How fragile we are

UNLIKE 23 years ago, when an even stronger earthquake at a magnitude of 7.7. struck Luzon and devastated most the cities of Dagupan and Baguio, last week’s tragedy in the Visayas islands — worst in Bohol and Cebu — was almost instantaneously reported through the multitude of communication media available nowadays. So while power and telecommunication lines were brought down in many areas, help was organized and delivered faster than it was in 1990. That is one small consolation that we could be grateful for. Nonetheless, it does not expel the horror and the trauma of such grave calamities. No matter how advanced we come in terms of technology, the loss of human lives, the disruption in community life, the destruction of infrastructure with the achievement and history that these represent will always be harrowing.

But while we remain fragile against the power of nature, we are not defenseless.

Last week’s earthquake should remind us, among other things, that Pangasinan is also in a fault line. There is no telling when the earth will give a jolt and how forceful it will be. It can happen sooner than we think. Local government units must be on their toes and train barangay officials on how they can lead the communities in preparing for the worst situations. The numerous natural tragedies that have pounded the Philippines in the past have brought about major strides in disaster preparedness but there is more than can be done to improve on safety standards, emergency protocols, and the system for relief operations.

To our kinfolk in Bohol, Cebu and the surrounding areas, we think of you with empathy and tenderness. This is a most difficult time – but we hope you will take inspiration in how Dagupan, for example, rose from the rubble.

 

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Mystery of faith

WHY killer calamities happen, only God can answer.  The trouble is, God does not answer.  Never. He does not even give us signs, as when the Pharisees and scribes asked Jesus of Nazareth for signs that He, indeed, was of God. Jesus refused then, Jesus refuses today.  The mystery of faith is how we call it, is how we backstop our unwavering belief in Almighty God.

But still, each time a major tragedy strikes, such as the magnitude 7.1 earthquake that killed hundreds, injured hundreds and displaced thousands of families in Bohol and Cebu and affected several other surrounding areas, we can’t help but ask once again:  Why, oh Dear Lord, must this happen again, when many of our brethren are still reeling from the devastation wrought by typhoon “Santi?”  And, yes, what have the Boholanons and Cebuanos done to deserve such a fate?  Isn’t Bohol itself a most pious place where even some of the country’s oldest churches are found—and are now toppled down themselves by that October 15 quake?

But we ask questions not to doubt. Instead, we ask questions to reinforce our faith:  God does things that we cannot see if we refuse to see.

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