The Longest Night

The day once forsaken shatters into night -
Light turns into darkness.

And the night can not get much darker.

But the darkness itself
once the light of day is forgotten
and the hearts of the children of Mankind
is overtaken by the emptiness,
amidst the long march of exile time,
can deepen into madness -

Hurling into the gravity of oblivion
the void that once was -
the nations of our needful Mankind.
---<--@

Konsult Mindanaw #01

This is my initial submission to the Bishop-Ulama community consultation process - Konsult Mindanaw - in direct support of the unyielding efforts of our one Filipino nation to restore a lasting and meaningful peace upon our beloved brother and sister compatriots in Mindanao.
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There were, upon their Website contact form, asked these four questions:

1.What does peace mean to you? What is your vision of a peaceful Mindanao? What conditions/situations make up your peaceful Mindanao?

My vision of Peace is Now!

My dear people of Mindanao of the one Republic of the Philippines, we do not have to wait for peace to arrive for peace is the original state of our LORD's creation.

We only have to turn away from this midnight darkness of war and restore ourselves to a common understanding of the peace.

We must not despair but have recourse to the memory of our own selves and of each other and recognize in each other in God that all things upon earth shall most certainly pass away but our friendships we shall keep forever.

And so let us be to each other, keeper and friend.

For we must indeed return to our original belongings to each other and build together upon our hope, through faith in God and trust in Country, the strong foundations of a better, brighter and kinder future for our youth and for all of the generations to come.

We shall build together a community of hope, upon the promise of peace made by the Almighty God to our Father Abraham of old that we, the numberless stars, shall bless the communities of Mankind, we shall establish our sacred trust, to bear with each other as human beings and to work together towards the realization of our one common vision of a free and human society that is Godly, kindly and fair.

And this, from all things false and dark, we shall defend.

Towards this end, I am devoting a new Charter for a new City in Mindanao.

2. The Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) are taking steps to help us attain peace in Mindanao. What do you think of the GRP-MILF Peace Process? What do you feel about it? Why? What are your recommendations on the peace talks between the GRP and the MILF? (content, process, scope, transparency, etc.)

There must be a common ground between the two and let this common ground be not founded upon the emptiness of barren things born out of the desolation of war but upon the promise of good things born out of a longing for peace.

There must be both remembrance and presence:

Peace is not the absence of conflict. For the peace that we human beings must learn to perfectly accept is an imperfect peace.

Peace is an observance of hope. Hope which is the beginning of human understanding, a lineage of strength that extends across the generations and a virtue that lends its light to our shared humanity.

Peace allows the labors of Country to prosper the life of the people.

It preserves the civil order and upholds the public good and provides strong shelter to the generations of life.

Peace is the empowering wings of human community, it provides the necessary ground upon which are built, the prosperity of
families, tribes and nations.

Upon the maintenance of peace depends the rise and fall of all human civilizations.

It is the diametric opposite of war, existing not to contend against war but to serve and defend all of the nations of the one family of the nations of Mankind from all things dark and false.

3. What other steps, activities or programs should be undertaken to achieve peace in Mindanao? Include the role of academe, civil society organizations, National and Local Government Units.

The establishment of Miyangersjia, a new Abrahamic city, to initiate a new culture of hope in Mindanao and to link all communities together who are desirous of peace into one freedom, one lineage of strength.

4. What can you personally offer, commit or even sacrifice in order to have meaning peace in Mindanao? How do you intend to bring it to reality?

Myself and my city, Miyangersjia - which means "Friendship". And it shall be so, my dear Filipino nation, for we must move forward and away from this long night.

Towards this end, I shall remain in touch with the Konsult Mindanaw process and the Bishop-Ulama Conference until peace is restored upon the people in our beloved Mindanao.

An additional Question that was not asked in the Konsult Mindanaw contact form -

5. Like stars are made to shine all the more beautifully in the night, peace is made all the more meaningful when it is realized in contrast with War - so what is War?

War is a deviation from the ascendant path of peace. It is a failure to remember the observance of peace.

War is a scattering spirit and a darkness that eclipse our sacred remembrance; it is the scourge of all human nations.

Here is an example of the spirit of War:

A Bombing in Cotabato -

I do not know which group of which persons perpetrated this crime but one thing I do recognize is the dark spirit of war that delights in the promotion of these false things that in the end shall consume the very humanity of those who willfully collaborate with the principalities* of hell. This is the ultimate form of adultery.

*fallen angels who were originally placed by God in the care of our human communities - now they only exist to destroy the same communities they were intended by our LORD to serve and preserve. These fallen angels are the main adversaries of our nations and in collaboration with Satan and the other ranks of fallen angels work to sow division, discord, dilution and dissolution among the communities of Mankind.

This kind of thing shall not find a place in our Miyangersjia - for as War was from heaven thrown down - in our Miyangersjia, here upon this earth, the spirit of War will soon find that is shall likewise be denied.

For it is not praiseworthy to attack holy places and people in worship - not even in the slightest degree - it is abominable! It is like attacking the wounded and the vulnerable. It is one of the main reasons for the raising of the AHG (Abrahamic Home Guard as Charter provision for the Common Defense).

Because more than anything else, I am personally convinced, it is honorable religion - above all, our three, great Abrahamic faiths - that calls us back into our shared humanity. For among all the other human callings, it must be honorable religion that leads us to become more and more ourselves, to become more and more as human beings to each other.

I know this from my own experience of God in Christianity and I see it everywhere there are people of good will.

Hence, my dear friends, to our necessary conclusion:

Therefore, it is the responsibility of all the communities of Mankind to battle against things that scatter, against those things that are dark and false, in order that all our nations may return to the one gathering of peace, our one path of common destiny.

For it is only through peace and its truthful observance that we are, as citizens of this earth, each commonly called to the gathering together of all of the nations of the one family of the nations of Mankind in exile time, to give respite to our failing world.

Peace, I salute you.

Mabuhay ang Pilipinas!
---<--@

Prosper the Peace. Prosper the People.

Sancta Sanctis!

Glory to God in the highest
Adoration to Jesus Christ
Peace to men of good will.

The one Chaplaincy

The military Chaplain is a servant of God
and a dedicated instrument of the one Peace of God.

He does not bear arms against men
nor does he exists to fight against the nations of men.

He is an extension of the good will of all nations
and a constant reminder of our desire for better days.

He is faithful to the cause of the noble military
being jealous in the observance of honor and purity of arms.

He is a keeper of our sacred remembrances
lending noble strength to the martial practice of virtue.

He is a shepherd of the souls of our soldiers
and represents amidst conflicts our abiding hope for peace.

He labors to instill in every heart, a will of life,
and gives recourse to sorrow when life itself seems lost.

He brings comfort when despair seem to linger near
consoling spirits by his gentle sense of optimism and joy.

He is patient to understand each need to be understood
and leads the anxious heart toward greater trust in greater things.

He brings the light of God when darkness is deepest
and speaks the necessary truth when and where truth counts.

He provides for the spiritual needs of the soldier
and the Sacraments that strengthen them in the grace of God.

He counsels the doubtful, the confused he guides into reason,
he instructs the ignorant in the truth and the lost he helps to be found by faith in God.

He prays for the safety of the person of the soldier at all times, in peace but especially in fields of battle, entrusting to God and Country, the victory of our noble military.
---<--@

Prosper the Peace. Prosper the People.

Sancta Sanctis!

Glory to God in the highest
Adoration to Jesus Christ
Peace to men of good will.

Unrequited Love

Dream me a dream tomorrow,
our waking hours are yet plenty
and my present labors far too many
to pause for either heart or thought
so dream me a dream again tomorrow,
my dear, my heart and my thought.

Dream me a dream tomorrow,
the demands of my day require it
for much of our labor remain undone
to spare for either heart or thought
so dream me a dream again tomorrow,
my dear, my heart and my thought.

Dream me a dream tomorrow,
there is business for me yonder
for the success things much depend
far and away from heart or thought
so dream me a dream again tomorrow,
my dear, my heart and my thought

Dream me a dream tomorrow,
O my beloved, I must make haste
for our own happiness is at stake
let thy love wait, heart and thought
but dream me a dream again tomorrow,
my dear, my heart and my thought.

Dream me our dream again, my love
for each those moments passed away
as all my days now melt into solitude
of the wait that waits for love denied
for times that once was ever bright
left dim my heart upon the night.
---<--@

Filipino

Who is a Filipino?
But the heart that lives
to love the Filipino
and the Republic
of the Filipino people.

How is the Filipino?
But through faith that seeks
to find itself alive
in the eternal remembrance
of God and our people.

Where is the Filipino?
But in the will that accepts
the trust that embrace
our lives and our fortunes
together as one nation.

Why is the Filipino?
But with every dream that begins
ever like a single breath
to become our breathing together
of the many into one hope.

When is the Filipino?
But at every present rising
from the deep of eternity
in the every moment that breaks
upon the awakening reality
of the dawn of a new Philippines.
---<--@

Salutation #05

Peace, I salute you.

Even the smallest of lights
shines in the darkness -
so shift your focus, my friend,
if you haven't already done so
for each and every good thing counts
regardless of the darkness.

What is praiseworthy is right action.
It is what makes us distinct from the darkness -
it is ignition -
the actual point of contact
between human will and divine grace.
Right action is, in the painting by Michelangelo
of Adam reaching out to God
with their fingers extending out to each other,
that bright spark at the imagined point of contact
between the freedom of Man and the freedom of God:
Right action always results in good works.

What motivates the will to act
must also be what inspire the heart to love.
Therefore, evil action is always the result
of false inspiration -
the idolatry of sin!
So if we are to do good,
we must first learn to love the good -
and shun all that is evil.

For we profit not from evil,
my dear friend,
but from the good;
our motivation being derived
from purposes that are good,
our hopes being anchored upon things
that are true and therefore, good,
and the wings of our surrender to prayer
being ever vigilant and discerning
in its ascent
to the one Giver of all good things.

For evil no longer hold us captive.
We have come to know it
and forever bless the LORD for His Light.
Therefore, we seek now to unknow it
upon paths of repentance
that lead away from darkness
and into peace -
peace in our hearts -
peace with our fellow human beings -
peace with all of heaven -
and peace with our God.
---<--@

Haiku #215: Peace

Peace.

So what does it mean,
when we shall greet each other -
"peace be upon you"?

By peace we bless hope
that we may in others see
needs that seek in thee -

the blest peace
of hopes met.
---<--@

Haiku #214: Friend

Friend.

A friend is a friend,
like friendship is for always -
friends are friends indeed:

A friend is a friend,
through good times, the bad times too -
friends are friends like you!

Friendships true
bears thee through.
---<--@

Haiku #213: Who

Who.

Who am I, my love?
Am I really who I am -
a good friend to you?

For I am lacking,
indeed, I am so wanting -
to become better...

...a better
friend to you.
---<--@

Interior of Hope

I look back once again
at the waning of the long night
and the receding of the darkness
falling quickly behind me
into the distant past
and look forward
upon yonder wide horizons
into my dream of happiness
rising to meet me
on my way
joyfully ahead
eastward into my soul
even amidst the barren landscape
strewn with empty shells
of forlorn and broken things
across the long march of exile time
with the unmade grace of kindly wings
that bear my thankfulness high
towards that great mountain within
and the summit of my remembrance
beneath a multitude of living lights
amidst the eternal blue of my native sky
at the abode of my heart
where I dwell with my eternal beloved
in love with my love
deep in the sanctuary of our faith
in friendships made forever
at peace with my peace
and in my every waking dream
when the night seems long
I look ahead once again
and walk the eastward way
deep into the breaking of dawn
away from the darkness of my past
forever, forever into the morn
far into the unfolding of my life.
---<--@

A Friend Like You

I wish, my Jesus, to be
the friend that You see in me
to be constant, O Lord, to be true,
to be a friend, my God,
a Friend like You.
---<--@

Unconquered

Dream, my precious Starshine,
and be thankful for the dreaming
more than the dream itself -

For as tomorrow remains unwritten
yet every hope is made secure
so trust you must in thy dreaming
more than in thy dream itself
for as the eagle soars with wings
knowing not how it must fly
so must your own freedom become
more than what can be held by hands:

Thy freedom, dear Starshine,
like thy dream and thy dreaming
is a thing held not by grip
but a thing beheld by thy releasing
for to hold freedom tightly
like it is to deny it's flight
is to lose it entirely.

For thy freedom walks
upon the unconquered grounds
and wills to take it's flight
untrammeled and untamed.

So seek of thy freedom,
my precious Starshine,
but in thy seeking know -
here and now,
that freedom lives in the giving
like every dream is in the dreaming
for it is always in the giving
that we become free.
---<--@

Beauty and Industry

Starshine, dear Starshine,
the labor of our heart - must -
always preceed the work of our hands
so if you shall desire happiness
you must first know in your heart
what it is that you seek
even before you shall desire it
for desire in and of itself offers
neither sight to thy heart
nor light to thy understanding
which you must require
to know thy own truth by heart
and seeking it not by sight
but through the eye of thy love
that in thy seeking believes
you will come to know thy happiness
even before desire bears thee away
to where thy feet must follow.

For you work hard, dear Starshine,
you deserve to profit from thy labors
but yet many are the times
that you fail to find thy love
which reduce thy labors into tears
and deprive thy heart of life's purpose
yet while there is yet longing in our life
precious Starshine, believe -
there is nothing in this world
that can ever undo
in thy heart of hearts
what Love for thee has already done
so return again to thy longing
but know also to trust this time
in the Love that longs for thee back
and work hard, dear Starshine,
knowing to be happy with every hope
striving to always be free
to find thy peace and to prosper
far into our beautiful forever
---<--@.

The Surrender of Kings

My dear friends, let us ponder on the sword, Excalibur, as a similitude of power:
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That power, above all the power to rule the people - that divine right to govern thy peers which is a sovereign right that by Justice belongs to God alone - once gripped by selfish hands ultimately makes the wielder impotent in the sight of Men, angels and of God.

But that same power wielded by a heart that is free and willing to make the surrender of kings become completely capable of fulfilling its inherent promise of good for the people and on behalf of the nations of needful Mankind, ultimately unleashes in that person, by the grace of our God, the great nobility of a true sovereign of Mankind.

Because it is that free and willing surrender to service brought upon by a sacred spirit of true and loving sacrifice that is the hallmark of the greatest of our kings and rulers of old, elect from eternity.

Like Arthur of legend, these great and noble leaders of Men, in spite of each their own human brokenness and imperfections, have won the acclaim of history, as souls worthy of the remembrance of our nations.

This enduring sense of nobility is the victory to which they have each been called by God to share; a heritage from which the spirit of our humanity at all times and at all places may always draw strength.

Their royal legend is a gift of God, true for all time, and its promise is one that lends its strength to our present good, a promise born of a surrender embraced from among themselves each in their own time and each in their own way on behalf of all the generations of needful Mankind.

And as their lines of spiritual ascent converge unto every present time - let us be mindful, my honorable Filipino compatriots, that it is always the native hope of kings, though these regental lines of executive descent have for us long faded away, to remind our orphaned people of what is and what can be great in ourselves as human beings - and by this sense of sacred remembrance therefore, be as a Republic everywhere guided out of the waning of the past and into the promise of every present hope.

My friends, how power is wielded defines the way in which a ruler is forever remembered by our nations. And we may understand this from every telling of that story of Excalibur of old and of Arthur king who though imperfect is everywhere well received by the human heart.

Let us be mindful that every nation in its own time and in its own place under the sun has been established by our one, peerless Creator to last forever - to march, shoulder to shoulder, across the vast reaches of exile time, emerging, and then maturing into those mature nations, shepherding other nations in the free course of our native human hopes and be perfected in, of and by God through Country, into eternity as ascended nations forever.

Mabuhay! Long may our remembrance serve us!

Long may our remembrance serve our own sake as one nation, my fellow Filipinos, each one of you who share in the conviction that we are truly a nation distinct from all the other nations of the one family of the nations of Mankind; that we are, in spite of our imperfections, a noble undertaking of Country that indeed, does and can dare to be great.
---<--@

Prosper the Peace. Prosper the People.

Sancta Sanctis!

Glory to God in the highest
Adoration to Jesus Christ
Peace to men of good will.