Caloocan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines.
MANILA, Philippines — Caloocan Bishop Pablo Virgilio “Ambo” David on Sunday reminded the faithful that evil teaches people to be like God in the wrong way “and that is to aspire [for] power and praise.”
“Power is very dangerous, delirious, and addictive,” he said, citing the recent moves taken by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“He (Putin) is confused because he thinks he is liberating Ukraine and not invading it,” David said in his homily for the first Sunday of the Lenten period.
The bishop, also the current president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, said that while the mission of Christ was to turn the faithful back to God, the mission of evil was to “disorient” people.
He cited that in the Bible, Jesus was tempted by Satan to use his power to turn stones into bread.
Contextualizing evil’s enticement in the country’s current political landscape, David said: “What are (election) advertisements for if it is possible to hire trolls who will spread fake news and disinformation on social media?”
“Why campaign when you can buy votes? …. Why work when you can live on ill-gotten (wealth)?” he added.
Evil also teaches people a “wrong kind of trust,” according to David, noting that it was like taking a risk or acting without thinking of the possible consequences, just like the devil took Jesus to the highest point of the temple in Jerusalem and told him to jump if he was really the Son of God.
“This is the logic of those who grew up spoiled and without responsibilities in life,” the bishop said.
“Squander money since [your] father is rich. He will take care of things, no matter what trouble you get into,” he said.
“If a world power will do the same thing that Russia is doing to Ukraine right now and the next president will say, ‘Let’s just allow ourselves to be colonized because it might help in our development as a country. God will not abandon us anyway.’ Will we agree to this?” David asked.
The Caloocan bishop stressed that the devil would make the faithful forget that they had been given wisdom and abilities that should be used properly.
“We know that God has mercy … but we also have a saying: God gives mercy to those who help themselves,” David said.
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