There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way it treats its children,” said Nelson Mandela.

I believe this statement is a good starting point for us to discuss what is happening in Philippine society.

This is as invitation to reflect, pray and act. I hope and pray that the process will lead us to start to create a community or, at the very least, a movement that will work together for a better society for all.

The process must lead us to a community that actively works for this envisioned society.

My concern for young people comes from two perspectives. One, the recent cases of young Filipinos being murdered (Raymart, Kian, Carl and Reynaldo) and the thousands more who lost their parents to the killings related to the bloody drug war is not an issue we can dismiss matter-of-factly.

Two, how we handle the issue of extrajudicial killings (EJKs) sends a message to the next generation. This is a values formation concern.

Christ said that “where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” This gives Catholics and other Christian denominations common ground to carry a conversation on these issues.

In the many statements of Pope Francis, he reminds us that we must talk to one another, and build the “I” into a “we” and the “you” into an “us.” This is conversation that leads to community.

The Pope’s interview with El Pais (January 2017) and his Ted Talk address (May 2017, recorded April 2017) are worth reading and reflecting on.

Allow me to quote extensively the Pope’s words as our points for reflection this Sunday.

Risk

He issued a warning that when we stop talking to one another, we run the risk of allowing fascism to become more real and eventually take control not just of government but of our lives. He cited Hitler and Germany:

“Hitler didn’t steal power, his people voted for him, and then he destroyed his people. That is the risk. In times of crisis, we lack judgment, and that is a constant reference for me. Let’s look for a savior who gives us back our identity, and let us defend ourselves with walls, barbed wire, whatever, from other people who may rob us of our identity. And that is a very serious thing.

“That is why I always try to say: Talk among yourselves, talk to one another. But the case of Germany in 1933 is typical, a people who were immersed in a crisis, who were searching for their identity until this charismatic leader came and promised to give their identity back, and he gave them a distorted identity, and we all know what happened. Where there is no conversation…”

In his Ted Talk address, Pope Francis concludes with this powerful message:

“The third message I would like to share today is, indeed, about revolution: the revolution of tenderness… It is a movement that starts from our heart and reaches the eyes, the ears and the hands.

“Tenderness means to use our eyes to see the other, our ears to hear the other, to listen to the children, the poor, those who are afraid of the future… Tenderness means to use our hands and our heart to comfort the other, to take care of those in need.

“Tenderness is the language of the young children, of those who need the other. A child’s love for mom and dad grows through their touch, their gaze, their voice, their tenderness. I like when I hear parents talk to their babies, adapting to the little child, sharing the same level of communication.

Same level

“This is tenderness: being on the same level as the other. God himself descended into Jesus to be on our level. This is the same path the Good Samaritan took. This is the path that Jesus himself took. He lowered himself, he lived his entire human existence practicing the real, concrete language of love.

“Yes, tenderness is the path of choice for the strongest, most courageous men and women. Tenderness is not weakness; it is fortitude. It is the path of solidarity, the path of humility.

“Please, allow me to say it loud and clear: The more powerful you are, the more your actions will have an impact on people, the more responsible you are to act humbly. If you don’t, your power will ruin you, and you will ruin the other.

“There is a saying in Argentina: ‘Power is like drinking gin on an empty stomach.’ You feel dizzy, you get drunk, you lose your balance, and you will end up hurting yourself and those around you, if you don’t connect your power with humility and tenderness. Through humility and concrete love, on the other hand, power—the highest, the strongest one—becomes a service, a force for good.

The future

“The future of humankind isn’t exclusively in the hands of politicians, of great leaders, of big companies. Yes, they do hold an enormous responsibility.

“But the future is, most of all, in the hands of those people who recognize the other as a ‘you’ and themselves as part of an ‘us.’ We all need each other.”

We must protect the young, not harm them. Give them hope and the faith that there is a better future for them and their family, and not let them cower in fear and anxiety. We must stand up for and with them. —CONTRIBUTED