My Take on Philippine Reproductive Health Issues

I was a Catholic, not a just a pews type of Catholic, I was an altar boy and memorized the mass.

Even at 1st grade I was confused at the logic of why I needed to go to confession for the forgiveness of sins. If it was to God that I sinned then it is from him I ask forgiveness.

And the whole “go to the mother” politics of Marian doctrine was really weird to me. Even as a Catholic I found the pantheon of saints superfluous as I believed in a personal God.

This is what brought me over to becoming a Protestant.

Sure there are egoists and megalomaniac personalities in our side of the fence but every member is encouraged to read our own bibles, study it ourselves and make it personal. Truth lay in a personal relationship and scholarly study of God’s word.

That decentralization made me a whole lot freer.

The Church (i.e. the Catholic Church) has been meddling too much in state affairs. They presume too much that the Philippines is Catholic, and as such would like to control the Philippines like, as so aptly pointed out by this site, we were still in the time of Padre Damaso.

There is no Biblical precept that supports their stand on contraception. The oft quoted story of Onan is presented in the wrong context. His punishment was not due to the withdrawal of his semen, but due to his selfishness not to fulfill his brotherly duty of continuing his brother’s family.

To further justify their stand they accuse all other forms of contraception to be abortifacient. Not even to discuss masturbation, if they believe that the spilling of semen is sinful then every adolescent whose experienced nocturnal emissions is guilty of genocide.

Which is more economical: a pack of condoms to prevent pregnancy or a supply of formula to feed that baby?

While, as they are religious leaders, they have every prerogative to spiritually blackmail, and brainwash their constituents, everyone else outside their religion IS NOT fair game. Turn every Catholic woman to Maria Clara for all I care, but non-Catholics should be exempt from this.

I live in a province which I say is more Catholic than Filipino — Bohol. Every 3pm and 6pm the 3 o’clock habit and the Angelus never fails to play in every radio station and every mall on this little island. Time stands still and all services stop when prayer begins and non-Catholics who ignore the call to prayer are seen with very dirty looks as if you are a spawn of Satan himself.

But in flag ceremonies no one cares to stop and respect the flag.

I am not Atheist or Agnostic but I wish for a secular state, if only one can be free to practice or not practice his religion.

There is a separation of Church and state to be respected and our nation is not a diocese. They should realize that.

20. Oct, 2009

originally posted in: http://rationalhero.com/2009/10/20/keats-ronquillo/