Viva, Santo Rodrigo

The possibility for Rodrigo Duterte to become a saint is not farfetched. If he will be the next president of the Philippines and will complete his term with utmost efficacy as what he promised before his ascent to the presidency, then his legacy is already established. If the outward charisma he is showing in his campaign sorties will be transformed into a pious empathy in serving his people and in making this nation better, then the process of his canonization will have been started. Maybe not in this lifetime, the next Filipino saint will come from Mindanao.

Church history is replete with illustrations of ‘Sinners-turned-Saints.’ Aside from the most notorious and very vicious St. Augustine, there are the murderers St. Olga and St. Olaf, the ill-tempered St. Jerome, the lustful St. Margaret of Cortona and St. Mary of Egypt, and the ruthless St. Moses the Ethiopian and St. Cyril of Alexandria, among many others. The big-time pickpocket St. Callixtus can perhaps be used by Binay in his defense at St. Peter’s gate. For Grace Poe, St. Teresa of Calcutta who was accused of accepting donations from corrupt politicians and immoral businessmen, can be her idealized exemplar. St. Jude Thaddeus may well be the patron saint of Mar Roxas these days; and St. Peregrine for Miriam Santiago.

Reading hagiographies makes us realize that the canonization of a person is not a declaration of his or her perfection. Generally, sainthood simply refers to the person’s faith in God and dedication to God. These men and women of faith have surely fallen short of God’s grace but turned toward goodness, then holiness. When we meditate on the imperfect lives of the saints, we ask which part of them is worthy of praise and emulation and which is to condemn and avoid. A reassuring message can be deciphered: Conversion means salvation and glorification.

Doctor of the Church St. Augustine of Hippo proclaimed: “There is no saint without a past, no sinner without a future.” This goes to both the truly righteous and the self-righteous. Woe to those who do not know that they sin and confidently cast the stone!

For Duterte, just like any of us, his experience of spiritual conversion will not be instantaneous. His remaining days will be spent striving to shun sin, nurturing virtues and conforming to God’s will. As a Christian, he will be a living testament to God’s grace by touching the lives of others and by transforming a God-forsaken country into a seeming paradise on Earth.
Duterte’s imminent winning the presidency is, in fact, tantamount to his selection by the people and appointment by God. Vox populi, vox dei! If the people will choose him, then God has chosen him. This heaviest a burden of responsibility, of which he will swear under oath, will certainly overwhelm him.

There will be times, in his term as president, when he cannot see the light at the end of the tunnel and just let go of the things he cannot control. These will be the times when he will seek the Divine. A strong character like Duterte will eventually be humbled and will surrender to Providence. World leaders, history attests, have always bent their knees to the Supreme Being in seeking wisdom and in praying for blessings.

This will be the example Duterte will give to the Filipinos. He will not only give them hope for a bright future and deliverance from a hellish situation, but also will transform them into better citizens and righteous individuals. Filipinos, during a Duterte presidency, will live like latter-day saints.

Saints, through their examples, can change people positively. Leaders, through their intercessions, can help people significantly. Duterte himself admitted his imperfections, if not sinfulness. But does not God love the sinner? To be sure, the Messiah did not come for the righteous. Just like any emergent and transformational leader, Duterte would not have come for an already-perfect Philippines. He will come to save this nation from damnation. The future saint from Mindanao will be our salvation.

Santo Rodrigo, ora pro nobis.