Reward and punishment

SKETCHES

- ANA MARIE PAMINTUAN

Dhering to tradition, Filipinos flocked in droves to churches last Sunday to have palm fronds blessed. In our parish, there were two palm blessing sessions—one in the morning and another in the afternoon. The palaspas across the street from the church were nearly all sold out by noon.

Government officials, led by the feuding ex-UniTeam allies, issued statements related to Holy Week and religious observance.

The activities and statements of piety once again raise questions on why Asia's bastion of the Roman Catholic faith has one of the highest homicide rates in the region, with corruption and thievery endemic and social inequity widespread.

Weren't we taught to love one another as Jesus Christ loved us? How did we produce a God-cussing Rodrigo Duterte, with so many Filipinos supporting his policy of mass extermination of crime suspects? How can so many entitled lawmakers institutionalize multibillion-peso thievery in the national budget, with little compunction?

Our religious festivals are always so impressively well-attended. Do people participate in such events mainly to have fun and pray for miracle cures or for the lotto jackpot?

Certain religious groups are among the most notorious influence peddlers in our country, undermining the integrity of the judiciary and prosecution services, reinforcing transactional politics and sabotaging every effort to develop a merit-based society.