Salutation #80

I saw a vision of two worlds -
two paths leading away from each other...
two choices - with nothing - in between;
one is a freedom that leads to a future bright,
the other a return to the darkness of the night -
a choice begun in every human heart
a choice to return us again from the start.

(Crystal Blue Sphere)

I SAW IN A VISION,

a crystal blue sphere,

shining with a multitude of living lights.

The vision came to me quite abruptly

while I was awake in the day,

riding a jeep home from work.

The vision stayed for a time before me as I wondered.

I wondered at how wondrous and beautiful beyond imagination it was

that I thought I was seeing through the eyes of angels.

Then a darkness came over the vision

and it seemed to me for an instant that it was no longer there.

- selah -

But it was, O my nation,

before me was a world so overrun by sin and war

that it was no longer distinct from the nothingness of the void -

an unknown earth bereft of light,

forsook by heaven,

and forgot by God.

---<--@

My New Year 2012 hope -

I pray for more leaders who are accountable to God first that the LORD may craft them into proper instruments of a government wholly dedicated and responsible to the people they serve.

Leaders who at every level of government embody the definition of a popular mandate being interested in neither fame nor notoriety but in establishing in our nation through their persons the divine authority that makes us all equal before the LORD both in dignity and in promise.

Loyal leadership like these may only arise from a nation faithful to its own truth, arrayed in time as an undertaking of Country at one with its own mission and at peace with its own vision.

Therefore, I pray - first and foremost - for our nation: May we now become what we've always dreamed of becoming... mabuhay!

This is my new year hope. God bless the Philippines!

---<--@

Salutation #79

The freedom of Man

and the freedom of Angels

are not unlike each other!

Therefore,

Let us always remember that the liberty

of all the nations of the children of Mankind

is established not for the taking but for the giving -

for it is in giving that we receive;

it is in giving that all Men are set free.

- selah -

(Religion in the Public Domain)

Don't be a hypocrite.

Don't be afraid to say it - "Merry Christmas!"

How can we respect other religions if we can not respect our own?

Remember,

a genuine respect for the power of faith - in any person -

only comes from a genuine experience of religion.

So if you are afraid to practice your own - for any reason,

how can you hope to understand

what substance of truth there is to be had

in the exercise of your own faith?

If you do not understand

- with a knowledge of the truth -

the blessings bestowed upon you by your own religion,

how can you understand the hope

that other people must invest

in the free exercise of theirs

however different they may be to you?

There is a place for religion in the public domain -

for so long as (1) it does compete,

one against the other - to the confusion of many,

for a position of dominance in the civic sphere;

for so long as (2) the Spirit of God is given a free hand

to work the work of completion He intends in all human hearts ;

for so long as (3) the spirit of War is denied entry into the heart of our nations;

for it shall be natural for all truth to come together -

not so that all things may be the same - conformity without diversity,

but so that the purpose of God in all things may be fulfilled.

Merry Christmas!

---<--@

Can you see through the cartoon -

If you love humanity, say to thy own soul:

Drink deeply, O my heart, we have much to do...

---<--@

Think about it -

"People who have a religion should be glad, for not everyone has the gift of believing in heavenly things." (Anne Frank, July 6, 1944)

Take note of how my Anne described the activity of faith in religion - a gift.

---<--@

Shalom, Salaam, Peace - Maligayang Pasko!

Mabuhay po tayong lahat ngayong Pasko at kapayapaan sa darating na taon.

Queen Esther's Prayer

Of the two important Jewish Holy Days I tend to personally identify with, this prayer forms the spiritual basis for the first one, Purim.

The other feast is Hannukah of whose main protagonist is Judah Maccabee (of the Book of Maccabees).

Both these feasts celebrate (in eternal remembrance) for all of Israel (i.e. from everywhere and from everytime) the deliverance (wrought by the LORD through His instruments) of the Jewish people as a nation from a particular form of evil that threatened to permanently and irreversibly disrupt God's own relationship with the present generations of that time.

- selah -

Queen Ester's Prayer

Queen Esther, seized with mortal anguish, likewise had recourse to the LORD.

Taking off her splendid garments, she put on garments of distress and mourning. In place of her precious ointments she covered her head with dirt and ashes. She afflicted her body severely; all her festive adornments were put aside, and her hair was wholly disheveled.

Then she prayed to the LORD, the God of Israel, saying:

"My LORD, our King, you alone are God.

Help me, who am alone and have no help but You, for I am taking my life in my hand.

As a child I was wont to hear from the people of the land of my forefathers that You, O LORD, chose Israel from among all peoples, and our fathers from among all their ancestors, as a lasting heritage, and that you fulfilled all your promises to them.

But now we have sinned in Your sight, and You have delivered us into the hands of our enemies, because we worshiped their gods. You are just, O LORD.

But now they are not satisfied with our bitter servitude, but have undertaken to do away with the decree You have pronounced, and to destroy Your heritage; to close the mouths of those who praise You, and to extinguish the glory of Your temple and Your altar; to open the mouths of the heathen to acclaim their false gods, and to extol an earthly king forever.

O LORD, do not relinquish Your scepter to those that are nought. Let them not gloat over our ruin, but turn their own counsel against them and make an example of our chief enemy.

Be mindful of us, O LORD. Manifest Yourself in the time of our distress and give me courage, King of gods and Ruler of every power.

Put in my mouth persuasive words in the presence of the lion, and turn his heart to hatred for our enemy, so that he and those who are in league with him may perish.

Save us by Your power, and help me, who am alone and have no one but You, O LORD. You know all things."

(Esther C: 12-25)

I simply love Queen Esther. She is one of my all-time favorite heroines of the Old Testament!

We could indeed take a page from the memory of Israel through the Book of Esther to help guide us through these difficult times.

Glorified be God in all His Angels and in all His Saints - forever!

Salutation #78

Typhoon Sendong is portentous.

It was not only out of season -

it is an indication of a much larger change.

No words can convey my distress at the loss we have sustained

at the passing of this most recent typhoon...

These are ours, O my Philippines, these are ours...

Arise therefore, O my nation - serve -

and pray for the victims of Typhoon Sendong!

(Hidden in Plain Sight)

Each year,

my fellow Filipinos,

our Country is tested

and the endurance of our nation

stectched to a point...

We are -

by the natural cycles of the seasons

and the excesses that the forces of nature

- earth, wind, fire, and water -

a nation yearly inflicted

with much violence

upon our communities

by the evils that arise from

these natural calamities.

But never have we thought,

O my beloved people,

never have we even begun to consider,

the slightest hint of surrender

to the limiting and random nature

of these evils!

Rather,

these typhoons

only serve to strengthen

our resolve

- no matter the pain -

to stand together

as one people.

For in the midst of these trials

we always choose to be the victors

and we always have.

Do you understand this?

We are -

a people whose virtues

have always been - as such -

hidden in plain sight.

So let us bear

- into mind and heart -

the strength and reality of

our own native resilience

as well as bring into the fore

of our social consciousness

- these present days -

the excellence of the virtues

embodied by our national identity

which are all the things that make living

the Filipino Dream worthwhile

as well as possible.

For the greater cycle of the seasons

is shifting -

These shall be times

- unprecedented -

in the history of all the nations

of the children of Mankind.

Winter indeed in coming

(after the autumnal dusk of our faded Eden)

- here in this season of shadows -

and there is a testing ahead

that shall require all our virtue

(as individuals giving freely

and as nations dreaming together

as one family).

Therefore,

let us always have meaningful recourse

to the sacred remembrances

of God and of Country.

- selah -

Our unity as a people

shall be our greatest guarantee against calamity.

Our peace as a nation

shall be our safest shelter against the darkness.

Our vision as a Country

shall be our surest way ahead

out of this long night - this longest night -

and into that new morning of Promise

for our Land of Promise.

2011 have revealed to us our weaknesses.

2012 shall temper for us our strengths.

---<--@

Let us help our brothers and sisters in Northern Mindanao -

Contact -

Tel. (632) 931 - 8101 to 07

Click -

http://www.redcross.org.ph/donate

Salutation #77

Let our Banner be unto thyself a symbol of unity, my people,

and let it fly in thy heart out of love of God and Country.

Yea, let this Banner fly in thy heart of hearts or not at all!

For if this one kind of love is absent in the absent heart of Man,

there shall our Country be found nowhere in creation.

- Salutation #10 (Old Defiant)

(Old Defiant vs. Old Compliant)

Peace, I salute you.

I should like to emphasize in us again,

my brothers and sisters of the Promise,

the importance of unity over division -

especially in the midst of this brewing crisis

between our President and our Chief Justice.

Remember,

I am not writing here

about the impeachment trial

- or any external event that must also concern us -

I am writing primarily about you (about us) -

the citizen-servant.

For everything that proceeds in our Republic,

proceeds from the concentrated strength of its spirit

in your soul (our souls).

As regards the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Corona

and the divisions it is sparking in our nation,

if you are in any way interested

in what I have to think about the matter - personally,

please refer to the running commentary

I have opened here.

However,

if you are still sincerely confused about the matter,

you may inhibit yourselves from participating in the public debate

and remain in the safety of your own areas of service.

It is never fair to have to be made to choose

between two co-equal, independent branches

of our one Republic government

in the Responsible State.

Again,

our central focus here

is to make this an exercise in unity

so do not allow your own mind and heart

to become bitterly embroiled in the politics

and the divisions that must surround this event

- without having a clear mind -

as to where your freedom and your independence truly lies.

Completely refrain from adding your own flame

to the many conflagrations that threaten to consume our Country

but rather add it to the unifying light that gives her comfort and warmth,

bolstering her strength to see us all through this long night;

this longest night...

- selah -

(I am reposting this piece from 20110402.)

Something's missing from my Philippines. Something vital.

Who knows her?

These days, everybody seems to be living for themselves alone. It seems no one remembers her.

By this, she is grieved and therefore, draws further and further away into isolation.

For the spirit of Country, my honorable compatriots, is a spirit of self-belonging. It is a self-cognizant, collective sense of self.

And the Republic is a guardian to a people orphaned by war.

Thus, if the people are divided in their hearts against each other, they are scattered.

And the people are scattered because of those distant and faded hearts; hearts that seem to no longer recognize the spirit of this Republic; hearts that have come to accept the rule of War.

Hence, the spirit of Country is diluted.

And when there is no substance left in our remembrance, when there is no peace left to abide in our belonging, when there is no truth left to empower our will of Country, we shall cease to exist as a nation.

But while our history still fills the hunger in our souls, while there is yet a common longing for better days burning in our hearts, while there is yet those who remember and believe, while there is yet even a few who are brave and true, by the grace of Almighty God, war will never have us.

Truly, my nation, this is not a very good time for the spirit of war. For this is exactly why the colors of our own Country is called Old Defiant.

We have a choice. Let it mean something:

Let us defy division, let us defy corruption, let us defy poverty, let us defy evil and prosper, my fellow Filipino compatriots - together this time.

Let us defend where we must, O my nation Philippines, and leave all else to the invulnerable, omnipotent defense of the LORD, our God, the one Sovereign of all nations.

---<--@

Mabuhay ang Pilipinas! God bless us all.

The Truth

New Archbishop of Manila

Mabuhay, Archbishop Luis Antonio Tagle - God bless the Philippines!

Saint Andrew's School Hymn

Beloved Saint Andrew's

the knowledge we obtain

from the Lord God Above

through thy guidance and love.

You inspire our will

to reach our golden goal:

Love God and Country

Proudly we proclaim!

Refrain:

Hail Saint Andrew's -

Endless fountain of wisdom!

We do pledge a life of serving love.

The bright and shining Morning

comes in our lives,

we the Andreans give respect

to Thy enlightening command -

We shall cherish You

from here and afar

with You the darkest road

we'll walk unafraid.

Composer: Mr. Francis Dandan

---<--@

Anne's Window

The love that endures is the love that remains...

My darlingest

Annelies Marie

looked out

with eyes longing for peace

from her little attic window

and saw the tyranny of war

and the suffocating

oppression

of War's ambition.

She looked out

at the looming evil

of the devouring darkness

that was marching relentlessly

across her troubled world

and like stars

looking out

of themselves

saw through

the enveloping darkness

that threatened her life

and her times

shedding her precious starlight

into our hearts.

My darlingest

believed so much

in our shared humanity

and in the

nobility

of the human being

not because

the Nazi's were consumed

by War's ambition

and her times were evil

but because her heart

was noble.

For my darlingest

Annelies Marie

loved life

and believed

in the intrinsic goodness

of all things

created by God,

seen and unseen,

and that despite

the great evil

of her times,

human hearts

were good.

War looked back at her

and saw nothing.

For God took her

and hid her

into His bosom

unto a place

upon the firmament

within Himself

long before evil saw

the secret starlight

of her undying hope

bursting from

windows within

her heart of hearts.

War looked back at her

and saw nothing

for there is no hope

in war

only death

and the darkness

of death.

War looked back at her

and saw nothing

for in the darkness

of war and sin

is also found

the crushing gravity

of it's own demise.

But goodness looked back at her

and saw

through her little attic window

her starlight smile.

And smiled back...

---<--@

"I want friends, not admirers. People who respect me for my character and my deeds, not my flattering smile. The circle around me would be much smaller, but what does that matter, as long as they're sincere?"

- Anne Frank, March 7, 1944

Pinoy Spirit

Disown the darkness.

Defend against it.

Do not fight it.

Defend.

In this place, everywhere;

in this time, forever -

we belong.

One nation united across all our generations

into one labor, one heart, one destiny.

Juan Nation

The Filipino is a kind of love and this love binds us together as Juan Nation.

All is Juan -

I am the Juan,

You are the Juan,

We are the Juan;

Juan Nation.

Salutation #76

You might say, my dear Filipino soul, that that embattled region of our Asia, the Middle East, is not our concern - not our concern at all.

Ah, but it is!

Believe me when I say it, the fate of many nations depend on it.

- selah -

Here is a map of the region: Where are the divisions here?

My beloved brothers and sisters of the Promise,

hear me when I say -

The lines on a map are artificial

- insofar as we understand -

that these are not meant to scatter the hearts of our nations

nor divide and dilute the concentrated spirit of our common humanity

but to facilitate the temporal labor of our nations (as Countries upon our world)

that we may better bring continually forth and preserve

a wholesome and healthy sense of meaningful purpose to our world

sustaining an order built upon a just and abiding peace

among all peoples of the earth

according to the needs of every present time.

Now,

these lines become permanent divisions

that lay its dark siege against the life of our nations

insofar as the peoples of Mankind forget that

- Unity is Eternal -

and the hearts of the children of Mankind

freely and willingly permit

the War in heaven a place on earth.

Salutation #76

(The one Cause of Palestine)

Palestine is divided,

the sky above the heart of Asia

lay shattered only because we accept it.

Say thee with me,

I for one do not accept it!

Neither do I accept the manifold evils

that embattle her peoples, making them suffer,

in spirit as well as in temporality.

For my vision of the region

and every undertaking of Country that must animate all these favored lands

is not one of division but of unity.

So peace be with you!

Unity is Eternal.

Let this be your vision as well.

- selah -

To the nations -

When art thou going to stop

feeding the insatiable division that is slowly

killing the needful cause of the peace of Modern Israel

and therefore, making permanent the darkness engulfing

all the suffering peoples of that choice and blessed region of Palestine?

To all you with hearts to listen,

all my brothers and sisters of the Promise -

The "Palestinians" stand for a cause

for which all nations are in spirit purposed on earth

by the God of all heaven and earth.

If they were not

- in the eyes of many -

one people united in heart before,

all of this present turmoil, tragedy and grief

has certainly bound them together

as one nation now.

This is a truth that by any other name remains the truth.

Therefore,

if you shall say the "Palestinians" are an invented people,

then you might be implying that the cause for which they are united

is a fabricated cause.

And if you shall say that the Palestinian Cause is a fabricated cause,

this might indicate that you are unable to grasp the long view of the region.

And if you allow yourself to freely believe this,

for whatever reason, conscious or unconscious, you may allow;

if you fail to consider the realities on the ground,

you support neither Israel or Palestine.

Say thee with me,

I will never stand for nor tolerate terrorism

nor shall I ever desire the destruction of any nation

above all Israel whom one should love dearly

and to whom one should speak the truth.

Truly,

if we are not careful, O my nations,

if we continue to allow for the deception of War

to sow its scattering in each our hearts;

if we permit the beast of War

even a toehold in our souls,

we all shall fail.

- selah -

I have always maintained - to each of you -

that the Middle East is where the siege of War shall be broken;

that it is here where the darkness of the last great age of war shall be lifted,

however, I have also always carefully reminded each of you that this is a choice

and that we must make this choice today while it is still today.

For our unity is an integral part of our liberty as nations

- human nations, O human Man,

nations dreaming together this time.

Therefore,

my brothers and sisters of the Promise,

let this be the prayer in our heart -

Let there be peace across all of Palestine;

a peace to calm the storm at the heart of our Asia!

Let there be peace across all of Palestine -

for the sake of all the nations of our needful world,

including our beloved Philippines.

Above all,

let there be peace across all of Palestine

- a constant reign of truth -

for the sake of those long-suffering peoples

descended from the lineages of

both Isaac and Ishmael

(both of which are beloved of God as we are beloved of God)

and the nations God had intended for their safety and progress

for the honor of the LORD,

the glory of the unity of God,

and the salvation of many.

---<--@

Salutation #75

A Nation at peace with its own truth is a Country at one with its own heart.

(The Pursuit of Happiness)

Happiness is not a freedom to do anything.

Happiness is the ability

to consistently do the right thing

in spite of everything.

Therefore,

a happy person is a person

in possession of his or her own freedom.

One who obtains happiness

by striving to live a life

that is truly free.

- selah (pause for thought) -

Now,

a lot of people look for peace

for all peoples have an idea of what happiness is

but only a few know where to begin.

No one can tell you what the truth for you is like

but you can listen to others

to find out where to begin looking

for thy own truth.

For your peace is your own.

But your peace is never meant

to only be yours.

For you are like a star - that -

once aflame must reach out to shine

for other stars across time and distance

- against the Night.

Truly,

the individual is important.

But this importance must exist

within a community that values it.

This is our liberty.

- selah -

Once you are in possession

of the truth in your own heart

- O Beloved of the LORD -

it may only be taken away

by your lack of vigilance.

For no one can dictate to you

what you must will to cherish forever

- in the city within thy own heart -

within those worlds within thyself.

Heaven and earth may only give thee

good counsel and due caution.

So be careful of the false images

that are specifically intended

for the ruin of your dreams

and the overthrow of thy own peace.

For once you are in possession

of thy peace in thy own heart,

it may only be uprooted

(and may God forbid it)

by your freely giving it away.

---<--@

Salutation #74

The one music in you is the one music in me.

(The Filipino Dream)

Know the (Filipino) Dream, see the (Republic) Vision.

- selah -

There is a dream in myself which is for myself.

There is a dream in yourself which is for yourself.

But the dream in all ourselves

- must exist -

within a greater dreaming.

This is our national dreaming,

which from the time our nation was conceived

- in the Mind of God -

till the moment our nation is once again received

- into the Heart of God -

constitutes one whole dream.

This dream is the Filipino Dream.

And everyday we wake up

with the love of our nation in our heart

is everyday we add to the splendor

of its eventual awakening.

For every day we improve our lives

and the lives of our Countrymen and women

is every day we realize its Promise

in each ourselves - for all of us -

together this time.

Because the Dream which is ours

is one continuous dreaming

and each of us contribute

toward its completion

in each ourselves.

It may only reach its fulfillment

when the national destiny is reached

by the last of our generations.

When our Country is perfected

by the God of all Countries.

No one can truly define

- the Filipino Dream -

but the Filipino.

And each of us contribute

toward its completion in ourselves.

Now,

our national dreaming,

my brothers and sisters of the Promise,

is NOT a material dream.

And of this truth

we should be especially vigilant:

For the happiness we desire

- as individuals and as a nation -

is not a thing of the earth

but a happiness in the spirit.

---<--@

Also, please refer to Salutation #20 (Freedom and the Filipino Dream)