Roman Catholic priest Ed Panlilio, wearing a bullet proof vest, gestures beside his campaign poster in the outskirts of Pampanga province, north of Manila May 1, 2007.
First off shouldn’t he be wearing a bullet proof vestment?
The priest – Father Ed Panlilio – said that he will temporarily leave the priesthood but he will remain a man of God.
Panlilio said he already filed a leave of absence before a local archbishop and he is waiting for a reply.
Panlilio has been part of the clergy for 26 years and headed the Pampanga Social Action Center for the past 20 years.
He was also the founder of a non-government organization and became part of the rescue operations during the eruption of Mt Pinatubo in June 1991.
The priest will be facing Incumbent Governor Mark Lapid and Board Member Lilia Pineda, both of whom have announced their respective plans to run for governor.
The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines did not express immediately opposition to the possibility of Panlilio becoming a politician.
"Yung kanyang pagkapari will remain. Kaya lang yung kanyang function as a priest ang (mawawala)," Bishop Pedro Quitorio, CBCP spokesman said.
Something is pretty odd here since normally you can expect the Philippines Bishop’s conference not to ignore Canon law in a situation like this. You are a priest forever, unless you take a temporary leave of absence to run for governor.
It certainly does seem that his own bishop is supporting him in his run.
“I don’t have any doubt about his fidelity to his vocation,” the 70-year-old bishop told the Inquirer.
And then there was this scary sentence in an opinion piece in the Manila Times.
You know very well our image of priestly heroes. They are imposing, they are larger than life, they are Che Guevaras in flowing robes.
Not exactly a sentence I would ever construct. Though I doubt very much that Fr. Panlilio fulfills this image. A Che Guevaras in flowing robes would just have more places to hide machine guns.
36 comments
Is he by any chance a gay male prostitue?
Please read the brilliant book by the Linacre Institute,”Asceticism,Prayer,Sex and Deviant Priests”.
It will answer all your questions about the collapse of priestly fidelity.
Viva Cristo Rey!
The comments of BillyHW and Dan Hunter are very unkind and unChristian. Fr. Ed Panlilio is not gay.
Philippine newspapers, like American newspapers, are not models of accuracy. This is only one report from one newspaper, but other newspapers reported that Fr. Ed’s bishop tried to dissuade him from running. I don’t know what canon law says about specific cases like this, but for the information of those who don’t read Tagalog, what Msgr. Quitorio said was that he remains a priest, but cannot perform priestly functions.
Araceli,
Billy was referring to a gay male prostitute and priest who ran for office in Canada.
Canon law flat out says that priests, etc can not run for political office.
The fact that a priest wants to run for public office here can be taken as a sign of desperation on the part of the masses on the performance of traditional politicians (derisively nicknamed as “trapo” meaning “washcloth” -specifically a dirty washcloth) that they will latch on to someone who projects an image of righteousness.
The ads that they run here nauseate me. Song-and-dance routines pollute the airwaves while posters are a BIG eyesore everywhere.
Remember that the worst enemies of the Church are the internal ones.
Also in Latin America if you see the history of communist and revolutionary-heck- in the whole world, you see priests as collaborators and sometimes leaders.
Why?
Because evil cannot take over unless those called to fight it allow and help it.
Why are Americans so obssessed by sex? If a gay priest/gay male prostitute runs for office in Canada, it does not follow that a priest who runs for office in the Philippines is also gay.
I have been following this story. It is sad news, bad news, when a priest runs for office. But his bishop did try to dissuade him from running; however when slanders were made against Fr. Ed, he had to defend Fr. Ed’s integrity while he served under him. Was he supposed to remain silent on the pretext that vouching for his record as a priest would be taken as an endorsement of his candidacy? Maybe you would think more highly of him as a bishop according to your standards and your American conditions, but I would think less of him as a bishop and as a human being.
Prior to running, Fr. Ed had tried to persuade prominent Pampanguenos to run. No one wanted to run afoul of powerful gambling lords with political connections all the way to Malacanang.
He run as a last resort. I myself think that, in terms of his priestly vocation, it was a bad decision, but I am not going to condemn him.
As for canon law, we also have canon lawyers in the Philippines, and I am waiting, as probably the CBCP is also waiting, for their reading of the situation.
araceli,
You don’t exactly need to be a Canon lawyer on this issue and it is not one that Canon lawyers need to do a lot of research on.
Can. 285 �1. Clerics are to refrain completely from all those things which are unbecoming to their state, according to the prescripts of particular law.
�2. Clerics are to avoid those things which, although not unbecoming, are nevertheless foreign to the clerical state.
�3. Clerics are forbidden to assume public offices which entail a participation in the exercise of civil power
“Clerics are forbidden” there is no leeway here about taking leaves of absence or because someone thinks they have to do it. Father Ed is simply being disobedient and is not doing the right thing no matter how anybody will try to justify it.
Do they have senses of humour in the Phillipines like we do in Canada?
Unfortunately, no. The Philippine government couldn’t even take a half-baked Leno joke. Good folk in that country, but severely lacking in any sense of Western irony. However, I suspect that is more a good thing than a bad one.
Personally, I hope Fr. Ed gets the appropriate canonical smackdown. The Drinan treatment at least, if not the same treatment as that commie priest who became culture minister in Nicaragua. Fr. Ed sounds like a nice guy and all, but his actions reek of hubris. It is not his job to master this particular tide. If it were, he would never have been a man of the cloth.
It is indeed sad that Pampanguenos fail to see the folly in Father Ed’s decision. As a priest he knows that one reason why Canon law specifically prohibits a man of the cloth from getting involved in politics is for the survival of the Catholic church. It is to protect it from the meddling and muckraking of politicians.
If he is sincere in his desire for social change he should have started in his own backyard. He sees the evils of politicians but is blind to the evils of the church. One reason for the growing decline in morality among it’s faithful is the corruption and immorality among many priests of the Catholic church. If he can cleanse the church of its evils then it will gain back the respect and trust of its faithful.
He claims that his action was borne out of desperation, of hopelessness. What happened to prayers? Did he lose hope in his God?
Panlilio is a scandal. Plain and simple. There are things greater than politics. And he traded them for politics. How could you trust a man like that?
In 1986, the dean of the Ateneo School of Law, a Jesuit priest, was a delegate to the Constitutional Convention under the Cory Administration. He was not directed by the Vatican to resign, unlike Fr. Robert Drinan, neither were his priestly functions suspended. I think I’ll wait for the canon lawyers to decide, or for the papal nuncio to issue a Vatican direction.
In 1986, the dean of the Ateneo School of Law, a Jesuit priest, was a delegate to the Constitutional Convention under the Cory Aquino administration. His priestly functions were not suspended, neither was he directed by the Vatican to resign, unlike Fr. Robert Drinan. I think I’ll wait for our canon lawyers to issue a ruling, or for the papal nuncio to issue a directive.
Billy, I think it is “sense of humor” and not “senses of humor,” whether you are talking about one person or many. I don’t know if this qualifies, but I am amused by the indignant sputterings that followed my posts.
About Jay Leno – at last, someone brought him up! I’ve long wanted to say that he was very welcome to exchange places with the Filipino hostage in Iraq who was the reason behind the pullout of Filipino troops. Not that I agreed with the decision, mind you. But thank you, Jonathan, for giving me an opportunity to get that off my chest.
Panlilio is a scandal? Well, no more than American pedophile priests, I guess.
Real Catholic, you asked very valid questions – What happened to prayers? Did he lose hope in his God? I agree completely, and this is what saddens me. He lacked faith and put his trust in works, and thus compromised his vocation as a priest.
‘Temporary leave the priesthood’? Is that even possible? They’re putting too much emphasis on ‘a priest forever’ part and neglect the ‘No running on politics’ part.
Sadly, many of the Filipino clergy meddle too much on Politics, neglecting their Flock. Pray for them.
I think I’ll wait for the … papal nuncio to issue a Vatican direction.
Ha ha, they do indeed have a sense of humour!
🙂
“In 1986, the dean of the Ateneo School of Law, a Jesuit priest, was a delegate to the Constitutional Convention under the Cory Administration.”
The Constitutional Convention was not a permanent public institution. It was a one-time deal to hammer out a conclusive Constitution. As such, membership there is not akin to membership in a public institution. A priest could have participated in, say, the signing of the Declaration of Independence, with no canonical problems. But if said priest joins Congress, it is another story. The comparison between Fr. J. Bernas and Fr. Ed is invalid.
“About Jay Leno – at last, someone brought him up! I’ve long wanted to say that he was very welcome to exchange places with the Filipino hostage in Iraq who was the reason behind the pullout of Filipino troops. Not that I agreed with the decision, mind you. But thank you, Jonathan, for giving me an opportunity to get that off my chest.”
Oh please. It was a joke. Get over it. I can’t belief you’d hold something petty like that in your chest for a long time. Geez. If George Bush began responding that way to every joke made about him, his family or his policies….
“Panlilio is a scandal? Well, no more than American pedophile priests, I guess.”
Wow, we’re resorting to cheap shots now? Yes, they’re both scandals, and totally useless to each other in scoring cheap rhetorical points. In fact, the equivalent problem of pedophile priests in America is the number of priests with mistresses in the Philippines. (I think one bishop resigned when it was found out that he had two kids.) When it comes to priests in politics, well, the Americans had Drinan and now the Philippines has this guy. He should take a page out of Cardinal Sin’s playbook. That hero never needed to run for any petty political office to affect political change.
“He claims that his action was borne out of desperation, of hopelessness. What happened to prayers? Did he lose hope in his God?”
I think it is an extreme in a different direction as well. This guy thinks he’s God…or His Sole Anointed, or the One with all the answers, or something like that. Hubris and despair make for a scary combo.
I find your rhetorics both amusing and disgusting given the fact that those of you who are against Fr Panlilio do not know him personally. At least Fr Ed, who is first and foremost a human being before being anything else including a priest, is MAN enough to stand out and be a voice for Capampangans who have lost theirs. That’s one less soul who can live with a clean conscience every day of his life.
“I find your rhetorics both amusing and disgusting given the fact that those of you who are against Fr Panlilio do not know him personally.”
Has the same logic as asking a doctor to cease diagnosing cancer until he has suffered it himself. This is ridiculous.
“At least Fr Ed, who is first and foremost a human being before being anything else including a priest, is MAN enough to stand out and be a voice for Capampangans who have lost theirs.”
I won’t even stray far from Fr. Ed’s national backyard. I don’t recall Cardinal Sin, Father Jose Burgos, Father Mariano Gomez, Father Zamora, et al ad nauseam thinking of setting aside their priestly vocation to “give voice to the people”. Heck, I surmise that they did a pretty fine job doing the latter without compromising (in fact, even enhancing) the former.
Fr. Ed is alter Christus before he is anything else. And he betrayed that. For what? To do a job he is unqualified and was never meant to do.
But hey, if you’re the type who thinks that the Pope could best serve the world by running for office in the EU, then we’ll talk when you get back to planet Earth.
To suffer for righteousness in one’s country as a priest is more effective and symbolic than to effect change as a politician. Yet, Fr Ed, who is also always a man, is running for political office. ..Running. Not elected. Perhaps with our prayer support he will hear his higher calling? He is in a very difficult situation right now–one I know I will never face, personally. One way or another, he (and the Phillipines) could use our prayers.
I don’t really care who Father Ed is, what he’s done, what he is. It doesn’t even matter who is going up against. Fact is his alibi that he is the last hope of Pampanga doesn’t hold water. I am sure that in his heart he knows he is not capable of stopping jueteng. I am certain that in his heart he knows he cannot stop corruption in government. How can he make people believe that jueteng is evil when the very church to which he belongs to openly accepts and solicits donations from jueteng lords? There was really no need for him to leave the priesthood. He should have stayed where he was and worked towards restoring the credibility of the church.
theres was no need for him to run blah blah blah and blah…and his alibi doesnt hold water…etc,, would you rather let those evil doers to take in charge, shame on you, let them torts the people and squander the natural wealth of the province where he is running for governor, let them rob the poorest people pocket change in hope to win on a illegal lottery or jueteng, and who do you think will run and succeed over these two goliath, forget your canon law and look at the big picture and your canon law cannot stop corruption and illegal doings in church or anywhere…..
I would rather sacrifice a province than ruin the whole church. That is the big picture. That is the reason for the canon law. To preserve the Catholic church. To save it from division and ruin.
Let’s analyze Ed Panlilio’s number one benefactor.
She already gave 7 million pesos. Why? She’s Cabalantian’s quarry queen. Tell your priest to say this is a lie.
These word of yours are heavy “division and ruin” you’re view point is so ironic just look at whats happening to the resident of pampanga and some folks outside pampanga and around the world, I have seen the solidarity and unity of the catholic and none catholic tell that to them your opinion of “division and ruin” look at the reality! we cannot sacrifice the resident and future generation of pampanga. Does the ends justify the means on the candidacy of Fr. Ed panlilio I believe it does , does’nt it? he made a sacrifice though he never foreseen these wave of moral support coming from every corner of pampanga.
The division and ruin of the catholic church is far from reality not even to my imagination.
lets do the math on jueteng in that province on 25 towns each town with 25 barangays,every brgy collect about avg 2,500pesos/bola the drawing is 3x a day draw(bola) so 3 x 2,500 x 25 brgy = 187,500pesos/day in just 1 town multiply that by 25 towns, 187,500 x 25 = 4,687,500pesos/day multiply that by 30 days(1 month)= 140,625,000pesos/month multiply that 12months(1 year)=1,687,500,000pesos/year multiply that by 10year(1 decade)= 16,875,000,000/10 year about 17 billion pesos ladys and gentleman and thats only for 1 province imagine the entire luzon? do the math,
to the real catholic, my dear you’re “it doest not matter who is up against attitude doesnt hold water then what does matters to you? Ed Panlilio sacrifice his preisthood for a heavenly cause, and the catholic church is not the one calling the shot on his candidacy lets be very clear on that, i for one would rather have outside the church to govern but which of the 2 candidate lapid and pineda its like having to choose beetween firing squad or electric chair and suddenly miracle happen before dday someone comes along to save you from these 2 evil and you still ask question why? you deserve to die thats all I can say…..
Fr. Ed Panlilio is not gay.
Let us give him a chance to serve Pampanga. We’ve been under so many different “types” of politicians already and yet the issues still REMAIN regarding “quarrying” and “waiting”. Why??
Almost all of us in Pampanga know there’s too much corruption here. Tama na. Let’s make a clean start with Fr. Ed Panlilio.
This crusade is not for ED PANLILIO. This crusade for a change in our system is for all of us. For me and for you.
For all those who condemned fr.ed look at your self first in the mirror and asked your self what good did you do for for our province pampanga� fr.ed cannot make this fight alone WE all need to work.let us helped him make instead of judging him. I hope we can be ONE in this battle.
For all those who condemned fr.ed look at your self first in the mirror and asked your self what good did you do for for our province pampanga� fr.ed cannot make this fight alone WE all need to work.let us helped him make the difference instead of judging him. I hope we can be ONE in this battle.
Let’s get everything clear here. Father Ed never sacrificed his priesthood for a heavenly cause. Get real. He just went on leave. He loses, he goes back. He wins, he’s definitely not coming back. His not coming back because of winning is no sacrifice at all. What I’d consider a sacrifice is his resigning from all priestly duties win or lose. Right now, he had nothing to lose.
For all those who condemned fr. ed …
so let’s all let the criminals loose as no one among the judges who convicted them nor any of the people who sued them is sinless.
let’s do the math on jueteng….
There’s no need to do the math on jueteng, it is irrellevant. Simply put, it is illegal and I agree that it is.
the division of the church is far from reality and not even in my imagination…
I’m not after your vision and imagination. You are clearly blinded by the whiteness of his priestly robe.
unforeseen wave of moral support coming from the whole of Pampanga…
What support? 250 vehicle motorcade? Aquino was able to organize a 1500 vehicle motorcade. Rodrigues, 3000 vehicles.
Word is, as of yesterday, massive vote buying has greatly weakend the support. partly due to the fault of the church itself. As I said, how can you make the people believe that jueteng is bad when priests themselves bring the hungry, the sick and needy to jueteng lords for help?
Does the end justify the means on the candidacy of ed panlilio?…
So where do you draw the line? Go tell the hungry that going to the jueteng lord for help is wrong even if it will feed their family. Go tell the sick and dying that asking the jueteng lord to pay their medical bills is wrong even if it will keep them alive. The end does not justify the means should apply to everyone.
No material thing in life comes free. There is always a time that all these financiers will ask him to payback.
“where do you draw the line?” now your talking, so the sick the hungry and dying people are asking for help to pay for their medicine and even abuloy para sa patay its a common thing during election so jueteng lord help the poor people, so thats a good thing?
Priest themselves bring the sick and hungry to the jueteng lord for help? maybe in the town of lubao. If jueteng become legal it shouldn’t be a bad thing,it can help so why not legalized? hmmm, do the math the only thing wrong about jueteng is run illegally..
sana may magbigay ng ulat sa bawat bayan ng pampanga para malaman natin ang mga resulta ng halalan, I know its early pero bigyan niyo kami ng update for every town, these election is one of its kind in history. thanks
You idiots know nothing about the plight of Pampanga. You see Father Ed’s misgivings and not the selfless sacrifice he is doing to save us from bad politics. In behalf of the Kapampangan people let me say, patugut kayu ekayu makisawsaw nung ali yu panigaralang masalese ing pisasabyan.
Kapampangan said it so well and I absolutely agree “you idiots and morons” …talk about non-issues and really do not know what it is all about – since when is doing good, evil or morally wrong? Stop being judgmental and here’s a translation of the previous posting “stop it and do not get involved if you do not study well what we are talking about.”
Panlilio is winning. And I thank God for that. The Lord heard our call.
This is the time for us to rise. The land of great people will be great again.
For the detractors…the hell I care about your canon laws, your understanding about Philippine politics and all your questions in his intentions.
I am a Capampangan by blood. I know what I am talking about. Leave us alone as we elect our best choice.
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