we may draw near to Christ as if we too were with him, among that now excited, now frightened band of his first disciples.

The centuries of recalling and celebrating the events of passion, death and resurrection - the events of our salvation - have given this week a unique character. "Do this in memory of me," he tells us. So we gather with palms and olive branches to accompany his entry into Jerusalem, singing "Hosanna to the King of Israel." We crowd into the upper room for the Passover meal he shares with his disciples, and we watch newly moved as he stoops to wash our feet. We follow him to the Garden of Gethsemane, that place of prayer and agony for him. We feel the tension of his arrest, trial, torture - and the shame felt by those he called his friends as they desert him. We wince at the thought of a crown of thorns placed on our heads, at nails being driven into the tender flesh of hands and feet, of the awful constant pain of hanging on a cross, wheezing and gasping for breath. And then the darkness of death, of the descent into hell, of the tomb.

We know that the story does not end there. But Easter is a day and a season of joy in proportion to its being seen and experienced in reference to Good Friday, Christ's resurrection in relation to his passion and death. Before the cross became the tree of life, it was an instrument of death. It was the triumph of the Evil One, of the mysterium iniquitatis, whose legacy has such a firm grasp on our humanity, whose "sacraments" are sin and death. So Easter is all the more a reason for rejoicing when the victory of Christ over death by rising to new life is proclaimed as our victory as well. Even when we die the death of our bodies, we learn from Christ that he has given us the gift of eternal life, the gift of freedom from sin and death - a share in his own complete victory over the tenacious hold of evil upon us.

This chrism Mass is linked liturgically with the Holy Thursday Mass of the Lord's Supper. It has the character of preparation for the celebration of the paschal mysteries of the Lord's passion, death and resurrection - especially for us who are the priestly ministers who shepherd God's people through this Holy Week in the name of Christ our Good Shepherd. It is also a prophetic anticipation of the manifold gifts of the Holy Spirit that Christ gives his church through the sacraments celebrated with these holy and newly consecrated oils. And because Jesus handed over to his chosen apostles at the Last Supper the mission of this sacramental ministry in and for his church, at this chrism Mass the bishop and the priests of the local churches throughout the world gather together in prayer as Jesus renews in them - in us - the anointing of the Spirit he poured out upon us in our ordination. He fills these oils with his Spirit and sends us priests to bring the anointing of the Holy Spirit to his people through the ministry of his holy sacraments.

The Franciscan practice that took inspiration from our patron St. Francis made Holy Thursday a day of special celebration marking the birthday of the priesthood and the eucharist. The fast of Lent was dispensed for this celebration. No wonder that we also owe the Stations of the Cross to Francis. The joy of the Lord's Supper had to transition quickly to the Way of the Cross. Jesus and his disciples left that upper room in Jerusalem rejoicing and singing as they marched arm in arm down to the Kedron Valley to the Garden of Gethsemane. And then he went off alone to pray.
At this chrism Mass, then, let us accompany Jesus to Gethsemane and remain a while and watch with him. Let us try to enter into his prayer, a prayer that bathed him in sweat and blood. Let us hear him say, "Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me." This "cup" contained the whole reality of humanity's sin and disobedience, the sin whose "wages" - whose payment - is death.

Surely Jesus in the infused knowledge of the divine Son also knew, and especially in that moment, the sins that would linger on among his disciples. Surely part of the cause of that sweat and blood was the uncertain outcome of his victory over sin even among those he had called by name and ordained his priests. His words at the entrance of the garden have all the more poignant resonance in this perspective: "This night you will have your faith in me shaken, for it is written: 'I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.'"

In the tragic revelations of the priests who have betrayed the church's trust by molesting children and teen-agers, we see one aspect of this agony of Christ. If the shepherds are struck down by sin, of course the sheep will be scattered. It is important that we not blink at what Jesus saw and suffered, and what our church in America is suffering. We are suffering for the sins of priests who preferred their own pleasure to the safety and protection of children entrusted to their care. And we are suffering for the mistakes of bishops and administrators who did not place the future protection of children above their desire to protect the reputation and service of priests who had proven themselves unfaithful in their duties. May our penance as a church - our participation in the agony of Christ in the garden - be a witness to our sorrow for these failings on the part of some of us and be a sign of a new day of healing and restoration of trust. May our celebration of the coming Easter feast be the dawn of that new day.

What are the elements that should form the foundation of such healing and restoration of trust? First of all, the whole church needs to reaffirm our commitment to protect children from sexual abuse, and to reach out with every effort to heal and support victims and their families. Much of the reported abuse committed by priests occurred decades ago. Yet many victims are scarred for life. How sad we all are to learn that such abuse was done by those called by Christ himself to be his shepherds for his people - shepherds who represent him and stand in for him. How sorry we are for this abuse, done to the body of Christ itself in the persons of these vulnerable victims.

Second, we must review all our programs and procedures to make sure that they are appropriate to deal with this situation. In 1992 the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops adopted five principles to guide our many dioceses in dealing with the issue. These principles were reaffirmed by the conference Administrative Committee earlier this month, and they offer a framework for bishops and diocesan officials to chart our progress in taking appropriate action to guarantee the best possible protection for children in our church. These principles are the following:

1. Respond promptly to all allegations of abuse where there is reasonable belief that abuse has occurred.

2. If such an allegation is supported by sufficient evidence, relieve the alleged offender promptly of his ministerial duties and refer him for appropriate medical evaluation and intervention.

3. Comply with the obligations of civil law as regards reporting of the incident and cooperating with the investigation.

4. Reach out to the victims and their families and communicate sincere commitment to their spiritual and emotional well-being.

5. Within the confines of respect for privacy of the individuals involved, deal as openly as possible with the members of the community.

In the Archdiocese of San Francisco, these principles have been operative in the development of policies and procedures that guide our response in the area of sexual abuse. We review our policy on sexual abuse at mandatory workshops with all clergy and lay employees. We have put in place an independent fact-finding committee of professionals to ensure that we get to the truth behind any allegation. We have notified all clergy that they, like teachers, counselors and other professionals who work with children, are "mandated reporters" of any reasonable suspicion of sexual or physical abuse of children. We have offered counseling to any victims and their families. We have undertaken a review of clergy files and taken appropriate steps to ensure that no children are at risk from priests in the archdiocese.

As you can imagine, this matter will be the subject of discussion at the spring meeting of the bishops' conference in June. Are there further steps we should take in responding to this crisis? Surely there are! For the present, we must achieve a new openness in speaking out against the abuse of children in our church. We must commit ourselves to act quickly to remove any offender from ministry, to require appropriate evaluation and treatment, and to ensure that civil authorities are notified of any suspected abuse of a minor. For the future, we should take the necessary steps to guarantee, insofar as possible, that this tragic cycle of abuse will not happen again.

For this purpose I make these suggestions:
-We should make sure that present admissions policies for our priestly and diaconate formation programs do their best to screen out persons at risk for sexual misconduct with minors and persons who show any indications of sexual immaturity.
-We should revisit our seminary programs to guarantee the appropriate formation of future priests in this area. I might add parenthetically here that recent media attention to seminaries - St. Patrick's on the Jim Lehrer News Hour a couple of weeks ago and Mundelein (Chicago) in the New York Times yesterday - are encouraging in showing how these seminaries have implemented programs that deal candidly with sexual issues and formation.

-Finally, I believe that we bishops will also have to address how to deal with the misconduct of bishops and present our conclusions and recommendations to our Holy Father through the apostolic nuncio and the Congregation of Bishops.

Perhaps my references to the media can offer an opportunity to say that I do not challenge the attention the media has paid to this issue. It is true that at times the coverage has seemed to ignore that sexual abuse of children is a societal problem, not just a priests' problem, or that all of society, not just the church, has been playing catch-up in understanding and dealing with these grave issues. But we all recognize that priests have been given a public trust as representatives of the Good Shepherd and have been given special grace by him to serve his people faithfully. Thus our betrayal of such trust is all the more shocking and all the more newsworthy.

Many speculate about the causes of such abuse: Is celibacy the problem? Homosexuality? The climate of sexual freedom? The inadequacy of seminary formation? As a church we will need to commit ourselves to the best possible review of the causes, with the assistance of the best expertise we can find to assist us. But we must also pay attention to Christ, who promised that he would be with his church all days. St. Paul wrote about what Christ revealed to him: "My grace is sufficient for you!" But this grace needs our cooperation. We must trust in its power to heal our weakness. But as we also learned, grace builds on nature. It is our responsibility to ensure that we take the means at our disposal to heal this human nature of ours when it leads us astray. And for this, we need to help one another get help when we need it.

The priests you know and see before you on the altar today, young and old, take responsibility for continuing our formation to ensure that we will be able to meet the challenge of this new and developing cultural climate. We do not present ourselves as angels before you today, but as men determined, with the grace of God and the help of our brothers and sisters, parishioners, friends, family - and professional caregivers when needed - to renew our commitment to priestly service before you, our church, tonight.

As your bishop, I can assure you that your priests and I are newly conscious of our need to work together to restore the climate of trust broken by a few of us, to our great sorrow and shame. As we prepare during this Mass for the annual renewal of our commitment to priestly service, we do so humbly aware that the anointing of the Holy Spirit, prophesied by Isaiah, invoked by Jesus, given at Pentecost to his church and to us in our priestly ordination, is more than ever needed by us now. May the Holy Spirit who consecrates these sacramental oils tonight through our prayer, accompany them to all of our parishes, our families and our people - and especially to our precious children. May he guide us through the mystery of Christ's passion and death to a share in his resurrection in the grace of Easter. And may he heal our wounds, the wounds of the body of Christ, the church, by anointing us with the oil of gladness and Easter joy.

Addressing Bishop Ziemann's Resignation from a Perspective of Faith

By Archbishop Levada

"The whole church is affected by Bishop Ziemann's behavior.... My message to you today is to call us all to a renewed love of the church following Jesus' own example," San Francisco's Archbishop William Levada said in a homily Aug. 22 in Santa Rosa's St. Eugene Cathedral. Levada was named apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Santa Rosa after Bishop G. Patrick Ziemann resigned as bishop of that diocese July 27. A lawsuit filed July 16 by a priest of the diocese alleged that Ziemann demanded sex from him in exchange for silence about the reason the priest was removed from a parish assignment; a diocesan attorney said the priest admitted stealing $1,200 from the parish collection. Ziemann admitted through his lawyer to having a sexual relationship with the priest, but denied coercion was involved. (See the "On File" page in the Aug. 12, 1999, Origins for a report on the resignation.) Levada said that Ziemann "has told me again and again of his sorrow, his shame, his guilt." The archbishop added, "[M]ay we find it in our hearts to forgive him the scandal he has caused among us through human frailty." The archbishop said that what is most important to him at present "is for us as church in the Diocese of Santa Rosa not to let the scandal of this tragedy harm the faith and faithful lives of those of us who have Christ as our good shepherd." He asked: "Are there those ... who will find in the bishop's fall from grace an opportunity ... to give in to the temptations of their own lives? It would be surprising if it were not so." That is why it is so important, Levada said, to pray to the Holy Spirit "to help us - our priests and all our people in every parish ... to be witnesses of firm faith and models of right conduct." Levada's homily follows.

In his Letter to the Ephesians, St. Paul writes about the church of Christ in words as applicable to us today as they were that first generation of Catholic Christians. He says, "You are fellow citizens with the holy ones and members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the capstone. Through him, the whole structure is held together and grows into a temple sacred in the Lord" (Eph. 2:19-21).

In my first public homily as interim apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Santa Rosa, I want to address Bishop Ziemann's resignation from the perspective of faith. The media asks for candor and accountability. I have given my pledge. But my first responsibility is to reflect with you on the spiritual significance of this sad event and on the challenges it presents to us as church.

The whole church is affected by Bishop Ziemann's behavior, especially this part of the flock of Christ which we call the diocese - the "particular church" - of Santa Rosa. Of course the church will survive. We have Christ as our "capstone" and guarantee the building will not fall.

In today's Gospel we have heard once again that dramatic encounter between Jesus and Simon Peter which conveys in such a striking way Jesus' love for the church, to give it a visible shepherd and a foundation on solid rock. The church's foundation, as it is narrated in the text of St. Matthew's Gospel, is solidly grounded in Peter's confession of faith: "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." And Jesus responds, "You are the rock on which my church is built."

My message to you today is to call us all to a renewed love of the church following Jesus' own example. I call us to a renewed commitment to the church, the bride of Christ, which he has endowed with so many rich spiritual gifts. We benefit from these gifts every day of our lives.

It is through the church that God's saving word is preached day in and day out. This is the good news we hear - that all of us, regardless of our present spiritual condition - are called to the same salvation won for us by Christ, to be sharers in the holiness of God's own life made ours through sanctifying grace.
It is through the church that Christ's most precious gift of the eucharist becomes our daily bread and all the other sacraments, including the sacrament of the forgiveness of sins, are offered to us.

What I would stress today is that this church, the bride of Christ that we are called to love as Jesus does, is also a community made up of saints and sinners. It is precisely this church made up of us that we must love - the church the Second Vatican Council calls a "pilgrim people" because it is composed of people still on their way to holiness of life, people always in need of deeper conversion and growth.
The fact that this diverse assembly of Jesus' disciples is afflicted with failures and faults should not cause us to love the church less, but rather invite us to love it more and to help us appreciate its gracious message of salvation and means of holiness that are offered to all.

With St. Paul, we too know our humanity is fragile and weak. "We have this treasure [Christ in us] in vessels of clay" (2 Cor. 4:7). Does this mean we have to sin? Not at all, no matter how prone we are to do so or how much we are tempted. St. Paul gives us the assurance he himself received from Christ: "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness" (2 Cor. 12:9).

The challenge we face is to draw deeply on the gifts of faith we have received from Christ in the Holy Spirit and to overcome the temptations we experience to our faith. On an occasion such as this the church wonders why her prayer at the ordination of a priest has run dry: "May he be faithful to the ministry that he receives from you, Lord God, and be to others a model of right conduct." We lament that the prayer of consecration of a bishop has seemed to fall short: "May he be a shepherd to your holy flock and a high priest blameless in your sight.... May he be pleasing to you by his gentleness and purity of heart."

It is a participation in the mystery of the cross that we are now experiencing, a share in the suffering of Christ in his body, the church. And I am sure of this: No one is sharing in that suffering and that cross now more than our brother bishop and your former shepherd Patrick Ziemann. He has told me again and again of his sorrow, his shame, his guilt. He will no doubt experience in these coming days and years the need to pray again and again the prayer of King David, the Lord's anointed: "Have mercy on me, God, in your goodness; in your abundant compassion blot out my offense. Wash away all my guilt; from my sin cleanse me" (Ps. 51).

The Lord heard the prayer of his servant David. May he hear the prayer of his servant Patrick as well. And may we find it in our hearts to forgive him the scandal he has caused among us through human frailty.

What could be the cause of such a failure by one whom God chose as his anointed shepherd? we may ask. An innate inclination too strong to resist? A vow of celibacy impossible to keep? The answer of faith is no different from the assurance Christ gave to St. Paul for you: "My grace is sufficient for you."

We know already from our own experience as sinners what the answer to our question is. We rationalize. We think it is only for once. We think God is asking too much of us. We cry that our burdens are too heavy.

But God's grace, given especially through prayer and the sacraments, in particular the sacrament of penance and reconciliation, is ready. It only awaits our own cooperation and response.

The most important thing to me at present is for us as church in the Diocese of Santa Rosa not to let the scandal of this tragedy harm the faith and the faithful lives of those of us who have Christ as our Good Shepherd. We must keep him at the center of our lives.

Scandal in the theological sense means putting a stumbling block in another's path, being the cause of another's falling into sin. Are there those among us within our Catholic community or within the community at large who will find in the bishop's fall from grace an opportunity to flee from the demands of faith, to give in to the temptations of their own lives? It would be surprising if it were not so.
It is for this reason that I count it so important for us to pray to the Holy Spirit, the giver of all good gifts, to help us - our priests and all our people in every parish up and down this beautiful Northern California coast - to be witnesses of firm faith and models of right conduct for our brothers and sisters, especially our young people whose faith and life values are still being formed in the challenging environment of our secular society.

As I begin my responsibilities as apostolic administrator, I want to repeat my message: Love the church and pray for the church. Pray to the Holy Spirit, as Mary and the apostles did on the Pentecost, for a new outpouring of his gifts for the church, for this particular church of Santa Rosa. Let us pray for healing for those who have been wounded or abused, for strength for those who are weak, for that full measure of love which will enable us to "bear one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ" (Gal. 6:2).

Let us invoke the Holy Spirit as well for guidance and wisdom in every facet of the long process of discernment which will provide this particular church with her new bishop. Neither you nor I, neither the apostolic nuncio nor Pope John Paul know who our new bishop will be. Only the Holy Spirit knows. May our prayer help us prepare a place in our hearts - in the heart of this local church of Santa Rosa - for the bishop who will come to be your new shepherd.

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and enkindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit, and they shall be created. And you shall renew the face of the earth. Let us pray. O God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant us in the same Spirit to be truly wise and ever to rejoice in his consolation, through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Letter to Cardinal Wm Levada

January 7, 2007

His Eminence
William Cardinal Levada, Prefect




Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith
Paizza del S. Uffizio, 11
00193 Roma, Italy


Dear Cardinal Levada,

Greetings in the Lord.

After six months I am seeking a follow-up on my sworn statement and other papers that are now and have been at the possession of Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

We have been in contact with Rev. Mr. Charles Allen of the Archdiocese of San Francisco, and he has informed us that there has been no contact from the Holy See concerning the charge we have placed before the Holy See concerning the Most Rev. Filomeno G. Bactol, Bishop of Naval, Biliran, Philippines.

The Most Rev. Paul Coakley, Bishop of Salina has informed me that he doubts that the Holy See will do anything with this, since it’s old news and the Holy See has full knowledge of my statements and other information concerning the Bishop of Naval.

As Former Archbishop of San Francisco and Archbishop of Portland, you are aware that a investigation is always needed when there are allegations such as these that have been placed before the Holy See. These allegations go far beyond sexual abuse of minors. These also include violations of the sacrament of reconciliation (a priest hearing the teenager victim’s confession with knowledge of Bishop Bactol), thief of Church property, misuse of grant money, attempted murder, and buying and selling Mass stipends to pay a priest’s gambling debt.

After doing some research on the Internet I found two of your homilies that you preach first while as Archbishop of San Francisco and the other as Apostolic Administrator of Santa Rosa Diocese. Both homilies make it clear on what direction you should be going in (I’m enclosing them for review).

We are sure that when you gave your deposition testimony about sexual abuse, you made it clear that you acted as soon as possible for the good of the victims. Your Eminence the poor people in the Diocese of Naval are victims of Bishop Bactol’s abuse and other immoral practices. .

Again I feel there are three ways of looking at my charges.

1. If the Holy See believes that I am making false statements, you should charge me with violations of Canons 1390 -1391.

2. The Holy See continue to let this problem go on as it is. Then the Holy See will be allowing sexual and other immoral acts to occur. Therefore the Holy See is fully responsible for souls that are abused by the actions of Bishop Filomeno G. Bactol and the priests of the Diocese of Naval.

3. Begin a formal investigation and look into the charges that We and others have made.

What ever happens, again we pray the Holy Spirit will guide you to what is right and proper for the good the Catholic Church in the Philippines.

I remain,

Sincerely yours in Christ, &
Our Mother of Perpetual Help,

Brother Stephen M. Greinke, MBPH



Cc: Attorney General’s Office State of California
Attorney General’ Office State of Oregon
Office of the City Attorney City of San Francisco
Most Rev. Paul Coakley - Diocese of Salina
Prefect of Congregation for Bishops

To contact the Vatican (Holy See)

To report Bishop Bactol's immoral behavior contact:

Congregation for Bishops

All matters that concern the person and the office of bishops and the state of the dioceses; examinations of the Quinquennial Report, arranging for the visit of Bishops to the Holy See, all matters pertaining to particular councils and episcopal conferences drawing up the norms for the pastoral guidance of Bishops.

Prefect His Eminence Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re
Secretary Archbishop Francesco Monterisi
Address : Palazzo della Congregazione, 10 Piazza Pio XII, 00193 Roma Italy
Telephone 0039-06-69883913


Another source: To Contact the Holy See about Bishop Bactol's immoral behavior:

Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith


All matters pertaining to the faith and all customs connected with the faith, the examination of new teachings and the promotion of studies concerning such teachings; reprieval of any teaching contrary to the principles of faith, the examination and censorship of books.


Prefect His Eminence William Cardinal Levada
Secretary The Most Rev. Amato Angelo SDB
Address : Piazza del S. Ufficio-II, 00139 Roma, Italy
Telephone 0039-06-69883357/69883413/69883409
FAX 0039-06-69883409

PRIESTS MUST UNDERGO "CHARACTER CHANGE" T00

SEN. MIRIAM DEFENSOR-SANTIAGO is right. In calling for character change instead of Charter change, the Catholic Church hierarchy in the Philippines should first admit its failure to inculcate Catholic values among Filipinos.

The Dec. 17 prayer rally only revealed that we Filipinos address every pressing national problem and issue by using passion instead of reason.

I always believe that Christ wants the clergy to lead in promoting love and brotherhood. Sadly enough, some priests, and even a few bishops, add to the chaos and misunderstanding in Philippine society today. They even encourage the use of violence to change governments.

They should first address the "character change" message to themselves before they preach it to others. --ROMULO VITOR, via e-mail

Archbishop Cruz needs to reform Bishop Bactol

Bishop Filomeno Bactol





by ARCHBISHOP OSCAR V. CRUZ, D.D.



PHILIPPINE POLITICS has probably become the biggest obstacle to our socio-human development as a people, the most depressing reality in the life of our country. The mere mention of the word "politics" brings many different pitiful visions and painful reactions. The term "politicos" immediately and strongly carries many connotations — except what is really good and true, what is altogether honest and just.

In effect, it can be rightfully said that the way politics is understood and practiced by the present administration makes it synonymous with lying, cheating, and stealing. And more recently, specifically under the national leadership, politics has acquired more dangerous features, namely, narcissistic, delusional, and greedy for power — no matter the costs, whatever the means, with no holds barred.

The present overall manifestations and expressions of local and national politics in the Philippines are certainly not edifying, much less inspiring: Patronage politics. Politics of personalities. Politics of pay-offs. And lately: Transactional Politics. The combined product of all these political maladies is aptly captured by the shameful nomenclature of "trapos" appended to shameless politicians.

It is precisely of account of the above cited erratic politics and errant politicians that the Roman Catholic Church may not waive her mandate and mission to proclaim certain signal objective truths meant to guide the design and desire of the political community in this country. Otherwise, the Church would be an irrelevant institution here and now. And probably, the eventual loser would be the Filipino people — except the corrupt and corrupting politicians.

It would be rather easy and convenient for the Church to pretend to be — and act as — deaf, dumb, and blind on the deleterious agenda and acts of politics presently dominant in the Philippines. This would, however, be tantamount to the betrayal of her commitment of evangelization here and now in view always of the hereafter and beyond. Politics is a human activity. Human beings may not divest themselves of moral accountability for their actions. Even politicians may not be above ethical principles, above moral imperatives. Otherwise, politics becomes a vicious and odious social ingredient as it now precisely appears in Philippine life and history.



ETHICS AS established by Natural Law, and Morals as founded on positive Divine Law, are in the domain and within the competence of the Church. Yes, her human components may be weak and sinful like other ordinary mortals. But her divine element is what makes the Church essentially truthful that gives her a lasting existence and the pursuant long experience. Trapos come and go. But the Church remains to guide and pray for them now, and eventually to bury them and pray for their eternal repose.

Now and in the years yet to come, seeing the present disrespected administration and those still in waiting, confronted by the actual distrusted national leadership and others yet in the making, faced by the ruling trapos and the politicians coming on deck soon, the Church in the Philippines has to undertake the following more urgent, difficult yet necessary composite pastoral ministry:

Providing human formation and Christian education in the political life of the country in order to build a culture that does not separate politics and morals.

Guiding the conscience of the people in making a clear distinction between good and bad politics, praiseworthy politicians and unworthy politicos, trustworthy and dangerous political candidates.

Working for structural changes in Philippine politics that progressively do away with inculturated graft and corruption, and thereby gradually inculcate habitual right conscience in the exercise of public offices as public trusts.

Promoting laws that are premised on what is objectively right and just, and which assure and advance the common welfare of the citizenry.

Inspiring and urging the Christian lay faithful not only to be more involved in the political life of the country, but also to actually take a more active part in Philippine politics.

Whether the general public, and/or the political community in particular, would accept or reject the avowed pastoral ministry of the Church specifically in Philippine politics now and in the years ahead is eventually left to their respective option. Even the Good Lord respects the free will that He gave to human beings. Much less may His Church impose her Social Doctrine on the Filipino politicians. Hers remains the mandate to evangelize Philippine politics — among the other dimensions of Philippine society. To the politicians belongs the eventual decision to listen or play deaf thereto. But they may not claim that the Church did nothing to guide their lives as individuals and their ways as politicians.

The Church has a singular advantage that no politician or political party, no administration or national leadership can truly claim or could ever have: all the time to teach, all the time to guide, plus all the time to wait. Meantime, the Church in the Philippines may not and will not renounce its role and burden as the moral compass of the Filipino people, Philippine politics included.

Most Rev. Oscar V. Cruz, D. D. is the Archbishop of Lingayen-Dagupan, Pangasinan. He says he is also a priest who writes in the light of faith and reason.

Charter Change - and the Philippine Bishops

CHARTER CHANGE
CBCP spokesman says solons are missing the point


By Jerome Aning
Inquirer
Last updated 06:42pm (Mla time) 12/09/2006


THE CATHOLIC Bishops' Conference of the Philippines has no official comment yet on the House of Representatives’ latest moves to revise the Constitution, saying members of its permanent council are still consulting each other for unified stand that will be released by Monday.

However, in what might be a foretaste of the influential group's reaction, CBCP spokesman Msgr. Pedro Quitorio told reporters Saturday that Speaker Jose de Venecia and his allies were missing the point by now calling for a separately elected constitutional convention to amend the Charter instead of forming Congress into a constituent assembly for the same purpose.

"These people do not get the point. The point is the people do not trust them. The people can't entrust Cha-cha [Charter change] to those that they do not trust," Quitorio said, stressing that his words were his personal reaction and not the CBCP's.

Quitorio said that he was mystified by the motivation behind the rush to amend the Charter, adding, "We have lots of problems today, such as the devastation of Bicol by the recent supertyphoon. Why don't we address these first?"

"Charter change is not the problem of the common folk; those pushing for it seem to be obsessive-compulsive in doing so. There's something wrong here, why are they so insistent?" he said.

Asked if the CBCP would go ahead with its plan to stage a rally against Charter change and the constituent assembly on Friday, Quitorio said the faithful should wait for the announcement of Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, CBCP president.

"He has not said anything about this yet, but I've been feeding him updates on the matter," he said. He added a meeting of top CBCP officials may be held on Monday to gather inputs from the CBCP permanent council members.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Council of Evangelical Churches said it was worried by the politicians' rush to amend the Charter and by the tension it has created.

"We are concerned with the action of the House of Representatives in pushing for a constituent assembly. In their objective to shift to a parliamentary unicameral system, they are conducting their business as if they were already a unicameral parliament," PCEC said in a statement.

While the constitutional issue of whether the Senate can be bypassed forming Congress into a constituent assembly is a matter for the Supreme Court to decide, PCEC said it believed "the welfare of the nation requires that congressmen and senators must engage in open and honest dialogue regarding all the relevant issues."

"We appeal to our lawmakers to rise above narrow, partisan and personal politics. Is statesmanship impossible in our beloved land?" it said.

The Protestant group stressed that they recognize that no Constitution is perfect, that there are many ways of amending it and that they support the shift from a presidential to a parliamentary system of government, calling the latter "more democratic and more efficient."

Like the CBCP, PCEC called on its faithful to remain "prayerful, vigilant, and sober," adding, "Let us all enter into the discussions on how to improve our Constitution. Can we do this freely and eagerly without calling each other names? Let us do so because we love our country. It is the only one we have!"

Philippine Catholic Church in Politics

On Dec. 15, all roads lead to Rizal Park

By Carla Gomez, Nestor P. Burgos Jr., Christian V. Esguerra
Inquirer
Last updated 00:18am (Mla time) 12/08/2006

Published on Page A1 of the December 8, 2006 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer

THE CATHOLIC Church is organizing a massive prayer rally on Dec. 15 against the House of Representatives' move to amend the Constitution by convening itself into a constituent assembly (Con-ass).

Part of the Church's plan is to fill up Rizal Park in Manila which, in rallies past, had held up to around one million people.

A Protestant umbrella group, the National Council of Churches in the Philippines, is joining the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines and the charismatic Catholic group El Shaddai in opposing the Malacañang-backed move in the House.

Other groups and individuals such as labor and peasant organizations and President Joseph Estrada are calling on their forces to oppose Con-ass.

Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, president of the CBCP, issued on Wednesday a strongly worded statement describing the House effort as "fraudulently illegal and scandalously immoral."

The CBCP yesterday said simultaneous prayer rallies would be held in all dioceses around the country, according to Msgr. Pedro Quitorio, conference spokesperson.

The country has 86 dioceses, including the military ordinariate, the Church unit for soldiers and policemen headed by Bishop Leopoldo Tumulak.

"There is a need to respond more collectively to the present crisis produced by the prospect of Charter change (Cha-cha) by administration congressmen desperately bent on creating themselves into a constituent assembly," Lagdameo said in the statement titled "Watch and Pray: Magmalasakit Para sa Bayan."

He called on people to be vigilant, saying the temptation to manipulate and to hold on to power endangers the common good and the safety of the greatest number.

Rosales' blessing
Quitorio said the prayer rally had the blessing of Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales, archbishop of the powerful Metropolitan See of Manila.

The low-key cardinal is known to shy away from politics, preferring instead to focus quietly on poverty alleviation and values formation programs in his archdiocese.

Rosales is expected to join other Metro Manila bishops at Rizal Park for the big anti-Charter change prayer rally, according to Quitorio. The other prelates are Bishops Deogracias Iñiguez of Caloocan, Antonio Tobias of Novaliches, Honesto Ongtioco of Cubao, Jesse Mercado of Parañaque and Francisco San Diego of Pasig.

Quitorio said the rally was the bishops' reaction to developments in the House, particularly the adoption of the majority bloc's resolution convening Congress into a constituent assembly.

No more morals
"We are alarmed with what's happening at the lower house," he told the Inquirer. "There are no more morals, no more rules. The rule is what suits administration congressmen."

Quitorio said the CBCP was particularly dismayed that supporters of President Macapagal-Arroyo seemed more preoccupied with their political interest in Manila while thousands of Filipinos were dying and starving in Bicol in the aftermath of Typhoon "Reming."

He said it was unwise for the Arroyo administration and its allies in the House to push for Con-ass with apparent haste and questionable motives. "They're just instigating the people," he said.

Senate President Manuel Villar Jr. confirmed last night that he met with El Shaddai leader Bro. Mariano "Mike" Velarde early in the day in a bid to forge an alliance against the House-only Con-ass.

"I've been going around conferring with groups opposed to Con-ass to apprise them of the Senate position, as well as to get their position," he said.

The Senate invited Velarde, who earlier told the Inquirer that he would block the legally flawed House Con-ass, to a hearing set for Monday on the proposals to amend the Constitution.

The Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines, which pushed for the dismissed people's initiative to amend the Charter, sought a breakfast meeting with Villar today in a bid to broker a dialogue between the Senate and House on Charter change.

Nat'l Council of Churches
In a statement, the NCCP said it was joining "the CBCP and other sectors of society in their efforts to thwart this deceptive machination to tinker with the Constitution."

The NCCP said it was not against Charter change per se. "Amendments are necessary in order for the Charter to ensure the welfare of the citizens. No doubt, the present Constitution stands in need of substantial improvement, but definitely not at this time and certainly not for the wrong reasons," it said.

In Tanay, Rizal, where he is detained, Estrada urged Filipinos to go out into the streets and protest Con-ass.

"With every breath I have, I will fight this unconscionable rape of our Constitution and the murder of our democracy and freedoms," Estrada said in a statement.

He deplored the move of the House majority to convene a Con-ass without the cooperation of the Senate.

"As in 2001 when (President Macapagal-Arroyo) mounted a coup d'etat in January to depose [me], the Constitution was treated as a dirty rag. There was no respect shown for the Constitution and democracy, with the sacred document and covenant with the Filipino people trampled by the coup plotters," he said.

Estrada, despite five years in detention, remains the acknowledged leader of the United Opposition.

In May 2001, Estrada's arrest and detention caused thousands of his loyalists to come out into the streets and picket the Edsa Shrine in what would be called Edsa III.

Davao businessmen
In Davao City, businessmen are opposing Con-ass as a means of introducing amendments to the Constitution, an official of the Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry Inc. (DCCCII) said.

DCCCII has about 386 members and is considered one of the country's influential business groups.

But lawyer Bienvenido Cariaga, DCCCII president, clarified the chamber was not against the moves to amend the Constitution. He said the chamber would prefer a constitutional convention (Con-con) as a way of introducing changes in the Charter to prevent politicians from inserting provisions that would serve their interests.

He said during the chamber's general assembly on Dec. 2, at least 55 members stood up for Con-con while only two voted in favor of Con-ass. Cariaga said on Tuesday the chamber distributed survey forms and found out that 99 percent of those who answered were against Con-ass.

He said businessmen fear that the Con-ass would become a venue for politicians to introduce changes that would only further their personal agenda.

Widespread protests
Militant groups are also gearing for widespread protest actions.

The Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) said it would mobilize its 1.5 million members to launch protest actions against Con-ass.

"We should also join our forces with that of the Church and the El Shaddai as well as other forces genuinely against Charter change and have the people's interest at heart," said KMP secretary general Danilo Ramos in an e-mailed statement.

The Kilusang Mayo Uno, Partido Manggagawa and Sanlakas said they were planning mass actions in Metro Manila and elsewhere against Con-ass.

"If they think the people would accept hook, line and sinker the Cha-cha they're cooking, they're mistaken," said KMU chair Elmer Labog.

Labog said that once the Constitution was opened to amendments or revisions, basic labor rights such as the eight-hour daily work, prohibition on contractual jobs and freedom to form unions might be removed.

Noise barrage
Members of Partido Manggagawa and allies Sanlakas and Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino held a noise barrage at noon yesterday against Con-ass at Mabuhay Rotunda in Quezon City, along Edsa at the corners of North and Timog Avenues, Malinta interchange in Valenzuela City and SM Fairview.

Today, the Ilonggos' Movement Against Arroyo's Charter Change (I March) and Bagong Alyansang Mabayan in Panay will kick off their protest actions in Iloilo City.

In Ormoc City, Msgr. Bernardo Pantin, parish priest of the Saints Peter and Paul, called on the faithful to raise a collective voice to stop the "Cha-cha" train.With reports from Juliet Labog-Javellana, Norman Bordadora and Jerome Aning in Manila; Joey Gabieta, Inquirer Visayas; Rizalene Acac and Julie Alipala, Inquirer Mindanao

Bishops and Gloria Arroyo's Goverment

11/01/2006

The general perception of the attitude of the
Catholic Church toward
the woman that it helped install in the
presidency in 2001 is one of
selective indifference toward its demonstrated
shortcomings. This
perception has been strengthened by statements
made by some members
of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the
Philippines (CBCP)
regarding a report said to have been prepared,
and presented to the
CBCP, by a committee created to investigate the
allegation that
Gloria Arroyo cheated Fernando Poe Jr. of victory
in the 2004
election.

According to the statements made by some CBCP
members, the committee
concluded, on the basis of its inquiries with
church-related entities
and their civil society groups, that the
standard-bearer of the
Kilusan ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino (KNP) was
cheated of around 600,000
votes by Mrs. Arroyo. The entities to which CBCP
directed its
inquiries were the Catholic Church-organized
Parish Pastoral Council
for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) and the National
Movement for Free
Elections (Namfrel).

Teodoro Bacani, the former Bishop of Novaliches,
is one of th CBCP
members who have stated that a report prepared by
the committee
created by the CBCP to investigate the 2004
electoral fraud
allegations — marked "For Your Eyes Only" — was
presented to the CBCP
members during a plenary session held early this
year in Manila.
Bishop Bacani has written that "(t)he figure of
the CBCP
investigating panel that the fraud was massive:
600,000 votes." The
bishop added that a high official of the PPCRV,
when asked in the
course of a private conversation whom he thought
really won the 2004
election, had answered "FPJ."

Another prominent CBCP member, the Archbishop of
Lingayen, Oscar
Cruz, has publicly confirmed that the report of a
CBCP committee
created to investigate the 2004 electoral fraud
allegations was
circulated during a CBCP plenary meeting. "A
report was handed to the
bishops during our plenary meeting," the
courageous prelate has
stated.

Bishop Bacani noted that in his testimony before
the Senate, the then-
Namfrel chairman for Lanao del Sur — one of the
handful provinces
which Gloria Arroyo claims to have won —
"categorically stated that
FPJ and Loren (Legarda) were cheated in 2004."

Furthermore, two officials of the Commission on
Elections (Comelec),
Arsenio Rasalan and John Clinton Colcol said to
have detailed, in
affidavits, how Gloria Arroyo's operatives
altered entries in the
Certificates of Canvass to ensure her victory in
the 2004 election.

Any sensible observer would have thought that a
report such as that
prepared by the electoral-fraud investigating
committee would create
a stir during the plenary meeting and move the
Catholic Church's top
clerics to action. But it didn't. Why not?

A third CBCP member who confirmed the
distribution of the committee
report during the CBCP plenary meeting stated
that the report failed
to satisfy the bishops' questions on the charge
of massive electoral
fraud leveled against Gloria Arroyo. "It didn't
create a ripple among
the bishops," he said. "(They said) it wasn't
worth it because the
report came from second-hand information taken
from other reports
made available by different groups."

At the beginning of this piece, I spoke of the
general perception
that the CBCP practices selective indifference
toward the Arroyo
government's demonstrated shortcomings. The
Catholic Church
leadership group's reaction to, and inaction on,
its electoral fraud
investigating committee's findings is a perfect
example of this.

This country's Catholic prelates could not be —
refused to be — moved
to action against Gloria Arroyo's gigantic fraud
and grand deception
in the 2004 election notwithstanding Mrs.
Arroyo's highly improper
and exceedingly incriminating canvass-stage
conversations with
Comelec official Virgilio Garcillano, the
unwavering testimonies of
civil society people involved in the monitoring
of the election and
the mounds of testimony received and compiled in
the course of the
numerous inquiries that have been conducted, in
Congress and
elsewhere, into the 2004 electoral-fraud
allegations. In so doing —
or not doing — this country's Catholic bishops
completely disregarded
the series of opinion surveys that found the
majority of Filipinos,
often up to 80 percent, (1) believe that Gloria
Arroyo cheated her
way through the 2004 election, (2) think that the
issue of Gloria's
legitimacy must be settled conclusively and (3)
want her to get out
of Malacañang.

There are many discernible indications that the
Roman Catholic Church
in this country has steadily been losing ground
among its flock. Its
selective indifference toward the wayward ways of
Gloria Arroyo's
administration, as demonstrated by its attitude
to the reports of its
electoral-fraud investigating committee, is
guaranteed to not bring
about a reversal of that trend

CBCP - Bishops and Philippine Goverment

CBCP: Anti-Cha-cha stance not to push church tax
exemption

11/03/2006

The Catholic Bishops Conference of the
Philippines (CBCP) yesterday
said it had no sectoral agenda in its expressed
opposition to the
proposal to amend the 1987 Constitution and is
not trying to coerce
the government into lifting the imposed tax on
the church.

Msgr. Pedro Quitorio, spokesman and media
director of the CBCP, said
the CBCP's aired objection to the proposed
revision of the 19-year-
old Charter was basically due to the reason
stated by the government
in pushing Charter change (Cha-cha).

"Changing the Constitution would only worsen the
situation of the
Philippines because of the (government's) hidden
agenda and this is
perpetuated by deception, lying and corruption,"
he said.

Quitorio added the issue on the tax on the church
is an almost
insubstantial part of their objection to Cha-cha.

He said the Catholic church is abiding by the law
and is paying its
taxes along with schools and other businesses
owned and operated by
the church.

Quitorio stressed the proposed amendments to the
Constitution through
the government-backed people's initiative had
just been revived
following the controversy hounding the legitimacy
of the Arroyo
government.

In an earlier statement, the CBCP lauded the
Supreme Court (SC) for
scrapping the petition for the recognition of a
people's initiative
to effect Cha-cha that was filed by the Sigaw ng
Bayan movement and
the Union of Local Authorities (Ulap).

Prior to the SC's junking of the petition, the
Commission on
Elections (Comelec) turned it down on the grounds
that there was no
enabling law to allow for it.

CBCP president, Jaro, Leyte Arhcbishop Angel
Lagdameo said the
Catholic Church is not against Cha-cha per se
since they agree that
some provisions of the Constitution needs to be
amended, but what
they are opposing is the timing of the proposed
amendments.

To My Dear Brother Bishops

Address by Pope Benedict XVI to the Irish Bishops at Vatican City, OCT. 29, 2006-
Bishop Filomeno G. Bactol should read and pray on.....

In the exercise of your pastoral ministry, you have had to respond in recent years to many heart-rending cases of sexual abuse of minors. These are all the more tragic when the abuser is a cleric. The wounds caused by such acts run deep, and it is an urgent task to rebuild confidence and trust where these have been damaged. In your continuing efforts to deal effectively with this problem, it is important to establish the truth of what happened in the past, to take whatever steps are necessary to prevent it from occurring again, to ensure that the principles of justice are fully respected and, above all, to bring healing to the victims and to all those affected by these egregious crimes. In this way, the Church in Ireland will grow stronger and be ever more capable of giving witness to the redemptive power of the Cross of Christ. I pray that by the grace of the Holy Spirit, this time of purification will enable all God's people in Ireland to "maintain and perfect in their lives that holiness which they have received from God" (Lumen Gentium, 40).

HOPE IN THE MIDST OF CRISIS

HOPE IN THE MIDST OF CRISIS

(Must reading for Bishop Filomeno G. Bactol)

A Message from the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines

Beloved People of God: As we your bishops gathered at Tagaytay for our annual Spiritual Retreat and our 85th Plenary Assembly, a destructive typhoon raged for several days. We were reminded of Peter and the other disciples on a boat being swamped by the waves. There were terrified and in panic. Aroused from sleep by the disciples, Jesus said to them: Why is your faith so little? Have courage! And he stilled the storm.

In a very true sense we are going through a terrible storm. In our country, a great number of our people continue to suffer dehumanizing poverty. Criminality, senseless violence, irresponsible politics and other serious ills are fast becoming the staple of our daily lives. Many have a sense of despair or hopelessness. To the various crises in society, we must now, with great sorrow and shame, add problems in the Church. We confess that cases of grave sexual misconduct by clerics and religious in the Philippines have rocked the bark of Peter.

Sexual misconduct on the part of shepherds of the flock betrays the holy Priesthood that Christ has shared. The people of God are faced with the mystery of the Church, at once holy and yet sinful in its members. Have courage, Jesus says to all of us. With courage as a gift from God, we your Pastors humbly ask for forgiveness for the grave sins committed by some leaders against members of the flock. The whole Gospel that we proclaim is an indictment of such unpriestly behavior. Yet saying thins, let us all realize that the great majority of the clergy and religious are faithful to their priestly and religious commitments and sincerely strive with the help of God's grace to be holy and zealous.

We realize that forgiveness and apologies must flow into a commitment to be purified and renewed. That is what we resolve to do. We your bishops are now in the process of drafting thorough wide consultation with experts from among the lay people, religious men and women, a protocol that addresses the various types of sexual abuse and misconduct. It will provide steps for profound renewal.

Even as Jesus convicts us for our lack of faith, we likewise make our way to him and plaintively ask, Lord, what shall we do? The words of Micah the Prophet ring loud and strong, "You know what the Lord God expects of you: to act justly, to love tenderly and to walk humbly with your God" (Micah 6:8).

With everyone who despairs of ever changing society, with victims and offenders of sexual abuse in the Church, we find hope in the midst of a storm through the words of Micah.

We see hope in acting justly. Justice required that all of us, clergy and religious, your spiritual leaders look after the good of the flock without any regard for profit, pleasure, or power, because that is the call of God to us. We see hope in loving tenderly. Love requires all spiritual leaders to offer the sacrifice of their talents, in fact their very lives, for the people given by God to their care. For this was the manner of Christ's own love. It demands a love that neither exploits others nor takes advantage of any member of the flock, but respects and uplifts all members as God's own beloved children.

We see hope in walking humbly. We walk humbly when we ask for forgiveness from God and from the victims of our sins. We walk humbly when, divesting ourselves of power and authority, go to those from whom we have separated ourselves through self-interest, arrogance, or abuse of power, and reconcile with them heart to heart. For why should not religious leaders be one with their flock, when they themselves are ambassadors of reconciliation?

The hope of a better Philippines, of a holy Church, that God gives as a gift comes through a life that is renewed, a life that acts justly, loves tenderly, and walks humbly with God. Such a life is itself the grace of God.

This is the message we wish to proclaim to you as we journey through a series of storms whose waves threaten to swamp both Church and society. Have faith! Have courage, says Jesus. In him we have hope that does not disappoint.

For the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines:

+ORLANDO B. QUEVEDO, OMI, DD
Archbishop of CotabatoPresident,
Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines
7 July 2002

Letter sent to Bishop Bactol from St. Alfonso Monastery

Most Rev. Filomeno G. Bactol, DD
Diocese of Naval
6543 Naval, Biliran, Philippines



Dear Most Rev. Filomeno G. Bactol,

Consider this:

Can. 401 ß2 a diocesan Bishop who, because of illness or some other grave reason, has become unsuited for the fulfillment of his office, is earnestly requested to offer his resignation from office.

Because of your immoral behavior you are unsuited for the office of diocesan Bishop.

It is good for the Diocese of Naval and the full Catholic Church that you submit your resignation to the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI.


Sincerely, in Christ and
Our Mother of Perpetual Help,


Stephen M. Greinke, MBPH



Cc Apostolic Nuncio

Archbishop Dean coments on Bactol's Problems

Msgr. Pedro Dean, expressed his thanks to Bishop Bactol publicly for his cooperation during his stint as Archbishop of Palo.
He gave this piece of advice to the honoree as he said "you welcome worries, disappointments, burdens because these humps in life are not to give you problems but to ask you to go slow so that you can reach the peak of fulfillment of your life as bishop and as servant of God.
"I hope you can reach the golden years of your episcopacy", he said.

Imelda Marcos - at Bishop Bactol's 25th

Former FL hails God’s miracles on bishops’s silver anniversary
By Lanie Pitao-Tupaz
Naval, Biliran (18 October) -- Former First Lady Imelda Romualdez Marcos, special principal sponsor of Bishop Filomeno Bactol in his episcopal ordination 25 years ago, came to Naval, Biliran, to attend his silver anniversary celebration of episcopal ordination.
In her speech before the bishops, clergies, nuns, and parishioners, Mrs. Marcos emphasized the miraculous powers of God for those who religiously ask for His help and blessings.
Mrs. Marcos recalled the day they were ousted from the palace for their years of exile in Hawaii. Their destination that day was unknown to her and their family. All she thought was that they were to leave the palace for Ilocos, the late President Marcos’ hometown.
In packing their belongings, the first thing she took with her was the image of the Sto. Niño, the patron saint of her birthplace, Tacloban City. The image of the Sto. Niño stayed with them in Hawaii and it was the Sto. Niño whom she asked for all the strength and courage to face the gargantuan trials she and her family are facing.
Since their ouster in power in 1986, Mrs. Marcos said, they face hundreds of cases not from individuals but from governments and super powers. However, she and her family remain strong as they were. This she attributed to her strong religious faith.
Mrs. Marcos even pitied his friends involved in those cases along with them who passed away along the process.
Somehow, she is still very thankful for the intercession of God for giving her the strength to face all those trials and got acquitted in most of them.
Moreover, she has high hopes for a peaceful community within the entire diocese of Naval with Bishop Filomeno Bactol. (PIA