By Eva Simrenjit Kaur
KUCHING — “Why have we become so numb to the evil in the world today? We are afraid to oppose, we are afraid to offend people. As people of God, we have to speak out.” Such were among the profound words spoken by Fr Clarence Devadass during his recent visit to Kuching for a seminar on Nation Building: Christianity and Corruption.
The seminar was one of a series of talks and seminars organised by the Catholic Social Teaching Ministry (CSTM), aimed at increasing public awareness and being a platform for promoting open discussion and education on challenging social and political issues from a Catholic perspective.
A total of 58 participants joined the seminar which was held in Blessed Sacrament Church Hall at BSC Church, including Fr Ramon Borja SDB, and Fr Felix Au.
The opening prayer and remark were done by Fr Leonard Yap as rector of BSC, followed by a brief introduction to Catholic Social Teaching by Simon Siah. Fr Clarence conducted the seminar in three parts, namely: Biblical Foundation, Ethical Implications and Call for Action.
He started off by highlighting the various forms of moral degradation in society as well as the economic imbalance in the world today, with examples from the Bible to support the ongoing injustices and remind us of God’s plans for humanity.
He then went further in-depth about the ‘corrosion of truth’ brought about by corruption and how it ties to freedom. “We live in an era where moral (ethical) relativism—the idea that moral principles have no objective standards—penetrate our society. The corrosion of truth brought about by corruption impacts the culture of truth that Christians are called to promote.”
“Since corruption contradicts the Bible and fractures the harmony, stability and solidarity in a human society, Christians have a moral obligation to fight against all forms of corruption, whatever the cost.”
There was barely enough time for the Q&A Session as there were so many issues and thoughts brought forth by the members of the audience. To conclude, Fr Clarence called everyone to build on three virtues that help overcome greed—integrity, temperance and justice.
In the call to action, he stressed three main points which are the call to conversion, the voice against evil, and character education for change. Everyone walked away from the seminar feeling inspired and motivated to become a more responsible and mature Christian.
The Catholic Social Teaching Ministry acknowledges and appreciates all who have contributed generously towards the success of this event be it through time, talent or finances and we sincerely hope that more will continue to show support for this ministry so we can keep bringing truth to all who seek it.
