Decaffeinated Life

This is from the article of Atty. Sison from Philippine Start (March 10 and 11). It is about Menchu and Joyce Sison. It is very moving. 

Last Sunday, March 8, 2009, my family was at “Heaven’s Gate” to commemorate in advance the sixth death anniversary of our only daughter Joyce which falls today, March 10, 2009. “Heaven’s Gate” is the memorial park at the hills of Antipolo which is the gravesite of Joyce. Somehow the place seems so aptly named especially last Sunday when I felt we were at heaven’s gate meeting and greeting Joyce; and reminiscing and renewing those times when we were still together, particularly during the last moments before she entered it.

That sense of closeness to Joyce and memories of the times of our life together is stronger this year as we bade goodbye just ten days ago to one of her cousins, Menchu Sison who has also reached heaven’s gate at the end of her earthly sojourn last February 27, 2009. The windy hills of Antipolo last Sunday afternoon is so conducive to envisioning a scene where Joyce is welcoming Menchu at heaven’s gate with a big, warm hug.

This is a scene that looks so vivid and stirring because of the many parallelisms in the lives of these two young girls. Both of them served as numerary members of the Opus Dei. Menchu was one of Joyce’s cousins who became close to her and followed her at Opus Dei. The others are the ever smiling Tina and the jolly good girl Dottie who are both still serving God in this world as numerary members.

The most striking part in the life of Joyce and Menchu is how they live it. Joyce herself best described it when she once wrote: “I have always been happy wherever I am and just lived what I have seen I have to do. I consider my life as simple, simplified even with my sickness, by the idea that all I have to do is to love; Simplify life, love! Manifest that love in whatever may be asked of you at each moment”.

Menchu, like Joyce also died after a lingering bout with the deadly cancer. They accepted their affliction and suffering with amazing grace and serenity. Even as they experience pain, they can still manage to smile as their thoughts remain centered on others. In fact during her last moments the words coming out of Menchu’s dying lips were “thank you, thank you” and   “I am sorry, I am sorry”. Thus I was no longer surprised when I heard for the first time at the homily during Menchu’s funeral mass that when Joyce was already ill, Menchu even wrote a letter asking to take the place of Joyce in her sufferings. More than a proof of how close the cousins had become, they have shown us the reason for their serenity and calmness amidst pain and suffering — by always thinking of others and not of themselves.

And so as we commemorate the sixth death anniversary of our daughter Joyce, allow me to share with you some of her words when she was already stricken with cancer: 

“When symptoms appear pointing to a possible grave illness, the first thing you have to do is undergo some tests until you get to know what you really have. This is the hardest part of the sickness, I’d say, because of the unknown factor. We are usually afraid of the unknown - What is this? How grave is it? Am I to live long or will I die soon? Can I take the pain – physical or moral - those I will and those my loved ones will feel? The sooner you get to know what you have, the better. You can only fight once you know who or what your enemy is. And I was going through this stage during the merry days of Christmas. Blessed Josemaria taught us to judge events with the eyes of eternity, with the logic of God. So, I looked at the coincidence of the mystery of the Incarnation of the Word with the incarnation of a tumor. And what do I arrive at? A greater devotion to Our Lady! I saw the succeeding events in her life as those which are to take place in mine – the joys and sorrows, anxieties and abandonment in her bearing a child have a great parallelism in my bearing a tumor…Our founder would also teach us to live in divine filiations, to consider frequently that we are children of God and have to behave as one at all moments. So, if I am with my loving Father God and He sends me this, what do I have to fear? Besides my Daddy wrote this note to me (Blessed Josemaria would tell us that we owe 90% of our vocation to our parents): He knows you, he loves you and he will give you only what is best for you.

“The diagnosis came on January 2: Malignant! It was then that I asked that question I would tell my students to have the habit of asking, since doing so opens one up to a whole new world of knowledge: Why? Why? Why me? Why this? Why now?! . . . to my surprise, in the solace of prayer, God answers: Why not? Then the prayers our founder would usually pray came ringing in my mind: May the most just and the most lovable will of God be done, be fulfilled, be praised and eternally exalted above all things. Amen. Amen.        

Take note, the Amen has to be said twice because one usually prays this in moments difficult to accept. That is the answer to the why? Or why not? - because, God wants it this way! The entire program of our life is to work for the fulfillment of God’s will, and for me, at this moment, He wants to carry out His will in and through this sickness. Many great things depend - don’t forget it — on whether you and I live our lives as God wants.

Now I know what we have to fight. I have to enroll in a course — chemotherapy, and in spiritual course of which he tells us in The Way: A whole program for a good course in the “subject” of suffering has been given to us by the Apostle: “rejoicing in hope,” “patient in tribulations,” “persevering in prayer.”

REJOICE…For those who cry when I break the news to them: Please change your tears for Joyce to tears of Joy! Or take advantage of all occasions in the ordinary events in your life to make fun out of them. I play magic with my nephews: Now you see the hair (wig), now you don’t (baldness)! You should see the look of wonder in those innocent eyes! Or when I look at any x-ray film of my bone structure: Imagine! I can see here my future! Rejoice! Just because you are sick, do you have to be sad? He says: The cheerfulness you should have is not the kind we might call physiological . . . like that of a healthy animal. Rather, it is the supernatural happiness that comes, from the abandonment of everything, including yourself, into the loving arms of our Father God. So, rejoice! And rejoice in hope! — Heaven is in store for you! Of course I have to fight sin, to go to confessions when needed…

Patience . . . Patient in tribulation . . . when you are told not to move or to talk while having a 30-minute bone scan and meanwhile here are the x-ray technicians talking about their experience in the morgue — of the yucky things they saw, and the foul odor they smelled! Thank God I’ll be dead before I see or smell myself in that state! . . . Patience! . . . . when your stomach tells you to eat and your head tells you to throw it out!...Pasensya!...when you are used to working surely and intensely for many hours a day and now you have to adjust to whatever small jobs your body will allow to work on! . . . Pasensya! . . . when you finally work but then the computer is not compatible with you!!! . . . Santa Pasensya!

But are these really tribulations? If they are not, I don’t know what you would call them. He would tell us to co-redeem with Christ in the pinpricks of daily activities. What value these pinpricks have! — to co-redeem with Christ! To save souls, win them for the Kingdom of God! These pinpricks may make us go through a rough time, so he wrote: Take upon your shoulders a small part of that cross, just a tiny part. And if you can’t manage that then…leave it entirely on the strong shoulders of Christ.   

Persevering in prayer…Many people tell me they are praying for me. Since they are doing it for me, I have resolved not to pray for myself, but for those who pray for me. Mommy’s note reads: People who know you’re sick, worry and pray for you, please pray for them too that they don’t get sick worrying about you. And besides, I’m asked to pray for many intentions — people have faith that my prayers are powerful. How can I not pray if they have great faith in my prayers! Opus Dei was born in the hospitals in Madrid, with prayers of the sick people, I do pray, but I have to be persevering in doing so . . . because acceptance of the will of Father God has to be renewed each time He shows us what He wants. Being in the year of the Holy Spirit — another one of those coincidences with this cancer — this advice takes on a new form: Get to know the Holy Spirit, the Great Unknown, the one who has to sanctify you. Don’t forget that you are a temple of God. The Paraclete is in the center of your soul: listen to Him and follow his inspirations with docility. So persevere in prayer, persevere in the listening to the Holy Spirit, in following his inspirations of docility. And my God, the Holy Spirit is like a woman! — when you start listening to Him, He never stops talking to you! And like a woman, He speaks of small details of delicateness, of affection . . . of Love.”

Source: http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=447171&publicationSubCategoryId=64

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=447445&publicationSubCategoryId=64

As man has been naturally granted with rights that are inherently obtained, statutes enacted through the effort of the legislature come to existence as the facilitating agent which lessens the intricacies in society. Thus, statutes which the legislature pass should always be adherent to the moral of the norms. 

As these laws provide man uncomplicated living, these laws should never forget to set boundaries and limitations so as not to spoil man—to avoid promulgation of laws which conceal economic dreams with hedonistic and pragmatic outlook.

The Reproductive Health Bill introduced by the Honorable Edcel Lagman is the bill that had stirred so much attention. It is a bill which aims to “uphold and promote responsible parenthood, informed choice, birth spacing and respect for life in conformity with internationally recognized human rights standards.[1]” It has been drafted in order to aid in alleviating poverty and providing the poor health care services.

However, even with such great intention of attending the ‘needs’ of the poor, the bill instills the use of contraceptives, mandates sex education and encourages two-child policy. Given the rules the bill encrusted, regardless of the morality the bill has raised,, there are some provisions which are in question of law.

QUESTION OF LAW

Question of law arises when a certain law is not in accordance with the constitution or a statute; otherwise it is a question of fact[2]. As the writer read the bill, the writer had noted that there are some questions of law.

As man is inherently encrusted with rights, the state also has its counterpart, inherent powers. Hence, it is the constitution which balances the rights of man so as not to be abused and the powers of the state so as not to be intrusive[3].

Essence of Parental Authority

As the RH bill imposes and mandates certain acts, the bill becomes intrusive. More so, these provisions are utterly not in accordance with the constitution and the Family Code.

Given in the prohibited acts that:

“Refuse to provide reproductive health care services to an abused minor, whose abused condition is certified by the proper official or personnel of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) or to duly DSWD-certified abused pregnant minor on whose case no parental consent is necessary.[4]”

The above provision gives the minor emancipation different from the newly concept of emancipation in the Family Code. The Family Code provides that the decisions of the parents are deemed to be obeyed by the children as long as they are under the parental authority[5]. The above provision disregarded the parental authority of parents. Thus, emancipation of minors is not valid unless minors reach the legal age.

Law should never forget the basis of parental authority over minors. Minors are deemed to be the fresh blood of the society who is not yet ripe to be on their own. That is why there is such a parental authority.

Freedom of Religion

Freedom of religion is, perhaps, the most intricate part of the constitution because it involves a relationship with the Higher Being.

Just as Chief Justice Reynato Puno has stated:

“It is the most difficult area of constitutional law where man stands accountable to an authority higher than the state.  To be held on balance are the state’s interest and the respondent’s religious freedom. In this highly sensitive area of law, the task of balancing between authority and liberty is most delicate because to the person invoking religious freedom, the consequences of the case are not only temporal.[6]”

Even with so many intricacies, it has been proven that the state cannot interfere with the practice of religion as long as it is not felonious in nature. The RH bill which is an outright contrary to the virtues and teachings of Christians bestow big threats in the exercise of the religion.

Following the trend of decisions by the honorable highest court and knowing that the country is predominantly Christian, it truly impedes the exercise of religion. It is the same notion which prompted the Supreme Court to decide the Ebralinag Doctrine.

“It is certain that not every conscience can be accommodated by all the laws of the land; but when general laws conflict with scruples of conscience, exemptions ought to be granted unless some "compelling state interests" intervenes.[7]”

It is therefore unconstitutional bestow penalty of not less than P10, 000.00 and a 6 month to 1 ½ year of imprisonment to those who threaten blocking information dissemination to anyone and even with non-compliance of all hospitals with the said bill.[8]

Right of the Unborn

The 1987 Constitution is very well crafted in terms of the rights for the unborn—that amidst all effort by the Congress to pass abortion rights bill, the bill would always become unconstitutional.

Even with the very much claims that the HB 5043 does not entail abortion, the contraceptives which are being used are abortionable which has been proven by doctors.

Having known such fact, it is therefore unconstitutional to enact the said RH bill, knowing the harm it can bestow to citizens.

Socialist Point of View

Just as stated in the Declaration of Policy in Article II of the Constitution, the Philippines is a democratic and republican state.

It is therefore unconstitutional to put into law the intervention of the state in the citizens’ lives as it encourage newly wed couples to have two children only.[9] It is also unconstitutional to put into law that non-compliance with the Family Planning of the Family Planning Officer renders newly wed couple non-issuance of Marriage Certificate from the Local Civil Registry.[10]

As the authors of this bill envy other countries with such kind of law, believing a pseudo claim for their soaring economies and art of living, there are still citizens of this great nation who believe that this is not the solution to attain such.

Instead of appropriating billions of pesos to this unconstitutional bill, the government should focus on long term plans to fight poverty such as corruption and misappropriation of funds.

As a lot of people think that PRAGMATISM as to sacrifice MORAL is the best solution to alleviate poverty in the country... as they REASON OUT how much those who are VERY MUCH INCLINED WITH THE CATHOLIC FAITH should shut up as there is a SEPARATION OF POWER between the church and the state...

I have here something which they should ponder on...

STICK TO THE BASIC

It is in the moral norms that men are granted with inherent rights. These rights are being protected by laws which the state promulgate. Thus, statutes which the legislature pass should always be adherent to the moral of every society.

More so, the laws to be passed must also set boundaries and limitations so as not to spoil men... to avoid promulgation of laws which conceal economic dreams with hedonistic and pragmatic outlook.

VAGUE, VAGUE, VAGUE!

SEC. 16. Ideal Family Size. - The State shall assist couples, parents and individuals to achieve their desired family size within the context of responsible parenthood for sustainable development and encourage them to have two children as the ideal family size. Attaining the ideal family size is neither mandatory nor compulsory. No punitive action shall be imposed on parents having more than two children.

This is the provision which could be the way of introducing the mandatory population control in the future.

SEC. 21. Prohibited Acts. - The following acts are prohibited:

a) Any health care service provider, whether public or private, who shall:

1. Knowingly withhold information or impede the dissemination thereof, and/or intentionally provide incorrect information regarding programs and services on reproductive health including the right to informed choice and access to a full range of legal, medically-safe and effective family planning methods;

The above provision is too vague! What if the family is a Catholic who does not believe in programs of RH bill? Would they impose fine and imprisonment upon the family? Would this provision impugn freedom of religion of Catholic families?

3. Refuse to provide reproductive health care services to an abused minor, whose abused condition is certified by the proper official or personnel of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) or to duly DSWD-certified abused pregnant minor on whose case no parental consent is necessary.

The above provision suggests that minor could sue their parents or guardians. HUMANLY and LOGICALLY SPEAKING, minors are understood by the society as the young and fresh minds who have not yet seen the real deal in life. Thus, they are always under the supervision of parents or guardians. That is why it is voidable when minors enter contract on their own... why emancipation of minors is not valid anymore...

d) Any person who shall falsify a certificate of compliance as required in Section 14 of this Act; and

Why do we need a certificate of compliance in the first place? this provision would go against the Family Code which governs marriage? What if the family is Catholic?

The premise that this bill should be passed due to economic reasons is totally wrong, there are other ways of alleviating poverty in the country by not sacrificing the moral aspect.

RH bill conceals hedonistic and pragmatic outlooks with the 'economic benefits (daw)' which it offers. Lets really pray that this bill would not be passed in the congress...

After a week of being tucked away from civilization due to the agonizing scents of my herniated disk, I'm finally back and missing my routine in Tahilan and in DLSU.

Being away for a week or two made me missed a lot of things, not just in acads but also in my social life( if there's any! haha!).

THESIS. I missed a lot about my thesis. Kaya pa habol! :)

BDAY CELEB IN TAHILAN. I was tasked to do the bday card of my roommiee... pero hindi ko na nasimulan.haha

CARP/GARB. The most frustrating thing in the world is not having the topic i've been desiring for... monthS!

The X-files! I'm still gonna watch this mulder-scully comeback! Im so excited na!

BECS/WG. Sobrang sorry! wala ako masyadong natulong.bawi ako next activities. :)

BUT....

Sometimes being sick makes a lot of great things, too. Like seeing friends whom I have not seen for ages... RIZZA,RIEL and JACKS! hehe sobrang thanks! I missed them so much specially my other high school loves. :)

TO EVERYONE WHO PRAYED FOR ME...thanks so much! :)