Return to priesthood

IN ONE interview, beleaguered Gov. Eddie T. Panlilio said there was really nothing for him to lose in a recall election as he could always go back to being a priest.
Not a few people were taken aback by that response, scandalized by Panlilio’s seemingly cavalier attitude towards the sanctity of his vocation. He treats the priesthood like a piece of hand towel he discarded, to be picked up when needed to clean his soiled hands. A coffee confederate opined, the subtle symbolisms there not really unnoticed.
Back to the priesthood for Panlilio?
Contending thoughts there, the most prominently abhorrent to that idea was Lingayen Archbishop Oscar Cruz’s – “There is nothing for him to go back to. He should leave the priesthood completely, raise a family, build a dynasty.” So was Panlilio’s former superior quoted in the papers as saying just about the time the suspended priest entered the capitol to roost.
Then, the question: Is there anything of the priesthood still left in Panlilio? This no doubt spurred by some ”un-priestly” actions deemed in the governor, not the least of which was the disappearance of the image of the Virgin from his office, his perceived closeness with “born again” sects, his reportedly having made samba (worshipped) in an Iglesia ni Cristo church. Yes, and his “uncharity” towards the protesting Balas Boys too.
Interesting is this item culled from a news story in the UCANNews.com dated September 2, 2008. UCAN stands for Union of Catholic Asian News: “Bishop (Pablo) David cited prayer meetings of Jesus is Lord, a “born again” movement whose members pray for the governor as if he is the “anointed of God, the one the country has long been waiting for.” People interpret this to mean he is their candidate for the 2010 presidential elections, the bishop said.
“He went on to say that he has tried to talk with his fellow San Fernando clergyman for the past six months, but found himself dealing with a “new man” who is “obstinate” and whose moves are “hard to understand.” The bishop expressed hope Father Panlilio will “return quickly to his priesthood.”
I don’t know if Bishop Ambo still entertained that hope. I was apprised of events that transpired during the trip of the bishop to the US on the occasion of the veneration of the Virgen de los Remedios in Los Angeles which coincided with Panlilio’s visit there sponsored by Pamagcusa. The two looked, nay, acted like they were total aliens to each other, so I was told by a seminary brother. An estrangement that has gone on to date, so whispered to me by an elder Father only a few days back.
Back to the priesthood for Panlilio?
Koyang Willy Villarama, former Bulacan congressman and former Panlilio supporter, emailed this item that could serve as a template for the governor’s return to the priesthood.
"Priest MP leaves politics after pressure from Vatican
Quebec priest picks church over politics following 2 years in office
Bloc Québécois MP Raymond Gravel has decided not to run in the next federal election after the Vatican forced him to choose between Parliament and the Catholic Church.
Gravel, an ordained Roman Catholic priest, was granted special permission by the Vatican to run for federal office in 2006. He indicated on Tuesday that the Vatican requested he choose between politics and the priesthood in light of Canada's impending federal election. He has represented Repentigny, a riding east of Montreal, since he won a November 2006 by-election. Montreal newspaper La Presse reported that the Vatican received complaints from some Catholics who were not happy with positions Gravel took as an MP. The complaints stemmed from his support for Dr. Henry Morgentaler's nomination to the Order of Canada, and his opposition to Bill C-484, a piece of legislation on crimes committed against pregnant women.
Gravel said he was disappointed with the complaints that he believes twisted his beliefs."I've never gone against the church doctrine," he told CBC's French-language service. "I do not support abortion, I am opposed to abortion."When Gravel won his seat, he said he wouldn't vote on social issues presented in the House of Commons that would compromise his position as a priest. Gravel maintained his priest status while in office but was barred from celebrating mass, weddings or funerals or performing baptisms."
Gravel’s though was not the first case where the Vatican asked a priest to leave a political post.
There was the Rev. Robert F. Drinan, a Jesuit, who left Boston College's administration to become the first Roman Catholic priest elected to Congress and who in 1973 filed the initial impeachment resolution against President Richard M. Nixon.
A five-term member of Congress, Father Drinan was one of its most liberal members. His strong anti administration stands earned him a place on the Nixon "enemies list." So it was reported in the news of his death in January 2007 as published in the Boston Globe.
In 1980, Pope John Paul II ordered Father Drinan to either forgo re election or leave the priesthood. With "regret and pain," Father Drinan announced he would not seek re election.
"It is just unthinkable," he said of the idea of renouncing the priesthood to stay in office. "I am proud and honored to be a priest and a Jesuit. As a person of faith, I must believe that there is work for me to do which somehow will be more important than the work I am required to leave."
Gravel and Drinan though differed from Panlilio. Not only in that the former were elected to a legislative body while the latter to an executive position, but also in that the Vatican gave them the option – to stay with politics or to return to the priesthood. Which has not been thrown Panlilio’s way as yet.
Back to the priesthood for Panlilio?
Not when 2010 beckons. Not when a “new man” has emerged in him, as Bishop Ambo noted. Above all not without…uuuuyyy.