While the ongoing International Eucharistic Congress (IEC) mostly focuses on spiritual matters especially revolving around the aforementioned Eucharist, top Church officials are not divorced from secular matters and issues that affect their respective countries and the world.
One such secular concern is this year’s ongoing election period which Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle spoke of during last Thursday’s session at the IEC Pavilion.
When asked why he paused when he mentioned politicians during his discourse on the current culture of throwaways, Tagle explained that he was distracted by the laughter of some people in attendance.
“They probably laughed when I mentioned about politicians so I paused because I also wanted to contain my laughter,” he told the media during last Thursday’s press conference.
But Tagle went serious and touched on an important note when he said that in today’s consumerist culture where people throw away things when they no longer find them useful, certain gifts such as trust should never be discarded.
“When a politician is elected into public office, he receives from the people the gift of trust. They should never lose that gift. In fact they should nurture it, protect it and spread it around,” the Manila prelate said.
Such simple words yet they contain quite a vivid truth about what today’s voters hope for as they troop to the polling precincts in May this year. In an age when everyone is bombarded with lies, propaganda, half-truths — which is also a lie in the strictest sense of the word — and just plain garbage, the search for that one candidate who people can trust remains as elusive as ever.
In order for people, especially candidates, to earn such trust they should have credibility. Certain candidates fail that litmus test of credibility once they are elected to office or have been staying for so long that they cannot distinguish truth from the propaganda that they or their minions have been spreading to the public.
Thus, Tagle hit it right on the head when he said politicians should treat the trust and faith of their constituents as a gift that they should nurture and protect.
Doing that means not going back on their word and being transparent and accessible to the public and not hiding behind alibis like national security.
Earning that trust also means spreading that gift of the people’s trust to others who are just as, if not more, qualified to lead the country into the next decade.
For Filipinos, that means also being discerning and critical of the people who are selling themselves to be their next leaders, to look beyond their campaign spin and see what they can offer for a better future.