“Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word. But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me.” But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.” — Luke 10:38-42
In the midst of our preoccupation with the CoViD-19 pandemic, many of us rely on our personal strengths and abilities to “solve” this extremely complex and difficult problem.
In many instances, our best efforts fall short, and we end up discouraged, disappointed, and heartbroken. Criticizing, finger-pointing, and casting blame on others become commonplace. Whether we are among those proactively-involved in addressing CoViD-19, or those who serve faithfully at the front lines but are getting tired and weary, or we are mere bystanders who have appropriated society’s role as “professional critics” of those in leadership and in government, or we are mere doomsayers who feed our downcast and disheartened spirits. It is so easy to fall into a panic, reflective of a society whose heart is broken.
An example of a knee-jerk panic reaction is the recent action of the Office of the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas (OPAV) erroneously believing it has the authority to impose a curfew on senior citizens and students, and “directed “ local governments to enforce the curfew.
This was obviously an ultra vires act, or beyond the scope of the OPAV’s mandate which is simply to coordinate with, and facilitate the programs of local governments.
The directive, although well-intentioned, is clearly unenforceable. Absent a local ordinance to legally support a curfew, there is nothing to be implemented by our over-zealous barangay chairmen, even with a local executive’s Executive Order (EO).
Whenever sanctions are imposed, an EO must be supported by a legislative ordinance. Thus, instead of establishing order, the OPAV initiative only added to the confusion around us. (Update: Acting on legal advice, the Governor has withdrawn EO 24 pending an Ordinance passed by the Provincial Board. On Thursday, March 26, the Provincial Board passed an Ordinance adopting the OPAV ‘s directive).
We desperately need to regain our bearings, recover clear and deliberate thinking, revive our can-do positive outlook, and mend our collective broken hearts.
Life before CoViD-19 must be won back. We must continue with the business of living.
The responsibility of living can be overwhelming. Sometimes, the burden gets so heavy, it leads to resentment.
This resentment, directed against variable persons, things, or events, brings to the surface one’s ‘right to self’. An insistence on the ‘right to self’ distracts us from setting our heart straight; from focusing on the good part: meditating on the reassuring words of Jesus.
True joy comes from knowing and being known of the Lord. It never comes with a need for vindication. The ‘right to self’ always insists on vindication, it clouds the heart from the capacity to love, forgive, and reconcile.
To mend our broken hearts, we must forsake the right to ourselves, and lift up the welfare of others for the common good. To mend society’s broken heart, we must acknowledge the true source of authority over our lives, the Creator in whom we owe our being.
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Author’s email: [email protected]