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2 IMPACT • March 2007


THE feminine genius which the late Pope John
Paul II speaks about in his Letter to Women in 1995
is actually a sentiment that one loves harboring
without fear of oversimplification; and continues to
provoke kind thoughts and warm affection, as one
recalls how endearing one’s mother is and all the
women that came close in between. This comes not
only because March is the month of women, but
because of that primordial gratitude that the world
owes to women.
The genius of women pervades in all history and
in all facets of human endeavor. But nothing comes
higher than her realm in the social and ethical
dimension which deals with human relations and
spiritual values. “In this area,” says John Paul II,
“which often develops in an inconspicuous way
beginning with the daily relationships between people,
especially within the family, society certainly owes
much to the “genius of women”.
Humanity would plunge into monstrosity—as it
had in some points in history—without this “genius”,
which should be more fully expressed in the life of
society as a whole, as a matter of existential exi-
gency.
Our heart bleeds at how many of the women-
folk have been ill-treated by some cultures and men
as if they were properties that can be acquired and
disposed at will. This inhumanity is caricatured in
some cultures that abort fetuses the moment they
are discovered as potential females. No matter the
“religious” justification, treating women as mere
appendage of men is inhuman. Which, is why,
polygamy is exploitation of women pure and simple.
In this context, it should be everybody’s job to
ensure that women regain full respect for their
dignity and role. And this should be contemplated
and initiated right at the very heart of humanity—the
home.
This issue opens with an article of Fr. Joaquin
Bernas, “Pulpit and Platform: Discovering the
Role of the Church in the State”. These are his
thoughts on the issue which he shared earlier with
the seminarians of UST and with the members of
the CBCP Permanent Council. All the other major
stories are about women in celebration of the Inter-
national Women’s Day.
Sister Pinky Barrientos, FSP, writes the cover
story, “Celebrating the Gift of Womanhood: Put-
ting an End to Violence against Women.” At first
blush, celebrating womanhood in the face of gender
inequality and other injustices looks like a parody—
but it is not. Read on.
I MPACT March 2007 / Vol 41 • No 3
CONTENTS
EDITORIAL
Woman ............................................................................. 23
COVER STORY
Celebrating the Gift of Womanhood:
Putting an End to Violence Against Women .......... 16
ARTICLES
Pulpit and Platform: Discovering the Role of the
Church in the State .......................................................... 4
Authentic Feminine Sexuality ...................................... 7
Cardinal Martini and Euthanasia:
International Women’s Day: Looking Back .............. 8
Multiculturalism and Islam: Suicide of the West
and Women’s Rights ....................................................... 9
A Catechism in Images: A Very Special Edition of
the “Compendium” ...................................................... 11
Population Issue Revisited ......................................... 24
Twenty Five Years, Twenty Five Dreams ................ 25
More Than Business Behind Putin’s
Visit to Italy ..................................................................... 27
STATEMENTS
Freedom to Choose the Candidates ......................... 12
A Month of Prayer and Peace for the Filipino Family
in Celebration of National Women’s Month .......... 12
Holy See’s Statement on Status of Women .............. 13
Message of the Holy Father Benedict XVI to The
Youth of the World on the Occasion of the 22nd
World Youth Day, 2007 ............................................... 14
DEPARTMENTS
Quote in the Act .............................................................. 2
News Features ............................................................... 20
From the Blogs ............................................................... 22
From the Inbox .............................................................. 28
Book Reviews ................................................................. 29
CINEMA Review .......................................................... 30
Quotes in Quiz ............................................................ 30
News Briefs ...................................................................... 31
Volume 41 • Number 3 3
ARTICLES

I. The Role of the Church in the

World

T
he question is: Where does the en-
counter between Church and state
happen? My answer is that the en-
counter takes place in every citizen who is
also a believer. In every Filipino believer
there exists a church-state relation. The
Filipino believer participates in church by
faith, baptism and practice. He also partici-
Pulpit and Platform:
pates in the state by acceptance of citizen-

Discovering the
ship and its duties along with the public
covenant underlying the Constitution. Cor-
relating these two participations is a mode
of activity in which every Filipino believer

Role of the
engages. In other words, church-state re-
lation is not primarily in the encounter
between church officials and state offi-

Church in the
cials. Church-state relations begin in ev-
ery citizen who is a believer.
From this premise there flows the in-
evitable conclusion that conducting

State
church-state relations is an irrevocable
prerogative and an unavoidable act for
every person. “The believer is “church”
by participation, and as representing that
participation. The same person, who is
also a citizen, is the “state” by participa-
tion, and as representing a citizen’s in-
formed judgment. The relation between (First of Two Parts)
“church” and “state” begins, then, in the
consciousness and conscience of those by Fr. Joaquin Bernas, S.J.
persons who are at once Christians and

4 IMPACT • March 2007

 Discovering the Role of the Church in the State
citizens. Its conduct, however informal
and piecemeal, involves correlating the
thinking, deciding and acting proper to
each, with due respect both to the priority
of a relation to God through the church,
and to the independence of the political
order from church.”
For as long as this relationship be-
tween church and state remains in the
internal decision process of each person,
it remains in the non-juridical order and
disturbs no one. The moment the correla-
tion flows out into action, it enters the
domain of the juridical and begins to in-
volve law, law either in the secular order or
law in the canonical order. This
externalization of the faith of the believer
elicits counter reaction sometimes of a
type which dates back to Herod’s reaction
to the preaching of John the Baptist about
Herodias. But we have graduated beyond
the Herod era. In our democratic context
the reaction is subsumed under the cap-
tion of violation of separation of Church
and State. But if church and state are
wedded together in each person, how do
you really divide the two?
Although I am asking this question in
the context of Christian churches, I believe
that what I have said can also be applied
mutatis mutandis to believers of Islam or
of Buddhism. As a famous cigarette ad
used to say, “You can take the boy out of
the barrio, but you cannot take the barrio
out of the boy.”
But before I get into separation, let me
go into the heart of the topic: the role of the
Church in the state. I am sure you mean by
“church” not just the hierarchy or the
clergy but the entire people of God and the
faith we hold. In trying to understand the
role of the Church, we really are not at-
tempting to invent a new engine. Vatican
II wrote about it at great length in the
Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et Spes on
the Role of the Church in the Modern
World. Gaudium et Spes starts with an
eloquent statement:
1. The joys and the hopes, the griefs and
the anxieties of the men of this age,
especially those who are poor or in any
way afflicted, these are the joys and
hopes, the griefs and anxieties of the
followers of Christ. Indeed, nothing
genuinely human fails to raise an echo
in their hearts…
2. Hence this Second Vatican Council,
having probed more profoundly into
the mystery of the Church, now ad-
dresses itself without hesitation, not
only to the sons of the Church and to
all who invoke the name of Christ, but
to the whole of humanity. For the coun-
cil yearns to explain to everyone how it
conceives of the presence and activity
of the Church in the world of today.
Therefore, the council focuses its at-
tention on the world of men, the whole
human family along with the sum of those
realities in the midst of which it lives;…
I shall not enter into the anthropology
of Gaudium et Spes and how Pope John
Paul II has further developed it in his encyc-
lical Fides et Ratio. Suffice it to say that the
role of the Church flows out of that anthro-
pology which emphasizes the dignity of
human person. It comes from our faith and
our religious nature and is therefore also
related to conscience. On this subject let me
simply repeat what Gaudium et Spes says:
Everything we have said about the
dignity of the human person, and about the
human community and the profound mean-
ing of human activity, lays the foundation
for the relationship between the Church
and the world, and provides the basis for
dialogue between them… [We] must now
consider this same Church inasmuch as she
exists in the world, living and acting with it.
Christ, to be sure, gave His Church no
proper mission in the political, economic or
social order. The purpose which He set
before her is a religious one. But out of this
religious mission itself comes a function, a
light and an energy which can serve to
structure and consolidate the human com-
munity according to the divine law. As a
matter of fact, when circumstances of time
and place produce the need, she can and
indeed should initiate activities on behalf of
all men, especially those designed for the
needy, such as the works of mercy and
similar undertakings.
Gaudium et Spes, however, recognizes the
distinction between the role of laymen and
churchmen.
Secular duties and activities belong
properly although not exclusively to lay-
men. Therefore acting as citizens in the
world, whether individually or socially, they
will keep the laws proper to each discipline,
and labor to equip themselves with a genu-
ine expertise in their various fields….
Since they have an active role to play
in the whole life of the Church, laymen are
not only bound to penetrate the world with
a Christian spirit, but are also called to be
witnesses to Christ in all things in the midst
of human society.
As to Bishops, the Gaudium et Spes says:
Bishops, to whom is assigned the task
of ruling the Church of God, should, to-
gether with their priests, so preach the news
of Christ that all the earthly activities of the
faithful will be bathed in the light of the
Gospel.
But their role is not limited to preach-
ing. The Gaudium et Specs continues:
All pastors should remember too that
by their daily conduct and concern they are
revealing the face of the Church to the
world, and men will judge the power and
truth of the Christian message thereby…..
After laying down the anthropological
foundation of the role of the Church and
distinguishing the role of the laity from that
of the hierarchy and clergy, Part II of
Gaudium et Spes next enumerates what it
calls problems of special urgency which the
church must face. These problems include
Volume 41 • Number 3 5
Discovering the Role of the Church in the State

very secular matters. These problems are: not governed according to justice would be As can be seen, Church and State can have
fostering the nobility of marriage and the just a bunch of thieves: “Remota itaque different understandings of what is
family, the proper development of culture, iustitia quid sunt regna nisi magna politically and morally just. But Benedict
economic and social life, the life of the latrocinia?” [18] Fundamental to Chris- says:
political community, the fostering of peace tianity is the distinction between what be-
and the community of nations. It is when longs to Caesar and what belongs to God The Church cannot and must not take
church people engage in what are primarily (cf. Mt. 22:21), in other words, the distinc- upon herself the political battle to bring
secular concerns when it invites opposi- tion between Church and State, or, as the about the most just society possible. She
tion. Second Vatican Council puts it, the au- cannot and must not replace the State. Yet
I believe that our society generally tonomy of the temporal sphere. [19] The at the same time she cannot and must not
accepts the role of the church in fostering State may not impose religion, yet it must remain on the sidelines in the fight for
the nobility of marriage and the family, the guarantee religious freedom and harmony justice. She has to play her part through
proper development of culture, the eco- between the followers of different religions. rational argument and she has to reawaken
nomic life of the community, and the foster- For her part, the Church, as the social the spiritual energy without which justice,
ing of peace and the community of nations. expression of Christian faith, has a proper which always demands sacrifice, cannot
But our society tends to be uncomfortable independence and is structured on the prevail and prosper. A just society must be
with the role of the church in the life of the basis of her faith as a community which the the achievement of politics, not of the
political community. Understandably so, State must recognize. The two spheres are Church. Yet the promotion of justice through
because the moral dimensions of political distinct yet always interrelated. efforts to bring about openness of mind and
affairs can call for judgments which are will to the demands of the common good is
Then Pope Benedict adds: something which concerns the Church
prudential and therefore often ambiguous.
Nevertheless I shall focus on this pruden- Justice is both the aim and the intrinsic deeply.
tial and often ambiguous dimension. I shall criterion of all politics. Politics is more than What does this paragraph have to say
do this, first, by setting down how the a mere mechanism for defining the rules of about separation of church and state? Is
Church sees its role in the secular world, public life: its origin and its goal are found this a call to the clergy to return to sacristy
and second, how this role fits into our in justice, which by its very nature has to do and pulpit and stay there? Certainly it is
constitutional order as I understand it. with ethics. The State must inevitably face saying that the Church does not possess
the question of how justice can be achieved
In its discussion of the life of the politi- juridical power over the state. It cannot
cal community Gaudium et Spes makes two here and now. But this presupposes an force its will on the state. As Benedict puts
distinctions. First it makes a distinction even more radical question: what is justice? it: “She cannot and must not replace the
between the State and the institutional The problem is one of the practical reasons, State.” But Benedict was simply repeating
Church. Second, it makes a distinction be- but if reason is to be exercised properly, it what Our Lord said to Pilate: “My kingdom
tween the activities of a Christian as citizen must undergo constant purification, since does not belong to this world. If my king-
but guided by a Christian conscience and it can never be completely free of the danger dom did belong to this world, my atten-
the Christian acting in the name of the of a certain ethical blindness caused by the dants (would) be fighting to keep me from
Church in union with the pastors. (76) this dazzling effect of power and special inter- being handed over to the Jews. But as it is,
distinction, I believe, is important for an ests. my kingdom is not here.” (John 18:36)
understanding of the constitutional rela- Here politics and faith meet. Faith by its More generally, the Church may not in-
tionship between Church and State. As specific nature is an encounter with the vade the domain of the State. But not only
Gaudium et Spes says: “The Church and living God—an encounter opening up new that: in the regime of church-state separa-
the political community in their own fields horizons extending beyond the sphere of tion we have institutionalized in our Con-
are autonomous and independent from each reason. But it is also purifying force for stitution, the Church is constitutionally
other. Yet both, under different title, are reason itself. From God’s standpoint, faith incapable of breaching the imaginary wall
devoted to the personal and social voca- liberates reason from its blind spots and that separates Church and State.
tion of the same men…” therefore helps it to be ever more fully itself. I would like to repeat that: Contrary to
Faith enables reason the claim of politicians who do not under-
to do its work more stand the Constitution, the Church is con-
Justice is both the aim and the intrinsic effectively and to see stitutionally incapable of breaching the
criterion of all politics. Politics is more is proper object more imaginary wall that separates Church and
than a mere mechanism for defining the clearly. This is where State.
Catholic social doc- On the other hand, however, the State
rules of public life: its origin and its trine has its place; it has the capacity to force its will on the
goal are found in justice, which by its has no intention of institutional church. The State has done
very nature has to do with ethics. giving the Church so in many instances. It is then that there
power over the State. is violation of not only of separation of
Even less is it an at- church and State but also of religious
Pope Benedict XVI in his Encyclical Deus liberty. I
tempt to impose on those who do not share
est Caritas touches on the same theme. He the faith ways of thinking and modes of
says: (This piece is lifted with permission from the talk given
conduct proper to faith. Its aim is simply to by Fr. Joaquin Bernas, SJ, at the Central Seminary
The just ordering of society and the help purify reason and to contribute, here of the University of Santo Tomas.)
State is a central responsibility of politics. and now, to the acknowledgment and at-
As Augustine once said, a State which is tainment of what is just. To be Continued next issue.

6 IMPACT • March 2007

 ARTICLES

A
ccording to the Commonwealth
Fund, nearly one-third of Ameri-
can women (31%) report being
physically or sexually abused by a hus-
band or boyfriend at some point in their
lifetime. Just as this statistic reveals, vio-
lence against women is all too prevalent in
our society today. Pope John Paul II rec-
ognized this disturbing fact and declared
that “the time has come to condemn vigor-
ously the types of sexual violence which
frequently have women for their object.”
In response, many Catholic college cam-
puses have created educational programs
that inform students on the gravity of sexual
violence, while also teaching them how to
prevent abuse and help survivors heal. These
programs are needed. They help to create

Authentic
awareness about sexual assault and
strengthen community efforts to combat
violence in all areas of society. Recently,

Feminine
however, a sexually enlightened agenda is
accompanying the need for factual and hon-
est education on Catholic campuses. This is
most evident in the contemporary “educa-

tional project” entitled The Vagina Mono-
logues.
The Vagina Monologues is a collection
of monologues based on interviews with over
200 women about their memories and experi-
ences of sexuality. It surfaced in New York in
the late 1990s as a theatre production aimed at
informing the public about sexual violence,
but in actuality does little to effectively edu-
cate the audience. The production’s raw and
irreverent approach to female sexuality, along
with the choreographed use of profanity
merely for the sake of alarming the audience,
reveals more of its radical feminist agenda
than its desire to educate. Honestly, what
sense does it make to oppose all acts of
violence that turn women into sexual objects,
but then oppose the violence by reducing
women to a sexual object: a vagina. Does
anyone else see the irony?
The Catholic Church recognizes that
violence, especially against the vulnerable
and defenseless, is abhorrent. In addition,
the Church believes that female sexuality is
a beautiful and precious gift from the Creator.
She also desires to protect and uphold the
dignity of all women by teaching that women
are more than just body parts. Women should
be valued for their tremendous intellectual,
artistic, moral and spiritual capacity as well.
The Vagina Monologues negates this entire
premise and instead is vulgar and reduction-
ist in its approach.
When asked why he would not allow
The Vagina Monologues on his Catholic
campus, Reverend Brian J. Shanley, O.P., the
President of Providence College in Rhode
Sexuality
By Mercedes W. Gutierrez
Island, stated that “precisely because its
depiction of female sexuality is so deeply at
odds with the true meaning and morality that
the Catholic Church’s teaching celebrates,
The Vagina Monologues is not an appropri-
ate play to be performed on our campus.”
Similarly, his statement reiterated that the
performance “simplifies and demystifies”
female sexuality by reducing it to a vagina.
Shanley also pointed out that the so-called
“new bible” for women, as the play is often
referred, is “deeply and diametrically op-
posed” to the truth regarding human sexual-
ity that inspires the teachings of the Roman
Catholic Church and the true Bible.
Unfortunately, other Catholic campus
leaders across the country are not as coura-
geous as Shanley. For instance, Reverend
John I. Jenkins, C.S.C, the President of Notre
Dame University is justifying the perfor-
mance under the guise of “artistic” and
“academic freedom.” In his Closing State-
ment on Academic Freedom and Catholic
Character, he remarked, “we are committed
to a wide-open, unconstrained search for
truth, and we are convinced that Catholic
teaching has nothing to fear from engaging
the wider culture…our goal is not to limit
discussion or inquiry, but to enrich it.”
I applaud his efforts to engage a culture
that does not know Jesus Christ and chal-
lenge the secular worldview, but how exactly
does sponsoring an event that undermines
the intrinsic nature of the human person
actually enrich the student body of a Catho-
lic institution?
This guise of “tolerance” parallels the
thought process that “pornography is per-
vading all of society, so let’s expose our-
selves to it in an effort to better understand
how and why society is addicted to it.” No,
this approach is inherently flawed. Never
should “academic freedom” permit Catholic
institutions to support and promote ideolo-
gies that utterly oppose the teachings of our
Mother, the Church.
Again, it is necessary to combat sexual
assault, abuse, and violence against women
in our day and age. But we, as lay faithful, and
our Catholic institutions must support and
defend women in their entirety: body, mind,
and soul. The Vagina Monologues does not
do so. I
Mercedes W. Gutierrez sits on the Board of Directors
for ENDOW (Educating on the Nature and Dignity of
Women,) a non-profit, grassroots organization that
promotes the New Feminism as proposed by Pope
John Paul II. Mercedes and her husband Sergio live
in Denver, Colorado. (Catholic News Agency)

Volume 41 • Number 3 7
ARTICLES
International Women’s Day:
Looking Back
I
nternational Women’s Day is cel-
ebrated in many countries around the
world. It is a day when women are
recognized for their achievements without
regard to divisions, whether national, eth-
nic, linguistic, cultural, economic or politi-
cal. It is an occasion for looking back on
past struggles and accomplishments, and
more importantly, for looking ahead to the
untapped potential and opportunities that
await future generations of women.
In 1975, during International Women’s
Year, the United Nations began celebrating
International Women’s Day on 8 March.
Two years later, in December 1977, the Gen-
eral Assembly adopted a resolution pro-
claiming a United Nations Day for Women’s
Rights and International Peace to be ob-
served on any day of the year by Member
States, in accordance with their historical
and national traditions. In adopting its reso-
lution, the General Assembly recognized the
role of women in peace efforts and develop-
ment and urged an end to discrimination and
an increase of support for women’s full and
equal participation.
8 IMPACT • March 2007
International Women’s Day first
emerged from the activities of labor move-
ments at the turn of the twentieth century
in North America and across Europe.
• 1909: The first National Woman’s Day
was observed in the United States on
28 February. The Socialist Party of
America designated this day in honour
of the 1908 garment workers’ strike in
New York, where women protested
against working conditions.
• 1910: The Socialist International, meet-
ing in Copenhagen, established a
Women’s Day, international in char-
acter, to honor the movement for
women’s rights and to build support
for achieving universal suffrage for
women. The proposal was greeted with
unanimous approval by the confer-
ence of over 100 women from 17 coun-
tries, which included the first three
women elected to the Finnish Parlia-
ment. No fixed date was selected for
the observance.
• 1911: As a result of the Copenhagen
initiative, International Women’s Day
was marked for the first time (19 March)
in Austria, Denmark, Germany and
Switzerland, where more than one mil-
lion women and men attended rallies.
In addition to the right to vote and to
hold public office, they demanded
women’s rights to work, to vocational
training and to an end to discrimina-
tion on the job.
• 1913-1914: International Women’s Day
also became a mechanism for protest-
ing World War I. As part of the peace
movement, Russian women observed
their first International Women’s Day
on the last Sunday in February. Else-
where in Europe, on or around 8 March
of the following year, women held ral-
lies either to protest the war or to
express solidarity with other activists.
• 1917: Against the backdrop of the war,
women in Russia again chose to pro-
test and strike for ‘Bread and Peace’
on the last Sunday in February (which
fell on 8 March on the Gregorian calen-
dar). Four days later, the Czar abdi-
cated and the provisional Government
granted women the right to vote.
Since those early years, International
Women’s Day has assumed a new global
dimension for women in developed and
developing countries alike. The growing
international women’s movement, which
has been strengthened by four global
United Nations women’s conferences, has
helped make the commemoration a rallying
point to build support for women’s rights
and participation in the political and eco-
nomic arenas. Increasingly, International
Women’s Day is a time to reflect on
progress made, to call for change and to
celebrate acts of courage and determina-
tion by ordinary women who have played
an extraordinary role in the history of their
countries and communities.
The Charter of the United Nations,
signed in 1945, was the first international
agreement to affirm the principle of equal-
ity between women and men. Since then,
the UN has helped create a historic legacy
of internationally-agreed strategies, stan-
dards, programmes and goals to advance
the status of women worldwide.
Over the years, the UN and its techni-
cal agencies have promoted the participa-
tion of women as equal partners with men
in achieving sustainable development,
peace, security, and full respect for human
rights. The empowerment of women con-
tinues to be a central feature of the UN’s
efforts to address social, economic and
political challenges across the globe.
(United Nations) I
 ARTICLES

T
he ideology of multiculturalism, i.e.
blind tolerance toward any culture Multiculturalism and Islam:
and tradition, is destroying Euro-

Suicide of the West and

pean identity and is above all doing away
with human rights and, more specifically,
women’s rights. A prime example is the

Women’s Rights
increasing tolerance in European coun-
tries toward polygamy.
In theory, polygamy is prohibited in
Italy and in Europe. But it increasingly
happens, in the name of multiculturalism,
that Muslim immigrants are registered as
polygamists in the European continent: if
a man is Muslim and married in his country
of origin with 4 wives, we cannot but
accept this as a given. All this goes
against European laws and constitu-
tions—which affirm monogamous fami-
lies—but, in the name of a misplaced re-
spect for cultures, any solution is deemed
acceptable.

Tolerance for polygamy?

In Italy, some constitutionalists are
suggesting, for the sake of letting people
have it both ways, that only one wife be
recognized as such, while the others are
considered concubines: this would settle
the situation of various Muslims who al-
ready have a wife in their country of origin
and take another in Italy. Others think that
a distinction could be made between civil
marriage (at City Hall, with just one wife)
and religious marriage in a mosque, where
polygamous marriages could be celebrated.
Naturally, to do this, they are proposing
that the articles of Italian civil law, which
affirm monogamy and the equality of men
and women, not be read. A similar trend is
spreading in Greece. In certain areas where
Muslims are the majority, the government
has accepted the principle that they man-
age themselves with their own norms. And
so, in Athens, polygamy is prohibited, but
in Muslim-majority areas, it is allowed,
again in the name of cultural respect.
Multiculturalism is doing a lot of dam-
age. Firstly to common sense: if a man is
married in Senegal with a woman and in
Italy with another, this cannot be defined
as monogamy. A crime remains such
whether it is committed in Italy or abroad.
Such tricks are actually a way to suggest
loopholes for polygamy. Thus, if an Italian
wants to have more than just one wife, all
he needs to do is to convert to Islam!
But multiculturalism is above all dam-
aging to the dignity of women. Polygamy
in Italy is prohibited in that it is contrary to
the principle of equality between men and
women. It would be useful to Islam too to
So-called “dialogue with the Islamic world” and juridical
relativism on marriage and polygamy play havoc with the
dignity of women and equality between sexes. The Koran: it’s
o.k. to beat women.
by Samir Khalil Samir, SJ
affirm this principle. In Islamic society, in Vénissieux, near Lyon, a polygamist and
fact, women cannot be polygamous (only father of 16 children (14 of which French
men have that “right”). The same is true for citizens), had been living in France since
repudiation, which is permitted to a man, 1980.
but not to a woman who, however, can ask He had been ordered on February 26,
her husband the favor of repudiating her. 2004, to leave the country by Interior Min-
Affirming monogamy is thus the way for- ister Sarkozy, for his inflammatory
ward on the path for an overall effort in speeches and for incitement to hatred, but
favor of women’s rights. the ordinance was not enforced. On April
20, following an interview in the “Lyon
The Imam of Vénissieux and Mag” newspaper, he was again served an
women expulsion order for his statements against
women, in particular for having said that
To understand the humiliation in “the Koran authorizes a Muslim, in certain
which women live in the Islamic world, I cases, to beat his wife,” that women must
would like to recall a fact that sparked subjugate themselves to their husband
much debate in France. Last February and were not equal to men.
20th, the courts definitively rejected an On April 23rd, the administrative tri-
appeal made by Imam Abdelkader bunal of Lyon suspended the expulsion
Bouziane. An Algerian-national, Sheikh ordinance and rejected the Interior
Abdelkader, imam of the mosque of Ministry’s request. The imam went back

Volume 41 • Number 3 9
Multiculturalism and Islam: Suicide of the West and Women’s Rights

Is this why you are fa-
vorable to polygamy?
Yes, a Muslim can have
more than one wife. But not
more than four! Plus, there
are conditions.
But why can women not
have more than one hus-
band?
Because no one would
know who fathered the chil-
dren!
Are you in favor of the
stoning1 of women?
Yes, because beating
one’s wife is allowed by the
Koran, but under certain con-
ditions, in particular if she
betrays her husband. Please
note however: the man does
© Abedin Taherkenareh/epa/Corbis
has created in their wombs, if they believe
in Allah and the Last Day. And their
husbands have priority to take them back
during this time if they wish for reconcili-
ation; and they [women] have rights
equivalent to their duties, on the basis of
good custom, but the men are superior.
Allah is Mighty, Wise.”
The Italian edition published by the
Union of Islamic Communities and Organi-
zations in Italy (UCOII) includes a long
footnote (absent on the on-line version)
on the phrase “but men are superior”:
“In a pitiful effort to standardize
Islam to Western culture, certain
modernist commentators have
written that superiority has only to
do with the right of men to repudi-
ate their wife, a faculty which is
not reciprocal. In reality, it is a
much more important and funda-

not have the right to beat her

to France in May 22. On October 5, 2004,
the State Council cancelled the expulsion
suspension, and the next day the iman was
again expelled to Orano in Algeria. On
June 21, 2005, the Lyon court declared him
once again free, but on October 14, he was
convicted in absentia. The imam filed an
appeal, but on February 6, 2007, the courts
definitively rejected his case.
The “Régards de femmes” Associa-
tion of Lyon, which had sued the imam,
declared: “The right to dignity, to respect,
to the integrity of her body belongs to
every woman in France. It will not be
possible from now on to legitimize vio-
lence against women on the pretence of
religion.”
The Imam’s interview
Here are a few extracts of the (famous)
interview with Sheikh Abdelkader on the
male-female relationship.
In your opinion, are women equal to
men?
No. For example, women do not have
the right to work alongside men, as they
[women] could be tempted by adultery.
Must women necessarily be subju-
gated to men?
Yes, because the head of the family is
always a man. But he must be fair to his
wife: he must not beat her for no reason,
nor consider her a slave.
everywhere: not on the face, mental matter for the maintaining
of balance at the individual, family
but in the lower parts, her and social levels.
legs, her stomach, her bot- “Man and Woman are two comple-
tom. He can beat her vigor- mentary realities that exist unto
ously so as to induce fear, so each other. If this were not so,
that she does not start again! Allah (glory be to Him the Most
High) would not have formed Eve
The Koran: wife beating is allowed from Adam’s rib, he would have
furnished each gender with
Various readers were up in arms, but complete reproductive organs, etc.,
in the end the imam defended himself say- etc.
ing that this is the Koran. And he’s right. “The physical structure of men is
If we open the Koran at Sura 4, verse 34, we capable of great exertion and
can read: significant exploits, that of women,
“Men have authority over women of steady labor and great endur-
due to the preference that Allah concedes ance of pain.
to them over the other and because they “Male sensitivity is entirely exterior,
spend their property [for women]; Good projected outside the realm of
women are therefore obedient, guarding family and tends to become public
under secrecy that which Allah has pre- and political. That of women is
served [sex].2 ; As for those on whose part interior, careful of oneself, aimed
you fear insubordination, admonish them, at the protection of that which has
been acquired and to the acquisi-
and leave them alone in the sleeping-places
and beat them; then if they obey you, do tion of simple means of sustenance
and security.
nothing further against them; Allah is high
and great.” “Male psychology is imaginative,
creative, experimental, risk-loving,
Last week on Al Jazeera, I heard an- desirous of novelty, of affirming the
other imam explain the four conditions for Self, usually ample and superficial.
beating a wife: not on her face; without That of women is concrete, tradi-
drawing blood; without breaking bones; tional, risk-hating, desirous of
not in the presence of children. If all this certainty, of conserving what is
is insufficient, one must resort to extreme “mine”, usually profound and
punishment, i.e. the man deprives his wife limited.
of sexual relations. “In the realm of family, the respect of
The Koran is also explicit on the ques- the Laws of Allah and of the Sunna
tion of the superiority of men to women; of the Messenger can create
according to the Koran, Charter 2 (The situations that require an affirma-
Cow), Verse 228: tion of power that mortifies the
“Divorced women should keep them- complementarity of spouses. But
selves in waiting for three periods; and it apart from complementarity, there
is not lawful for them to conceal what Allah Multiculturalism / p. 26

10 IMPACT • March 2007


A Catechism in Images:
A Very Special Edition
of the “Compendium”
by Sandro Magister
T
he image above is the “Salvator
Mundi” by Antonello da Messina,
painted in 1475 and kept at the Na-
tional Gallery in London. It is the first of
forty-nine images that illustrate a sumptu-
ous new edition of the Compendium of the
Catechism of the Catholic Church, printed
by FMR, one of the world’s most illustri-
ous art publishers.
The volume itself is a work of art. It’s
in large format with red silk binding and
inscriptions in gold; the paper is cotton
fiber and bears the papal watermark; the
printing and reproductions are of the high-
est quality. It’s a limited edition, with a
correspondingly high price: 1,500 euros.
It’s printed by FMR,
one of the most
prominent art
publishers in the
world. With forty-
nine magnificent
reproductions of
Christian art
masterpieces,
selected according
to Benedict XVI’s
guidelines.
The text of the Compendium of the
Catechism is identical to the one issued by
Benedict on June 28, 2005, in one of the
first defining actions of his pontificate.
Even in the mainstream edition, released in
multiple languages and millions of copies,
the text is accompanied by images. These
were selected by Joseph Ratzinger him-
self, who as a cardinal was the chief archi-
tect of both the Catechism and its Com-
pendium.
The images are not accessories. They
are an integral part of the Compendium. It
is obligatory that they be reproduced in all
its printings. And they must always be
placed in the same position relative to the
ARTICLES
text. For example, the “Sermon on the
Mount” by Fra Angelico must always
appear beneath the title of the section
dedicated to the ten commandments.
The difference between the main-
stream edition and the one by FMR is the
number of images. There are fourteen in
the former case, and forty-nine in the latter.
As in the mainstream edition, the se-
lection of images for the luxury edition was
also made according to Benedict XVI’s
guidelines.
But in concrete terms, they were se-
lected and presented to the pope by Timo-
thy Verdon, American by birth, an art his-
torian and a priest in the diocese of Flo-
rence, director of the office for catechesis
through art there and the author of impor-
tant books on Christian art.
In an article entitled “Immagini della
Fede [Images of the Faith],” Verdon ex-
plains the meaning of this connection
between word and image in the catechesis
of the Catholic Church. His is the lead
article in the first edition of a new magazine
also published by FMR, “Eikon.”
“Eikon” is the Greek word meaning
“icon” or “image.” And Verdon cites Paul,
who in the letter to the Colossians describes
Christ as “eikon of the invisible God.” The
Compendium of the Catechism, at question
number 240, precisely echoes this Pauline
assertion in stating that “the image of Christ
is the liturgical icon par excellence,” and that
his image encompasses all other sacred im-
ages, and all of Sacred Scripture. The Church
has believed in this truth so strongly that
over the centuries it has dedicated extrava-
gant resources to creating works of liturgical
art and architecture, and to crushing the
iconoclastic tendencies that have tempted it
on occasion.
Thus it is natural that the Compen-
dium of the Catechism should open with
the image of Jesus. In the FMR edition,
there are two of these images rather than
one. Beside the image of Christ painted by
Theophane of Crete in 1456 for the
Stavronikita monastery on Mount Athos,
there is the “Salvator Mundi” by Antonello
da Messina. Church of the East, Church of
the West.
With Verdon’s article in the magazine
“Eikon” are reproduced some of the addi-
tional images that illustrate FMR’s edition
of the Compendium of the Catechism. These
include an extraordinary “God with com-
pass creating heaven and earth,” a minia-
ture from an eighth century Bible, and a
marvelous “Adoration of the shepherds”
by Domenico Ghirlandaio, from 1480.
Images / p. 26
Volume 41 • Number 3 11
STATEMENTS
FREEDOM TO CHOOSE
THE CANDIDATES
T
he Bishops in the
CBCP, while respect
ing what the leaders
of El Shaddai and other
groups have been doing for
years, still maintain the free-
dom of Catholic members to
choose their candidates.
We expect them to discern,
discuss and personally de-
cide whom to vote. To dic-
tate on them whom to vote
is as bad as buying their
votes.
In the end, we cannot
be genuinely sure whether
the candidates who have
been dictated on the voters
will really serve them. All the
more if the voters are taken
with a “buy and sell atti-
tude.” Proof of this is the
past experience of elections.
The CBCP does not
want the candidates to be
indebted to the bishops;
instead we want the candi-
dates to make a genuine
covenant with the elector-
ate: that if elected they will
serve the people and not
themselves. This is what
the PPCRV is trying to do.
We can trust “the wis-
dom of the people,” if only
their judgment will not be
violated or adulterated by
“guns, goons and gold,” if
only the process of election
according to the rule will be
respected and not manipu-
lated by self-interest. If the
wisdom of the people were
12 IMPACT • March 2007
allowed freely to function,
they will get the leaders they
want or they get the leaders
they deserve.
As we said in our pasto-
ral letter, we exhort our
people not only to pray but
also to be vigilant. Let the
different associations and
groups come together to
study and examine the can-
didates and their platform of
government. They may even
come to an agreement among
themselves whom to vote;
but each one must person-
ally come to his/her deci-
sion. They will not vote ac-
cording to personality or
winnability but in view of
the candidates’ agenda of
government
On the one hand, there
is no Catholic vote in the
Philippines, because all
Catholics are free to vote
any candidate of any politi-
cal party. On the other hand,
because Catholics are al-
most everywhere, many of
the candidates who win, win
by catholic votes; but this
is no reason to brag about,
because the candidates win
or lose by his own virtue or
lack of it, and the electors
vote according to their re-
spective persuasion and
conviction.
+ANGEL N. LAGDAMEO
CBCP President
March 13, 2007
A Month of Prayer and Peace
for the Filipino Family in
Celebration of National
Women’s Month
A
s the country celebrates
National Women’s
Month this March 2007,
we are reminded to pray for all
women who have been, and
are, victims of all kinds of abuse
and violence within the family
and outside their homes.
The world had just cel-
ebrated the International Day
for Women last March 8, call-
ing our attention to the plight
of women all over the world.
Here in our own country, we
celebrate National Women’s
Day on March 16; it is a day to
remember our Filipino women,
especially those who nurtured
us since we were born—our
very own mothers.
We are aware that many of
our women have become vic-
tims of violence, especially in
their own homes. It is a sad
reality that is happening in our
country. The home is sup-
posed to be a sanctuary where
peace and love reign, but many
of our homes now are becom-
ing a venue where women are
battered and abused.
The Catholic Bishops’
Conference of the Philippines
exhorts the various sectors of
our society to link hands to
protect our women from exploi-
tation of all kinds, from vio-
lence that reduce them to si-
lence, and from abuse that de-
prive them of their dignity as
© Roy Lagarde / CBCP Media Office
persons. Many of those who
have fallen victims remained
silent and unable to move ahead
because of fear and hurts, while
just as many are slowly finding
the courage to go on living
their lives. We call o our broth-
ers and sisters both in govern-
ment and the private sector to
lend help and services to our
women in crises.
May we indeed make this
month dedicated to women a
month of prayer. As we pray
for our Filipino women, we also
pray that peace may reign in
the Filipino family. Let us pray
that our women get the respect
and love they deserve. Let us
pray that exploitation and vio-
lence against women stop. Let
us pray that those victimized
by violence may find the cour-
age to forgive and get on with
their lives. Let us also pray for
the enlightenment and conver-
sion of those who inflict vio-
lence on women.
Let us also recommend
our Filipino women to the pro-
tection and intercession of Our
Blessed Mother Mary, the
model and icon of woman-
hood.
ANGEL N. LAGDAMEO
Archbishop of Jaro
President, Catholic Bishops’
Conference of the Philippines
March 11, 2007

O
n the occasion of the
51st session of the Com-
mission of the Status of
Women, my delegation wel-
comes the progress made in
favor of women over the years
and hopes that positive
achievements in this field may
continue to establish a sane
and solid foundation for the
future.
However, it seems incon-
gruous that, at a time when the
sensitivity for women’s issues
appears stronger than ever, the
world is now obliged to con-
front new forms of violence
and slavery directed especially
at women.
It is therefore appropriate
that the Commission has cho-
sen this year as its priority
theme “The elimination of all
forms of discrimination and
violence against the girl child.”
Every day, violations of the
rights of women, adolescents,
and young girls are committed
and even tolerated in many
fields. Women bear the brunt
of the world’s child prostitu-
tion, sexual exploitation, abuse,
domestic violence, child labor
and human trafficking. The in-
ternational sex trade has be-
come an important industry as
degrading as almost any mis-
treatment of women prior to it.
This trade is often passed over
in silence because it is consid-
ered a part of supposedly demo-
cratic freedoms and is too
deeply rooted in places or is
too lucrative to confront, so
my delegation commends
those states and organizations
that have stepped forward in
recent times to combat and draw
attention to this scourge.
The mistreatment of
women is a long-standing real-
ity in many places and a disre-
gard for the age and vulnerabil-
ity of young girls in particular is
especially repugnant. If we wish
to engage in a sustained pro-
cess to stop and reverse this
phenomenon, peoples and cul-
tures will have to find common
ground that can safely under-
pin human relations everywhere
due to our shared humanity.
Holy See’s
Statement on
Status of Women
(The following is the statement Archbishop Celestino Migliore, the Holy See’s
permanent observer to the United Nations, delivered on Friday to the 51st session
of the Commission on the Status of Women, held March 2, 2007. The session
is considered a follow-up of the Fourth World Conference on Women and of the
twenty-third special session of the General Assembly entitled “‘Women 2000:
gender equality, development and peace for the twenty-first century”).
There is still a profound need to
strive to uphold the inherent
dignity and worth of every hu-
man being, with special atten-
tion to the most vulnerable of
society, our children and all the
girls among them.
We would also do well to
examine why women and espe-
cially younger women are so
vulnerable. This appears to be
due to the inferior status be-
stowed upon women in certain
places and upon female infants
in particular. In some local tra-
ditions they are thought of as
a financial burden and are thus
eliminated even before birth. In
this way, abortion, often con-
sidered a tool of liberation, is
ironically employed by women
against women.
Even those allowed to live
are sometimes considered as if
they were a piece of property
best disposed of as soon as
STATEMENTS
need to trace the question back
to the market that exists due to
the demand which makes such
trade possible and profitable.
Thus, if the reason behind the
violence visited on women and
girls is mostly cultural preju-
dice, exploitation and profit,
which body should be man-
dated to intervene in order to
overcome this situation?
This is a clear question of
human rights, since trafficked
women have their right to life
and dignity violated. Health,
freedom and security, are all
compromised in such circum-
© Hard Return by Tes One
stances, to say nothing of uni-
versal rights regarding torture,
violence, cruelty and degrad-
ing treatment. For younger
women it can also be a question
of forced marriage, the violation
of the right to education, the
right to work and the right to
self-determination. Nor should
we limit the complexities of traf-
ficking to a few social laws or
customs, the construction of a
refuge here and there and the
social reinsertion of the women
in question. Ways must be
found to let them go home safely
and without shame, and not
merely have them repatriated;
and if women do decide to travel
possible. This is to be found in abroad for work, they should be
many parts of the world, due to able to do so safely.
prejudicial traditions extrane- Raising awareness is a
ous to what should be a univer- simple and effective means to
sally available and safe nurtur- combat this phenomenon at the
ing environment for girls. Be- local level. Rural villages where
sides the usual thriving chan- the search for employment im-
nels of trafficking in persons, pels girls to seek work else-
even the institution of marriage where need to know as a com-
is sometimes misused to give a munity how to deal openly with
safe façade to sexual exploita- the risks to their young people.
tion and slave labor by means Organizations with a proven
of what is known as “mail order track record already exist and
brides” and “temporary could assist communities in this
brides.” way. Local and national politi-
The trade which results in cians also need to be brought
the exploitation and profit of to account for their policies in
women forms a driving motive this regard.
in this equation. No one profits The promotion of women
from this except the traffickers will be achieved not only by
themselves and the clients. In the legitimate vindication of
order to put an end to the vio- women’s rights. With that there
lation of human rights of traf- must also be established a fresh
ficked women and girls, it is not appreciation of authentically
enough to sensationalize their feminine values in the heart of
tragic plight; rather there is a our societies.
Volume 41 • Number 3 13
STATEMENTS
MY dear young friends,
O
n the occasion of the
22nd World Youth Day
that will be celebrated
in the dioceses on Palm Sun-
day, I would like to propose for
your meditation the words of
Jesus: “Just as I have loved
you, you also should love one
another” (Jn 13:34).
Is it possible to love?
Everybody feels the long-
ing to love and to be loved. Yet,
how difficult it is to love, and
how many mistakes and fail-
ures have to be reckoned with
in love! There are those who
even come to doubt that love is
possible. But if emotional delu-
sions or lack of affection can
cause us to think that love is
utopian, an impossible dream,
should we then become re-
signed? No! Love is possible,
and the purpose of my mes-
sage is to help reawaken in
each one of you—you who are
the future and hope of human-
ity—trust in a love that is true,
faithful and strong; a love that
generates peace and joy; a love
that binds people together and
allows them to feel free in re-
spect for one another. Let us
now go on a journey together
in three stages, as we embark
on a “discovery” of love.
God, the source of love
The first stage concerns
the source of true love. There is
only one source, and that is
God. Saint John makes this clear
when he declares that “God is
love” (1 Jn 4: 8,16). He was not
simply saying that God loves
us, but that the very being of
God is love. Here we find our-
selves before the most dazzling
revelation of the source of love,
the mystery of the Trinity: in
God, one and triune, there is an
everlasting exchange of love
between the persons of the Fa-
ther and the Son, and this love
is not an energy or a sentiment,
but it is a person; it is the Holy
Spirit.
The Cross of Christ fully
reveals the love of God
14 IMPACT • March 2007
How is God-Love revealed
to us? We have now reached
the second stage of our jour-
ney. Even though the signs of
divine love are already clearly
present in creation, the full rev-
elation of the intimate mystery
of God came to us through the
Incarnation when God himself
became man. In Christ, true God
and true Man, we have come to
know love in all its magnitude.
In fact, as I wrote in the Encyc-
lical Deus caritas est, “the real
novelty of the New Testament
lies not so much in new ideas as
in the figure of Christ himself,
who gives flesh and blood to
those concepts—an unprec-
edented realism” (n. 12). The
manifestation of divine love is
total and perfect in the Cross
where, we are told by Saint
Paul, “God proves his love for
us in that while we still were
sinners Christ died for us” (Rm
5:8). Therefore, each one of us Message of the Holy Father
can truly say: “Christ loved me
and gave himself up for me” (cf Benedict XVI to The Youth of
Eph 5:2). Redeemed by his
blood, no human life is useless the World on the Occasion of
or of little value, because each
of us is loved personally by the 22nd World Youth Day,
Him with a passionate and faith-
ful love, a love without limits. 2007
The Cross—for the world a
folly, for many believers a scan-
dal—is in fact the “wisdom of “Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another” (Jn 13:34).
God” for those who allow them-
selves to be touched right to
the innermost depths of their the third stage of our reflec- out distinction, even our en-
being, “for God’s foolishness tion. Christ cried out from the emies, “to the end” (cf Jn 13:1).
is wiser than human wisdom, Cross: “I am thirsty” (Jn 19:28).
Witnesses to the love of Christ
and God’s weakness is stron- This shows us his burning thirst
ger than human strength” (1 to love and to be loved by each I would like to linger for a
Cor 1:25). Moreover, the Cruci- one of us. It is only by coming moment on three areas of daily
fix, which after the Resurrec- to perceive the depth and in- life where you, my dear young
tion would carry forever the tensity of such a mystery that friends, are particularly called
marks of his passion, exposes we can realise the need and to demonstrate the love of God.
the “distortions” and lies about urgency to love him as He has The first area is the Church, our
God that underlie violence, loved us. This also entails the spiritual family, made up of all
vengeance and exclusion. commitment to even give our the disciples of Christ. Mindful
Christ is the Lamb of God who lives, if necessary, for our of his words: “By this every-
takes upon himself the sins of brothers and sisters sustained one will know that you are my
the world and eradicates ha- by love for Him. God had al- disciples, if you have love for
tred from the heart of human- ready said in the Old Testa- one another” (Jn 13:35), you
kind. This is the true “revolu- ment: “You shall love your should stimulate, with your en-
tion” that He brings about: love. neighbour as yourself” (Lev thusiasm and charity, the ac-
19:18), but the innovation in- tivities of the parishes, the com-
Loving our neighbour as munities, the ecclesial move-
troduced by Christ is the fact
Christ loves us that to love as he loves us ments and the youth groups to
Now we have arrived at means loving everyone with- which you belong. Be atten-

tive in your concern for the
welfare of others, faithful to the
commitments you have made.
Do not hesitate to joyfully ab-
stain from some of your enter-
tainments; cheerfully accept
the necessary sacrifices; tes-
tify to your faithful love for
Jesus by proclaiming his Gos-
pel, especially among young
people of your age.
Preparing for the future
The second area, where
you are called to express your
love and grow in it, is your
preparation for the future that
awaits you. If you are engaged
to be married, God has a project
of love for your future as a
couple and as a family. There-
fore, it is essential that you
discover it with the help of the
Church, free from the common
prejudice that says that Chris-
tianity with its commandments
and prohibitions places ob-
stacles to the joy of love and
impedes you from fully enjoy-
ing the happiness that a man
and woman seek in their recip-
rocal love. The love of a man
and woman is at the origin of
the human family and the
couple formed by a man and a
woman has its foundation in
God’s original plan (cf Gen 2:18-
25). Learning to love each other
as a couple is a wonderful jour-
ney, yet it requires a demand-
ing “apprenticeship”. The pe-
riod of engagement, very nec-
essary in order to form a couple,
is a time of expectation and
preparation that needs to be
lived in purity of gesture and
words. It allows you to mature
in love, in concern and in atten-
tion for each other; it helps you
to practise self-control and to
develop your respect for each
other. These are the character-
istics of true love that does not
place emphasis on seeking its
own satisfaction or its own
welfare. In your prayer to-
gether, ask the Lord to watch
over and increase your love
and to purify it of all selfish-
ness. Do not hesitate to re-
spond generously to the
Lord’s call, for Christian matri-
mony is truly and wholly a
vocation in the Church. Like-
wise, dear young men and
women, be ready to say “yes”
if God should call you to follow
the path of ministerial priest-
hood or the consecrated life.
Your example will be one of
encouragement for many of
your peers who are seeking
true happiness.
Growing in love each day
The third area of commit-
ment that comes with love is
that of daily life with its mul-
tiple relationships. I am par-
ticularly referring to family,
studies, work and free time. Dear
young friends, cultivate your
talents, not only to obtain a
social position, but also to help
others to “grow”. Develop your
capacities, not only in order to
become more “competitive”
and “produc-
tive”, but to be
“witnesses of
charity”. In
addition to
your profes-
sional train-
ing, also make
an effort to ac-
quire religious
knowledge
that will help
you to carry
out your mis-
sion in a re-
sponsible way. In particular, I
invite you to carefully study
the social doctrine of the
Church so that its principles
may inspire and guide your ac-
tion in the world. May the Holy
Spirit make you creative in char-
ity, persevering in your com-
mitments, and brave in your
initiatives, so that you will be
able to offer your contribution
to the building up of the
“civilisation of love”. The ho-
rizon of love is truly bound-
less: it is the whole world!
“Dare to love” by following the
example of the saints
My dear young friends, I
want to invite you to “dare to
love”. Do not desire anything
less for your life than a love
that is strong and beautiful and
that is capable of making the
whole of your existence a joy-
ful undertaking of giving your-
selves as a gift to God and your
brothers and sisters, in imita-
tion of the One who vanquished
hatred and death forever
through love (cf Rev 5:13). Love
is the only force capable of
changing the heart of the hu-
man person and of all human-
ity, by making fruitful the rela-
tions between men and women,
between rich and poor, be-
tween cultures and
civilisations. This is shown to
us in the lives of the saints.
They are true friends of God
who channel and reflect this
very first love. Try to know
them better, entrust yourselves
to their intercession, and strive
to live as they did. I shall just
mention Mother Teresa. In or-
der to respond
instantly to
the cry of
Jesus, “I
thirst”, a cry
that had
touched her
deeply, she
began to take
in the people
who were dy-
ing on the
streets of
Calcutta in In-
dia. From that
time onward, the only desire of
her life was to quench the thirst
of love felt by Jesus, not with
words, but with concrete ac-
tion by recognising his disfig-
ured countenance thirsting for
love in the faces of the poorest
of the poor. Blessed Teresa put
the teachings of the Lord into
practice: “Just as you did it to
one of the least of these who
are members of my family, you
did it to me” (Mt 25:40). The
message of this humble wit-
ness of divine love has spread
around the whole world.
The secret of love
Each one of us, my dear
friends, has been given the pos-
sibility of reaching this same
level of love, but only by hav-
Volume 41 • Number 3
STATEMENTS
ing recourse to the indispens-
able support of divine Grace.
Only the Lord’s help will allow
us to keep away from resigna-
tion when faced with the enor-
mity of the task to be under-
taken. It instills in us the cour-
age to accomplish that which is
humanly inconceivable.
Above all, the Eucharist is the
great school of love. When we
participate regularly and with
devotion in Holy Mass, when
we spend a sustained time of
adoration in the presence of
Jesus in the Eucharist, it is
easier to understand the length,
breadth, height and depth of
© Liu Liqun/CORBIS
his love that goes beyond all
knowledge (cf Eph 3:17-18). By
sharing the Eucharistic Bread
with our brothers and sisters of
the Church community, we feel
compelled, like Our Lady with
Elizabeth, to render “in haste”
the love of Christ into gener-
ous service towards our broth-
ers and sisters.
Towards the encounter in
Sydney
On this subject, the rec-
ommendation of the apostle
John is illuminating: “Little
children, let us love, not in word
or speech, but in truth and ac-
tion. And by this we will know
that we are from the truth” (1 Jn
3: 18-19). Dear young people, it
is in this spirit that I invite you
to experience the next World
Youth Day together with your
bishops in your respective dio-
ceses. This will be an important
stage on the way to the meet-
ing in Sydney where the theme
will be: “You will receive power
when the Holy Spirit has come
upon you; and you will be my
witnesses” (Acts 1:8). May
Mary, the Mother of Christ and
of the Church, help you to let
that cry ring out everywhere,
the cry that has changed the
world: “God is love!” I am to-
gether with you all in prayer
and extend to you my heartfelt
blessing.
From the Vatican,
27 January 2007
BENEDICTUS PP. XVI
15
C O V E R
S T O R Y

G
lobally, the impact of women’s con-
structive role in the advancement
of modern society is keenly felt at

Celebrating the Gift

present than it was decades earlier as more
women make further inroads in all fields of
human existence. Thus, the celebration of
International Women’s Day on March 8

of Womanhood:
and National Women’s Month (for the
Philippines) is a fitting tribute to exalt
womanhood, and to trumpet the role and
contribution of women in shaping our in-
dividual lives: as mother, wife, sister,
daughter, and friend.
Nonetheless, like a double-edged

PUTTING AN
sword, the celebration does not only urge
us to trumpet the gains women have
achieved in all levels of society, whether

END TO
social, political and economic; but also call
our attention to the plight of women all
over the world. Women of various cul-

VIOLENCE
tures have, time and again, struggled to
advance their status in civilization and to
articulate their innate desire for freedom
and equality, breaking the traditional rules

AGAINST
of conduct in which society has boxed
them in.

WOMEN
UN Convention and Declaration
on the rights of women
The 1981 United Nations (UN) con-
vention on the elimination of all forms of
discrimination against women, upholds
that both men and women enjoy equal
rights in all aspects of societal endeavor. By Pinky B. Barrientos, FSP
However, despite the declarations and
recommendations adopted by the UN and
other specialized agencies promoting
equality of rights of men and women, wide-
spread discrimination against women con-
tinues to exist.
“Violence against women is perhaps
the most shameful human rights viola-
tion. It knows no boundaries of geogra-
phy, culture or wealth. As long as it con-
tinues, we cannot claim to be making real
progress towards equality, development
and peace,” said UN former Secretary
General Kofi Annan in his message in
November 25, 2000 marking the UN’s first
observance of the International Day for
the Elimination of Violence against
Women.
The 1993 UN declaration for the elimi-
nation of violence against women defines
the term as “any act of gender-based vio-
lence that results in, or is likely to result in,
physical, sexual or psychological harm or
suffering to women, including threats of
such acts, coercion or arbitrary depriva-
tion of liberty, whether occurring in public
or in private life.”

16 IMPACT • March 2007

 Putting an End to Violence Against Women

I find that it is not the circumstances in which we

are placed, but the spirit in which we faced them,
that constitutes our comfort. -- Elizabeth T. King

© Denz Dayao / IMPACT

Fact and Figures

• Violence against women is the most common but least punished
crime in the world.
• It is estimated that between 113 million and 200 million women are
demographically “missing.” They have been the victims of infan-
ticide (boys are preferred to girls) or have not received the same
amount of food and medical attention as their brothers and
fathers.
• The number of women forced or sold into prostitution is estimated
worldwide at anywhere between 700,000 and 4,000,000 per
year. Profits from sex slavery are estimated at seven to twelve
billion US dollars per year.
• Globally, women between the age of fifteen and forty-four are
more likely to be maimed or die as a result of male violence than
through cancer, malaria, traffic accidents or war combined.
• At least one out of every three women has been beaten, coerced
into sex or otherwise abused in her lifetime. Usually, the abuser is
a member of her own family or someone known to her. Domestic
violence is the largest form of abuse of women worldwide, irrespec-
tive of region, culture, ethnicity, education, class and religion.
• It is estimated that more than two million girls are genitally mutilated
per year, a rate of one girl every fifteen seconds.
• Systematic rape is used as a weapon of terror in many of the world’s
conflicts. It is estimated that between 250,000 and 500,000 women
in Rwanda were raped during the 1994 genocide.
• Studies show the increasing links between violence against women
and HIV and demonstrate that HIV-infected women are more likely
to have experienced violence, and that victims of violence are at
higher risk of HIV infection. (United Nations)

Volume 41 • Number 3 17
Putting an End to Violence Against Women
Violence against women includes, but
should not be limited to physical, sexual
and psychological domestic violence (bat-
tering, sexual abuse in the family, marital
rape, female genital mutilation and other
traditional practices harmful to women,
non-spousal violence and violence related
to exploitation), violence in the commu-
nity (rape, sexual abuse, sexual harass-
ment and intimidation in the workplace,
educational institutions or elsewhere, traf-
ficking in women and forced prostitution),
and violence perpetrated or condoned by
the state.
Violence affects millions of women
globally, transcending socio-economic
and educational background. It intersects
cultural and religious barriers, depriving
women of their basic right to participate
completely in society.
Violence against women takes on
varied forms, from domestic abuse to rape,
as well traditional and cultural practices
that are harmful to women.
Why women become victims of
violence
One primary reason why women fall
victims to violence is the unequal status
women has in a society. In a highly patri-
archal culture, women are considered prop-
erties of their husbands, or their fathers, if
unmarried. This is particularly true in de-
veloping countries and Asian nations
where women have little protection, or no
recourse at all to laws to defend them from
exploitation and abuse.
Women Aid International, a develop-
ment agency that promotes all rights for
peoples in all countries; reports that women
victims of violence especially battered
wives, often find themselves caught in a
vicious cycle of economic dependence,
lack of confidence in themselves, igno-
rance, and fear for their children’s lives
and their own. Shame and social pressures
also add up to their hesitancy to report
domestic violence to authorities.
The Philippine situation
Prevalent among Filipino men is the
macho mentality that contributes to the
discrimination of women in all strata of
society. This mindset is further reinforced
by media portrayals of women as subser-
vient and passive victims of discrimina-
tion and violence.
According to Eden Bonagua-Parot,
executive director of Women’s Crisis Cen-
ter (WCC), a non-government organiza-
18 IMPACT • March 2007
tion that helps abused women and chil-
dren find healing through counseling and
related programs, the cultural aspect is a
contributing factor why violence against
women is perpetrated in the sanctuary of
the home.
The sense of shame, the fear of being
blamed for the relationship that had gone
awry, and the desire to keep the family
intact, are common reasons why women
don’t report domestic violence, explains
Bonagua-Parot.
Researches conducted by WCC re-
vealed a high incidence of violence against
women being done right in the privacy of
their own homes. Data showed that 60% of
these cases are those of women and chil-
dren abused by the husbands and part-
ners, while 18.4% are victims of sexual
abuse, such as rape and incest. From 1989
to 2004, there was a total of 2,685 new cases
of wife battery and 839 of rape/incest re-
corded in WCC’s data sheet.
“The way we see it, one cause of
violence against women is the perception
of some men that women are their proper-
ties, and that, they have power over women
– unequal power relationship between man
and woman,” says Bonagua-Parot.
Take the case of Jenny (not her real
name), who was a battered wife with three
children. Jenny endured physical beat-
ings for 11 years from her husband. She
had left her husband several times in the
past but she always came back after the
husband asked for forgiveness. She fi-
nally found the courage to seek help for
her and her children when she found out
that her husband was using drugs. A
relative referred her to a crisis center, where
she sought temporary shelter for her and
her children.
According to police records, an aver-
age of 20 cases of violence against women
are reported everyday, although it is esti-
mated that not all crimes committed against
women are reported to authorities.
Domestic violence
Bonagua-Parot confirms that it is very
difficult for victims of abuse and violence
to come out in the open and report their
abuser. “Emotional dependency,” she
quips. “For some, actually, even if they
come to us for help, they still go back,
despite the abuse.”
Tradition and ethnic beliefs are also
seen as factors that help perpetuate the
culture of violence. Mae Jardiniano, coor-
dinator for Community Organizing, Net-
working and Policy Advocacy of WCC,
says that the idea of a family as sacrosanct
is deeply entrenched in the Filipino val-
ues.
“We have to preserve the family at all
costs,” says Jardiniano.
The sad reality however, is that many
Filipino homes have now become venues
of domestic violence. The husband/father
had become abuser of those he is sup-
posed to love and protect.
Connie (not her real name either), is
a young woman with a 2-year old child
borne out of incest relationship with her
own father. Her mother, according to
Connie, knew about the abuse being done
on her, yet never did anything to help her.
A medical social worker who learned of
Connie’s situation immediately referred

her to WCC. The center provided her with
counseling, medical and legal assistance,
coordination with other agencies for her
and her child’s needs and livelihood train-
ing.
Consequences of Abuse
The consequences of physical abuse
on the victim’s bodily and mental health
are serious and create an emotional scar
that runs deep. Physical violence can
lead from body pains to disfigurement
and permanent disability, whereas cost
to mental health can lead the victim to live
in perpetual anger, fear and self-blaming
and suicidal thoughts.
Cases of violence inflicted against
women continue to rise in the country
despite laws passed by Congress up-
holding women’s rights and protecting
them from any forms of discrimination
and violence, such as the anti-rape law
and RA 9262.
Republic Act 9262
RA 9262, also known as Anti-Vio-
lence Against Women and their Children
Act of 2004, declares that the state up-
holds the dignity of women and children,
and protects their human rights, and de-
fend them from violence or any form of
threats to their safety and security. The
Philippines, which is a party to the UN
Convention on the Elimination of All forms
of Discrimination against Women and
other international human rights body,
basically adopted the provisions embod-
ied in the UN declaration.
Aside from RA 9262, another law that
protects women from sexual assault, is
the anti rape law. However, despite the
presence of laws, Bonagua-Parot claims,
implementation remains a big problem.
Nonetheless, she is also quick to
point out that the government is support-
ive of their causes.
“For instance, we are part of the
Women’s and Children’s crisis care and
protection unit in East Avenue Medical
Center. This space that we occupy in the
hospital was given to us free of charge,”
says Bonagua-Parot. She explains that
their organization works closely with the
Department of Justice, Department of So-
cial Welfare and Development, which
gives financial assistance to rape vic-
tims; the National Commission on the role
of women, with whom they work closely
in lobbying Congress for laws that are
helpful to women; and the Philippine Na-
tional Police.
There are 44 Women and Children
protection units instituted by the De-
partment of Health throughout the coun-
try, but not all are active due to lack of
funds.
Women’s Crisis Center
WCC acts as the convenor of the
National Network of Family Violence Pre-
vention Programs (NNFVPP). NNFVPP is
composed of 48 women’s organization
serving urban, rural and indigenous com-
munities in Metro Manila and in different
parts of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. It
addresses the issue of violence against
women and family violence through cen-
ter and community-based prevention
strategies.
WCC also started the establishment
of the first crisis center in the country.
Here, women and children victims-survi-
vors of battering, rape, incest, sexual ha-
rassment, prostitution and sex trafficking
are counseled, supported and encour-
aged to take a “firm commitment to end
violence against women and work to-
wards violence free families.”
Finding the courage to go on
Having mustered the courage to pack
up and leave her abusive husband, Jenny
and her children sought temporary shel-
ter at WCC. The center provided counsel-
ing services for Jenny and her children.
WCC also conducted art therapy ses-
sions to the children to facilitate their
healing process. At present, Jenny is
active in advocacy work of the survivor’s
support program of WCC.
Totally freed from the effects of
abuse, Connie is now finding meaning in
her life and of her son’s. She realized that
she should not blame herself for what
happened to her. The counseling she
received helped her acquire self-confi-
dence and liberated her from the paralyz-
ing condition of hopelessness.
Bonagua-Parot believes that despite
the cultural factor, there is still hope for
abusive men to change their behavior
and mentality. “Education and the pres-
ence of laws are sure deterrent,” she says.
Celebrating womanhood
The Church recognizes, indeed ex-
tols, the great mission of every woman in
the world and for what they represent in
the life of humanity. In a letter addressed
to women in June 1995, the late John Paul
II exalted the role of women and their
C O V E R
S T O R Y
indispensable contribution in the
progress of society. He said that women
have contributed to “history as much as
men and, more often than not, they did so
in much more difficult conditions.” The
pope also acknowledged albeit with re-
gret how women’s dignity as persons has
often been overlooked and them, relegated
to the margins of society. The Church on
her part, the pope said, can help in setting
women free from every kind of exploita-
tion and domination through renewed
fidelity to the Gospel vision.
“Thank you, every woman, for the
simple fact of being a woman! Through
the insight which is so much part of your
womanhood you enrich the world’s un-
derstanding and help to make human re-
lations more honest and authentic.” (JPII
Letter to Women, 1995)
To celebrate and to struggle
Indeed, there is much to celebrate
about as regards to the contribution of
women in our individual lives and in soci-
ety in general. But we should not also
gloss over the fact that women, despite the
accomplishments and positive role they
perform in society, remain marginalized as
a sector. Millions of women worldwide
continue to suffer all forms of discrimina-
tion that deprive them of dignity as per-
sons. Undeniably, the challenges are great,
but the continuous struggle, hopefully,
will raise public awareness that eventually
will put an end to violence against women
in our society. I
Volume 41 • Number 3 19
N E W S
FEATURES
General Assembly President
Urges Action to Promote
Gender Equality GA
President Sheikha Haya
6 March
2007—
Conven-
ing a spe-
cial meet-
ing of the General Assembly
on gender equality and the
empowerment of women, the
192-member body’s president
today emphasized that these
goals are the responsibility
of all people, and achieving
them will benefit society as a
whole.
“I convened this debate in
the United Nations with the
support of Member States in
order to celebrate women’s
achievements, but most impor-
tantly to share views on effec-
tive actions and lessons learned
in overcoming the challenges
to achieve true gender equal-
ity; in particular, the obstacles
we need to overcome to bridge
the gap between policy and
practice,” General Assembly
President Sheikha Haya
Rashed Al Khalifa of Bahrain
told participants at the infor-
mal thematic debate.
“Yet in order to achieve
this we must realize that the
‘marginalization’ of work to pro-
mote gender equality and the
perception that the empower-
ment of women remains a
women’s issue are among the
most urgent obstacles we face,”
added Sheikha Haya.
“Gender equality is cru-
cial to the well being of all na-
tions. It is not only the respon-
sibility of women; it is the re-
sponsibility of us all, women as
well as men.”
Sheikha Haya, a legal ex-
pert whose long career included
championing women’s rights,
said the promotion of gender
equality and the empowerment
of women “are concerns that I
hold close to my heart.”
20 IMPACT • March 2007
The General Assembly
president was an active partici-
pant in the movement to el-
evate the position of women in
Bahrain before the Islamic
sharia courts and is an advo-
cate of a progressive interpre-
tation of Islamic texts as they
apply to women.
Addressing the Member
States today, she said: “Espe-
cially since in some regions of
our world, particular cultural
and religious traditions con-
tinue to perpetuate inequali-
ties. Many women continue to
be marginalized, and, many
women continue to be denied
the full enjoyment of their ba-
sic human rights. What further
disturbs me is that some women
believe that they are inferior to
men and in need of male protec-
tion.”
Secretary-General Ban Ki-
moon also issued a strong call
for realizing the shared goal of
gender equality in his address
to the Assembly, which is
slated to hear from more than
80 representatives of countries
over the course of the two-day
debate.
Increased engagement of
women, while “a goal in itself,”
is “also a condition for build-
ing healthier, better educated,
more peaceful and more pros-
perous societies,” he said.
Despite global compacts
and international legal instru-
ments to shrink the gap be-
tween the genders, violence
against women and girls, un-
der-representation of women
in decision-making positions,
undervaluing of women’s work
and unbalanced educational
opportunities for girls still per-
sist, he noted.
“Changing this requires
all of us—women and men—to
work for enduring change in
Empowering Women Key to
Eliminating Poverty, UN
Rights Official Tells
Committee
1 March 2007—Women’s em-
powerment and gender
mainstreaming are key to tack-
ling challenges, such as pov-
erty, discrimination, educational
gaps, high maternal mortality,
disease and other ills, a senior
United Nations official has told
the world body’s Commission
on the Status of Women.
Despite several promising
steps, including increased pro-
vision of microcredit and the
accession of several States to
the Convention on the Elimina-
tion of All Forms of Discrimina-
tion against Women (CEDAW),
“challenges remain,” Rachel N.
Mayanja, the Secretary-
General’s Special Adviser on
Gender Issues and the Advance-
ment of Women, said at a meet-
ing yesterday.
“Continued discrimination
against the girl child, violence
against girls and women, and
low representation of women in
decision-making” still pose ma-
jor problems, Ms. Mayanja said.
The Special Adviser also
urged the Commission to exam-
ine the plight of women, wid-
owed by HIV/AIDS, conflicts
and natural disasters, and their
children. Many widows do not
values and attitudes,” Mr. Ban,
who stated that he has made
gender balance a key goal in
selecting his senior manage-
ment team, said. This entails
“transforming relations be-
tween women and men, at all
levels of society.”
The Secretary-General
stressed that actions must be
taken on several fronts imme-
diately, including boosting
male participation in the house-
hold and family care; ensuring
women’s access to education,
healthcare, property and land;
remarry, are not employed and
isolated from society, resulting
in poverty disproportionately
affecting women.
Among the almost 50
speakers at the meetings was
Noeleen Heyzer, Executive Di-
rector of the UN Development
Fund for Women (UNIFEM),
who called for the implementa-
tion and monitoring of provi-
sions of treaties targeted at em-
powering women.
Another speaker, Carmen
Moreno, Director of the UN In-
ternational Research and Train-
ing Institute of Women
(INSRAW), asserted that
women must have greater deci-
sion-making power at all levels,
be it in the household or in poli-
tics, to allow both Governments
and societies to be more respon-
sive to their needs.
The Commission com-
menced its 51st session at UN
Headquarters in New York on
this Monday, 26 February.
This year, the Commission is
introducing new work methods,
by focusing on one key theme, the
eliminationofallformsofdiscrimi-
nation against girls, during this
session, which will last from 2007
to 2009. (UN News Center)
challenging stereotypes and
practices detrimental to women
and girls; and incorporating
women’s rights into new UN
schemes, such as the
Peacebuilding Commission and
the Human Rights Council.
The two-day debate, the
second-ever held by the As-
sembly, also includes panel dis-
cussions on such topics as
“women and decision-making”
and “empowerment of women,
including microfinance.”
The debate also coincides
with the 51st session of the UN

A Protestant Pastor Confined Struggle for Gender Equality
for 4 Years “for his Sermons”
T a s h k e n t , was not assisted by his de- Differences, Says Vatican
Uzbekistan,
March 10,
2007 – The
Andijan
court yester-
day condemned Protestant
Pastor Dmitry Shestakov to 4
years confinement for his reli-
gious activities. Meanwhile
across the country persecu-
tion of Christians is on the in-
crease, they are registered
threatened and put on trial.
Forum 18 agency reports that
Shestakov was accused of “il-
legally organizing religious
groups”, “inciting ethnic, ra-
cial or religious hatred” and
“distributing materials contain-
ing ideas of religious extrem-
ism”.
According to local
sources, the proof used against
him consists of two religious
sermons recorded in June 2006,
by a professor at Andijan Uni-
versity, and for having carried
out religious services for the
Full Gospel Church, an autho-
rized religious organization.
Forum 18 points out however
that the pastor has been opera-
tive in the country for quite
some time and that the charges
were only laid against him fol-
lowing his conversion of entire
families to Christianity.
During the trial Shestakov
Commission on the Status of
Women, also being convened
at UN Headquarters, and
Wednesday, 8 March, is Inter-
national Women’s Day.
The two-day debate, the
second-ever held by the As-
sembly, also includes panel dis-
cussions.
At the opening of the dis-
cussion on “Women and deci-
sion-making,” Sheikha Haya
said that women are poorly rep-
resented in both the public and
private sectors in more senior
levels of decision-making.
Should not Ignore
fence lawyer, taken ill, but by a
state lawyer. National media
repeatedly reported the pastor
and his followers to be drug
and alcohol addicts as well as
religious fanatics. The location
where Shestakov—in prison
since January 21—will spend
his confinement term is un-
known.
Meanwhile secret police
operations against Christian
communities continue. On
February 25 that about ten
police secret police officers
armed with video-cameras
raided a Pentecostal church’s
Sunday worship service in the
southern city of Karshi. After
the congregation finished the
service, secret police officers
began interrogating them to
reveal why they had become
Christians and where the church
received its money. Police also
searched all the rooms and
seized Christian literature and
audio and video recordings.
The Pentecostal Church has
been seeking registration for
over 7 years, but it still has not
been granted; for this reason
its activities are judged “ille-
gal”. Only the Islamic and Chris-
tian Orthodox faiths are permit-
ted in the region, the protes-
tant communions are still
deemed illegal. (AsiaNews)
However, pointing to the Afri-
can Union, which has reached
an equal gender balance at its
highest levels, she added, “We
do not need to see gender
equality as a long-term aspira-
tion; rather, it can be an imme-
diately attainable goal.”
The debate also coincides
with the 51st session of the UN
Commission on the Status of
Women, also being convened
at UN Headquarters, and
Wednesday, 8 March, is Inter-
national Women’s Day. (UN
News Center)
New York, March 9, 2007—The
struggle for equality can be
“authentic” if the “difference
and the complementarity be-
tween men and women” is rec-
ognized. The tendency “to blur,
if not entirely deny, the differ-
ences between men and
women” in favor of “the purely
cultural dimension [. . .] has
[an] impact on the stability of
society and of families.” Such
is the thrust of Mgr Celestino
Migliore’s address to the 61st
Session of the General Assem-
bly of the United Nations yes-
terday. The Holy See’s perma-
nent observer spoke during an
informal debate dedicated to
the Promotion of Gender Equal-
ity and the Empowerment of
Women held on International
Women’s Day.
Mgr Migliore said that
search for equality between
men and women has had posi-
tive results but stressed that
the overall “struggle for equal-
ity would not be authentic” if
there was not a parallel recog-
nition of their physical differ-
ences and roles, which lead to
mutual respect.
The Vatican representa-
tive deplored a “tendency [. . .]
to blur, if not entirely deny, the
differences between men and
Volume 41 • Number 3
N E W S
FEATURES
women. In order to avoid the
domination of one sex over the
other, their differences tend to
be obscured or viewed as mere
effects of historical and cul-
tural conditioning.”
“Equality between women
and men and the empowerment
of women,” he insisted, “will be
attained when the differences
of the sexes are recognized and
highlighted as complementary,”
not antithetical.
In reiterating the need to
continue the fight against all
forms of discrimination that
prevent the “feminine genius”
from making its contribution
to society, Mgr Migliore gave
concrete examples of what the
Church was doing in this area.
For example, he said that
Catholic Relief Services pro-
vide poor women micro-fi-
nancing. This has enabled
them to build their “manage-
rial capacities” and involve
them “in the management and
administration of the services
they receive.” Hence, their
standards of living have im-
proved—they have gained
more respect from men, be-
come more aware of the impor-
tance of an education and im-
proved their families’ health.
(AsiaNews)
21
FROM THE
B L O G S
Remember:
“Hello Garci”
T
he “Hello Garci” is-
sue refuses to die. It
was denied to rest
with the adamant rejection
of the impeachment process
no less than twice filed in
the House of Representa-
tives. The avid pro-admin-
istration allies themselves
resolutely denied the incum-
bent national leadership to
have its side heard.
The result is disastrous
for the incumbent itself. It
now continues to be
haunted with the by-word
shameful triad of lying, cheat-
ing and stealing. It thus also
continues to be strongly dis-
trusted and disrespected. It
could be at times telling the
truth. Yet, it is met with dis-
belief. It could be having
good intentions every now
and then. Still, it continues
to be ridiculed.
That is why no less than
three years after, the “Hello
Gari” debacle continues to
haunt many people. They
still talk about it. They con-
tinue to crack big jokes about
it. But more than all these,
there is both the reservation
and apprehension that the
May 2007 Elections could
again be tarnished with the
same shameful chaos.
Even the CBCP ex-
pressed its fears for the in-
tegrity of the forthcoming
elections. It clearly stated:
“As a nation, we cannot af-
ford yet another controver-
22 IMPACT • March 2007
© Images.com/Corbis
sial electoral exercise that
further aggravates social
distrust and hopelessness”.
That is why it called upon all
the dioceses and parishes
in the whole country to work
together “to make this year’s
election credible.”
This is why more and
more religious groups, NGOs
and other private organiza-
tions are now coming up with
plans and programs with the
same objective: make the mid-
term elections this year as
honest and acceptable as
possible. They are well
aware of the hurdles they
face: formidable machinery
plus bottomless fund of the
administration. To stay in
power, there are no holds
barred. Nothing sacred. No
one is inexpendable.
One thing is certain, it
cannot be said that people
by and large are not wary of
the dangers that lie ahead
before, during and after May
this year. If they succeed in
their resolve to safeguard
the ethical soundness of the
forthcoming elections, well
and good. If not, it cannot
be said that they did noth-
ing.
Meantime: remember
the previous gross elections
cheating! Remember the
cheating operators! Remem-
ber the big cheating benefi-
ciaries! Remember “Hello
Garci”!
www.ovc.blogspot.com
Killing Rampage
T
he task force “USIG” is
of no consequence. The
MELO Commission does
not matter. The UN Rapporteur
may be good to have. But the
killing rampage goes on just
the same. The only criterion to
be killed with stealth and cer-
tainty is not to be pro-adminis-
tration. This is a very danger-
ous country for individuals
who abhor lying, cheating and
stealing by public officials sup-
posedly holding public trust.
The who, when and how
do not matter. The only proviso
is that those who are marked as
decidedly and effectively anti-
administration are eventually
eliminated from the face of the
earth. Leaders of progressive
groups. Truthful media practi-
tioners. Straight professionals.
Poor and hungry farmers.
Churchmen and their followers.
When marked for termination,
their blood is spilled, their lives
are needed.
The abolition of death pen-
alty in the country was hailed
the world over. But killing still
goes on. So many killings, yet
no killer placed behind bars. So
many investigations, yet its find-
ing are kept secret from the pub-
lic. Not only is the MAYUGA
report kept under wraps. Not
only is the MELO Commission
report withheld from media.
Even the doings of Cabinet
members should be kept secret
as designed by the national lead-
© bayan.ph
ership. People cannot but be
reminded of the odious martial
law regime.
Strangely, the killings dur-
ing the present administration
are called “extrajudicial”. Why?
Is there any “Judicial” killing?
Does the judicial branch of gov-
ernment still pronounce death
sentences? Does the govern-
ment intend to bring back the
death penalty that would stand
for “judicial” killing?
Since the incumbency of
the present national leadership,
the most conservative estimate
of the number of killing here and
there is almost 300. Other NGO
offices have a count of more
than 700. But be what it may, the
killings go on now and then,
and the counting also goes on
as well. When will the killings
stop? It is not only dangerous
but probably also fatal to an-
swer this question—lest the
respondents be killed too there-
after!
When no less than human
lives are laid to waste at the foot
of the administration, then this
has no real reason to promote
human dignity, to protect hu-
man rights. And this is precisely
the ominous phenomenon
closely accompanying the na-
tional leadership with its trium-
phant pronouncements that find
no basis in the real Philippines.
Immediately wanted: truth-
ful, honest and upright leaders!
www.ovc.blogspot.com

Woman
B
rought to distinct existence by divine provi
dence, imprinted with the sublime image of
her creator God, endowed with the myste-
rious capacity to bring other human persons in the
world of reality—this is woman! The whole
humanity cannot but respect and marvel at her.
She is there to love, cherish and care for, to
protect and defend against her violators and ex-
ploiters.
She is not merely valuable for her beauty and
charm. She has very much more than her physical
attributes and grace. She is in pacified and certi-
fied possession of her own human dignity and
pursuant human rights. And she is definitely more
than just a companion for man. To fill in his lack
and complement his inadequacy.
She may be physically weak but definitely
strong in will and spirit. She is delicate but resil-
ient, tender yet wise and prudent. She seems to
have a sixth sense that makes her know the unsaid
and see in the beyond of the realities here and
now. She definitely much more than she makes
others see, notice and behold.
There must be something intrinsically evil and
vicious in a world where man looks down on her,
EDITORIAL
“The mystery of
woman is revealed
in motherhood.”
- Pope John Paul II
offends and even takes advantage of her. The
truth is that society hurts and in effect undermines
itself when it shamelessly considers women as but
second class citizens. What is even more offen-
sive is when people remain silent and still when
men consider themselves not only superior to
women. It is much worse when a man believes
that he is equal to more than one woman.
The debasement of woman has its start when
they are considered merely at face value. This is
not only misleading but also gross perception.
What is hidden in the persona of woman is defi-
nitely much more than what her external appear-
ance conveys. A woman is categorically not an
iota less than a man. Her humanhood is absolutely
equal to that of any man. That is why machismo is
in effect insecurity if not in fact downright falsely.
All the above affirmations of women are easy
to make and promote. There is no need of any
research and expertise. It is not even necessary to
have recourse to distant anthropology or profound
theology. There is strong and ample proof about
the inherent greatness and gentleness, the marked
tenderness and loveliness of women. Just think of
one’s mother. And understand the woman.
Volume 41 • Number 3 23
ARTICLES
Population Issue Revisited
By Fr. Roy Cimagala
W
ith the election of new members
of Congress, concern is now high
as to whether the population bills
will finally be passed into law. People be-
hind them are campaigning hard to get the
numbers to pass them.
These bills are highly contentious.
They have provoked a truly sharp clash of
positions not showing signs of easing up.
Philippine society has been painfully di-
vided as a consequence.
The focus of contention has long
shifted from the text and content of the
bills, obviously written to sound harmless
and benevolent, to the kind of people,
institutions and ideologies behind them.
We have to understand that the whole
shebang is only a thumbnail of a much
larger picture, a mere shadow of a much
24 IMPACT • March 2007
© Images.com/Corbis
graver conflict, just one more front in a
frontierless war between faith and ideol-
ogy, between good and evil.
Just the same, the battle in Congress
is crucial, for its outcome can significantly
transform the complexion of our society. It
can open a Pandora’s box. It can be a
wedge through which many others more
corrupting elements can ruin marriages
and break up families.
Whatever relief or help the bills can
give seem to be only temporary and shal-
low. But relief can also be provided by
other more acceptable sources. What is
clear is that these bills can inflict a deeper
and more serious and lasting damage to
our culture and ethos.
This is no exaggeration. In fact, I hope
I am exaggerating. I know that those pro-
moting these population control and fam-
ily planning bills will cry that this way of
looking at the situation is uncalled for. I
understand them perfectly.
But while it is good to be trusting, it is
better to be prudent. And in this case,
prudence is a result of extensive experi-
ence and consistent data gathered world-
wide indicating a systematic plan to sub-
vert the very Christian sense of morality.
The issue is not really poverty and
overpopulation. If it were just poverty and
other social problems, then by all means, we
have to go all out in finding the most effec-
tive, most practical and cheapest means.
But the issue is not that. The issue is
morality. It is our understanding of free-
dom, responsibility, truth, etc. that is at
stake here. There is a most treacherous
attempt to undermine morals, using the
most seductive arguments.
We are told that we should just be
practical, and leave aside the luxury of
considering the moral aspects. Why, is it
not very moral to be able to eliminate
poverty and curb overpopulation? It’s a
tired yarn, but many still fall for it.
That is why it is important that every-
one is vigilant and generous in helping to
clarify the issue. For what is before us is a
big challenge, requiring tremendous effort
and resources.
We cannot exaggerate the problems
and difficulties involved. In defending the
truth, what is basically used is also the
truth, the truth about us as persons, as
children of God, and as responsible social
beings and citizens of a certain country.
But it is also truth that can only be
given in charity. This is the teaching of the
Church, the example of Christ. It cannot be
any other way. The goal is not to find out
who is right and wrong, who is more clever
or practical or popular.
The goal is to convert all to Christ.
And this can only be reached through
grace, through prayers, through faithful
adherence to the doctrine of our faith,
through the sacraments and virtues.
This cannot be done by use of force
or tricks. No matter how stubborn and
dense, no matter how wrong we are, we
need to be respected in our freedom.
This approach, of course, is not easy
at all. But neither is it an impossible one. As
long as one is really with God, he will be
with the truth, and he will manage to live,
affirm and defend it in charity, no doubt
about that.
Bottom line: use more the supernatu-
ral and spiritual means without neglecting
any human means available to us. I

L Twenty Five Years,
ast March 18, 1982, at 10:00 a.m. I was
ordained priest with three others by
Archbishop Bruno Torpigliani, Ap-
ostolic Nuncio to the Philippines. The last
twenty five years of my priestly life was
marked by a passionate pursuit of dreams
and visions. It all began when as a little
boy, I looked at the priests who celebrated
mass in school and at my parish church,
wondering what it must be like to do what
they do, say what they say and go were
they go. I looked and watch in awe and
wonder and wished that one day I too will
experience that grand adventure called the
priesthood.
The little boy’s dream eventually came
true. Strangely, the dreams did not go or fade
away through the years in spite of the painful
realities and contradictions that came my
way. I often wonder whether the dreams or
the little boy really went away or are they still
here behind the thoughts, feelings, energies,
aspirations flowing through my finger tips
onto the computer keys? I am fifty two alright
and twenty five years thereof passionately,
deliciously and adventurously spent as a
priest responding to a voice that once said,
“Come follow me.”
Oh, God knows where that voice has
led me and what it has made me do. I am not
exactly where I would want to be now but
I do not have the slightest regret. I wish to
thank the owner of the Voice whom I have
tried to bravely and faithfully follow in the
last twenty five years through a simple list
of twenty five dreams. I am sure He is partly
responsible for planting those dreams in
me, but how these dreams may have hap-
pened or not yet happened are all choices
and contexts that were partly due to and
also beyond me. The dreams were more
Twenty Five Dreams
By Fr. Roberto P. Reyes
than adventures. They were doorways
into mystery.
Thank You Jesus for your invitation
then and now. Thank you for the adven-
ture that continues even now and surely
until the end of my human and priestly life.
Thank you for the mystery that makes life
worth all of my blood, sweat and tears.
I dream of following Jesus to strange,
unknown and dangerous lands to bring
the message of His Father’s Kingdom.
I dream of entering the seminary to
prepare myself for this wonderful journey.
I dream of one day finally being able
to say Mass for my people, specially the
poor and the oppressed, bringing them the
gospel of justice, truth and freedom.
I dream of living with the poor, know-
ing and understanding their lives, their
struggles and their dreams.
I dream of finding a solution to the
structural and social evils that are destroy-
ing our people’s faith, morality and future.
I dream of being part of the story of
putting and end to the Conjugal Marcos
Dictatorship or any dictatorship for that
matter.
ARTICLES
I dream of a Church not run by the
ecclesiastical elite for the elite, a Church
truly one with the people, especially the
poor.
I dream of a priesthood free from the
lure of money and material possessions, a
priesthood nourished by the spirit of Christ,
seen, felt and shared as love and compas-
sion for and among the poor.
I dream of brother priests who will
become family and community, who will
share a vision of church, country and
world that is always new and never jaded
and trapped within uncreative dogmatism
and fossilized tradition.
I dream of community where there is
no high or low, where hierarchy is second-
ary to solidarity and communion, where
service is more visible than authority.
I dream of running the whole stretch
and breadth of the Philippines, to see,
know and understand more deeply the
country I love most.
I dream of running in different coun-
tries and getting to know peoples, their
culture, history and dreams not only with
mind, heart, soul but also with my feet.
Volume 41 • Number 3 25
ARTICLES
I dream of studying culture, to know
how my people and other people struggle
to make sense of chaos, contradiction,
conflict, wars and death in order to fashion
a culture of lasting peace, justice, compas-
sion, freedom and equality among all, hu-
mans and nature.
I dream of celebrations truly alive,
relevant, indigenous, inclusive, empower-
ing and liberating.
I dream of having friends from all over
the world who can teach me more about
what is on the other side and lead me
beyond what is parochial towards the truly
global.
I dream of being able to move in a
world of fewer intrigues, lies and pettiness
that engender needless hostility, animos-
ity and division.
I dream of being forgiven and likewise
being able to forgive those I have hurt and
those who have hurt me.
I dream of living in a world where
people no longer killed animals for food or
turned them into clothes, toys or spec-
tacles. Peace can only be complete when it
is experienced by and with all creatures
besides humans.
I dream of becoming more Asian and
Eastern to complement my Western-ness.
I dream of learning and doing more Tai Chi
and Qigong, more Yoga and more running
too, as well as deepening my knowledge
and experience of Christian prayer and
contemplation.
I dream of being able to express with-
out fear or threat of repression or
marginalization what is truly within. I dream
of different peoples expressing themselves
passionately and creatively in their unique,
inimitable ways.
I dream of an end to Traditional “trapo”
Politics that contaminates and vitiates not
only government but all revered institu-
tions including the churches.
I dream of a truly people’s govern-
ment sincerely and above all concerned
about the welfare and future of the ordi-
nary people than the economic and politi-
cal elite.
I dream of an end to all killings and the
beginning of genuine justice implemented
by courts of integrity, probity and dignity.
I dream of the return of most if not all
exiles so that their dreams and those of
their people can finally fuse into a consum-
ing flame for the good and liberation of the
Filipino people.
I dream of another twenty five years of
listening and following the same Voice
wherever and whatever it wants me to go
and do. I
26 IMPACT • March 2007
Multiculturalism / from p.10
is the problem of leadership, in the
family and in society, which does
not mean predomination, oppres-
sion or the lack of recognition of
female predominance in a number
of sectors and circumstances.
Allah (Glory be to Him, the Most
High) assigns this management
role to the male. It is an onerous
and difficult task that men would
often willingly do without, and for
which he must respond before
Allah.”
This apologetic comment, written by
an Italian converted to Islam, mirrors the
opinion of traditionalistic ulemas, avoid-
ing their excesses. It assigns specific
tasks to men and to women, tasks which
are unchangeable because determined
by God, which claim to correspond to the
nature of one and the other. It is obvious
that such a distribution of roles, estab-
lished by God for eternity and valid for all
times and cultures, is hardly compatible
with Western mentality and is often in-
compatible with the laws and constitu-
tions of Europe.
Conclusion
Is it possible to accept this teaching
in the name of the respect for cultures and
religious tolerance? This is the serious
question faced by all Western countries.
Images / from p.11
In one passage of his article Verdon
writes about the catechetical efficacy of
Christian art, even in a secularized society:
“Believers and nonbelievers are still
fascinated by the heritage of painting,
sculpture, and architecture generated by
Christians over the centuries, not only
because of the formal beauty of the works,
but because in them one finds oneself
face to face with themes that correspond
to urgent contemporary questions. In the
Europe of legalized abortion, which is
considering the admissibility of euthana-
sia, typical images of the Christian tradi-
tion like the Madonna with Child or Christ
on the Cross rattle consciences, insisting
with quiet power on the irreplaceable value
of life, and even of suffering life.”
“Eikon,” the new magazine by FMR,
directed by Flaminio Gualdoni, is dedi-
cated to “contemporary visual culture,”
and therefore also to how man today sees
the art of the past. The theme of the first
I don’t know if the flag-wavers of
multiculturalism realize how much human
damage they cause. Actually, it is in-
creasingly clear that so-called
multicultural tolerance is only acquies-
cence to a subtle form of racism. In the
name of cultural difference, in fact, every-
thing is left to proceed on parallel tracks,
without envisaging any progress, inte-
gration or betterment in the name of hu-
man dignity.
It is time for Europe to understand
that religious law cannot prevail over civil
law and that, above every form of toler-
ance, there is a country’s constitution. If
this does not happen, Islam will be given
carte blanche to colonize our customs. I
NOTES :
1) The imam, who had lived in France for
24 years, did not understand the word
“stoning”, which he understood to
mean “beating”. Hence, his reply.
2) In UCOII’s translation, generally
attributed to Hamza Piccardo (Imperia,
1994), the following note can be read
“This is the ideal of the believing
woman: ‘patient and modest.’ Says
the Prophet (peace and blessings be
upon him): “The best of women is she
who rejoices at your gaze, obeys you,
guards her person and the property of
the husband in his absence.”
issue is “Faith and the arts,” and Verdon’s
article is followed by, among others, two
articles concerning masterpieces very well
known to Rome’s visitors: the “Pietà” by
Michelangelo, in St. Peter’s Basilica, and
the modern “Risen Christ” by Pericle
Fazzini that dominates the papal audi-
ence hall.
A splendid photo of Michelangelo’s
“Pietà,” taken by Aurelio Amendola, is
on the cover of the magazine’s first issue.
Moreover, again for FMR, Timothy
Verdon has edited the large-format vol-
ume “Bellezza e identità. L’Europa e le sue
cattedrali [Beauty and identity: Europe
and its cathedrals],” dedicated to Benedict
XVI on the occasion of his eightieth birth-
day, which falls next April 16th. Its cost,
which is double that of the Compendium of
the Catechism, gives an idea of the extraor-
dinary quality of the work, dedicated to the
Christian imprint on Europe that can be
discerned in its cathedrals. I
 ARTICLES

P
utin’s visit to Italy reflects an array of
religious, political and strategic inter
ests. Following his meeting with the
Pope yesterday during which extremism,
intolerance and ecumenism were discussed,
the Russian leader will focus on energy and
security during his summit with Italian lead-
ers in Bari. He will then travel to Greece.
Today’s agenda included banks,
planes, international adoptions as well as
several hot spots like Kosovo and Iran.
Several agreements are expected to be signed
with Italian companies like Enel,
Finmeccanica, Italian Railways, and banks
like Intesa and Mediobanca.
Enel is set to sign a letter of intent with
the Russian Atomic Energy Agency for
cooperation in producing electric energy.
Finmeccanica will sign a protocol of indus-
trial collaboration between its affiliate Alenia
and Russia’s Sukhoi to build passenger

More Than Business Behind

planes for regional routes over the next 20
years.
The expected deal between Italy’s
energy giant ENI and Gazprom has however
been postponed. The meeting between the
two companies’ top executives did not take
place. Still “technical talks” will continue.
When it is sealed, the deal should give the
Russian giant access to the Italian market
where it could directly sell its gas. In ex-
change Italy gets guaranteed supplies till
2035. When fully implemented it could in-
volve up to three billion m3 of gas annually.
Economic and strategic interests
Although not fully ironed out the ac-
cord would represent an economic victory
for Russia as well as a strategic break-
through because it would give Moscow an
outlet to ice-free waters and a presence in
the Mediterranean, a goal pursued by the
tsars from the Crimean war till the Great War.
Then, the goal was Constantinople and the
straits.
Russia has always suffered from an
encirclement complex which explains its
role in the Sarajevo conspiracy. Its goal was
Constantinople and the Bosphorus (aim
pursued in 1914 by Tsarist Foreign Minister
Sazonov and the Pan-Slavists) at a time
when the Ottoman Empire appeared on the
brink of collapse.
Behind it all was and is the idea that
who controls Eurasia controls the world, a
theory formulated for the first time in 1904
by the founder of modern geopolitics Sir
Halford John Mackinder, 1861 –1947). Rus-
sia already occupies much of the Eurasian
landmass but does not control it. Natural
resources would be Moscow’s tools to
Putin’s Visit to Italy
The Russian president inked the last economic and trade deals in Italy before flying off to Greece. His reasons
to visit Rome and the Vatican largely reflect Russia’s eternal fear of encirclement and its quest for ‘warm’ waters.
by Maurizio d’Orlando
pursue such goals. Indeed, controlling the
Mediterranean—whose hub is Rome—
would give Russia control over the Eurasia’s
Heartland and therefore over Eurasia.
Today like yesterday the Dardanelles
and the straits are the key chokepoints that
to control most energy supplies that reach
the Mediterranean and Italy.
Direct gas sales in Italy would offer
Gazprom good commissions but also val-
ued added. Such access would enable it to
get better wholesale prices than it does
today when it has to sell to Italy’s de facto
ENI monopoly. In the tug of war between
the two energy giants, Gazprom won. But
for Italy the gain is greater domestic compe-
tition and guaranteed supplies. This is im-
portant since a wave of privatisations left
Italy heavily dependent on foreign energy
and, like many other Western powers, on
hydrocarbons taxes.
On the short run, gas shipped via
pipeline from Libya, Algeria (with which
Gazprom has monopolistic deals) and Rus-
sia could be replaced by liquefied gas trans-
ported by ship and re-gasified at Italian
terminals. This could reduce the price of
natural gas by a lot.
Religious and political interests
Putin’s trip to Italy also has a religious-
political dimension that should not be over-
looked since it is also his first visit to the
Vatican. For the Russian president meeting
Benedict XVI reflects a desire to have the
Vatican on his side in the great strategic
game that is being played out on the energy,
political, ideological and religious fields.
Support from the Church of Rome would
help Putin dismiss European and US criti-
cism over Russia’s human rights record, its
political use of energy supplies and its
reticence vis-à-vis sanctions against Iran.
It would also reduce the country’s historic
fear of encirclement.
This is especially true in the Middle
East, where Putin like his predecessors
probably views Russia as the traditional
protector of Christian Orthodoxy in the
Holy Land, and wants to break its isolation
by preventing the Vatican from aligning
itself to the staunchly pro-Israel positions
of the US right. This way Russia would not
have to make compromise with Islamic fun-
damentalism which Russians, too, view as
a danger. (Asia News)

Volume 41 • Number 3 27
FROM THE
I N B O X
Cure for Sorrow
T
here is an old Chinese
tale about a woman
whose only son died.
In her grief, she went to the
holy man and said, “What
prayers, what magical incan-
tations do you have to bring
my son back to life?”
Instead of sending her
away or reasoning with her,
he said to her, “Fetch me a
mustard seed from a home
that has never known sor-
row. We will use it to drive
the sorrow out of your life.”
The woman went off at once
in search of that magical
mustard seed.
She came first to a
splendid mansion, knocked
at the door, and said, “I am
looking for a home that has
never known sorrow. Is this
such a place? It is very im-
portant to me.”
They told her, “You’ve
The Bear and the Two Travelers
T
wo men were traveling
together, when a Bear
suddenly met them on
their path. One of them climbed
up quickly into a tree and con-
cealed himself in the branches.
The other, seeing that he must
be attacked, fell flat on the
ground, and when the Bear
came up and felt him with his
snout, and smelt him all over,
he held his breath, and feigned
the appearance of death as
28
28 IMPACT • March 2007
certainly come to the wrong
place,” and began to de-
scribe all the tragic things
that recently had befallen
them.
The woman said to her-
self, “Who is better able to
help these poor, unfortu-
nate people that I, who have
had misfortune of my own?”
She stayed to comfort them,
then went on in search of a
home that had never known
sorrow. But wherever she
turned, in hovels and in other
places, she found one tale
after another of sadness and
misfortune. She became so
involved in ministering to
other people’s grief that ul-
timately she forgot about
her quest for the magical
mustard seed, never realiz-
ing that it had, in fact, driven
the sorrow out of her life.
rowena.dalanon@cbcpworld.net
much as he could. The Bear
soon left him, for it is said he
will not touch a dead body.
When he was quite gone, the
other Traveler descended from
the tree, and jocularly inquired
of his friend what it was the
Bear had whispered in his ear.
“He gave me this advice,” his
companion replied. “Never
travel with a friend who deserts
you at the approach of danger.”
rowena.dalanon@cbcpworld.net
The Color of Friendship
O
nce upon a time the col
ors of the world started
to quarrel. All claimed
that they were the best. The
most important. The most use-
ful. The favorite.
Green said: “Clearly I am
the most important. I am the
sign of life and of hope. I was
chosen for grass, trees and
leaves. Without me, all animals
would die. Look over the coun-
tryside and you will see that I
am in the majority.”
Blue interrupted: “You
only think about the earth, but
consider the sky and the sea. It
is the water that is the basis of
life and drawn up by the clouds
from the deep sea. The sky
gives space and peace and se-
renity. Without my peace, you
would all be nothing.”
Yellow chuckled: “You are
all so serious. I bring laughter,
gaiety, and warmth into the
world. The sun is yellow, the
moon is yellow, the stars are
yellow. Every time you look at
a sunflower, the whole world
starts to smile. Without me
there would be no fun.”
Orange started next to
blow her trumpet: “I am the
color of health and strength. I
may be scarce, but I am pre-
cious for I serve the needs of
human life. I carry the most
important vitamins. Think of
carrots, pumpkins, oranges,
mangoes, and papayas. I don’t
hang around all the time, but
when I fill the sky at sunrise or
sunset, my beauty is so strik-
ing that no one gives another
thought to any of you.”
Red could stand it no
longer he shouted out: “I am the
ruler of all of you. I am blood—
life’s blood! I am the color of
danger and of bravery. I am will-
ing to fight for a cause. I bring
fire into the blood. Without me,
the earth would be as empty as
the moon. I am the color of pas-
sion and of love, the red rose,
the poinsettia and the poppy.”
Purple rose up to his full
height: He was very tall and
spoke with great pomp: “I am
the color of royalty and power.
Kings, chiefs, and bishops
have always chosen me for I am
the sign of authority and wis-
dom. People do not question
me! They listen and obey.”
Finally Indigo spoke,
much more quietly than all the
others, but with just as much
determination: “Think of me. I
am the color of silence. You
hardly notice me, but without
me you all become superficial.
I represent thought and reflec-
tion, twilight and deep water.
You need me for balance and
contrast, for prayer and inner
peace.”
And so the colors went on
boasting, each convinced of
his or her own superiority. Their
quarreling became louder and
louder. Suddenly there was a
startling flash of bright light-
ening thunder rolled and
boomed. Rain started to pour
down relentlessly. The colors
crouched down in fear, draw-
ing close to one another for
comfort.
In the midst of the clamor,
rain began to speak: “You fool-
ish colors, fighting amongst
yourselves, each trying to
dominate the rest. Don’t you
know that you were each made
for a special purpose, unique
and different? Join hands with
one another and come to me.”
Doing as they were told,
the colors united and joined
hands.
The rain continued: “From
now on, when it rains, each of
you will stretch across the sky
in a great bow of color as a
reminder that you can all live in
peace. The Rainbow is a sign of
hope for tomorrow.” And so,
whenever a good rain washes
the world, and a Rainbow ap-
pears in the sky, let us remem-
ber to appreciate one another.
rowena.dalanon@cbcpworld.net

Jesus A Gospel
Henri Nouwen
The Introduction to the book
by Michael O’Laughlin says it
better: “This book attempts
to fill a gap in Henri’s many
writings. Although Jesus was
“John Paul II
and the
Mystery of the
Eucharist”
Fr. Fidelis Stoeckl, ORC
Bishop Ted Bacani
writes the Foreword to
this book. And he in-
vites everybody to read
it. Which is fair, be-
cause in this volume,
Fr. Stoeckls presents a
catechetical synthesis
of the Eucharistic
Teachings of the late
Pope John Paul II. In
fact, one maybe in-
clined to refer to this
book as a compen-
dium of the teachings,
writings, homilies and
addresses of the Pon-
tiff on such a very sig-
nificant topic as the Eu-
charist. It's easy and
handy and it saves one
the time and hustle of
boring through thick
volumes and files. “I
have no doubt that the
B O O K
REVIEWS
the underlying
concern of most Inviting God In page a day. Some years back,
this style of presentation would
of his books, he only be available at protestant
never wrote a Joyce Rupp authors that commonly write
book about the short tracts of teachings
life of Jesus… This is a book of meditation gleaned from the concrete day
Each chapter is presented like a journal—it’s a to day experiences. What’s so
inspired by a inviting with this book
scene from the is its simplicity and
gospels, and sincerity that flows
these chapters from a religious con-
are arranged in viction and experi-
order, beginning ence. A line or two
with the Annun- from the bible is
ciation and the stringed from the
Visitation…after scriptures then a two-
these chapters, or-three-paragraph
the Gospel story meditation follow.
itself begins.” The reflection topics
Which actually follow the progression
makes the book of the liturgical calen-
uniquely different dar—from advent, to
from all the other lent, to ordinary time
books of the au- and so on. “Hopefully
thor. Reading it, it will be read and
feels like walking
and reflecting with Nouwen in
prayed by individuals
who are seeking to
a personal, yet profoundly nurture their daily life.
spiritual, novel yet character- It could also serve as
istically simple way of retell- a catalyst for those
ing the Gospel story. This vol- preparing worship
ume is published by the services and other
Daughters of St. Paul and is prayer experiences,”
available at all Paulines Book- says the author.
stores.
readers of this book will re-
turn to it again and again for Clergy
instruction and inspiration.
Be one of those readers and Compensation
get others to read it too,” says
Bishop Bacani. This book is
published and distributed by
Abp. Oscar V. Cruz,
JCD
the Daughters of St. Paul.
Exclusively ordained for
the preaching of the
Gospel and for the ad-
ministration of the Sac-
raments, how should
priests be sustained in
the day to day living?
Categorically commit-
ted to the pastoral ser-
vice of an ecclesiastical
jurisdiction, persever-
ance in continence, and
observance of the spirit
of detachment, how
could priests be ad-
equately remunerated
and thereby enable
them to continue their minis- and canonical point of view,
try? To keep them serving this book satisfactorily an-
when able, to give them assis- swers these questions. While
tance when sick, to maintain this book is, at first blush,
them when retired, to extend seemingly intended for
to them a decent burial when priests, this may actually be
they die—what could be done good even for lay people who
to respond to these basic re- may wish to understand tem-
alities even in the lives of poral realities surrounding
priests? From the pastoral their priests.
Volume 41 • Number 3 29
ENTERTAINMENT
CATHOLIC INITIATIVE
FOR E NLIGHTENED
MOVIE APPRECIATION
Title: MUSIC AND LYRICS
Running Time: 103 mins
Lead Cast: Hugh Grant, Drew
Barrymore, Brad Garrett, Haley
Bennet, Campbell Scott
Director: Marc Lawrence
Producers: Marc Lawrence
Screenwriters: Marc Lawrence
Music: Adam Schlesinger
Editor: Susan E. Morse
Genre: Romance
Cinematography: Xavier Perez Grobet
Distributor: Warner Bro.
Location: USA
Technical Assessment: 
Moral Assessment: zzz
CINEMA Rating: For viewers 14 and
above
A SHOWBIZ has-been Alex Fletcher
(Hugh Grant ) wants to return to the stage
to satisfy the demands of his middle aged
female fans. Among these fans, however,
is a sexy female teenage recording and
concert star, Cora ( Haley Bennett ) who
claims his songs had guided her spiritu-
ally as a child in a dysfunctional family.
Cora--a Britney Spears clone--wants badly
to do a duet with Alex for her new album, a
to perform in tandem with him in a concert,
but alas, his well has run dry and he can't
produce anymore songs. Enter Sophie
30 IMPACT • March 2007
Fisher ( Drew Barrymore ), substituting
for the plant sitter at his apartment. She
hardly knows anything about tending
plants but she happens to be a songwriter,
a delicious and convenient fact he
chances upon while he is at his driest try-
ing to compose a song with his agent
Chris Riley ( Brad Garrett ) to beat the dead-
line set by Cora . After some mild persua-
sion Sarah agrees to co-write the lyrics to
Alan 's melody, and they seem destined
to make beautiful music together.
Music and Lyrics is not exactly a mu-
sical, but because of the theme and the
storyline and the presence of some musi-
cal numbers, it could be mislabeled, lead-
ing the public to expect the wrong things
out of it. It is well made, though, and while
its technical aspects are nothing extraor-
dinary, it possesses a certain appeal that
emanates from the characterization, the
realness of the people whose simple story
is told. Grant is pathetically hilarious as
he thrills his middle-aged women fans with
his pelvic thrusts--not quite as vigorous
as Elvis' but? that's reality in showbiz. A
rather underweight but sweet Barrymore
plays Grant's partner with just the right
amount of chemistry to make the team
come across as credible and project the
level of attraction the story calls for.
The plot is light enough to be enter-
taining, and for a movie of its genre (roman-
tic comedy), should prove delightful for all
audiences especially girls and women. It is
notable that while there is much hype about
the "sexy" musical star Cora , her numbers
are not seductive or as "hot" as may be
expected--this seems deliberate on the part
of the director, especially when viewers
consider that the character has spiritual lean-
ings and in the end is mentioned as having
Fletcher sing at her wedding. In short, it is
noteworthy that the movie does not take
advantage of the milieu (showbiz) to pro-
mote the usual and less-than-wholesome
things found in the entertainment world,
like extra-marital affairs, suggestive danc-
ing, foul language or double talk, and gen-
eral sexual permissiveness.
ANSWER TO THE LAST ISSUE: IGNORANCE
ITSELF IS WITHOUT A DOUBT A SIN FOR
THOSE WHO DO NOT WISH TO UNDESTAND;
FOR THOSE WHO, HOWEVER, CANNOT
UNDERSTAND, IT IS PUNISHMENT OF SIN. -
- ST. AUGUSTINE.
QUOTES IN QUIZ Booklets available at
BOOKSALE stores in SM, Robinsons and
selected malls in Manila. For mail order text
0919 2803036.

N.KOREA
Main Nuclear Reactor Web Site helps Loved Group stresses urgency Church Joins Fight vs
Shutdown on Schedule Ones Find Each Other of women empowerment Smoking
The government of N.
Korea is committed to
shutting down its main
nuclear reactor within a
month, as long as Wash-
ington meets its promise
to drop financial sanc-
tions, the chief UN
nuclear inspector said af-
ter a one-day trip to
Pyongyang. In the first
trip by the UN authorities
since its inspectors were
kicked out four years
ago, agency head
Mohamed ElBaradei said
N. Korea discussed how
it would shut its main
reactor and welcome
back UN inspectors. The
assessment was an en-
couraging sign that a
month-old nuclear disar-
mament pact between N.
Korea, the U.S. and four
other countries remains
on track.
EGYPT
Judiciary Chief Names
First Female Judges
Judiciary chief here
has named the country’s
first female judges, de-
spite opposition from
conservative Muslims,
according to a decree
published recently.
Mukbil Shakir, the head
of the Supreme Judicial
Council, appointed 31
women to judge or chief
judge positions in Egypt’s
courts, the official
Middle East News
Agency said, quoting Mr.
Shakir’s decree. The de-
cree said the women, who
previously were state
prosecutors, passed a
special test before being
named to their new posts.
INDIA
Desperate for informa-
tion? Concerned friends
and families may now look
online to find their missing
loved ones. The Salesians
of Don Bosco in India have
launched a website to trace
missing children. The site,
(www.missingchildsearch.net),
intends to help find miss-
ing children providing in-
formation for the authori-
ties as well as the unfortu-
nate families. Visitors can
leave messages and photos
of the missing children.
The site has provided a new
platform for all child wel-
fare organizations to come
together and work to-
gether, the organizers said.
S.KOREA
Rising Number of PHILIPPINES
Catholics Stresses the
Need for More Priests GMO Corn Approved in Monthly
RP Shows Signs of Tox-
The number of Korean icity
Catholics overseas is rising
since last year, the Korean
Bishops’ Committee for the
Pastoral Care of Migrants
said. In its report, the group
speaks of a total 150,421
Korean overseas Catholics
(8% more than the previous
year), 4,501 newly baptized
and 2,026 catechumens.
This only means, according
to the report, that more Ko-
rean priests are needed over-
seas to ensure adequate pas-
toral care. Among the dio-
ceses and religious commu-
nities with staff on this mis-
sion, Pusan diocese has 27
priests caring for overseas
Korean Catholics in 8 dif-
ferent countries, the Sisters
of the Blessed Korean mar-
tyrs have 27 Sisters in 3
countries.
PAKISTAN
The condition of
women in Pakistan has
deteriorated rather than
improved, a church group
said stressing the need to
empower women and re-
spect women’s rights. The
Commission for Peace and
Human Development of
the Justice and Peace Com-
mission of the Catholic
Bishops’ Conference of
Pakistan denounced some
laws, which discriminate
women denying them to
access to economic, so-
cial and cultural develop-
ment. It also assailed vio-
lence against women in-
cluding domestic violence,
deprivation from the vot-
ing right and denial of equal
opportunities.
Int’l Press Group Hon-
ors Iraqi Christian
A monthly Iraqi Chris-
A genetically modified
(GM) corn strain ap-
proved for food, feed and
processing in the Philip-
pines shows signs of tox-
icity to mammals, accord-
ing to a new study. Writ-
ten by a panel of three
independent scientists in
France, the study showed
that laboratory rats fed
with the GMO corn
Monsanto (MON) 863
YieldGard Rootworm dis-
played kidney and liver
toxicity. MON 863 is corn
genetically manipulated to
produce its own insecti-
cide called ‘modified
Cry3Bb1’ to kill rootworm
insects in the soil, and
contains gene coding for
antibiotic resistance.
Volume 41 • Number 3
N E W S
BRIEFS
THAILAND
Public health advocates
battling cigarette-makers
have found an unexpected
ally: Church. The Catholic
church of Thailand has
joined efforts to discour-
age smoking at least start-
ing this season of Lent.
Redemptorist Bishop
Philip Banchong Chaiyara
of Ubon Ratchathani, head
of Thailand’s Catholic
Commission for Human
Development said that
Lent is time for mortifica-
tion. “We want laypeople
to recognize Lent as an
opportunity to be closer
with God. This year we
have an anti-smoking cam-
paign. Smoking is a dan-
ger to people who are near
to smokers,” he said.
IRAQ
tian magazine was
awarded the 2007 gold
medal by the International
Catholic Union of the
Press. Published in Ara-
bic, the “Al-Fikr Al-
Masihi”, according to the
award giving body, has
“survived the worst of
crisis in the history of Iraq
and it did so by becoming
a reference point for all
peoples: Muslims, Chris-
tians and other religions;
and all types of ethnic and
language groups.” The
prestigious award is con-
ferred every three years
upon an individual, a group
or an institution that has
championed the freedom
of opinion, with emphasis
on the written word.
31