Tag: September 14, 2011

IT’S INACCURATE to describe American priests accused of sexual abuse as “pedophiles,” as less than five percent of them fit the category, a report released by US researchers last May showed.

Celibacy should not be blamed, the study by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice of New York also said. The problem should instead be viewed in the context of the sexual revolution of the 1960s and 1970s, the report titled “The Causes and Context of Sexual Abuse of Minors by Catholic Priests in the United States, 1950-2010” said.

There is no “single cause,” but the misconduct was certainly brought about by lack of preparation for the priestly vocation.

GLORIA Dizon-Coronel, one of the country’s premier sopranos and a well-loved voice mentor of the UST Conservatory, marked her 50th year in the classical musical industry by the concert, Gloria: A Jubilant Celebration, at the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ (CCP) Tanghalang Aurelio Tolentino last August 31.

Thomasians who performed along with Coronel were soprano Rachelle Gerodias and pianists Najib Ismail and Julie Deloso Mendoza. Other performers were world-class baritone Nomer Son and Korean alumna Sung-Hye Sim.

The UST Singers and their conductor Fidel Calalang, Jr. also performed at the event with members Aristotle Molina, Noel Azcona, Vidagrace Kahlil Mirang, Eunice Escrupolo, May Anne Abeleda, and Juan Paulo Azul as soloists.

SPANISH photographer Óscar Fernandez Orengo’s book “44 Cineastas Filipinos” reaffirms in glossy print what’s common knowledge in world cinema: Philippine cinema has entered another exciting golden-age.

The book, published by the Instituto Cervantes de Manila features established and emerging voices of Philippine cinema, many of them winners of film festival abroad. It boasts of trilingual texts in English, Filipino and Spanish. It includes short filmographies of Filipino filmmakers by writer-teacher Shirley Chua.

Instituto Cervantes Director José Ma. Rodriguez said the books fills the lack of publications in Filipino films.

“There’s nothing written about them (Filipino filmmakers) in Philippine libraries,” Rodriguez said.

FROM traditional paint-on-canvas pieces to sculptures of various media to modern-day digital and vinyl art, Manilart 2011: the Third Philippine International Art Fair featured diverse art to a diverse audience at the NBC Tent in Bonifacio Global City from August 25 to 27.

Despite the wider selection, this year was a more exclusive gathering as the venue housed only 24 galleries, which were requested to curate the pieces they were going to put on show as if they were holding actual exhibitions. The “micro-turned-macro” scale conceptualization resulted in a simulation of simultaneous exhibit openings during the gala.

A BLENDING of glamour and the rich culture of the Philippines took place when the Student Organizations Coordinating Council (SOCC) staged Pintig Tomasino 2011: Viaje to celebrate Buwan ng Wika at the UST Medicine Auditorium last August 26. The annual fashion show was on its third year.

Enrico Angelo Herrera, SOCC public relations officer, said the theme this year "is linked to the Quadricentennial celebration of UST." He said the designers sought inspiration from "the past, present, and future."

YOU only become a better writer when you have finally figured out what writing technique works best for you.

The panelists of the seventh Varsitarian Fiction Workshop last September 4 and 11 challenged young writers to put an end to self-indulgence and give their literary works a sense of urgency. It was also the first time a poetry workshop was held in parallel with the fiction category.

RUST was consuming the iron legs of the cage, while the wall was too filthy to lean on. The putrid smell was almost unbearable that I could gag in a heartbeat. Amid the bestial condition, it was the only place where I could be with my father.

The silence of the place seemed like the witch has just stopped dancing. The place freed me from scare of blasting bomb and shouting group of people in the street.

Inside one of identical pairs of

elegant, tall, proud towers,

I waited tables.

I was on the 107th floor.

This proved to be more than just

a regular day’s work as metal shrieked

out of its place.

I was on the 107th floor

serving wine and busing out plates

when an airplane crashed on the left side façade.

I was on the 107th floor

as faces were set in panic.

I was on the 107th floor,

overlooking the pavement below.

I was afraid. I prayed.

I was terrified to be burnt to a crisp

like a fried pork-belly

or smoked like fish.

I chose to run for my life

SA NGALAN ng Ama, ng Anak, at ng Espiritu Santo. Amen.

Panginoon, patawarin niyo po ako. Hindi ko po sinasadyang magsinungaling.

Passing score. Iyan lang naman ang gusto ko. Sa pagsusulit na iyon, kailangan ko talagang makapasa dahil tagilid na talaga ako. Ayaw ko pong umulit. Ayaw ko pong manatili sa eskuwelahan na ito. Higit po sa lahat, ayaw ko pong magalit ang mga magulang ko.

Sapat na po ba ang mga dahilang ito upang maintindihan niyo po ang ginawa ko?

Tatlong gabi na ang nakalilipas. Ano kaya ang score ko sa nakaraang pagsusulit? Bakit hindi pa rin ito binabalik ng prof namin? Nahalata po kaya niya?

Sorry, Lord. I’ m really, really sorry.

Magpapaliwanag ako.

ISANG ebolusyon ng wikang Filipino ang namayani sa bansa mula noong panahon ni Jose Rizal hanggang sa kasalukuyan.

Ayon kay Jovy Peregrino, direktor ng Sentro ng Wikang Filipino sa Unibersidad ng Pilipinas, sa isang porum na may temang “Wikang Filipino: Mula kay Rizal hanggang kay PNoy” sa AMV Multi-purpose Hall noong Agosto 31.

Sinimulan ni Peregrino ang pagtalakay sa iba’t ibang patakarang pang-wika ni Rizal hanggang sa kasalukuyang pangulo na si Benigno Aquino III o “PNoy.”