By Mariano Santos, PINOY Publisher/Editor
Surely you’ve already noticed the yuletide tradition brought in by Filipino immigrants to the US has caught on in a big way. Thirty years ago fewer than a dozen churches in the area went along with their Filipino American parishioners in observing this novena introduced by the Spaniards in the Philippines. Many American Catholics found it difficult time to relate with the practice. But the archdiocese intervened and created the office of Catholic Ethnic Ministries. Our own Teresita Nuval, a former registered nurse, was selected to be its full-time director.
Since then the number of Catholic Churches holding “Simbang Gabi” multiplied exponentially—a testimony to the devotion of the Filipino faithfuls. Together with the Latinos, Filipinos brought new life to the area churches who were then struggling in keeping their member. The annual “Simbang Gabi” became an effective vehicle to get Filipino Americans give witness to their faith. The mainstream congregations started to treat the Filipinos with respect.
In Skokie, for instance, there are three Catholic churches—the oldest is St. Peter’s in the downtown area. It has the biggest Filipino American membership. The Fil-Am Club is recognized as an indispensible component of the church ministries. St. Lambert’s, on the corner of Karlov and Cleveland Streets, has the Filipino Families of Skokie(FFOS), an active but a more select group of original members. Lastly, on the boundary of Skokie and Evanston, is St. Joan of Arc which has a growing Filipino American members. All three will host a night in the “Simbang Gabi” novena. But it is at St. Lambert’s where Cardinal George will celebrate mass on Dec. 23. The church has a Filipino priest, Fr. Ronald Plomillo.
Report has it that “Seven lechons” are to be served in an after mass reception and the FFOS did a fundraiser primarily to give “something” special for the cardinal and his fellow celebrants. While that might be seen as consistent with the Filipino traits of hospitality and generosity, some concerned members expressed some misgivings about the plans. Some see it as patronizing vestiges of the faith that is practiced during the Spanish colonial times.
“Simbang Gabi” has all the potential to be a relevant celebration of the genuine meaning of the first Christmas when God had given his own son as a living sacrifice. Instead of the ostentatious trimmings of an earthly king He had brought Jesus in the most despicable conditions. The manger and the stable are stuff for the poorest of the poor.
So when Pinoys partake of the bountiful food prepared for the after-mass reception, is it too much to put baskets on the feast tables so that we can drop a dollar bill or even just our loose change so when we utter in our prayers saying “Lord multiply the food before us so the hungry will be feed”—we can really mean what we say? Not only for the flood victims back home, but also for the victims of the current deep recession which drove a lot of unemployed persons to homeless shelters and soup kitchens.
If we go about our “Simbang Gabi” in this spirit, our celebration of Christmas becomes acceptable to the God for which the day is dedicated.
The Plan of Jun Palafox
In my last column, I wrote about my brief encounter with internationally acclaimed Philippine architect, Felino Palafox, Jr. Jun was in Chicago to attend an urban planning conference at Illinois Institute of Technology. During my interview with him, he made a brief presentation of his discarded proposal to develop Laguna de Bay during the late 1070s when Imelda Marcos was governor of Metro Manila.
Like this year, the Philippines was visited then by killer typhoons. There were over a dozen features in Jun’s plan. Dredging the huge lake of its silt and making an island out of the accumulated mud among them It would make the lake an effective depository of flood waters. Same goes for Pasig and the various rivers that empty into the lake.
The plan makes sense then and more so today. Jun mentioned the sad outcome of the Filipinos’ unwillingness to work with a master plan. The Plan of Manila of 1905 could have saved us a lot of trouble if it was implemented like the Plan of Chicago of 1909. Both plans were conceived by Chicago architect Daniel Burnham.
Few weeks after Jun ‘s visit, Sen. Richard Gordon came out with the Senate Report recommending the removal of President Arroyo because of her involvement in the ZTE scandal. That made me smile considering the libel case that the henchmen of Gordon had filed against Jun Palafox who exposed an attempt to extract bribe from him for his plan for Subic naval base. Gordon’s posture to be a crusader against graft appeared hypocritical considering that his men at Subic are up to no good.
Jun emphasized the need for us to have the will to fight corruption and to do the right things for our country which is getting poorer due to the lack of vision by those who lead us.
Two Days in November
Now in November when nights get longer and the north wind chills the bone, one’s thoughts turn to home. That’s when the feast of Sta. Catalina is celebrated in our hometown of Arayat on the 25th from which, in the days of my childhood, I counted impatiently the next 30 long days that would usher in Christmas Day. The greatest joy was in the anticipation. Then the merriment extends to another week. New Year’s Day comes with the feeling of melancholia. The loved ones who gathered for the holidays reunion would go into their separate ways.
But last November gave us a gift of realization that technology has ways to make Filipinos in diaspora get together as one nation. Cable and its pay-per-view brought us to watch a former lumpen makes history in an unlikely sport of boxing. On the night of Nov. 14, Filipinos shouted a collective cheer when Manny Pacquiao claimed his seventh world boxing championship. Filipinos everywhere savored his success. Yes, the Filipino can.
Appropriately enough on the evening of Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 26, Filipinos were in front their cable TVs once again. This time to watch the premiere showing on CNN the broadcast of the awarding of the 27-year old teacher, Efren Penaflorida, as its “Hero of the Year.” The honor carried an award of $100,000 to be used by Penaflorida’s civic group which reaches out to children of the slums in Manila so they can get basic education. Filipinos especially the youth can take a bow for their unified effort to cast their votes in the internet for their young countryman. Penaflorida garnered 2.75 million votes to catapult him on top of the other nine heroes. Filipinos can proudly proclaim that as people we are overcoming our fractiousness. This time we are treading the path to common and noble goals.
This year Ondoy and Pepeng visited the homeland. Filipinos everywhere came to the aid of their countrymen. Then, the Filipinos were gifted with Manny and Efren. Filipinos had proven to themselves that they can overcome the curse of corruption and poverty if they stand together and put above their personal interest the welfare of the people.
Truly these are the youth that our National Hero Dr. Jose Rizal had dreamed of. Rizal died for that dream. But we can live for that dream. Manny earned millions for his glory. Let us help him to discern correctly on how he can be a true champion of the millions of poor people using his wealth. Efren’s vocation of teaching those who don’t have much in life is unquestionably empowering. It is no less glorious in anyway than those powerful punches that Manny has thrown in the ring. When we have collectively knocked out poverty and corruption back home, we can say, the Filipino is a real champ.
Oh yes, what a year 2009 was, indeed! •