SEVERAL lady legislators, including the wives of senators and congressmen, should take the cue from former German Chancellor Angela Merkel on the true wardrobe of a government official. While in office, she led a simple lifestyle and would do her own groceries along with her husband.
One time, Merkel was asked by a journalist why she wore out-of-style and old clothes. She remarked, “I’m a government worker, not a model.”
Shouldn’t our lady solons feel awkward and discomfort as they parade in their lavish and expensive attire on national TV while the level of poverty and economic development has rendered this nation one of the world’s laggards competing nearly with the poor and violent-stricken African nations?
The media is partly to blame for this public display of extravagance, which has been regarded by editorial ineptness as worthwhile news items.
***
‘The media is partly to blame for this public display of extravagance, which has been regarded by editorial ineptness as worthwhile news items.’
Attendance in the Sunday services at the Christ’s Commission Fellowship (CCF) in Nangka, Marikina has been growing noticeably for the past three months. Pastor Jess Fajardo has attributed this very welcome development to the Pastoral Care Ministry which has been conducting memorial services for both members and non-members alike of the Church. It is also the ministry that visits and prays for the sick at hospitals.
Relatives and friends are confronted with the reality of death during the wakes of their loved ones. No one really wants to talk about the reality of death or their fate in eternity. The ministry would often volunteer with vital Biblical messages of salvation, repentance and righteousness
I have been given the blessed opportunity to occasionally deliver the message on numerous occasions and indeed my heart would open with compassion and sympathy not only for the pain of the loss of their loved ones but also for their spiritual life endangered by ignorance, fear, unbelief, or doubt.
The prayer of repentance and surrender, without doubt, has a transforming power as the Holy Spirit indwells in the new believer who finally concedes the need for a Savior and Lord in Jesus Christ.
The unspeakable suffering, torture and crucifixion of Christ have become powerfully moving testimonies during many of these memorial services. The dormant soul is awakened to a new passion that is not easy to ignore.
The following is part of the detailed account of the passion and death of Jesus described by medical and scientific expert Dr. Alexander Metherel, “a topic of unimaginable brutality: a beating so barbarous that it shocks the conscience, and a form of capital punishment so depraved that it stands as a wretched testimony to man’s inhumanity to man.” (From the book “The Case For Easter by Lee Strobel”) “The back would be so shredded that part of the spine was exposed by the deep, deep cuts. The whipping would have gone all the way from the shoulders down to the back, the buttocks, and the back of the legs, it was just terrible.
“As the flogging continued, the lacerations would tear into the underlying skeletal muscles and produce quivering ribbons of bleeding flesh. A third-century historian, Eusebius, described a flogging by saying, “The sufferer’s veins were laid bare, and the very muscles, sinews and bowels of the victim were open to exposure. Many people would die from this kind of beating even before they could be crucified. At the least, the victim would experience tremendous pain and go into hypovolemic shock. This means the victim is suffering the effects of losing a large amount of blood. The heart races to try to pump blood that isn’t there; the blood pressure drops, causing fainting or collapse; the kidneys stop producing urine to maintain what volume is left and the person becomes very thirsty as his body craves for fluids to replace the lost blood volume.
“Because of the terrible effects of the beating, there is no question that Jesus was already in serious to critical condition even before the nails were driven through his hands and feet.”
