Duyog Marawi ... a tree and its fruits (Luke 6:43-45)

Blood Relic of Pope John Paul II

In Malate church a day before departure, I knelt before a blood relic of St Pope John Paul II and prayed for my journey. His own commitment to reconciliation between peoples is legendary as he forgave and later met with the man who tried to assassinate him.

This was my first trip to Mindanao in the southern Philippines, the scene of the siege of Marawi, the effects of which are still felt. What a handful of evil men can do in minutes can take a lifetime to repair in a community. 

Marawi 2017

I went to meet the staff of Duyog Marawi, a group initiated by the Redemptorist order with support from the wider Catholic Church in the Philippines. Their staff and volunteers are both Muslim and Catholic, mostly young people who are committed to peace and understanding and the restoration of the lives of those affected by the troubles in Marawi. Duyog means to ‘accompany’ and the group intends to ‘journey with’ the Meranaw people as they move through the various stages of recovery and development.

I travelled by ferry, the 36-hour journey would give me time to prepare my heart through prayer to meet those I was supposed to meet and to hear their stories and those of their people. It also took my mind back to the last war–torn area I visited some 25+ years earlier. Another group of young people in England formed to take aid convoys to refugees in Bosnia-Herzegovina and to distribute these to all, regardless of religion or origin, Muslims and Christians alike. 

1st Convoy Preparations June 1993

2nd Convoy Preparations November 1993 

Perhaps this ‘remembering’ was what attracted me to the work of Duyog Marawi (DM) and to know more about it as I shared their vision.

The ship was filled with soldiers, many deployed for the first time in Mindanao, they were so young and I diverted some of my prayers for their safety as they work to maintain peace and order and protect the populous.

There is a peculiar tension in the hearts of men; a divided nature between the capacity for love placed there by their Creator and a tendency for destruction and hatred. When I see the photos of Marawi and remember the pock-marked, shell shattered streets of Mostar I see the landscape of the human heart, that battle within, which we all must enter into. 

Mostar 1993 (Medjugorje International Relief Convoy)

Bosnia-Herzegovina 1993 (Medjugorje International Relief Convoy)

Marawi 2017

Marawi 2017

I have heard that the proper interpretation of ‘Jihad’ is actually more akin to what Christians would recognise as ‘sanctification’ - to purify the heart. And we even use the same tools as Muslims, those, being prayer, fasting and almsgiving. Like in Lenten season where we seek to intentionally realign our hearts to God. It’s an internal process. It requires a certain maturity and sincerity of spirit to enter into. Sadly, in all religions, that is not always present. 

Duyog Marawi’s work encompasses many areas across four phases of activity; firstly there was work with the internally displaced people following evacuation from the city, providing food, water, temporary shelter etc. Later the work shifted to more community engagement and peace building between Christians and Muslims. Another area, the HILOM project focussed on helping the former hostages to process their experiences - many of them became DM volunteers later as a part of their healing journey. Now they are developing livelihood programs for IDP’s. Perhaps the most critical work though is in countering the ideology of ISIS. 

The ISIS groups recruited children as young as nine years old and many families saw their children change from normal healthy children to aggressive, confused and frustrated shadows of themselves following indoctrination by the Maute group at the school that the Maute family operated. But few could see what was to come.

Photo Courtesy Duyog Marawi

Photo Courtesy Duyog Marawi

Duyog Marawi operates a mobile ‘Madrasah’ – which travels from place to place to teach the children Islamic values and teachings that will counter the false teachings and enticements of the ISIS recruiters who work in the same territory. They also run two ALS (Alternative Learning System) schools for the older out-of-school youth which achieves the same purpose. The Meranaw community is committed to protecting their youth from ISIS recruiters as the loss of many of their young is mourned, as is the destruction of their homes and livelihoods. The need for vigilance is acutely felt now and the peace builders are on the front lines of the battle for hearts and minds. 

Hudaifa and Juji

As I listened to the three young Meranaw Duyog Marawi staff; Juji, Jam and Hudaifa; it occurred to me that every young person seeks to know and find their part in the larger story, a noble or worthy cause to champion. Each generation (of whatever religious group or nationality) produces its own leaders and they fall into two categories, I noticed.

The terror group leaders are violent, superficial, insolent, and bold. Boldness is a boyish trait, which if not satisfied, quickly dissipates. There is no thought of tomorrow or the consequences; just rage without real purpose. Peacemakers, on the other hand are leaders who exercise a patient, considered response, they are courageous and long suffering. They are the beacons of hope for a shared, common future. 

As Christian and Muslim youth unite under a common banner of peace and understanding to protect their communities and nation from those who come only to ‘kill, steal and destroy’ (John 10:10) they become an impenetrable phalanx, interlocked shields that will break the waves of fanciful infantile ideologies that crash against them, with unshakeable resolve and manly courage. 

One other thing that was interesting from our discussions was that in the presence of a common and savage enemy, lesser arguments melt back into the background and unusual alliances form. For example, the volunteers work in conjunction with the military to check the areas they will visit are safe; so there is good cooperation between church and state, but also have the support of the MILF (Moro Islamic liberation Front) who see ISIS as a threat to their struggle for autonomy from the central government, which has often been an armed struggle. 

My own experiences confirm this pattern, and the need to never give in to prejudices of assuming all those of a particular religion, nation or tribe are bad and another all good - it simply is not true. When my friends and I were taking aid to refugees in Bosnia-Herzegovina we came upon a city under siege, a Muslim enclave on one side of a river, a largely Christian group on the other and to enable both sets of refugees to receive aid we worked with the Jewish community who, by cover of night, were able to take food and supplies by boat over the river to their Muslim friends and neighbours. Unexpected ... but there are men and women of good will everywhere. 

Mostar 1993

I returned home to Manila via Cagayan, the ship’s name was St Pope John Paul II! And in the sky, out in the middle of sea, I saw a rainbow, the sign of a promise (Gen 9:16) “ Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.” Truly God is with the work and efforts of the Duyog Marawi team. God bless them.

Rainbow ... God's Covenant with Noah

Links:- Duyog Marawi 

          :- Medjugorje International Relief

The Best Kept Secret

There were 3 rural parish priests who had a problem with birds nesting in the nooks and crannies of the ceilings of their churches. One had a shotgun and fired a few shots at the ceiling and they flew off, only to return soon after. The second rigged up a net and caught them, put the net in his truck, drove them 100 miles and released them and when he got back to his church they were already back. The last one had one of those high pressure car washing devices which he filled with Holy water and Baptised the whole flock; and never saw them again. 

Many in the last few generations align to tradition without knowing why and maintain a skin deep relationship with the church and often no relationship at all with their God. 

When I was taught about religion; it was by religious sisters, who could talk about hell with such clarity and detail that we all knew they had been born and raised there! I could probably pass a test on the Catechism but didn’t have a clue who God was really or how this could be a part of life beyond having to go to Mass on Sunday; and this unimpressive start was before sin entered the picture much. 

Who God is and what He can be for a follower of His, is probably the best kept secret in the church and strangely religion often stands in the way of its discovery, distracts from the goal rather than leading to it. Grace has its own timing of course, but it’s seldom entirely independent. The catalyst is generally a witness, someone who does know God, who has experienced that touch of grace in a way which brought about a transformation in their lives and can then do the same for the listener. God is experiential, a theoretical one won’t captivate anyone, He is living and acts mightily in the here and now, not merely historically. 

When someone opens their heart to God, in all sincerity, then it’s like being unplugged from the Matrix.., to suddenly see the world as it really is, who we are, and who God is. And then the journey begins together and we realize all He can be for us. The most beautiful thing to realize is that we are not alone. There is a good Father on whom we can rely entirely for everything we need; there is no need to be afraid of life anymore, you are in safe hands. But we must be intentional about seeking him out, trusting Him and being aligned with His Spirit through prayer. 

How can the current or next generations ever know God unless there are authentic witnesses to tell them the church’s best kept secret?

Civil Disobedience ... Arrest outside Abortion Clinic for Praying ...

The American philosopher Henry Thoreau wrote an essay entitled ‘Civil Disobedience’ after spending a night in jail for refusing to pay his taxes as a protest against slavery. One line reads “Under a government which imprisons any unjustly, the true place for a just man is also a prison.” 

Earlier this year, a man (in a wheelchair) was arrested outside the Marie Stopes abortion clinic in Ealing, London for praying for an end to abortion and for the mothers and babies inside. This followed a Public Space Protection Order (PSPO) which bans ‘engaging in any act of approval / disapproval towards abortion outside the facility- including prayer.’ The charges were later dropped. 

This is a new phase in the hardening of intolerance towards Christianity and the Pro-life movement, one that we should be greatly encouraged by though. In trying to ban prayer the face of the industry is further unmasked. On the days when pro-lifers are praying outside an abortion clinic, women turn back and go home, both mother and child are spared the horror of abortion and the clinic loses its revenue. 

It is an abuse of power to arrest people who are praying, but even under this PSPO there must be clarity that an offence has been committed before an arrest can be made, so perhaps it can be countered by raising a reasonable doubt. A group of people standing outside without photos or placards, remaining silent and retaining their composure, rosaries concealed in their pockets perhaps, showing no approval or disapproval to the activities going on inside cannot be legitimately moved on or arrested. And I doubt if anyone could prove they were praying other than by the miracles that proceed forth. 

The Muslim civil rights leader Malcolm X was successful because his congregation was so disciplined; controlling their emotions, and acting as one with an almost military precision. As he pointed out ‘for one to control one's thoughts and feelings means one can actually control one's atmosphere and all who walk into its sphere of influence.’ 

One thing was quite disturbing though. Christian Hastings, the man arrested outside Marie Stopes, was the only one. Where were the rest of the Parishioners from his church? Where were the rest of the parishioners from his Diocese?