I IMAGINE how the former NBI Deputy Director Rafael Marcos Z. Ragos must be feeling right now after having carried a huge load in his conscience for the past five years now. You could see it on his face when he said, “I just want to clear something that has been on my chest since this has been concealed for so long.”
He must be feeling liberated now after finding the courage to declare publicly “that there is NO TRUTH WHATSOEVER to any of these affidavits or House and Court testimonies, or any other statement made in the media or other investigatory proceedings, including the Senate and the DOJ, on the delivery of monies to Sen. Leila De Lima or to Ronnie Dayan in whatever amount.” Now the truth has set him free. And it did not really take very much for him to achieve this freedom; he just did the right thing—follow his conscience.
Our Judaeo-Christian faith holds on to a stubborn belief in a merciful God. No one is beyond redemption for as long as they are willing to humbly ADMIT their wrongdoings, express REMORSE and make concrete acts of REPARATION for them. In the Catholic Sacrament of Reconciliation, they are the elements of confession, contrition and penance that are essential preconditions to absolution.
But for those who stubbornly persist in their wicked ways, here’s what we read in Exodus 20:5, “…I, the LORD, your God…will inflict punishment for the wickedness of parents on the children of those who hate me, down to the third and fourth generation…” What a dreadful thought this must be for their children and their children’s children.
But here’s the good news; the succeeding generations are not doomed to the sins of their ancestors. We heard recently, for instance, how the daughter of the late General Ver, Wanna Ver, also did the right thing. She broke the spell of wickedness in her own generation by acknowledging the sins of the previous generation which she had benefitted from. It is never too late for many others whose crimes are known well by God. Please, do yourselves a favor while there is still time.
