THE BLACK RACE GENERALLY NOT A PROUD RACE
Generally, as a people, we did not have great ambition. We get easily contented. We did not aim to walk on the surface of the moon. We did not aim to rule the world. Or to be the richest men on earth. Our heart’s desire was simple. Peace and to be with our family. Deep also in soul, as was more evident with our ancestors, was the desire to commune with the Creator. That is why we heard that they were worshippers of Nature (animists), which may be a misunderstanding of our ancestors’ closeness to nature as they were seen praying in front of a tree or on a hill or on a summit but actually deep within their heart to the One who created Nature. I do not say there was no possibility that their worship was also corrupted somehow. But still, such life of our ancestors reflects meekness and humility.
The Filipinos or the Negroid or the brown race was never known to be a conquering, colonizing people. We were not racist. And we are not! We did not hold ourselves as the superior race over and above others.
But the Germans under Hitler’s time considered themselves to be the superior race and attempted to annihilate the lesser races by genocide.
The Americans have no other obsession except to rule the world and enjoy its benefits, at the expense of the poor of the vast humanity.
This special trait of gentleness which I nickname “Mehumer” (meekness-humility-and-mercy) did not come as a free lunch, however. It is the result of mind made dumb (emptied of wisdom) and heart impoverished of love, so that like empty containers, our mind and heart became weak, and so, we hungered and thirsted. Consequently, in our hunger and thirst and as long as these are not satisfied, we are thus rendered weak in the third trait called WILL. Because mind plus heart or wisdom plus love = will. A weak-willed person cannot make wise decision and cannot bring any decision of his to good fruition. He is a bad decision-maker if he ever makes a decision. For he is often coward and timid, so that he does not often make decision, but dwells in hesitation, confusion, doubts, fear, and anger. This is because he is unsure of things. He does not know where to go. Love knows the destination. He, being weak in love, even in self-love, does not know the destination. That is why thick population of Filipinos especially those in the countryside and even those in the cities are seen to be aimless. They are like driftwoods, just victims of the forces that tossed them to and fro or sweep them to nowhere.
There is a great need to restore LOVE in the hearts of the people of this wretched pitiful nation. Love that is not confined to the self; for self-confined love or the so-called self-love is myopic and often blind – biased. Love must be complete, perfect – all-encompassing, all-embracing. And this is the Love of God and love for mankind as well as to self.
This three-object love is what is desperately needed TO GIVE MEANING TO OUR EXISTENCE -- TO GIVE US VISION OF THE FUTURE -- TO DRIVE US TO MEANINGFUL ENDEAVORS -- AND TO GIVE US THE LIFE AND INSPIRATION IN OUR WORKS AND RELATIONSHIP.
This will restore our lost WILL. But love is not enough. Love only sets the goal – the vision and the mission. But it does not lay-out the plan or the way. It does not draw the paths to take. It is wisdom’s task!
And so, after we have LOVE in our hearts, we also should have WISDOM in our minds. And mind you, as surely as LOVE is not sourced from us nor from the world, then, this WISDOM is also not found in the world. We can find this wisdom – we can obtain its overflowing knowledge only from God. To Him shall we ask, seek and knock. And it shall be given, what we seek shall be found and the door (e.g., opportunities and possibilities) we knocked shall be opened.
To be once again strong in will, we need to fill our emptied mind and heart with wisdom and love, respectively.
Those who are strong in willpower (decision and implementation) are those who are intelligent in their mind and whose heart is strong in its feelings and desire-ambition.
Look at our native forefathers, who were not yet mixed with the blood of stronger race, be it Chinese, Spanish, Japanese or American. They are so meek and so simple. And so peaceable. I know that because my father is pure native Filipino! They were and are so easily contented with the basics of life in their lowly occupation as farmers, or fishermen or as mountain people. So easy to resign the decision of fate, as they term it. I know that because my father is like that.
Criticize that as lacking in ambition. But ambition – proud ambition I mean – is not good either.
He was yet an infant of 2, when the Child Jesus said, “Great thoughts other than love [for God, neighbor and self] are vain.”[1] Borrowing the language of King Solomon, high ambition and great accomplishment are “vanity, vanity, it is just like chasing after the wind”!
Call our un-ambitious forefathers dumb. Call them naïve. Call them coward. Call them ‘uncivilized’. Call them simpleton. Call them ignorant. Call them stupid. Call them with all such names, and yet, you cannot deny if God loves them for their being meek, gentle, humble, peacemaking, hospitable, submissive, servile, obedient.
Remember what God says in the book of prophet Isaiah? “I make my dwelling in the heart that is humble and in whose spirit is contrite.”[2] God makes His abode in the heart of the meek and humble.
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