Divine wrath?
(Courtesy of daylife.com)
Unfortunately, it was an opportunity too good to pass up to those who feel they have a direct line to God. (And how eagerly He supposedly agrees to anything they say.)
After yesterday's historic vote in Congress that ended the debates regarding the Reproductive Health (RH) Bill, an unusually large amount of rainfall characterized most of today, so much so that it has already exceeded the rainfall produced during typhoon Ondoy last 2009, which is viewed as the worst storm we've had in the country in recent years.
(See http://www.rappler.com/nation/10004-rainfall-over-metro-surpasses-ondoy-record for more details.)
Given the weather, most of us were "grounded" at home, giving us the time to stay online much more than normally possible (read: during work days). It also afforded us time to see posts from those against the RH Bill, claiming that "justice" is now being done from "high above".
"Heaven is letting out tears for the RH Bill."
"This is God speaking through nature for approving of immorality approved by Congress!"
"Maybe now you will understand that we will not be ignored! Down with the RH Bill! Let the rains wash it away!"
These are just a few of the online comments I have read, linking the heavy rainfall with the ending of the RH debates. Or, as these comments show, these posters believe the rains to be "God's response" for the RH Bill vote.
I don't know about you, but I would be very careful about claiming to speak for an all-powerful and all-knowing deity. If there's anything that stories about gods have shown us, it's that they don't need to justify anything they do: they do it precisely because they simply can.
You see that when Zeus had his way with any number of women. You see that in the God of the Christian Bible, who suddenly gave Abraham and his wife a son in their old age, only to tell them to kill their son as a sacrifice - all for a test. In modern day (psychology) terminology, we would call Zeus a rapist and the Christian God a sadist.
Their comments also disregard the fact that we have typhoons every year, aside from various weather disturbances not considered as a full-blown typhoon. Not to mention, when the anti-RH forces were having their "prayer rally", it was raining as well: we can quibble about the amount of rainfall, but if I followed their so-called "logic", God hates both those who are for and against the RH Bill?
But more importantly, it betrays who they are and what their priorities are: they disregard the suffering caused by the rains, and would rather gloat about their supposed moral superiority than trying to extend help to those who are directly affected by the rains.
They have painted their God as vengeful (for their cause), capable of causing loss and damage to innocent people, and quite frankly, petty, if a God so all-powerful didn't directly punish the lawmakers who supposedly "disobeyed His will."
Are they trying to drive people away from their religion? Well, they're doing a marvelous job.
(See http://www.rappler.com/nation/10004-rainfall-over-metro-surpasses-ondoy-record for more details.)
Given the weather, most of us were "grounded" at home, giving us the time to stay online much more than normally possible (read: during work days). It also afforded us time to see posts from those against the RH Bill, claiming that "justice" is now being done from "high above".
"Heaven is letting out tears for the RH Bill."
"This is God speaking through nature for approving of immorality approved by Congress!"
"Maybe now you will understand that we will not be ignored! Down with the RH Bill! Let the rains wash it away!"
These are just a few of the online comments I have read, linking the heavy rainfall with the ending of the RH debates. Or, as these comments show, these posters believe the rains to be "God's response" for the RH Bill vote.
I don't know about you, but I would be very careful about claiming to speak for an all-powerful and all-knowing deity. If there's anything that stories about gods have shown us, it's that they don't need to justify anything they do: they do it precisely because they simply can.
You see that when Zeus had his way with any number of women. You see that in the God of the Christian Bible, who suddenly gave Abraham and his wife a son in their old age, only to tell them to kill their son as a sacrifice - all for a test. In modern day (psychology) terminology, we would call Zeus a rapist and the Christian God a sadist.
Their comments also disregard the fact that we have typhoons every year, aside from various weather disturbances not considered as a full-blown typhoon. Not to mention, when the anti-RH forces were having their "prayer rally", it was raining as well: we can quibble about the amount of rainfall, but if I followed their so-called "logic", God hates both those who are for and against the RH Bill?
But more importantly, it betrays who they are and what their priorities are: they disregard the suffering caused by the rains, and would rather gloat about their supposed moral superiority than trying to extend help to those who are directly affected by the rains.
They have painted their God as vengeful (for their cause), capable of causing loss and damage to innocent people, and quite frankly, petty, if a God so all-powerful didn't directly punish the lawmakers who supposedly "disobeyed His will."
Are they trying to drive people away from their religion? Well, they're doing a marvelous job.
Yes. They are.
ReplyDeleteWhy blame RH bill when we ourselves are the one should be blame? The wrath of Ondoy is also cause by another bill or act of humanity? Maybe we should look at ourselves in the first place, look at Manila Bay, there so much garbage in there and where did these came from? I think it came from us.. the problem with us is that we often associate natural calamities as punishment by God when in fact in the very first place, we DIDN'T TAKE GOOD CARE OF OUR ENVIRONMENT!
ReplyDeleteIt's easier to subscribe events to things not within our control, because it is unpleasant to have to admit to ourselves what we did to contribute to the problem we have now. But as is often said, the first step to solving a problem is to admit it honestly.
DeleteBecause it's easier to blame something that will not speak for everyone's opinion than blame someone who will give his stand against the accusation held against him...
DeleteBesides... If they don't blame the RH Bill... They'll blame the government...
As I read before...
Human nature includes avoiding blaming yourself for something unfortunate and getting all the credits for something good that happened...
Lets just hope and pray that everything will be alright tomorrow. Hope the rain stops.
ReplyDeleteThe rains have lessened in my area. Hopefully, it will follow suit everywhere.
DeleteWell written. It is hard to reason with people whose main arguments focuses on the words "faith", "God's will", "God's test", "God's miracle", "God's punishment." That is the problem with this country, we are overflowing with self-righteous people claiming to be direct servants and appointed spokespersons for God. The sad fact remains that even if the Philippines is the third largest Catholic state in the world, it still remains as one of the poorer, most corrupt countries in this planet. If most of us claim to follow "God's word", it really makes me wonder why there is still so much despair in this nation.
ReplyDeleteThank you. I sometimes blame the fatalistic attitude we have on this skewed sense of religiosity, especially when I hear people who have 10 kids being interviewed and asked how they will make it through, they invariably have the same response: "Bahala na ang Diyos." Not to be irreverent, but I would like to sometimes reach and give their heads an untog...how? what will you do for your family, and I mean YOU YOURSELF?
DeleteAnd again, this insistence of throwing all caution out the window because of a sense of divine protection always comes down to one thing in my book: an inability to see what went wrong and what one can do to rectify it - in short, taking responsibility. If everything is God's Will, it becomes easier to just lay there and say (altogether now) "Bahala na."
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