FIRST SAY:
“But recently I have learned from discussions with a variety of scientists and other non-philosophers (e.g., the scientists participating with me in the Sean Carroll workshop on the future of naturalism) that they lean the other way: free will, in their view, is obviously incompatible with naturalism, with determinism, and very likely incoherent against any background, so they cheerfully insist that of course they don't have free will, couldn’t have free will, but so what? It has nothing to do with morality or the meaning of life. Their advice to me at the symposium was simple: recast my pressing question as whether naturalism (materialism, determinism, science...) has any implications for what we may call moral competence. For instance, does neuroscience show that we cannot be responsible for our choices, cannot justifiably be praised or blamed, rewarded or punished? Abandon the term 'free will' to the libertarians and other incompatibilists, who can pursue their fantasies untroubled. Note that this is not a dismissal of the important issues; it’s a proposal about which camp gets to use, and define, the term. I am beginning to appreciate the benefits of discarding the term 'free will' altogether, but that course too involves a lot of heavy lifting, if one is to avoid being misunderstood.”
― Daniel C. Dennett, Consciousness Explained
Many residents and parishioners of Tondo, Manila were surprised at the news that there was an altercation, scuffle, or a fight inside their venerable Tondo Church recently. It would not have been that surprising had it been the thugs of Tondo who were involved in the fight. But this time around, the parish priest of the church and a bishop were the ones involved in the feud, which turned into a physical brawl.
The Archdiocese of Manila, led by Cardinal Jose Advincula, has suspended the priest involved in an altercation inside a church in Tondo, Manila and barred him from administering the sacraments.
According to the archdiocese, effective June 5, Rev. Fr. Alfonso Valeza was suspended from exercising his priestly faculties “because of his persistent defiance to the Archbishop of Manila despite orders and warnings.”
“He is therefore prohibited from administering the sacraments. Any sacrament he administers is illicit,” the archdiocese said in a statement.
Meanwhile, it said Valeza was relieved of his duties as parochial administrator of the St. Joseph Parish in Gagalingan, Tondo on June 3, Monday.
“From then on, any act he does in relation to the position is illicit,” it said.
Msgr. Reginald Malicdem, Fr. Nolan Que, and Fr. Gilbert Kabigting have been appointed as parochial administrators.
Valeza was caught on video in a scuffle with Novaliches Bishop Antonio Tobias inside the parish.
The priest said the heated argument was about his ouster from the parish due to his accusations against alleged corrupt priests.
The archdiocese, however, denied that Valeza’s removal was related to the allegations.
Valeza was reportedly ousted from the parish after he failed to comply with Manila Archbishop Cardinal Jose Advincula’s order for him in the past two years to undergo counseling due to his "unstable personality.”
If this priest has an unstable personality, as the Archdiocese of Manila explained, he should not have been given an assignment that is as important as being administrator of the Tondo church.
We have been told of confirmed news reports about a Catholic priest in Antipolo-Marikina area who was sued for sexual abuse by a young woman, a minor, whom he usually take to a motel for sex.
And then there’s the priest in Pampanga — this amang — who unwittingly destroyed a family by having sexual relations with a married woman. The wife was later disowned by her husband and her grown-up sons, and had to temporarily live in the “kumbento” with the Catholic priest.
All these incidents are true, and are concrete evidence that the religious are human, too, and have the same propensity to commit human failings just as the rest of us.
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Malusog at Matalinong Bata (MMB) Coalition co-convenor Lyonel Tanganco has a good and viable suggestion.
Citing the importance of adjusting cash grants provided by the government, Tanganco said the MMB Coalition proposed the creation of a separate grant for the first 1,000 days of life.
MMB Coalition co-convenor Maia Valdez said the 4Ps program does not have a budget for children who are zero to two years old.
"We invest a lot in infrastructure and we forget that our biggest capital is human capital. We can now see the impact of malnutrition and stunting in the knowledge and absorptive capacity of the brain of the children, and besides that they become sickly,” she said.
Their group, which pushes the promotion of nutrition among children in the Philippines, has called for the inclusion of the first 1,000 days of life in the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) following tariff adjustments for protein-source foods.
They noted that the decision of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.'s administration to lower the tariffs on food items which are sources of protein until 2028 is important in helping three million Filipino children who are stunted.
The Comprehensive Tariff Program for 2024 to 2028 adjusted tariff rates and retained the lowered tariffs on mechanically deboned meat and pork, and corn which is an input to livestock.
"This action makes nutritious food more accessible to the poor. It will help in combating nutritional deficiencies and enhancing food security among our most vulnerable populations," Tanganco said.
However, lower food prices are not enough particularly for the poor who have tight budgets because of the recent inflation, he said.
According to joint malnutrition estimates by UNICEF, World Health Organization, and World Bank in 2022, one in three Filipino children under five years old is stunted or too short for their age. The Philippines is second to Indonesia for having the worst condition in the region.
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