By Bo SanchezThis will be short.
I just want to ask you a question.
Last week, I had lunch with a wealthy foreigner.
I just want to ask you a question.
Last week, I had lunch with a wealthy foreigner.
How wealthy? He was earning two million dollars a month. (I’m not kidding.) He was in the Philippines visiting our smaller islands.
“So how did you like your visit?” I asked him.
“I loved it,” he said, “I have never met a more polite, more courteous, nicer people than the Filipinos.”
“Thank you,” I beamed.
But then he frowned. “Bo, I also noticed how religious Filipinos are. I saw the tricycles with signs, saying, “God loves you” and “John 3:16”. There is so much God in your country. And yet there is so much poverty.”
Ouch.
That hurt because it’s so true.
His question reminded me about my visit to Vietnam a month before—and how disturbed I felt.
There’s not much God in that country. It’s been a communist country for decades. But the economy is exploding. And according to statistics, poverty has gone down by a huge 60%! Can you believe that?
One reason: Foreign investments.
Last year, the Philippine’s foreign investments reached a measly $2.5B.
In Vietnam last year, their foreign investments reached $15B.
And do you know what happened this year? From January to July 2008, foreign investments in Vietnam already reached $33B!
Look at China. Another “godless” nation. But poverty has gone down as well. And they’re now poised to be the next Superpower of the world.
Look at Japan. Only 2% of its population is Christian. Many of them don’t even have any religion. Yet their economy has been thriving for decades.
But look at a few South American countries. Like the Philippines, there’s a lot of religion and poverty there too.
So here are my questions:
· Why so much God and poverty in our country?
· Does a certain brand of religion cause poverty?
· Or am I missing something here?
Share me your thoughts below.
Tell me what you think.
Next week, I’ll give you my thoughts.
Tell me what you think.
Next week, I’ll give you my thoughts.
May your dreams come true,
Bo Sanchez
3 comments:
Bro. Bo,
Some years ago I was in Japan.While riding a train,I felt envious of Japan's wealth as seen outside,and I asked the Lord,"Why is Japan so rich when generally the Japanese don't know you while the Philippines, who knows you,is so poor"?Minutes later I dozed off and my wallet dropped from my pocket and was left in the train.I discovered the loss several hours later and told my Japanese friend.He contacted the train company and we went to the next train station,almost 100 miles away.There I found my wallet,intact.It was found by the lady train sweeper.I thanked her profusely.She would not even accept something as a token of gratitude.She was so happy I had my wallet back.
Riding another train back to Tokyo,I asked the Lord why he allowed that frightening incident to happen to me.I felt the Lord say to me,"Nonet,to whom much is given much is expected.Look at the Japanese,They know only little about me and yet they applied the little they know to their lives.Look at their respect for their fellowman,their honesty and their industry.The Filipinos know a lot about ne,being the only christian nation in the far east.But,that knowledge is not assimilated in your lives.If only you live your christianity."
I thanked the Lord for that answer to the question that has bugged me for so long.I pledged to Him to serve to make Him known to my countrymen.
BRO. ARSENIO 'NONET' A. ABELLANA-Elder,Servant Communities,Lapu-lapu City,Philippines
Single factor explanations for phenomena as complex as poverty is nothing but escapism at its core.
Attributing entirely that single factor explanation to a failure to practice one's religion, plumbs the depths of ignorance.
However people who believe in a God conceive him to be, they must be so pretentious as to know how that knowledge or his teaching could be so clearly connected with poverty. There is much that is not connected with morality (or faith) that can predispose a society to endemic poverty. Even if a lot of the problems can be due to poor character and morals, those flaws can get so easily enmeshed and wound up with a lot of systemic problems that have nothing to do with morality, that the net result is just too difficult to disentangle and attribute to poverty.
This tendency to blame everything on man, is the flipside of what people of faith have always refused to acknowledge - that if man is the center of creation, then the plans that were supposed to put him there are so fragile and easily thrown into disarray.
sa palagay ko po tama talaga si brother nonet...kasi tayo pong mga pilipino madalas jinajustify nalang natin ang mga maling gawain bilang tama..dahil sa hirap ng buhay binabalewala na natin ang pagtulong..sabi ni mother theresa give until it hurts, sabi naman po minsan ni ricky reyes nun minsan napanuod ko sya sa tv at iniinterview tungkol sa pagtulong nya:kung ang bawat isang pilipino ay may tutulungan na kahit isang pilipino, sigurado daw mababawasan ang kahirapan...malaking factor din po siguro yun kawalan ng pakialam ng nakararami sa kapwa..makikita naman natin yun sa madaming sitwasyon..tulad sa mrt, kahapun nun pauwi po kami ng mama ko kasama yun may edad nyang kaibigan, nakatatlong dating ang tren bago namin nagawang makasakay at makipagsiksikan, mas madami kaming kasabay na mga lalaki, as in talagang kahit sobrang siksikan na at kahit halos maipit na sa pintuan lahat gustong sumakay, walang gustong magsakripisyo ng kahit konting espasyo para sa siguradong kaligtasan ng lahat, ng pababa na kami sa may boni avenue nahirapan din talaga kaming lumabas kahit sumisigaw na ang mama ko na lalabas kami, mas marami parin ang hindi kami pinapansin ang mahalaga makapasok sila, may isang lalaki na naawa sumigaw na palabasin muna kami at hayun nakalabas naman po kami pero kahit nun nasa escalator na ako naalala ko yun sabi nun lalaki na nakasiksikan ko, sa singapore daw hindi ganun, iniiwasan daw kasi talaga nila na magkasakitan at madikit ang katawan sa ibang pasahero..ewan ko lang po kung totoo yun..pero kung alam nya na isa yun magandang halimbawa mukhang sya mismo ay hindi nya yun sinunod..isa pang halimbawa yun siguro po pagkaimmune natin sa mga pulubi..dahil laging may nakikita tayo na pulubi parang bihira nalang natin pansinin, para bang naijustify na ng karamihan sa atin na hindi natin responsibilidad ang iba..madalas bago tumulong nagtatalo pa yun isip natin kasi baka myembro lang yun ng sindikato o manloloko lang na tinatamad magtrabaho.. .sa madaling salita sa sampung tao,madalas isa o dalawa lang po ata ang handang tumulong ng walang hinihintay na kapalit at ng hindi na nagiisip pa ng kung anoano...alam natin ang tama, alam natin na may responsibildad tayo sa ating kapwa at bayan pero binabelawala po natin..at ang pinakamahirap hindi natin masimulan ang pagbabago sa ating mga sarili..-isang simpleng komento ko lang po,salamat-yvette
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