The Damaged Culture of the Filipinos

Two of my favorite columnists in the Philippine STAR, F. SIONIL JOSE and my tocayo, WILLIAM M. ESPOSO, have been writing for a long time now that we, Filipinos, have a damaged culture. I remember to read somewhere a naughty quip that former President Arroyo is more of an agriculturist rather than an economist. Why? Because under her administration, the Culture of Corruption, the Culture of Violence and Culture of Impunity thrived and were tolerated virtually with official sanction from the highest echelon of government.  

Who can forget that incident during the time of the unlamented Arroyo regime where invited congressmen trooped to Malacanang and reportedly received paper bags each of which contained P500,000.00 in cold cash! Even then Pampanga Governor, a Catholic priest, Fr. Ed Panlilio, was given a bag of cash which he naturally turned down after revealing to the press such

Adverse Effects of Modernism on Catholics

In four decades of living and working here in Metro Manila, previously known as Greater Manila, I have observed during these recent years of my stay in Marikina City some adverse effects of modernism on Catholics particularly during the celebrations of the Holy Mass. Back then, the people were attending Masses wearing their "Sunday's Best" attire, rich and poor alike. Now, it's so sad to see that many Catholic churchgoers are going to church in their "Sunday's Non-Best" attire. It seems that such Catholics have lost their sense of decorum and propriety which they will not dare to do so in the presence of a high government official. On the other hand, followers of other religious sects can be observed wearing their semi-formal or formal attires during their church services.

I have been seeing for several years now in our Provident Villages chapel many churchgoers attending Sunday Masses wearing walking shorts and slippers or skimpy shorts and sleeveless,tight fitting shirts as if they're strolling on the beach or going to the malls. That many of these improperly attired persons still dare to receive Holy Communion immensely pains me so much. However, blame should be cast  on church organizations tasked to maintain proper attire

READING: My First Love, Then, Now and Forever - THE FINALE

When I started living and working in what is now called Metro Manila, I eventually got the opportunity to add foreign magazines and pocketbooks to my local reading materials. However, due to limited funds, I contented myself buying second hand ones from several magazine stands along the main streets of Manila which I scoured during my free time.  

As my finances improved, I occasionally splurged on brand new copies. After I got married and raised my family, I lessened my purchases of foreign magazines and pocketbooks although newspapers remained my inseparable reading fare along with Tagalog