Even a cursory reading of the signs of the times shows that the Christmas season, which begins sunset of Dec. 24 and ends Jan. 9, the Feast of the Baptism of Jesus, invites all Filipinos of goodwill to a more fundamental celebration.
That celebration should proceed from the reality of a God who became a human being not to relieve the world’s inhabitants of its burden of suffering but to put meaning in that suffering.
The disaster of biblical proportions that hit Cagayan de Oro and Iligan cities in Mindanao and Negros Oriental province in the Visayas risks becoming just another disaster for us to respond to with relief aid.
But this doesn’t have to be if we heed the message of Christmas, the message of a deity who divested himself of his privileges to enable human beings to transcend themselves. The message echoes through the rubble and broken lives Sendong’s rain and floods left behind.
A first message is for mine operators in Cagayan de Oro to stop digging the earth for gold and whatever minerals of value it hides all at the cost of clogging waterways with silt and other mining residues so that they become useless drainage paths for rain and flood waters.
Surely there is at least one mining operator who is beating his breast and praying mea culpa after witnessing the consequences following the typhoon.
Nereus Acosta, presidential adviser on environment, said the deforestation of watersheds in Lanao del Norte and Bukidnon, which feed into the major rivers of Mindanao (seven rivers run through Cagayan de Oro), also worsened the effects of heavy rains.
That ought to call to repentance those who have enriched themselves by lopping off (without bothering to plant replacement seedlings) trees that used to stand as natural barriers against waters rushing down the mountains and hills and into the plains. Indiscriminate logging should be totally banned, not just mentioned on paper.
Finally, the Philippine National Red Cross issued a statement saying that many of the victims lived on riverbanks.
One reason people remained there is lack of will among government officials to use their police power to keep easement zones along water bodies clear of people. This lethargy has finally yielded the tragic fruit of bodies sacrificed to raging rivers as well as the altar of political expediency. Will our politicians have a change of heart?
The Christ of Christmas made himself poor to enrich others.
Will the high and mighty of the Philippines shun personal interest to keep safe the lives of many?