Erico Joseph T. Cañete
Invocation for Humanity in the Season of Lent
PHILOSOPHERS SAY, IT’S EASIER TO BECOME A MAN THAN TO BE HUMAN. Our Tagalog translation sounds poetic in its expression, “Madali maging tao, mahirap magpakatao”. It is true that the former is unconsented while the latter is a matter of determination; an exercise of freedom.
Let’s ponder on the differences.
How is it to be a man?
Tracing our individual nature, to be a man is to be simply endowed with vegetative powers responsible for his nutrition, growth and reproduction.
To be a man is to be endowed with the senses, both external and internal, with the brain as responsible for the integration of complex sensory and neural functions and the initiation and coordination of voluntary activity in the body, as anatomy puts it.
Being a man is to have passion and concupiscence which inclines him to tend towards a goal
or away from it or it inclines us towards a good easy to attain and avoidance of evil easy to avoid.
To be a man is to possess an intellect and will which directs him to know the truth and the good respectively.
To be a man is to be endowed with a social nature which defines his sexuality, his need to need others or the need to be needed, and his need for authority.
How is it to be human?
Humanity is how man understand himself far beyond the comprehension of his manness. This is necessary in the sense that his understanding of who he is or his understanding of his nature becomes a criterion for his action in choosing and achieving his end. If one’s understanding of man’s nature is loose, then one ends up with a wrong diagnosis of what is good for man. Remember, what is good for man depends on who man is.
Humanity signifies responsible exercise of freedom. Doing whatever man wants is not
freedom but omnipotence or abuse of freedom. The desire to have no limits in man can’t be done because man has limitations. The essence of freedom is not so much on choice but on self determination, that is, deciding to reach an end. So even if there’s still one choice, as long as the subject is still there, there’s freedom. This is self determination. Self determination does not presuppose choice for again, even if one does not have choice, he has still freedom.
Humanity means to understand where man’s nature tends. By way of his rational nature he knows his end as end by directing his acts to the goals of his choice. He knows his end not out from necessity but freely and voluntarily.
As a material being, his nature tends to seek material possessions and pleasure. This is his material end. Yet if one seeks virtues and values like unity, truth, goodness, love or God, this constitutes his spiritual end based on his spiritual nature. And if one seeks the need to need and the need to be needed, this defines his social end.
In this Season of Lent, may we become real human beings by taming our vegetative needs and controlling the powers of our external and internal senses via subjugation of appetites or self denial, fasting and abstinence. May we learn how to direct our intellect and will to the Absolute Truth and Absolute Good. May we learn to enhance our social nature to see Christ’s image in all men and to serve Him though them.
In this season of Lent may we learn how to understand our humanity through Christ’s passion. May we learn how to avoid the apparent good in our exercise of freedom and direct our end based on our spiritual nature for the nourishment of our soul.