Lenten reflections, sort of

I was at the Greenhills Shopping Center with my husband and daughter on Palm Sunday doing some last minute shopping for a week-long trip. Summer vacation had begun for many students, a lot of city dwellers were preparing to embark on the annual exodus to the provinces, so it just seemed so strange to find Greenhills less crowded than it usually was on a Sunday morning.

As we sat down to lunch at Pho Hoa, my husband started fiddling with the 3G setting of his cell phone. A few minutes later, he was watching the Pacquio-Marquez bout. That was when I realized why the Greenhills crowd was thinner than usual. A lot of people stayed home to watch the fight. As if to confirm my theory, an hour or so after Pacquiao won, shoppers came in droves. By the time we left, the place was already very crowded.

I spent a few minutes wondering how this pre-dominantly Catholic country did not find it strange to spend the morning of Palm Sunday cheering as two men beat each other for money and glory while experiencing some kind of orgasmic ecstasy at the sight of such violence. It just seemed so ironic, especially since it was the day that commemorates the beginning of the sufferings of Jesus Christ that culminated in his crucifixion.

One news report said: “Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo led Filipinos in cheering Pacquiao’s victory.” Wow. For someone who refuses to endorse a realistic birth control program in deference to the Catholic Church, for someone who has withdrawn a controversial executive order again in deference to some powerful men in the Catholic Church, I wondered where Christian values had gone on Palm Sunday.

In an article entitled “Palm Sunday starts week close to Filipinos’ hearts” by Beverly Natividad published that Sunday in the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Fr. Genaro Diwa, head of the liturgical affairs ministry of the Archdiocese of Manila, talked about Filipino Lenten practices:

“According to Diwa, the way Filipinos spend the week in total solemnity is something peculiar to the culture that values religious traditions…”

Right. Cheering for Manny Pacquaio on Palm Sunday, including the heavy betting that went with it was very, very solemn indeed.

If I had spent the day drinking or gambling or doing all sorts of “decadent” activities, it would be a non-issue. I’m the non-believer, the sinner, the heretic, the person who’s going to hell and all that crap because I say that the Catholic Church lies when it says everything it does is in direct compliance with orders from above. But with people who profess to be true believers, God-fearing and devout Catholics, the word hypocrisy crosses my mind and it isn’t exactly a passing thought.

In the same manner, I had no qualms about going on a vacation during the entire Holy Week and enjoying myself to the hilt. For me, that’s what holidays are for—rest and recreation. I don’t have to feel guilty about not going through the Lenten rituals because I don’t believe in them. But for people who claim to be good Christians and faithful Catholics, it seems rather strange that they feel nothing’s amiss as they romp on the beach of Phuket or go shopping in Hong Kong when the faith they claim to adhere to says it is a time for praying and reflecting on sacrifices made by a man they call the Son of God.

But is any of that surprising, really? This is a country where a lot of people sin all week then go to church on Sunday to repent. The following week, they sin again then go to church the next Sunday to ask for forgiveness once more. This is a country where a lot of people believe that bloodying their bodies on Good Friday wipes all the sins they committed during the previous 364 days. This is a country where a lot of people believe that the ability to recite memorized prayers and Bible verses is a relevant measure of goodness.

This is a country steeped in contradictions, superstitions and shady morality. You have a Church that condemns gambling but accepts money from the agency that regulates it—an agency funded fully by gambling proceeds. A country where majority of the people support a war against non-Christians without taking the time to understand that the war is rooted on the attempt of the Catholic Church to annex a land that has never recognized its authority and supremacy.

What a perplexing culture we live in and thrive on.

When I was much younger, the Lenten rituals fascinated me. I wanted to understand why men whipped themselves on Good Friday, why others wore costumes and carried crosses and why some extremists even got themselves nailed to the cross. I grew up in this country and I know what a “panata” means. I never had one. I didn’t believe in them but I was still fascinated at the way others believed in them so that their lives revolved around fulfilling their panata during Lent. Even if many of the Lenten practices bordered on superstition and misguided religiosity, there was at least an element of sincerity.

Then, the world discovered our Lenten rituals and tourists started to come in droves to watch the flagellants and the crucifixions. They became spectacles rather than religious vows. Towns where these practices are common started building some sort of tourism industry during Lent.

The Good Friday procession that I marveled at as a child lost its meaning after I learned that the magnificence is due largely to the competition among owners of religious statues who spend scandalous amounts of money on costumes, jewelry, flowers and lights so that their santos and santas would outshine the rest during the procession. Because there is often only a few weeks’ interval between Lent and the Flores de Mayo processions, I often wondered what the real difference was. The extravagance is the same and both have lost the essence of the events that they seek to commemorate.

I don’t know what to make of the religious culture in this country, really. I don’t know what significance Lent has for you. I have no pretensions. For me, it’s simply a prized opportunity to be with my family.