Prudence and Madness

For several days after the 2007 Philippine Blog Awards, a number of posts have been dedicated to discussing the propriety of having invocations in a gathering not meant to be religious in nature.

Here are some excerpts of posts and comments made by bloggers concerned with the controversy:

Benj: I have no idea why in this day in age, people would favor an offensive and arrogant display marinated in intolerance and insensitivity as opposed to opting for a procedure that everyone would have been more likely amenable (yes, I can be funny without being offensive) to. I’m not quite sure if I missed out on any details, but the last time I checked, the Philippine Blog Awards was an event that was supposed to champion Filipino bloggers regardless of creed, affiliation or niche. How it transformed to an exercise to remind bloggers to be steadfast in [our] Christian commitment and help bloggers lead us closer to You [the you being their god] is totally beyond me…

Ganns: Despite my being a Christian, I feel very strongly about recognizing and acknowledging Benj’s point that a more universal prayer or moment of silence would have been more appropriate…

Connie: Despite the obvious relevance of the copyright bit, I must agree with Michael that a religious invocation, delivered by the clergy or ANY or ALL denominations, has no place in a non-religious event…

Fr. Stephen Cuyos: What I am still trying to understand is why some atheists would react so negatively to a prayer which doesn’t mean anything to them nor is intended for them. But they didn’t react at all to Yuga’s use of the word “sh*t” in the video, even if there were minors around. Is it more politically correct to say “sh*t” than a prayer now?

…My prayer did not make the PBA a Christian event. If nobody prayed, would anybody think of it as an atheist event? No. The prayer was a very minor segment in the colorful evening of smiles and trophies.

M. L. Quezon III: Personally, I have no problems with invocations, provided they are preceded, and not followed by, the national anthem.

Jorge: (A comment @ atheista.net) …what derogatory remarks were there? what were you denied, really? do you feel that, because you’re an atheist, you were excluded? again, you could have stepped out or not listen. and what about their right to express their faith? or, hell, freedom of speech?

Jomar: 10. Father Cuyos is the name of the cool podcasting/blogging priest from the Vatican, not Cuying, (w/c is taken from his nominated PODCAST: CUYINGCAST). Benj and other non-religious folks must remember that they are in the Philippines and prayers before events are standard. THIS PRAYER w/c is so significant that I’d suggest to to get Father Cuyos as co-HOST next time–will go down (or better yet, GO UP) in history as the funniest and most bagay na prayer I’ve ever heard!

I have commented on some of these posts but I’m posting this entry to make my stand on this controversy clear.

It is imprudent to put religious undertones in an event not meant to be religious. I do understand that everybody has a right to his own beliefs and the right to share it with others. And yes, evangelizations need not be limited to masses within churches or temples. However, the Philippine Blog awards was an event meant for bloggers who blog, regardless of content. Therefore, it is expected that there will be diversity among the people attending. Blogging was the one thing that held those people united that one night. So let not religion divide such a group by thinking one can get away with a Christian prayer because of the presumption that the event was predominated by Christians. The event was not organized for Christian bloggers only, so do not start the event with a Christian ceremony.

Think of an international boxing match held, for example, in Los Angeles. The national anthems of the countries where the boxers came from plus the national anthem of the country where the game is being held are played before the match start, so as to respect the diversity of people in the event. Applied to our Philippine Blog Awards, of course, we didn’t have the time to have Christian prayers, Muslim prayers, Wiccan incantations, and others just to satisfy everybody’s belief systems. People are right in suggesting that a moment of silence for personal prayers or reflections or a universal thanksgiving prayer should have been made instead because this will benefit everybody.

Merely saying that those who find the prayers disturbing or offensive should just step out so as to protect their sensibilities is not a solution. I find it rudely elitist and it sounds like something that a bully in school would say (”We rule here so, if you don’t like it, then go away”). The Philippine Blog Awards was an event meant to gather every blogger in one night of celebration. Saying that to walk out is a solution is not going to unify anybody to that purpose.

So, okay what if we take the advice to walk out? Imagine, as the speaker was about to begin the invocation, a third or even half of the audience start to move out of the auditorium. From the point of view of the speaker, this would seem extremely rude. Perhaps the reason why that person suggested this solution is because he might have thought that there are only a mere handful of people affected. “And who are they anyway,” he must have thought.

Maybe he should have thought twice before saying it.

Many wonder why people like Benj make a big fuss about something as “trivial” as an invocation in a blogger gathering. What rights of his were trampled on?

I tell you, if Benj did not do what he did, would anyone do it for him? Would anyone voice out his concerns? No. Did he think it was a legitimate concern? Yes.

Those, I think, are the two reasons why he posted such a blog entry. It wasn’t merely caprice; but rather, he thought his concerns could also be others’ concerns.

The right that has been trampled on was the right for deliberate consideration for a difference in beliefs. If the invited bloggers knew that what they would be attending is a Christian gathering and still they willingly came, then they should be expecting Christian ceremonies there. But this wasn’t the case in Philippine Blog Awards. People were invited and they attended because they knew the event was about blogging and giving of awards in recognition of exceptional bloggers. No need to inject religion there when it is unnecessary.

As for the statement, “other non-religious folks must remember that they are in the Philippines and prayers before events are standard”, I think it was misconstrued. Perhaps what Jomar was trying to say was that prayers are one of the usual practices done during events. But he must be careful with such statements because not all events include invocations as part of the program. Actually, hearing the prayer during the blog awards reminded me of the highschool masses I’ve attended (I went to an RVM school and all students are required to attend the masses or else they get an absent mark for the day). And like the comment I’ve left in Benj’s site, some practices by Christians have been deeply ingrained that it seemed almost a reflex, which results in a failure by Christians to see that not everybody does what they do. And then when somebody complains, they’d wonder, “what rights did we trample on?”

I suggest that they take a look around outside their comfort zone with an open mind and less defensiveness and they’ll learn a bunch of important things.

An interesting mind exercise would be to try to see the Philippine Blog Awards from the perspective of an outsider.

Try it.

Imagine yourself as someone, a non-blogger with some vague idea of blogging, who by chance wandered inside the auditorium as the event is about to start.

You notice that most people are wearing dresses and coats and ties or dressier shirts. So it must be a semi-formal event, you think.

You see flashed on the screen the PBA logo. So this is an award-giving event for bloggers in the Philippines, you think.

Then the playing of the national anthem. So, oka, this is a Filipino blogging-related event.

Then, the invocation. You listen closely.

…Help us to be steadfast in our Christian commitment that visitors may find in our blogs a source of encouragement and inspiration

Ah, so this is a Christian community of bloggers, you say.
I want to add on to what Fr. Cuyos said about his prayer not making the event a Christian event. His prayer did not make it a Christian event but the prayer made it SEEM that it is. That’s where the problem started.
Truth is glaring, isn’t?

And there it is. By having a Christian prayer in the opening of an event presupposes that the event in which it was said is a Christian gathering. Nobody can deny such implications. And such implications are utterly inconsiderate and unacceptable, in the light that the event is not a gathering of bloggers with Christian beliefs but a gathering of bloggers, period.

So, my stand is: let us not make a unifying event such as the Philippine Blog Awards be divided by an entity such as religion.

Filed under: Lifelogs, Religion and Philosophy by Prudence