By Atty. Howie Calleja
Ideally, the “doubt” of associating the acts of public generosity with political mileage during this Christmas Season would not be an issue. But in the context of a politically charged 2022 Polls, one could not be blamed to distrust the ploy of a grand Public Relations Propaganda masking itself in the form of publicly witnessed charitable work during this yuletide season. To some great extent Christmas has been used to influence “voting preferences” in the guise of gift-giving and generous works.
This reminds me of an anecdote of a powerful Filipino senator who dies after a prolonged illness. His soul arrives in heaven and is met by St. Peter at the entrance. “Welcome to Heaven,” says St. Peter. “Before you settle in, it seems there is a problem. We seldom see a high official around these parts, you see, so we’re not sure what to do with you.” “No problem, just let me in,” says the Senator. “Well, I’d like to but I have orders from higher up. What we’ll do is have you spend one day in Hell and one in Heaven. Then you choose where to spend eternity.” “Really, I’ve made up my mind. I want to be in Heaven.” says the Senator. “I am sorry but we have our rules.” And with that, St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to Hell. The doors open and he finds himself in the middle of a green golf course. In the distance is a club and standing in front of it are all his friends and other politicians who had worked with him, everyone is very happy and in evening attire. They ran to greet him, hug him and reminisce about the good times they had while getting rich at the expense of the people. They played a friendly game of golf and dined on lobster and caviar. Also present was the Devil, who really is a very friendly guy who had good time dancing and telling jokes.
They had such a great time that, before realizing it, it was time to go. Everyone gave him a big hug and waved while the elevator closes. The elevator went up, up, up and the door reopened on Heaven where St. Peter was waiting for him. “Now it is time to visit Heaven. “So 24 hours passed with the senator joining a group of contented souls moving from cloud to cloud, playing the harp and singing. They had a good time and, before he knew it, the 24 hours have gone and St. Peter returned. “Well then, you’ve spent a day in Hell and another is Heaven. Now choose your eternity.” He reflects for a minute, then the senator says, “Well, I would never have said it, I mean Heaven has been so delightful, but I think I would be better off in Hell.” So, St. Peter escorted him to the elevator and he went down, down, down to Hell. When the doors of the elevator opened, he saw himself in the middle of a barren land covered with waste and garbage. He sees all his friends, dressed in rags, picking up the trash and putting it in the black bags. The Devil comes over to him and lays his arms on his neck. “I don’t understand,” stammers the Senator. “Yesterday I was here and there was a golf course and club and we ate lobster and caviar and danced and had a great time. Now all there is a wasteland full of garbage and my friends look miserable!” The Devil looks at him, smiles and says, “YESTERDAY we were campaigning …TODAY you voted for us!”
In a political world such as ours, only a handful are willing to give way for the common good at the price of his/her own possessions and interests. It has always been the defense mechanism of officials to hide behind the pretension of having to bear the burden of insufficient funding for projects and expenses, which spells improvements. The charade is over … it is high time to elect generous leaders, someone who will never be hampered by a rotten political system but would conversely inspire others towards a miracle of giving in meeting the needs of others.
So before you take that Noche Buena Basket accompanied by a hefty envelope, ask yourself, “Is he/she just campaigning … or is it a genuine act of giving?” May the darkness of sin and the night of unbelief vanish before the light brought about by the birth of Christ in his spirit and grace!
