Chapter 6

The shared dimension of Filipino thinking and acting has promoted harmony and peace within Filipino communities. ` But having affirmed all this, we cannot ignore the reality that a lot of times, too, this kind of situation has led a form of enslavement in our thinking and acting.
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Our freedom of thought and action is imprisoned by a very limiting kind of relationship. ` Our strength as a people can also become our weakness. In our cultural situation, the danger of deciding and doing things exclusively for the family or the clan or the group s always present.
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experience 3 practices :

NEPOTISM POLITICAL DYNASTIES CUT THROAT COMPETITION

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phenomenon split level Christianity is the so called double standard morality. This, too driving a wedge into our thinking and acting. ` There are acts considered morally wrong for a certain group of people but are not for another.

When A prisoner is poor, he is sure to languish in jail.

But an influential criminal may not see the jail warden.

The thinking based on these conflicting standards leads to a weak moral stand on important issues affecting community life. ` The separation between thought and action has brought about the problem of credibility gap which developed in many spheres of Filipino life.
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In our culture, those whose thoughts are not reflected in their actions are labeled as:
Pakitang tao Doble cara Mapagkunwari Balimbing They are not thinking and acting according to their real self and are therefore (manhid, walang-hiya, mandaraya and sinungaling.)

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imposition by colonial powers of ideas and practices foreign to the Filipino culture was one of the factors that promoted the split between thinking and acting.

People are not used to think critically and creatively because of the absence of freedom. ` If we are nor given the opportunity to think of ourselves, we are less likely to be committed to effective and fruitful action. This is a problem that can take the following forms:
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Conformism When we are asked to do something, we want to follow every detail. And when we cannot, we feel frustrated or are at loss. Minimalism- The minimalist will always settle for giving or sharing the least possible effort or contribution. The minimalist will usually say pwede na iyan. Compromise- This is a way out of responsibilities with easy conditions, since we want everything easy. We want shortcuts. We would like to gain something without any pain.

4. Mediocrity- The mediocre person has no enthusiasm for giving his/her best. What s/he does is always half-baked or half-done and therefore has to be redone. 5. Activism- This means acting without evaluating our motives and the effects of our actions. It is acting that lacks sufficient reflection.

Human beings are, therefore in the service of truth. But truth also has to be humanizing. ` We realize that truth is now a matter of thinking only. Truth is not only thought of , it is also lived.
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The Human search for truth We cannot separate the search for truth from human life. Truth envelops our whole being. This is the truth of our thoughts when they correspond to reality as we experience them to be.

We do not search for truth so that we can possess it. We cannot have a total grasp of the truth at any moment in our life. Rather we journey towards the truth discovering bits and pieces. ` Truth is rational. It is the center, the meaning and the goal of our lives as members of human community and as disciples of Jesus. ` What is true is that which build our relationships with others.
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Our search of the truth is an undertaking that involves the participation of all the members of the community. Truth does not reside in the leadership or the elite alone. ` The liberating power of truth intensifies the universal need to seek the truth; and brings out more sharply its intrinsic social dimension.
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The Word Katapatan, better than katotohanan, expresses the idea of truth in scriptures. Katapatan is not just a matter of correspondence between thought and reality but more of a lived fidelity.

God was true to His people Israel because he was faithful and loyal to them.

But Israel has not lived the truth of her relationship with God.

The infidelity of Israel has been the object of the prophets passionate denunciation. ` Hosea charges the people with perversity: You have cultivated wickedness, reaped perversity, and eaten the fruit of falsehood. Hosea 10:13 ` For Christians, Gods katapatan to his people has found its most humane expression in the person and life of Jesus.
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The early disciples saw God at work in Jesus compassionate attitude towards people, most especially the weak and those at the periphery of society.

So they referred to Jesus as Son of God because in Him Gods loving kindness had become so real for them.

Jesus said I am the way, the truth and the light. Jesus was true because he was faithful to the God of compassion.

Developing talas ng pakiramdam among us is a great challenge in our times. It is an approach to reality using the mind but with a lot of heart. ` Love others as yourself
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Half of the population live in poverty, witnessing to the truth can take on two primary forms: restoring faithfulness in governance and humanizing the unbridled desire for wealth accumulation.

Corruption, esp. in the government, is one of the great causes of suffering among our people.

Employees cheating on their employment time.

As Christians, the call to witness to the truth becomes even more urgent. To speak and live the truth involves every Christian, bearing witness to the life lived by Jesus. What we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked upon, and our hands have touched... The word of life- we have seen and bear witness to it and we proclaim to you the eternal life that was present to the father and became visible to us.

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The continuing Drive for Freedom The drive to dominate another for survival in early human history has been transformed by modern society into a potent weapon for mass subjugation.

Authentic freedom is not the right to say or do anything, but to do the good. Freedom is responsible ( may pananagutan ) . Freedom is not found in prejudice, deceit or ignorance but in truth. Johns claim that the truth will set you free ( Jn8:33) Authentic freedom includes freedom from. Ordinarily, we become sharply aware of the value of our freedom only when we are forced to do something against our will.

Live as free men and women, but do not use your freedom form everything that opposes our true self becoming with others in the community. ` Our acting in a free way makes our freedom effective. The proper exercise of our freedom makes our more human but at the same time works to liberate others in society.
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Elements in the Filipino society that have become stumbling blocks to our exercise of freedom. Obviously our political system is a good candidate to start with. Our politics of personality and patronage, not one based on principles, issues and platforms of government, has worked against the freedom of the citizenry to self determination because their political will is not given expression.

Even our educational system seems to be contributing to the many slaveries we, as a people, are subjected to. Education is geared towards sharpening our capacity for critical thinking that should lead to responsible freedom of action. Elements of our culture that can also be enslaving:
Pratices of utang na loob , bahala na and hiya which are usually misunderstood.

The mass media, because of its unbounded reach and equally limitless influence, is usually the primary means by which this distortion and suppression is propagated. Our barkada therefore is very important part of growing ups. But our desire to look good un the barkada has its dangers. Group pressure can force us to give up or compromise our convictions such that we lose our independence and individuality.

We will be future leaders and holders of authority in a society that is presently standing in the shaky foundations of halftruths and chained freedom. ` There is an urgent call to us to be competent in order to respond to this challenge.
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