3M: Matthew, Marcos, and (the Anniversary of) Martial Law

How in the perfect timing where the strings of coincidences chose to be tangled on the 21st day of September to show the power of interconnectedness?

This “Eureka” moment occurred when I attended the daily mass today inside our school chapel presided by our chaplain. During his introductory greetings, he told us two things: first, today in the Church Liturgy, we celebrate the Feast of St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist; and second, today in the Philippines, marks the 50th anniversary of placing the nation under Martial Law by the late president Ferdinand E. Marcos, Sr.

During the holy mass, I am trying to figure out it seems that today is full of wordplay, coincidences, and parallelisms. As the chaplain continued the mass, I also tend to realize three things -- the connection of St. Matthew, President Marcos, and the Anniversary of Martial Law, on this very 21st day of September.

First, I noticed the priest’s vestments were red. Why red? Basically, red in the Catholic Church symbolizes martyrdom and St. Matthew was a martyr. All of the apostles died as martyrs except St. John the Beloved, who died in old age. Speaking of blood, Martial Law is also associated with the color red because of the bloodshed of the Filipinos who became martyrs of oppression and injustices during the nine years from 1972-1981.

Then, I came to realize, that the remembrance of Martial Law and its victims can be paralleled to what St. Matthew had experienced. Both of them died for the same conviction – to fight for what is right. So, it means that every September 21, we can commemorate St. Matthew and the Martial Law victims as martyrs, and they are remembered for their sacrifice and must not be put in vain. Because of their conviction, we enjoy the freedom we are experiencing and the salvation promised unto us.

Second, the gist of the priest’s homily focused on the idea that when we believe in “first impressions last”, we put persons in a “box” and never let them have to perceive the other side of the person, especially when it is about what is the best for them or their goodness. As cited as an example the tax collectors just like St. Matthew were considered public sinners and never had the chance to redeem themselves back to society.

The Marcos family has been put in a bad light when their patriarch’s regime started; during the Martial Law era, many cases of abuse were reported and critics were silenced. Because of these, we have fought this so-called tyranny as one nation, we have fought violence with peace through EDSA People Power Revolution – which proved the power of democracy.

But, all of the members of the Marcos Family had their differences from its patriarch. They may resemble a lineage but each one of them has its individuality and can make different choices.

To give the benefit of the doubt, some claim that “the son shall not be charged with the guilt of his father (Ezekiel 18:20)”; the past shall be put in the past and we must learn to move on in order to move forward – which the question lies if what we have followed, the former or the latter because after all, we have elected the son as the head of our state.

Oh! So, Matthew and Marcos are the same after all?

Not necessarily.

St. Matthew and Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. may have the same situation of being put in a box based on their past. In fact, both of them are considered public sinners – a tax collector and the son of the so-called dictator who benefited from the luxurious leadership as a member of the first family during his father’s regime. But what makes them different? One of them, although admitted his sinfulness, did not let his sinfulness define him and came out of his way to ask for forgiveness and reparation for his sins and proved his loyalty to the Gospel.

How about the other one?

The pursuit for justice continued even after Marcos Sr. was ousted in 1986. Since then, there has been a long-time battle in searching for justice against human rights violations and the ill-gotten wealth of the Marcos family plundered during the patriarch’s presidency.

Marcos Jr. and the other members of the family may not be the president at that time, but they belonged to the inner circle. As children with the age of reason, and as Christians themselves, it is their moral duty to recognize the fault of their family members. I actually wonder, how would they ponder on the celebration of Martial Law Anniversary, as public officials?

Is there a sign of remorse and reparation or even recognition of such allegations in the first place?

Well, as of the moment, no one in the Marcos family is doing so. In fact, the overall planning of historical distortion and reputation management is happening. They try to cover up such atrocities by pointing out that Martial Law was rather a progressive era through economic, infrastructure, cultural, and administrative advancements. However, these advancements do not diminish the fact that there have been such crimes – not to mention the validity of these progress claims and even to the point of accusations of credit-grabbing from previous administrations. Several court decisions based on historical accounts and admissible evidence have been stated for the record.

To give the benefit of the doubt, “the sins of the father should not be inherited by the son (cf. Ezekiel 18:20)”. However, “silence in the face of injustice is complicity with the oppressor (Ginetta Sagan)”.

Christianity teaches us to forgive, after all, God is merciful. But God is both merciful and just. Evil done by the oppressor has its consequences. Yet, salvation is still at hand for a person who asks for forgiveness with the proper contrition, reparation, and resolution. Just like St. Matthew, if any of the Marcos Family may admit such guilt, even to the sightliest remorse, a simple recognition of such horrific events during the Martial Law era, and even become cooperative in the pursuit of truth, putting them into good light is more than they can acquire. That is the real manifestation of becoming worthy of redemption.

“Do you remember the 21st of September?” as asked in the lyrics from the band Earth, Wind, and Fire. May we remember that through the feast day of St. Matthew the Apostle, we learn that “every saint has a past, and every sinner has a future” and fighting for what is right may lead us to sacrifice but assure the promise of God’s salvation. Maybe, the reason why it is serendipity that Martial Law is commemorated as same as St. Matthew’s Day is that we may not be able to know if Marcos Sr. has asked forgiveness (for that’s between him and God alone), but members of the Marcos family can still do so.

Our past may not define us but recognizing the mistakes of the past can give us constant reminders that we ought not to repeat them in order to really move on and move forward.