Father Efren's Comment

An anonymous poster brought this to my attention under my last post, which is found here.  The comment was written in the jungle by Father Efren.  The responses in red are mine. 

AnonymousSeptember 5, 2014 at 6:15 PM

Diana, this was written by father Efren in JW.:

Fr. Efren AdversarioSeptember 4, 2014 at 8:55 PM

Tim,
It looks like my name made it to your blog again. As usual, allow me to use my name to make a point. I confirm what you and Father Blockley mentioned recently. There are indeed people behind the scenes who helped me with acts of kindness in time of need without the flourish of bells and whistles. Although seemingly miniscule, they are huge to me, and my gratitude to these people will remain a part of me for a long time. I had no desire to broadcast the personal struggles I endured because I see myself as a survivor. As any Veteran would testify, experiences of war leave you scarred for life, both physically and mentally, yet spiritually provide clarity on the important things and weed out the extraneous ones. I pray I never forget.

Dear Father Efren, Apparently, you forgot that God provides, and He uses people as His instrument to carry out His plans.  There is a reason why Christ tells us not to boast of the help we give to those in need.  Of course, now that you know who helped you, then naturally you start praising the names of men such as Blockley or Monsignor James.  However, all praise and thanks should be given to God who worked through these men.  Despite that you were not covered by health insurance, God provides for with God all things are possible.  Yet, you look to the Archbishop to provide for you?  Did it not occur to you that perhaps God allowed these events to take place in your life so you could learn to lean on Him and praise Him rather than men?   

Unfortunately, I see now in the jungle that they are encouraging Blockley to ask for reimbursement for your medical expenses.  I guess they forgot that when one freely and without complaint give aid to those in need, they would be rewarded in Heaven.  In assisting the poor and needy, we are to build treasures in Heaven, not treasures on earth with reimbursements.  

Matthew 6:2-4  “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.  But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

  Some people prefer to see themselves as victims and take their feelings of persecution public and towards unknowing captive audiences. Some people who have had things handed over to them whether deservedly or undeservedly can start to feel entitled to what they think are owed them. They start to demand that "you owe me this or that" without considering more urgent needs of others. I see this happening in the current conflict whether the Archbishop has the wisdom to discern this or not due to his tunnel vision and his desire to ingratiate himself to his own drummer. The mandate is that we have to be good stewards of what is entrusted to us. The ordinary parishioner who gives to the Sunday collection must be going through the financial crunch of family obligations: sending children to school, health insurance, mortgages, so on and so forth. I surmise that most are trying to make ends meet but they give to the Church because they want to further the work of God on earth. They believe they are doing this for God. Meanwhile many of us who are in religious life never had it so good, even as seminarians.

 

The Archbishop did not take his persecution public.  How can he?  He remained silent while you speak about him behind his back through a blog.  You claimed your life was easy when you were a seminarian?  We have mission families and itinerants who gave up everything, surviving on only their faith alone. They understood that God never promised an easy life on earth. Nevertheless, they rejoice in their struggle because it brought them closer to Christ.    

 

How dare we squander that trust with wanton disregard for the donors' intent? Who pays for the VIP transport all over the globe? How dare we muddle the disconnect with suspect rationalizations? Who are we kidding with the ability to "sleep well at night"? How dare we cling to power and insist on our authority by ignoring the growing discontent and calls for transparency? Whose lives do we crush by piling lies after lies?

With all due respect, father, is money really all that important to you? You worry about the money the parishioners give?  As a priest, should you not be more worried about their souls?  After all, all the money you have in the parish is not going to bring you or any of the parishioners into Heaven. 

It was God who gave that authority to the Archbishop.  If you have a problem with that authority, take it up with God.  As for the financial report, that will come in time. 

The Church is the people, it is to them we are accountable, and not to questionable personal needs that have ballooned into ginormous caprices and quixotic projects. The Church is the people, and it is to you, the people we are sent to serve, that I humbly apologize, for we are not being good stewards by any stretch of imagination. Kool Aid or not.
 

On the contrary, it was God who chose you and who called you; therefore, you are there to serve God by leading the flock to His Son, Jesus Christ.  It was God who called you to be a priest....not the people.  Your last comment "Kool Aid or not" is very unchristian.   

 

If you want to serve the people, then by all means, please step down from the priesthood and become a politician.  You can run for Governor, Senator, or Congressman.  However, I will not be voting for you.  If you cannot keep your oath to be obedient to the Archbishop, then you certainly cannot keep any political promise you make to your constituents who would elect you.