BINIGYAN NA TAYO NI LORD NG GUIDEPOSTS PARA SA PAG-ANGAT NG BANSA

By Maria Lourdes Sereno

BAWAT ISA MAHALAGA. Iyan ang implikasyon o ang ibig sabihin ng katuruan sa pagbungad pa lamang ng Bibliya sa Genesis 1:26-27. Nilikha ang bawat isang tao ayon sa wangis ng Diyos, at ang lahat ay dapat maging brother’s keeper o may pakialam sa kapakanan ng kapwa-tao. Fast forward tayo sa Psalm 82 at ito ang isa sa pinaka-powerful condemnation o pagtuligsa na mababasa natin sa aklat ng Psalms. Ito ang pagkompronta ng Panginoon sa Psalm 82:2-4:

“How long will you judge unjustly, And show partiality to the wicked? Defend the poor and fatherless; Do justice to the afflicted and needy. Deliver the poor and needy. Free them from the hand of the wicked.”

Ayon sa ilang bible scholars, patungkol daw ito sa temporal rulers. Ang sabi naman ng iba, para daw ito sa mga spiritual beings o “princes” over territorial jurisdictions. Kahit saan natin ito tingnan, mabigat ang implikasyon nito sa lahat ng churches. No church should be known for defending the wicked. And when it does, kasama ba sila sa binibigyan ni Lord ng babalang ito—sa mga nagpapatagal ng paghahari ng kasamaan o wickedness sa Psalm 82:2?

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Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno is living proof that true courage is forged through adversity.

Sereno rose from humble beginnings to become the country’s first female Chief Justice in 2012. She attended public elementary and secondary school, then pursued higher education through scholarships. She graduated valedictorian from the UP College of Law in 1984, and holds a Masters of Law degree, specializing in law and economics and international trade law, from the University of Michigan.

She was a law professor at the UP for nearly 20 years. The World Trade Organization recognized her stellar credentials with her 1998 appointment as Counsellor of their Appellate Body in Geneva, Switzerland. She was also involved in successful international litigation as co-counsel for the Republic and was AIM’s Executive Director for their Policy Center.

With her modernizing outlook and firm belief in the power of technology, she co-founded a corporation that developed the first annotated electronic research system in Philippine Law. Her tenure as Chief Justice is marked by far-reaching reforms, including eCourts, automated hearings, case decongestion, continuous trials, and expanded small claims courts. At the heart of her reform program is the strong conviction that justice and the law’s protection should be accessible and responsive to the most vulnerable Filipinos. Because she was a staunch defender of judicial independence, Sereno was subjected to intense persecution.

Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno is now a major voice for people-centered change in Philippine society. She believes this change is part of God’s desire for this country, that every Filipino is precious in God’s sight, bawat isa mahalaga, and that each citizen and every community has a role in building up this nation. She is an advocate for faithfulness to the vision of a “just and humane society” in the Philippine Constitution, and integrity and accountability in governance.

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