WITH A president who attacks the Church and a society plagued with blinding propaganda, the teachings of the Angelic Doctor of the Church, St. Thomas Aquinas, the University’s patron saint, is a good reminder that both faith and reason are needed to know the truth.
Since the onset of Duterte’s bloody war on drugs, the Filipino Catholic Church has vigorously hit the President for his anti-poor and inhumane policies. Duterte responded with accusing bishops of being gay, living luxuriously, womanizing, and other forms of corruption. He even mocked Church doctrines by calling God “stupid” and questioning the Holy Trinity.
Obviously, Duterte fires these tirades to distract Filipinos from government inefficiency such as the rising inflation and unemployment rate, and China’s occupation of islands in Philippine territory or its exclusive economic zone.
Time and again, the current administration has used propaganda to hinder rational discussion on relevant issues in the country. Instead of justifying why he extended martial law in Marawi or catching big-time drug lords, he spends hia time silencing his critics while blurting out racist and sexist statements.
It is not shocking that Duterte would hit the Church that strongly has spoken against the inhumane policies of his administration.
For one, the Church’s opposition to the administration’s repressive and murderous policies is not a violation of the doctrine of the separation of the Church and State since the doctrine simply means that the State cannot establish a state religion and cannot interfere with the free exercise of religions.
The President does not need to believe in God even if Aquinas long arrived at the five scholastic proofs on the existence of God, but he certainly needs to learn to respect other people’s beliefs.
Noticeably, the President has singled out the Catholic faith to villigy. He has shown respect for the Muslim faith, and surely, he will not speak against the religious sects of Iglesia ni Cristo and that of Apollo Quiboloy’s for they had endorsed his candidacy back in 2016.
The Catholic Church, meanwhile, has continuously spoken out against the loss of the lives of thousands of drug suspects and has denounced his anti-poor policies. For that, it has taken the jabs and jeers from the President and his blind followers. Shameful as it is, the hypocrisy of many Filipinos stands out here: they are Catholics but they fall short of defending the faith when the President attacks it.
Aquinas’s political philosophy also emphasizes that the goal of a political community should be the common good. Political authorities must pursue this common good by maintaining a just society where citizens would flourish physically and morally. In doing so, Aquinas stressed that these leaders must possess the four cardinal virtues – prudence, temperance, justice and fortitude.
Perhaps the President and our political leaders should take a page from Aquinas’s teachings in leading the country. Aquinas reminds us that politics is good and beautiful, if only applied and pursued properly.
As for the Church, there is no need to worry as She transcends politics in universality and purpose. Being vocal against the administration’s repressive and murderous policies is just one of the Her ways in aiding man-made institutions to lead people for the common good.
Questions on the doctrinal matters should strengthen Catholics’ faith in God and in the Mother Church. Aquinas reminds us that faith is an intellectual act that may lead us to the truth.
In a country bombarded with political leaders mocking Church doctrines and crafting inhumane government policies, St. Thomas serves as a model to study, learn more about the world, about God and share the knowledge to create a more just society. This Dominican spirituality reminds us that studying is also a form of worship. It is a challenge for Catholic schools such as the pontifical, royal and Catholic University of the Philippines, UST, to improve on catechesis.
Amid the calls to reinstate capital punishment, lower criminal liability to nine years old and the normalization of extrajudicial killings, the Philippines must take a step back and reassess its moral values. Seven hundred forty-five years since his death, St. Thomas Aquinas and his teachings remain relevant for Filipinos to pursue and discern the truth while living in the chaotic Philippine society.
