So, did the walls of Jericho fall? What Happened to the Prayers?
Cesar Evangelista Buendia·Monday, 14 May 2018347 reads
I woke up at 3 am yesterday, May 11 2018. In the Bible, Joshua was said to have woken up early in the morning to lead Priests in marching around Jericho with his fighting men for six days. Joshua had commanded his people not to shout, not even talk. “Not a single word from any of you until I tell you to shout. Then shout!”, said Joshua. The Lord had promised that on the seventh day of their march, after they shout, the fortified walls of Jericho would collapse.
I arrived at around 4am, a bit late for the Jericho March which was to be led by Intercessors for the Philippines head Bishop Dan Balais. I had to park my car by the Methodist church in Kalaw, corner Taft avenue which is not so close to the Supreme Court in Padre Faura. At the island on the corner of Taft and Kalaw were 200 or so young men and women in white. They were one of the groups ready to march around the Supreme Court seven times just as Joshua and his men did in Jericho. The original plan of marching just around Padre Faura had been changed because the police had barricaded Padre Faure. Undeterred, the committed believers agreed to march around a much larger, more tiresome route instead of just around the walls of the Supreme Court. I attempted to walk with the young Christians but as expected, I could not keep up with them. Instead, I joined the larger and older group which gathered in front of the Supreme Court in a limited space in Padre Faura. I thought the place would be filled with tension. At around 11pm the night before, the police had threatened to disperse the Pastors, Priests, one Nun and some farmers who were together fasting for justice. Pastor Hesed Jack Dosejo Alvarez was on his 10th day of total fasting and he had no energy left for the impending tension.The Christian leaders in the area negotiated with the police in a manner expected of believers. The police did not disperse them. Instead, the police set-up the barricade leaving enough space for the rally the next day. Thank you!
When I walked into the rally area in Padre Faura, I was reminded of EDSA in 1986 except that very few were in yellow. Majority were in either white or purple. There were booths distributing free food… there were booths for first aid… Actually, it was a little more than EDSA because there was a big group singing beside the police truck they had used to barricade the Supreme Court. They were singing praise songs for our Lord Jesus! They were waving flags with the name of Jesus! They did not look tired or hungry at all so I was shocked to find out from Paring Albert Alejo that the group of Evangelicals had been there since 2 in the morning, singing and dancing non-stop to glorify God our King. Every now and again, you would hear the glorious sound of the Shofar. Then at around 5am, their leader, Bishop Dan Balais spoke the Word of God. He spoke no politics, only of justice, love and faith in God. Later on, he asked the people to kneel on the asphalt road. They obeyed the good Bishop, even the old ones… and when Bishop started praying, many started weeping, crying to God for justice and mercy for the Philippines. The Shofar was blown again.
More people arrived at Padre Faura. The militants started marching in to the beat of their drums. They started chanting in their usual combative tone. The Evangelicals gave way and welcomed them in. Later, the Roman Catholic Priests led by Fr. Robert Reyes, Fr. Albert Alejo and Fr. Flavie held a Catholic Mass. A bit later, several leaders of the Mega-churches Victory Christian Fellowship and Christ Commission Church (CCF) started joining in. Even Bishop Alconga and Bishop Jonel Milan came!
Has this ever happened before? The sun was shining bright but heat was kind. It was windy and the breeze was cool. It felt more like we were in a nice park covered with trees than in the middle of a polluted concrete jungle in a street in Manila. The Evangelicals were still singing praises and nobody minded the noise from the jeepneys and the LRT. People from different religious groups were together in one area fighting and praying for justice and mercy for our nation.
But talks were rife. CJ Sereno was going to lose the vote. I asked myself, “How can a faithful, loving and just God not listen to the cries of these people?” The tears that I saw that morning were real and the prayers came straight from the heart. He promised in 1 John 5:14
This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.
The Lord was not going to fail us. I prayed some more.
Soon after, my friend Harry suddenly pointed out a faint and short rainbow hovered on top of us at the Supreme Court. That was enough assurance for me.
Still, the rumors turned out to be true. Our beloved Sister, CJ Maria Lourdes Sereno had been expelled by her colleagues. A basher on facebook mockingly asked, “What happened to your prayers?” He insisted that the Lord answered our prayers with a big NO!
I slept. I did not get enough sleep the night before. When I woke up at around 4pm, I checked the posts on Facebook. The outburst was strong, stronger than when Marcos was buried as a hero. It was then that the truth dawned on me. The walls of the Supreme Court have fallen! A judge is only as good as his honor – A court only as credible as the judge. The Supreme Court of the Philippines lost its only untainted member. For a very long time, many Filipinos looked up to the Supreme Court as the last bastion of hope in the Philippines. To many, that hope rested on the fact that the court still had a woman of solid integrity as its chief. They kicked out that chief. The 8 Associate Justices defiled their own honor by voting in favor of an unconstitutional Quo Warranto Petition. Henceforth, all of their decisions will be in question as they themselves have defied the very constitution they have sworn to uphold. Who will believe these infidels of democracy now?
I did not see a defeat but a victory. Our ranks have increased… more Christians have awakened and this issue has unshrouded the true character not only of the 8 infidels but of the whole du30 administration.
The story does not end with the crumbling of the walls. Joshua’s fighting men had to charge straight in and take the city. They had to destroy and burn the whole thing down and then dedicate it to the Lord.
Have you read the posts of so many lawyers on Social Media? Do you know what the honorable deans and professors of the Law Schools are up to? Have you read the statements of condemnation from various groups? These 8 sullied Associate Justices judges have destroyed the law which is the very foundation of the whole Law Profession. The Lawyers have to protect the Law and now they are fighting back! Just as Joshua’s fighting men charged in to destroy Jericho, they lawyers will have to finish-off the biased 8 if they still care about the Law.
Perhaps they have to look into the way Lawyers practice their profession in the Philippines today. Is the law still protecting the innocent or is it now being used to justify crime? The 8 are only part of the bigger problem. Perhaps it is time for all agents of the Law to reflect on what has become of their profession.
The walls of Jericho did fall. The LORD GOD HEARD OUR PRAYERS!
And so, it will be for the whole country and all our individual lives. We do our part – We worship, pray and obey. The Lord is faithful. He is not deaf to our cries. He is in control. He will destroy what has to be destroyed and bless our land once again…. And as they did in Jericho, we will once again dedicate the Philippines to the Lord! Hallelujah!
