The Anne Frank's House

For those of us who have read about the Holocaust, The Rise of Evil - Hitler and The Diary of Anne Frank, the visit to Anne Frank's House in Amsterdam is not just about historical facts. It is filled with emotional and provoking thoughts.

When the Holocaust ended in 1945, Hitler's racist ideas had ended in genocide and the Nazi had killed six million Jews. In her diary, Anne Frank posed difficult questions. Why is there war? Why are Jewish people hated and discriminated? What is the importance of being cared and caring for others? What is freedom to you?

A fight, a bully, an accident, an injustice, someone in a difficult situation needing a helping hand..... What will you do? Everyday we are confronted with such dilemmas. Some affect us personally and some are so huge that it is hard to know what to do. Do you walk by or do you stop and help? What does it make you feel? Standing up is not always easy but what if you were the one in need of help?

Who is right and who is wrong? What is freedom to you? To be able to speak the truth, to admit your mistakes, to lay down your life for others? Why do some people judge others on their colour, age, sex, religion etc? We do stereotype people and make snap judgment based on little details. Isn't it stupid? Yes, we are all victim of society but that is no excuse for violence and revenge.

Anne Frank wrote in her diary on 6th July 1944... "We are all alive but we don't know why or what for; we are all searching for happiness; we are all leading lives which are different and yet the same."

Today, people are still being persecuted and murdered because they, like Anne Frank are not only "different" but also "want to be". Obviously, there are elements in the diary that are universally recognizable by both the young and old of this generation. Otto Frank, 1967 ...."To build up a future, you have to know the past" but why did people allow history to repeat itself even in this present age? Why are there still so much discrimination, prejudice, war, social injustices, self righteous etc? These make the visit to The Anne Frank's House meaningful even in our times. The Secret Annex - a story of unimaginable horror but also one of great courage indeed gave me more courage and the conviction that to live an authentic and fulfilling life, love and courage is what we need the most.

A glimpse of hope

“Well done is better than well said” – Benjamin Franklin

We live in a world characterized by instability, terrorism, materialism and WORDS WITHOUT ACTIONS. You may have a wealth of knowledge today but if you don't do anything about it, you are not any more effective or enlightened than you were last week. Unless knowledge, awareness, insights, and understandings are translated into action, they are of no value. There is no value in just saying you understand, aware, sympathize if you are not acting on it and what matters is to act rightly.

I have never been particularly impressed by the heroics of some people who are convinced that they are about to change the world through violence. I am more overwhelmed by those individuals who struggle to make one small difference after another.

Mother Teresa lived in poverty among the poorest of the poor and believed that to know the poor; you must live like the poor, with them and be like them. Sympathy and empathy is just the ability to identify with another’s feeling and putting oneself emotionally not physically in the place of the suffering. No good will ever come out of sympathy and empathy if they are not put into action.

In the special report section of the Straits Times dated 29th November 2008; dedicated to awareness of AIDS, there was an article about Fr Giovanni Contarin from the Order of Camillian who devoted his life to care for HIV patients both the very young and old, many abandoned by their family. He lives up to his religious vow to take care of people even when there is the danger of death. His words “Entering the world of suffering of the sick and elderly touched me very much and helped me to discover the divine in human suffering.” Yes, entering is the word, not just by-passing and I totally agreed and convinced that one can only discover and encounter the divine in human suffering. Try looking for God in the rich, famous and powerful or in the church and among clergy, you probably have to go on for 40 years on desert land.

Fr Giovanni’s word brought to mind Fr Michael Mohally of the Missionaries Society of St Columban who has worked among the poorest in Cambodia for many years. When I met him in Singapore some years back, he told me that words and feelings have no value at all. You don’t make progress by standing on the sidelines, whimpering, complaining, sympathizing or even emphasizing. Turning it over in your mind won't plough the field; it’s just waiting for the cows to come home. Men must not only see, feel and believe. They must act, and act righteously not foolishly. Words without the right actions are the assassins of idealism.

It brings comfort to know that there are still a handful of clergy and religious who live up to their vocation and vows selflessly, faithfully and virtously.

Difference between greatness and mediocrity

"No stream or gas drives anything until it is confined. No Niagara is ever turned into light and power until it is tunneled. No life ever grows great until it is focused, dedicated and disciplined." - Harry E. Fosdick

Passion and courage are the driving force that allows us to share our life with a committed sense of mission. It is our fervent faith and conviction that enable us to inspire, captivate and motivate others to embrace our cause, ideas, and vision. Self-discipline (strength of will and mind) is the key to personal greatness. It is the magic quality that opens all doors for you and makes everything else possible. With self-discipline, the average person can rise as far and as fast as his talents and intelligence can take him. But without it, a person with every blessing of background, education and opportunity will not be able to rise above mediocrity.

Everyone can choose from two roads in life. One is the broad, well-travelled road to mediocrity and the other is the road to greatness and meaning. The range of possibilities that exists within these two destinations is as wide as the diversity of gifts and personalities in a person. The contrast between the two destinations is like heaven and earth, night and day.

The path to mediocrity straitjackets human potential. The path to greatness unleashes human potential. The path to mediocrity is the quick-fix, short-cut approach to life. The path to greatness is a process of sequential growth from the inside out. Travellers on the lower path to mediocrity live out of ego, indulgence, scarcity, comparison and competitiveness. Travellers on the upper path to greatness rise above negative cultural influences and choose to become the creative force of their
lives.

Being effective as individuals is no longer optional in today’s world. It is the price of entry to the playing field. But surviving, thriving, innovating, excelling and leading in this new reality will require us to build on and reach beyond effectiveness. The call and need of a new era is for greatness and that called for courage, truthfulness, passion and significant contribution.

The perfect murder

The Ice Man - Confessions of a Mafia Contract Killer, by Philip Carlo describe even the very minute details of the most morbid account of Richard Kuklinski’s killing spree. He was one of the most diabolical self-confessed contract killers in American history taking credit for over 200 murders.

Richard Kuklinski was born to Stanley and Anna Kuklinski. Stanley was a severely abusive alcoholic who beat his wife and children. Anna was also abusive to her children probably resulting from her own abusive childhood. When Richard was 5 years old, he witnessed the beating of his older brother, Florian resulting in his death. Stanley and Anna hid the cause of the child's death from the authorities, saying he had fallen down a flight of steps. By the age of 10, Richard was filled with rage and began acting out. For a start, he would torture animals and by the age of 14, he had committed his first murder. Although he was dyslexic, Richard had no problem reading True Crime magazines about criminals, upon which he based his actions.

He lived a double life as a dedicated family man and cold blooded hit man but he would never kill woman and children. Over a period of forty-three years, he killed numerous people, either by gun, strangulation, knife, or poison. He favored the use of cyanide since it killed quickly and was hard to detect in a toxicology test. He would variously administer it by injection, putting it on a person's food, by aerosol spray, or by simply spilling it on the victim's skin. One of his favorite methods of disposing of a body was to place it in a 55-gallon oil drum. His other disposal methods included dismemberment, burial, freezing the body or placing it in the trunk of a car and having it crushed in a junkyard. He left bodies sitting on park benches, thrown bodies down "bottomless pits" and fed alive victims to giant rats in caves in Pennsylvania.

What struck me most is that Richard didn’t seem remorseful about the people he killed per se but he was genuinely upset and sorry that it affected his family after his arrest. If his childhood was filled with love… would he be capable of such multiple atrocities? When he was asked what he would like to say for the ending of his story, he said:” I’d rather be known as a nice man, not the Ice man. I was made. I didn’t create myself. I never chose to be this way, to be in this place. Yeah, I for sure wish my life took another turn, that I had an education and a good job, but none of that was in the cards for me”.

100 billion cells make up the brain that communicates electrically with 1,000 trillion neural connections at up to 250 miles per hour. This sparking of electrical power creates man’s personality and behaviour. Human being has an armory of instincts to help him/her stay alive and violence certainly has an enormous impact that will reshape one’s life and give rise to evil. What is inside the mind of Kuklinski and Hitler and Stalin……?Alas, it is truly difficult to understand the power and complexity of the brain.

Believe it or not, I actually felt sorry for him. Without doubt, Kuklinski is another victim of society. Personally, I view his life as a classic case of a severely abused child, filled with seething rage, becoming an abuser and turning into a remorseless killer. What a sad, sad way to live......

My failure as a mother

To be a good mother was my greatest desire 20 years ago. From the first moments of knowing that I was going to be a mum, I wanted only the best for my daughter. I had no idea how I was going to do it but I knew that I would not settle for anything less than being a good mum. I would not let her suffer or go through what I went through in my childhood. It didn't take me long to realize that being a mum was the most difficult job I have ever done.

Then my son came along after five years. I have worked hard at being the best mum that I can be...to love my children...to teach them how to love and be grateful…to trust and love God above all. The painful part is in spite of how much I love them, I have also let them down.

Being a mum has made me appreciate my own mother. I realize all the heartaches and love that went into raising me and that she did the best that she knew how to do at that time and era. Yes, she has let me down and failed at times. I wasn’t the most loved child, in fact I received no love from her in my early years. Learning from her mistakes, all I want is to love and protect my children at all cost; provide and give them the best within my means and ability. But no, I have not been the perfect mother and yes, I have failed my children.

I strive to be a good mother but motherhood is not easy at all. Despite loving them unconditionally, I failed to understand simply how to be a good mother... not to mention the best. I do not know how to love them the way they want, how to protect them, how to emphasize and feel their pain in a very personal way. I have done many things in my life perfectly but I as a mum, I have failed. Is there such a thing as a perfect mother?

Letting go

Letting go and letting God…we hear it all the time, but only a few of us really live our lives this way and the truth is that it’s easier said than done. Is it so simple to let go of the uncontrollable and unchangeable in life? Surely I am not responsible to affect a change or correct a problem which is beyond my competency, power and authority. That’s an obvious fact. Of course, I can start being rational about what I can and cannot do, be realistic and accepting my powerlessness…. but a mother’s pain doesn’t heal and never fade away. It hurts and some days more badly.

When I was young, often time I sat and wondered how and why my mother always sit and ponder. Eyes and stare so far as if she has the whole world to bear. Her struggles, she endures. Hiding her pain and acting strong. Finally, now I understand…. my children’s hurt can turn my life painfully upside down. A sword has pierced my heart, the bleeding never stop. What else can I do but to pray for God’s grace to let me walk in faith. Having seen God’s faithfulness over and over, I will enter God’s rest and place my trust in Him.

What is integrity?

Integrity is one of the most important and oft-cited of virtue terms. Many philosophers have been particularly interested to understand what it is for a person to exhibit integrity throughout his/her life. What is it to be a person of integrity? A virtue either motivates a person to act in desirable ways as benevolence moves a person to act for another's good or it enables a person to act in desirable ways as courage enables a person to act well. If integrity is no more than maintenance of identity, however, it can play neither of these roles. On the identity view of integrity, to act with integrity is just to act in a way that accurately reflects your sense of who you are; to act from motives, interests and commitments that’s certainly more an intrinsic desires than anything else.

Integrity determines beforehand what we will be regardless of the circumstances. Integrity is the 'decision maker' between being happy and being fragmented. It frees us to be a whole person no matter what comes our way. Socrates said "The key to greatness is to be in reality what we appear to be" and he can’t be more right.

Presence not presents

Children need our presence not our presents. It is important for parents to spend time with their children and not just buying them things to show them that they are present. The best gifts I receive are tokens of love and concern from those I care about and those who care about me. Often the gift of time is the best present of all. Parents communicate the values to children by giving time, by our presence, by giving ourselves, not just presents.

Is brain death still life?

In 1968, Harvard Medical School changed the definition of death. It no longer based on cardiac and circulatory arrest but on a flat electroencephalogram. Electroencephalography is useful but not essential in determining brain death. It amounted to a radical change in the conception of death. The Catholic Church has also implicitly accepted this definition of death but with many reservations.

The scientific justification lies in the definition of the nervous system that casts doubt precisely on the fact that the brain causes the disintegration of the body. Since then, the organ indicative of death is the brain, no longer the heart. Before the invention of life-support systems, brain death always led quickly to death of the body. With new technology patients who were dead could still have a heartbeat and gave the false impression that they were very much alive while kept on a ventilator, giving hope to grieving families that the person may suddenly wake up. This false hope sometimes prevents their families from donating their organs but it may also be prompted by a specific interest i.e. the need for organs transplants.

Hence, ethical considerations are crucial to defining criteria for brain death, which in most countries must be met before efforts to extend life may be ended. Such criteria include deep coma with a known cause, absence of any brainstem functions and the exclusion of hypothermia, drugs, and poison as causes. Organ donors must therefore be declared brain-dead before their organs may be removed for transplant. These considerations obviously give rise to new bioethical problems for the Catholic Church. An interesting question is when can life support be legally end and who will play God? Although this is one of life's most painful experiences, it also can be a rich time of expressions of love and gratitude.

Law and justice

The law, alone and aloof by its very nature has no access to the pain and suffering of the victims just as it does not have the passion that might justify the cruel act of murder, rape and abuses. The legal mind is always thinking of law never of love. The legal mind thinks of justice but never of compassion. The legal minds and the criminal minds are two sides of the same coin. All legal minds are basically criminal and all criminal minds have the potential to become outstanding legal mind. So, where is the justice?

Can a leopard change its spots?

Everyone wants to become a better person. The difficult part is not wanting to be better, it is whether a leopard can change its spots or not and getting motivated to expand the list of positive attributes. You can have all the desire in the world to change and become a better person but when it comes down to doing it, it is often a different story.

A leopard cannot change its spots just as a tiger cannot change its stripes. I believe they are quite contented as they are. One cannot change one’s essential and basic nature. This metaphoric expression originated in an ancient Greek proverb that appears in Jeremiah 13:23 "Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots? Neither can you do good who are accustomed to doing evil."

Which brings us back to the original question: can a leopard change its spots? No, the only spot the leopard can change is its position! Anyway, it is not the leopard's spots that one needs to worry about… it’s the jaws and teeth.

Where to find angry and bitter people

Henri Nouwen once remarked that he found it curious that many of the people he knew who were very angry and bitter were people he had met in church circles and places of ministry. How sad, how disgraceful, how disappointing and how true……

A rescue or a redemption

How can a loving, merciful and powerful God allow so much suffering and evil in our world? This is by far the most difficult spiritual question throughout the ages. Where is God when bad things happen and why didn’t God act in the face of suffering? There have been countless attempts to answer this question and even more attempts to offer some kind of acceptable theoretical explanation. In reality God is able to stop all the innocent suffering and evils in the world. However, what is at stake is the free will He gives us and in His magnitude, respects and refuses to violate it even when it would seem beneficial to do so. Free will gives us the possibility of changing or destroying the world. Is this free will one of God’s greatest regret?

Fundamentally, dogmatic theology taught that God is not so much a rescuing God but a redeeming one. The Almighty Father did not save Jesus from death on the cross but allows him to die and then raises him up again. God doesn’t necessarily intervene and rescue us from suffering, evil and death; instead he redeems our suffering afterwards. Ultimately, is this what we want? A rescue or a redemption? Do you think those who are suffering will prefer to have the tangible rescue or accept God’s silent and absence and trusting that in the end all will be well and our pain will someday be redeemed in God’s embrace. Where are you, God?

Be the change you want to see in the world

Be the change you want to see in the world….. and I wonder, is it true? If you were to be that change, will the world actually change or are you just being hopelessly naive? Gandhi said “you must be the change you want to see in the world” and he did it. He was a revolutionary man who was able to accomplish India’s emergence as a nation without starting a revolution. He advocated no violence and atrocity and India was transformed because of the commitment of one man that made the dream of millions came true.

What change can we effect? What's the difference we want to make in the world? The concern is that not everyone bothers about the world enough to want to change it. That is the selfish nature of men. I live for myself and what I have is mine alone. There is no need to bother about the rest of the world, for what can the world give me that I myself cannot get. This is evident everywhere, there is a lack of committed volunteers worldwide, the lack of funds given to non-profit organizations and right down to the measly salary given to workers in such organizations as compared to those in the corporate sector. Why do people not recognize that the world needs them as much as they need the world?

All significant change throughout history has occurred not because of nations, militaries, governments and certainly not even the United Nations. They happened as a result of the courage and commitment of individuals. People like Joan of Ark, St Francis of Assisi, Albert Einstein, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Edison and Mother Teresa. They might not have done it alone, but they were, without question, the “change” makers in the sense that they believe that they can and will make a difference.

The genesis for change is awareness. We cannot change what we don’t acknowledge as wrong, immoral or not working. What we can do is to follow Roosevelt's timeless advice, "Do what you can, with what you have, where you are."

Maybe what I'm looking for is not change, just continuity. To carry on the works that others have done in the hope of making the world a better place to live and to love our neighbours as in the parable of “The Good Samaritan”. Yeah, we don't need the changes. We just need a storm and an ark to shake the world in a gentle way. But who is going to build the ark? Where is Noah? And I am not referring to Evan Almighty!

Heaven and hell on earth

We are created for a very simple, beautiful and wonderful life… that’s an ideology but in truth, life is but a paradox. We have to accept in humility that there are millions of things which we cannot understand or simply on the grounds that we are unable to comprehend them.

What is the purpose of my life? All the trials and tribulations, pains and sufferings… am I suppose to accept it not as a curse or punishment but a gift with a very specific purposes? Can I view my life as a challenge, a testing ground for faith, trust and hope? With unconditional love, one will not be afraid of the windstorms of life. Unfortunately, it may not be just a drizzle but a typhoon that devastates your whole being. We make our own heaven or hell…. yet sometimes it only takes one person to create a living hell for us.

The society in which we live has shredded me to pieces. Why did God allow free will that man could be either Dr Jekyll or Mr Hyde? We see the inhumanity of man in which each one of us is capable of becoming a Nazi monster yet at the end of the other spectrum, we also have the ability to become a Mother Teresa. Alas…. life is too taxing at this moment. Sometimes I smile and most of the times I cry….

I am sad

Sorrow is a part of our existence. Even the best among us cannot escape feeling sad at times. I am feeling very sad today.......

What is the meaning of life?

What is the meaning of life? Is it the meaning of being human or the meaning of life to each individual living it? If we're all going to be dead in the end anyway, what difference does it make as to what we do with our lives? Does the finality of death make life meaningless? Perhaps it is better to talk about its significance, authenticity, importance, rather than meaning itself. Human beings could choose their ends with the sovereignty to define their own meaning for their lives. Even if there no answer to the question of meaning of life, there is still the need to get through day to day. People who believe in God could still find their lives meaningless while on the other hand, atheists who have significant missions and relationships could feel their lives overflowing with meaning. What does meaning mean? Throughout the centuries, different philosophers have different answers. Existentialists find no meaning in life. Wittgenstein reckoned the question itself is meaningless. To the Darwinians, the meaning of life is evolution and more life. Perhaps the question is not so much about the meaning of life, but about living it….“How should I live?” and finding something beyond to discover an answer. If we ask the question “How to live life to the fullest?”, we probably get a whole new lot of answers.

Greed is the downfall of man

The collapse of Lehman Brothers was due to the intellectualized greed with a series of financial instruments used to justify the unjustifiable and create abundant personal gain in a shortest time possible. People just got more greedy and crazy in their endless obsession to squeeze every cent of profit that they ignored the perils of taking on too much risk. If any good will to come out of Lehman's downfall, it is a cautionary tale to the big players to be vigilant from making big bets on shaky investments. Didn’t anyone learn a thing or two from the collapse of Barings Bank in 1995 brought about solely by Nick Leeson?

This current financial crisis is by far the worst after the Great Depression in 1929 where thousands of investors lost large sums of money and many were wiped out and lost everything. The ensuing period was ranked as the longest and worst period of high unemployment and low business activities in modern times. Banks, businesses and factories were closed and millions of Americans were jobless, homeless and penniless. Many people have to depend on the government or charity to provide them with food. The Depression became a worldwide business slump of the 1930's that affected almost all nations. It led to a sharp decrease in world trade as each country tried to protect their own industries and products by raising tariffs on imported goods. There were changes in leadership and government. In Germany, poor economic conditions led to the rise to power of Adolf Hitler. The Japanese invaded China, developing industries and mines in Manchuria. Japan claimed this economic growth would relieve the depression. This militarism of the Germans and Japanese eventually led to World War II.

Greed is the most influential concepts of man. Nothing is enough, the constant need for more of whatever it may be, even when faced with the fact that we may never need that much of any one thing; we still seem to need more of it, just so that we can feel superior to everyone else. When Thaksin entered politics to promote his business interests, he succeeded spectacularly but the consequences of his hunger for money and power also proved his undoing and downfall. History has repeated itself one time too many. Greed primarily led to corruption and bribing that brings the downfall of man. At the end of the chain, there is only bloodshed and destruction on the issue of wealth. Man still fight for economic gains like natural resources etc. To acquire wealth, man will do anything – murder, bribe, loot, damage nature and ecosystems. Numerous lives are lost and destroyed. It brings out the devil in man. Hitler’s insatiability of power to prove the superiority of the Germans lead to mass killings of the Jews. Hence, inhuman behaviour is also the result of greed.

Downfalls are brought upon not so much as predetermined fates but ambitions to reach an unattainable goal and foolish choices. If greed becomes the foundation of mankind, are we looking at the possibility of World War III?????

Mutation of the selfish gene

A gene mutation is a permanent change in the DNA and mutations range from a single DNA base to a large segment of a chromosome. They can be inherited from parents or acquired during a person’s lifetime. The hereditary mutation is present throughout a person’s life in virtually every cell in the body. What is so special about genes? Well, the answer is that they are “replicators” that evolves by the disparity survival of replicating entities. Just as genes propagate themselves in the gene pool so memes propagate themselves from brain to brain via a process called imitation. Examples of memes are tunes, ideas, catch phrases etc. If one hears or reads a good article or idea, he passed it on to his family and friends. If the idea catches on, it can be said to propagate itself, spreading from brain to brain.

It does not matter how the world comes about, what remains real is Dawkins’ theory on the selfish gene. Whether it is the evolution of the savanna effect or the disobedience of Adam and Eves, the selfish gene is certainly in all of us, either active or passive. As Buddha said, how can one get angry if there is no anger in him? Hence, if we do not have the selfish gene in us, then we will be extremely philanthropic and the universe will truly be a beautiful world. In the face of a crisis, our selfish gene will surface and becomes very dominant. Selfish genes have no foresight. They are unconscious and blind “replicators” waiting to be awaken. Nonetheless, we have the power to defy our selfish gene and the selfish memes of our indoctrination. We have the power not to nurture but to rebel against the tyranny of the selfish gene as our brain has the capacity for genuine and true altruism and the ability to exploit it to the fullest if only we want to.

Euthanasia and Advanced Medical Directive

Euthanasia is the intentional termination of a person’s life, usually but not always at that person’s request, and typically in the context of terminal illness and grave suffering. Arguments in favour of euthanasia revolve around matters of the patient’s autonomy, the quality of life, unnecessary suffering, maintaining the patient’s dignity in the dying process, use of medical equipments to prolong needless suffering, the legal implication and regulating procedures to provide quality assurance for current practice and responding to changing public and professional attitudes about euthanasia. Arguments against euthanasia rotate around respect for human life, the likelihood of coercing a person to request euthanasia, the possibility that the patient is not fully competent or informed about his/her prognosis, conflicts of interest, proper and effective procedures used, the possibility of diagnostic errors or related medical incompetence, spiritual beliefs in the sacredness of life and danger of embarking upon a ‘slippery slope’ once euthanasia is accepted as a viable option. Alas, even the Church has an "extraordinary clause"!

The subtle choice available is the Advanced Medical Directive whereby a person signed in advance to indicate that he/she does not wish to have any extraordinary life sustaining treatment to prolong life in the event if he/she is terminally ill and is comatose. Under the Act, AMD can only be executed when a patient is certified with a terminal illness, needing life support and not capable of making rational judegment. With AMD, a patient with terminal illness will receive only palliative care and medication.

Do AMD and euthanasia have much in common? Is it just a different way to end life - one legally and the other illegally?

Is the unexamined life worth living?

Socrates' bold statement that "The unexamined life is not worth living" has fascinated many. What is outstanding about him is that he called a spade a spade, he doesn't mince words. He doesn't say that the unexamined life is "less meaningful than it could be" or "one of many possible responses to human existence" just simply and clearly that it's not even worth living.

Why does he make such strong and unequivocal statement? Socrates believed that the purpose of human life is one of personal and spiritual growth. We are unable to grow beyond greater understanding of our true nature unless we take time to examine and reflect upon our life. Deeper contemplation yields understanding of our subconscious mind under the iceberg. Unless we are aware of our hidden nature, much of our life is unconscious repetition. It's a radical necessity to start contemplating on our life and to Socrates, that is what really matters.

"He who does not remember the past is condemned to repeat it." - Santayana

The selfish gene

We want to know how our universe exists and have come a long way from the mystical beginnings of the study of cosmology and the origins of the universe. Most hypotheses only led to more intriguing and complex questions. We have Darwin’s Theory of Evolution and the mythology that Adam and Eve were created by God to be the first humans and of course, the explosion from nothing… the Big Bang.

It does not matter to me how this world comes about but it saddens me that the selfish gene in man is setting its roots deeper and deeper into humanity and becoming one of savage competition, ruthless exploitation, deceit and survival of the fittest. Richard Dawkins’ book ‘The Selfish Gene’ touches every aspect of social lives, loving and hating, fighting and cooperating, giving and stealing, greed and generosity. Dawkins shows that the selfish gene is also the subtle gene. If society is one of universal ruthless selfishness, then it is certainly a very nasty society in which we live. Unfortunately, no matter how much we may deplore, it does not stop it from being true. Malignant self love is the norm of society. I scratch your back, you scratch mine. How sad indeed…..

The Catholic Church teaches social justice as a respond to the cause of problems and social charity as a respond of the effects of problems. Justice in the world developed by a Synod of Bishops in November 1971 signed by Pope Paul VI says that action for justice is a requirement of our faith and that action for justice must happen at all level. Social justice is respecting the transcendent dignity of man. Advocacy for social justice is to give a voice to those who have no voice. We are called to speak out, not chicken out!

Looking back, if God decrees it all, did He decree evil? Did He somehow allow evil to get its ugly hands on His beautiful world? Did He mean for evil to distort and destroy human lives? No Christian theology actually advocates evil but yet most Christians live with the notion ‘every man for himself’. We only need to remember the ecstatic “Sieg Heil” chanted as a ritual Hosanna to Hitler to know that many consented to the monstrous evils of the Nazi regime. Why??? In order to ensure their survival, they have no qualms to live an unauthentic life…. the very manifestation of the selfish genes.

Life is ambiguous. Has the Catholic Church with Her affluent, powerful and educated people become too self-centred and insensitive to other’s people’s plights? The survival of the fittest prevails among the elites. Without the grace of God, men would not know how to discern the often narrow path between the cowardice which gives in to evil and the violence which under the illusion of fighting evil only makes it worse. Only the practice of justice alone makes us capable of respecting others and their rights. How can we condone an appalling act just because we are beholden to certain people? We can’t hold hands with evil and rejoice with truth at the same time… that’s absolute antithesis. Truth is reality when it matches God’s purpose. Truth is a person whose acts and words blend to draw a profile of human life as God meant it to be lived. Can we call ourselves Christian if we live, acts and behave like a pagan? Can we truly answer to God and live with our guilty conscience for putting self before others? It’s time for us to look seriously at the ethic of reciprocity before we lost our basic fundamental moral value. It’s a sad, sad life, no doubt!

What does charity mean?

"When you give to the poor, don't let your left hand know what your right hand is doing". Matthew 6:3

When we hear the word "charity" we think of giving to the poor and needy. A love made visible as in service. But really, what does charity mean? It is pure joy of giving, which includes much more than material and monetary things…. keeping someone in prayers, a warm smile to strangers, an encouraging hug, an unexpected phone call, a thoughtful word of appreciation, fraternity with a person in grief, giving a listening ear…. what that is done not out of duty or responsibility but out of the abundance of love and compassion. The more you give, the more flows back in; that is the joy of love in action, the manifestation of charity. As long as you feel compelled to do something or give because it is your duty or because you want something in return, there is no love. As Abraham Lincoln said: "With malice towards none, with charity for all". Charity is not just a religious concept; it forms the basis for belief in democracy. Regardless of one belief in God or not, one believes in the intrinsic value of human beings and bases one's life and behaviour on that belief. The challenge remains for all of us… to give without expectation or reward. But alas, in this selfish and self-centred world, it’s like looking for a needle in a haystack. It’s a long way to being a gracious society especially when every individuals and organizations have a hidden agenda. Such is the ugly nature of mankind… the savanna effect.

Stress is a nightmare

Life without stress… no way… definitely not in today’s world. It creeps up behind you and follows you like a shadow and gnaws at you day and night. Complicated human behaviors and genetic make-ups paired with even more complicated environments play a huge role that makes us victim of stress. Only consolation is that we all have an optimum stress level and the right amount of stress can fuel energy level, creativity, productivity and performance. Anyway, better be stressed out than burnt out. I wonder... is a frugal simple lifestyle stress free?

How much is justice worth?

We get justice in the next world, in this world what we have are lawyers and liars. The real miscarriage of justice is when people are more interested in the rights of criminals than the rights of victims. To do justice is to correct the abuses and stop depriving others of their basic rights or failing to correct matters when those rights are not met. Injustice is either a sin of commission or omission. A court order is only a piece of useless paper if it is not enforced. The role of the court is to deal with injustice once it has already occurred. Unfortunately, liberal concept of justice does not always believe in the possibility of achieving democracy, justice, public good and other ideals through legislative and prescriptive actions. Such is too complex for simpleton human imagination, conception and execution. Procedures limit power to prevent trespassing that includes the rights to ensure the protection especially those of minors. As humanity is only effective as a group, the judgement of good or evil must be the recognition of what is good or bad for the community at large. But knowing which is which is a difficult task and can only be resolved by wisdom which is fundamentally lacking.

Did you notice the world is fast aging?

Population aging is a global phenomenon affecting every man, woman and child and has a profound implication on many facets of the human lives. The 21st century will witness even more rapid aging due to the baby boomers after World War II. Aging is enduring, we cannot and will not return to the young populations that our ancestors knew. Although the concept of old age differs in different countries and cultures, gerontology remains the greatest challenge in this era. As lives develop, aging is continually evolving. Before a person is born the aging process has started. Once we start to show impairment of our organs, cognition, hearing,vision and our skin become dry, inelastic and pigmentation appears, wrinkling and sagging and hair become thin or vanishing, do we really want to live to a ripe old age?

If only

'If only' can be destructive to reaching our goals and stop us from moving ahead. If only… I can live my life all over again…. had chosen a different career…. had not married…. hadn’t been born into this world…. if only…. if only…. ‘If only’ gives the luxury of making ourselves a helpless and passive responder to life’s events.

The “if only” dialogue… Husband: “If only my wife wouldn’t nag, I wouldn’t drink”. Wife: “If only my husband wouldn’t drink, I wouldn’t nag”.

Each person’s ‘if only’ is the cause of their behaviour and each person’s behaviour is the other person’s ‘if only’. In reality, ‘if only’ is our own choice.

Will you live or will you die?

Suicide: An Unnecessary Death is an interesting book that addresses all the major areas of concern and interest. This is a subject that makes us feel sad and to some extent still remains a taboo in society. Suicidal behavior is a leading cause of injury and death worldwide. A cold look at data collates and disseminates by WHO on mortality and morbidity indicates approximately 1 million people around the world take their life every year and at least 10 times as many attempted suicide. It is regrettable that only a handful of authorities realised the economic and human burden suicide caused. Do they care about the suffering of families, friends and loved ones left behind? Are there sufficient ongoing efforts to decrease the significant loss of life caused by suicidal behavior? Do men live and die in vain? How sorrowful to approach the end of life without any accomplishment or closure.....


The past is but the beginning of a beginning, and all that is or has been is but the twilight of the dawn -H.G. Wells

Politics of emotion

When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long (Psalm 32:3)

Suppression…is it keeping a lid on our emotions... denial, repression and escapism? Time heals all wounds… does it apply in all situation? It’s debatable. What it really means is ‘Give me enough time and I can suppress anything’. Where does forgiveness and forgetting stand? Hiding negative emotions does not decrease the extent to which emotions are experienced, it only make one appear but not feel less emotional. It is amazing that we are better at suppressing than at letting go. In fact, we suppressed so much that we are in some way like a walking time bomb. Our body shows signs of stress… shoulders stuck in our ears, stomach in knots and then we exploded. The other side of the pendulum swing of suppression is expression… our emotion in action. Is negative expression more detrimental or encouraging than suppression? Neither suppression nor expression is a problem in and of itself. They are merely two different ends of the same spectrum of how we usually handle our emotions. A problem arises when we don’t feel in control over which one is happening, and many times we find ourselves doing the opposite of what we intended. Very often we get stuck on one side of the spectrum or the other. These are the moments when we need to find the freedom to let go.

Do you have what it takes?

It takes courage to stand for truth, justice and what is good
It takes concern to donate your time and money to people less fortunate
It takes love to consume less so that more can be shared with others
It takes commitment to follow through on promises made
It takes dedication to continue loving those who in in unloving ways
It takes perseverance to work through a personal crisis
It takes faith to keep believing God's light will shine in the darkness
It takes compassion to see 'Christ' in every other human being.

If love never last forever, what's forever for?

What happen when the people you love is no longer of sound mind? The only thing one can be sure in life is change - more specifically, people will change. Can we still love when taking care of elderly parents is trying and difficult? Can love rise above the ordinary? A bird may love a fish, but where will they live?

Moral Dilemma

How true is it that humans are the planet's most noble creatures and its most savage. Are we, the altruistic like Gandhi, Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King Jr or the atrocious like Stalin, Hitler and Pol Pot? Moral judgment is relatively consistent from person to person. However, moral behavior is scattered all over. The rules we know, even the one we intuitively feel, are by no means the rules we always follow. The brain works harder when the threat gets more complicated.