Full Battle Gear – Part 3: Honor and Unconventional Warfare

My mother used to tell me the truth that every Filipino knows that my father and every Filipino member of the USAFFE (United States Armed Forces in the Far East) wept when General Jonathan Wainwright finally surrendered Bataan and Corregidor to the Japanese.

 

My father Maximo, was driver – bodyguard of one of the Elizaldes, who were actually Filipino patriots in spite of their Spanish descent, and was duly drafted to drive a vehicle containing medicines to the Bataan lines. He never made another supply run for the ambulance was bombed and he instead got drafted into the Agustin Marking guerillas. After the war, he and my mother who operated in Manila found indignity with the gerilyang kanin (false guerillas seeking American backpay) and opted to claim for anything since they served the country not for money but their love.

 

From the foregoing one can already have a descending order of commitment to militant duty. Foremost are the trained and regular soldiers which were under the command of General Douglas Mc Arthur who was tasked by Pres. Manuel Quezon the task of defending the islands just in case the Empire of Japan’s expansionist plans persist, the regulars who turned to guerilla warfare, those who contributed to the war effort even if they were only citizens untrained for war and the false guerillas who are more loud in their backpay claims than the real heroes.

 

In today’s spiritual warfare being levied against the church militant, one can see the same pattern of commitment. We have the regular religious men and women (clerics and nuns), the religious who have adopted unconventional means to rouse the laity into militancy, the ordinary people whose devout faith made them into a faithful laity, and the fence-sitters who only waits for the spoils of war and are non-committants and therefore non-combatants.

 

My first advice is for you to distance yourself from those who are lukewarm. Unlike St. Luke who wrote about the Blessed Virgin Mary’s Magnificat and therefore the prophecy that the generations will call her blessed, these are people who have ignored the Mother of Jesus and may even instead insulted her, in the process. They do not know that in the last times the honor of her person would be the deciding factor between those who will be saved and be condemned. And likewise, distance yourself from those who are reluctant to carry the cross and be identified with it. It is because for the Church’s combatant the cross, as the standard, is real source of power and those who hate the cross can only be weak. And the cross can’t be complete without the Virgin Mary at its foot. The Commander of the Host wants His mother at the foot of His cross of redemption as He continues to sacrifice Himself for mankind. Therefore the religious people and the laity they lead should like the Apostle John’s stand by the Blessed Virgin Mary and Jesus’ cross to ascertain victory. To the eyes of Pagan Rome and Unfaithful Israel, it all seemed a devastating defeat when He died on the cross, but His Resurrection will reverse all these evil.

 

Jesus was, and still is, the ultimate Unconventional Warrior. He led His enemy to believe that He had died and was defeated but His Resurrection later on would cause Satan to panic for He did not die after all. Godless Japan thought that with Bataan and Corregidor surrender, the Philippines had ceased to be but the guerilla onslaught taught it otherwise, because even before the liberation forces arrived, the Japanese Imperial Forces were already reeling from guerilla warfare.

 

My second advice is to resort to intel to beef up the war efforts. Know where the enemy’s whereabouts are and tell those who keep the faith about it. This is why St. Joseph is the terror of demons. The malignant host could not possibly find any malice in him to read and so he continues to evade them with His good works. This is why the Child Jesus was duly protected by such a holy man. The same is true with St. John, the Baptist, whose voice from the wilderness terrified even those who hold power but are powerless because of sin. And so, as lecturer on unconventional warfare, why should I assign anyone, who is always suspicious of others or are more oriented to worldly treasures, any sensitive position? Our Lady has affinity to the poor as She was Our Lady of the Poor never as Our Lady of Great Wealth. I can only assign sensitive positions to sensitive men. But when I say sensitive, I do not mean oversensitive men. I prefer a cheerful war decorum even as the war progresses. I do not like to assign leaders who have so many complaints and conditions for them to function. They can only hamper any military move.

 

Thirdly, I advise that we keep things simple. I personally prefer lecturette rather than long discourses although I can explain things about them until the morning. The Lord’s commands are simple enough. It’s human elaboration that keeps them long. The Holy Spirit’s commands are only four and they are enough to corral the sheep. Competition is not one of them. I don’t care for those who review and the number of those who follow. It is enough that I obey and follow. Of course, I have thought of freedom and taught independence for it to thrive. Decisiveness is important when one and his men are surrounded in an engagement and the HQ is far away. But before one is sent to far away missions, the war room is filled up for the war council to work best, each one to his credit before the eyes of the Commander of the Host. Then, don’t do things on your own or the gate will be shut to your face because you do not know the password for the approved mission and day. And reportage is not “for your information” only. We are not broadcasters only, or reporters and recorders of history. We are.… but you know that. If you don’t, this is an exercise for your intel to function.

 

And lastly, Zerebech. Amen I tell you, let us be content with whatever is given us as a result of labors. If we are not content, then find another host. But we are content in the Sacred Host and the Cross which brought it to us so that He can dwell with us.