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| I wasn't able to hold back tears when Glyzelle asked Pope Francis, "Why does God allow this (streetchildren's exposure to prostitution, drugs) to happen and why are there only few people who help us?” |
In the morning of November 8, 2013, the mother of Irene Pedrosa was busy cooking breakfast for the evacuees in the Barangay shelter in
Palo, Leyte. That would be the last meal she prepared. Irene, 24 years old,
told Lourd de Veyra in his Yolanda anniversary feature for Esquire Magazine,
“I’m just asking, of all places... why this one? Why us?”
And then there is, or to be more accurate, was, Kristel Mae Padasas, a 27 year old church volunteer during Pope Francis’ visit to Tacloban
who died when a piece of scaffolding fell, signaling the entrance of a new
typhoon. In 2013, Kristel survived the typhoon which prompted the Pope to go to
the Philippines. After 14 months, she died because of another one, ironically
when the Pope was finally here.
Knowing there is another typhoon with another casualty,
leaving another father without a daughter makes me think, “Did Leyte not have
enough suffering already?”
***
The anticipated calamity forced the papal entourage to leave
the province by 1 PM, or four hours earlier than scheduled. With that short
amount of time, let me rephrase my question, “Did Leyte have enough of the Pope
already?”
***
Pope Francis’ much anticipated and highly celebrated papal
visit in our country has been full of questions. Sure there were millions of
faithful waiting for him in the streets which probably pleased the worldwide
audience but I am left wondering: amid all the celebrations, social media
spectacle, and security concerns, did Filipinos really listen to the voices
that need to be heard? Of course, I am not simply referring to his eminence’s
voice.
The Pope, as humble and as human as he is, tried his best to
answer these questions and more by saying that we should learn how to weep again,
take care of the needy and the poor, and protect our families and children,
among other quotable quotes. He also challenged Filipinos to be the foremost
missionaries of God’s love in Asia and in the world – a challenge we eagerly
accepted both out of faith and sheer hospitality to foreign dignitaries.
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| The closest I got to Pope Francis |
But before we even dwell on the Pope’s ‘Chicken Soup for
Faithful Filipinos,’ I believe we must first recall that he said in Tacloban he
did not know how to address the crowd because of the pain and loss they have
gone through. He also said in UST that Glyzelle’s question left us all
clueless. He, the Vicar of Christ on earth, acknowledged that sometimes words
are not enough solutions to our situation but instead love, mercy and
compassion. These values transcend through languages, religions, and races.
As Catholics, we are lucky to have a ‘human’ pope; a man
whose humility, humor, energy and spontaneity have inspired millions to revisit
their faith and standards of living. He is a pope who challenges status quos
and adjusts his beliefs with the times. And for these reasons and more, I am
honestly sad that Filipinos in Metro Manila had way more time with him than
those in Leyte.
Surely the capital region is a center of urban poverty and a
materialistic, secular society but I would want my Pope to spend more time with
the people who suffered worse and are still suffering from the grave damages of
typhoon Yolanda. I definitely wanted to see him with the victims in Leyte for
more than 12 hours. If I had my way, they can have him for the rest of his
visit while we take care of his arrival and departure, not necessarily because
we want to, but because they need to. I would want my pope to go around in his
mobile in the dirtiest and poorest streets of Palo and Tacloban so he can have
a clearer picture of what to pray for because I know that he is closer to God
than any of us.
While the Visayas needs the help of the government, civic
groups, and the lay to fully recover from the catastrophe, I also vouch that it
needs a backer in heaven so God can put it among its ‘urgent deliverables.’
I know I can’t blame anyone for the Pope’s suspended time in
Leyte except the weather, and to that I say ‘fine.’ But what I will always feel
sorry for is that Pope Francis went here for the poor, most especially for the
Yolanda victims but sadly he only had one morning and lunchtime to spend.
I believe our kababayans
in Visayas needed to see the Pope more and he also needed to hear more of their
stories and answer their questions. I am not confident that people in Metro
Manila cared enough for this but I will not dictate it upon them. After all,
every Filipino wants a second of Pope’s presence because they may be undergoing
difficulties on varying degrees and they hold on to him to make them lighter.
Besides, as the Pope himself said, “Who am I to judge?”
Don’t get me wrong, I felt genuinely joyful and fulfilled when
I saw him in person. That is a story I will endlessly share to my posterity. Perhaps
this is just the effect of the Papal visit on me – to cut short the
overwhelming feeling of seeing him in person and reflect on the reason for the
season. I can’t help but think: Was the Pope smiling because of the magnitude
of the spectators or because he believed that in some ways, thousands among
these millions can help him in his mission: to tell the world of God’s love?
Surely it is the latter. Huge is such responsibility for
people like me, like us, to tell the world of His love. It’s overpowering enough
for a theme song, what more for a life purpose?
As long as I know my Pope is a human pope who does not demand
perfection but instead heartfelt compassion, I can probably be one of his
mission aides. For now I will take baby steps. Perhaps praying for the victims
of calamities, reading more news and updates about them, scheduling a future
visit to Leyte, or visiting Glyzelle in Tulay ng Kabataan with some gifts to
cheer her up will do – or cry as I witness the beauty of humanity and all good
things that hope gives us. Why not?
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| The Pontifex's arrival at SM MOA for the encounter with the families. I was fortunate to have a ticket to witness the event even from outside the Arena. A monobloc chair was good enough. |
Note to readers: This essay was originally written on the morning of January 19, Pope Francis' departure to Rome.
#PopeFrancisPH #PapalVisit2015 @Pontifex
