'Poverty, the first violence'

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo Fifteen years ago in 2000, I met and interviewed Dominican Fr. Gustavo Gutierrez, then 72, proudly Peruvian and known as the “father of liberation theology.” He was here as a guest of the CO Multiversity then headed by Dinky Soliman, now social welfare secretary. She informed me that Gutierrez was here for an international conference of community organizers. Would I want to have coffee and...

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The Caravaggio effect

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo “If you have time,” Pope Francis said during his encounter with thousands of young people last Jan. 18 at the University of Santo Tomas, “go see the picture that Caravaggio painted of this scene.” By “this scene,” he meant Jesus calling the tax collector Matthew to come and follow him. This surprise invitation, as narrated in the Gospel (Matthew 9:9), caused a stir among the self-righteous...

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Filipinos' faith introduced to Pope

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo At Pope Francis’ first Holy Mass in the Philippines yesterday at Manila Cathedral, Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, in his own effusive way, introduced the Filipino people to the Pope and pointed to the reason for their resiliency and strength amidst tragedies. Quoting noted historian and the Pope’s fellow Jesuit Fr. Horacio de la Costa, Tagle said: It is the Filipinos’ love...

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Compassion, 'habag,' awa ng Diyos'

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo In Filipino, “mercy” is awa; in the Visayan languages, kaluoy. But how translate “compassion”? “Mercy and compassion” is the theme of Pope Francis’ visit to the Philippines. (Misericordia y compasion, in his native Spanish.) It is easy to differentiate one word from the other when one is thinking in English. But one is suddenly at a loss when trying to find the right Filipino word for “compassion.”...

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9 bishops falling all over themselves at 'royal wedding'

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo During hard times when the “A” and “B” words (austerity and belt-tightening) are on people’s lips, I do a Mary-Quite-Contrary and find myself saying, “But those who have money to spare should spend, spend, spend and spread their money around. Quietly. Not in a lavish way. Let the rich splurge here and not abroad. Don’t keep your money to yourself. You with a little extra cash can have your...

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Laudamus te for 'feminine genius'

Philippine Daily Inquirer/OPINION/by Ma. Ceres P. Doyo Some years ago the Vatican patriarchy sounded an alarm and conducted an investigation of American women religious who blazed trails on unfamiliar terrain or who held views that were not of the Vatican variety. Nuns who belong to the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) were perceived to be too feminist and secular for the Church’s comfort. About 80 percent of American women religious...

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