"RH Bill: A Moral Evil" : Fail

This(click the link if the video above do not work) is a video by a Father Arellano that I found in Facebook. The video is about why should RH Bill should not be passed in Congress. I believe that Father here is making a big mistake and is spreading wrong information about the RH Bill. Either Father here is spreading lies or he simply is ignorant about the issues and problems our country faces (is there any other possibility?). Maybe he was not able to read and study well what RH Bill is and what this bill is not before making that video. I will tackle below the wrong information and the twisted logic that Father Arellano have and prove him wrong.

1.)The bill promotes 2 child policy

This is the first reason this priest stated as to why Filipinos should repel RH bill. But the bill do not really promote 2 child policy. Maybe Father should've read and studied the bill before making a comment. He then states that five to seven children would be an ideal Filipino family. How can 5-7 children a family be ideal? Even a middle class family would have a hard time bringing up 2-3 children. What more a to low income family with 5-7 children. This priest do not even mention his basis to this statement. Will the Catholic church pay for the food and shelter for these families? It is really ironic because Father here promotes 5-7 kids per family as 'ideal' and he himself is a celibate (or is he really?).

2.)Sex education is pornography

How can sex education be pornography even to eight year olds? What part of "education" this educated(?) priest do not understand? Sex education is not a pornography. Sex education "educates" people about sexual reproduction, sexual intercourse, reproductive health, emotional relations, contraception, and other aspects of human sexual behavior. Basically it aims to educate people about human sexual behavior. It is not the depiction of explicit sexual subject matter for the purpose of sexually exciting the viewer.

3.)The Bill is against Catholic Faith

So what now if the bill is against the Catholic faith? It would not follow that it should not be passed just because it is against the Catholic faith. The Philippines is not only composed of Catholic faith. We have Muslims, Protestants, Hindus, and other faiths. Not to mention agnostics, atheists, and deists. Priests like this should not join in the affairs and decision making of the state. Majority of them (if not all) are not really educated well in state related issues like this one and that their doctrines and/or beliefs could hinder progress in our country. I mean they do not really care about the issues and problems our country face. They are more concern in following the doctrines and beliefs.

4.)RH Bill kills and is pro-abortion

The RH Bill do not really kill and is not pro abortion. No where in the bill that states that abortion is legal or that it would be legalized. In fact, it prevents unwanted pregnancies that could lead to abortion (and most importantly, it educates). Unplanned and unwanted pregnancies result in children that can't be fed or sent to school. Remember that contraceptive is different from abortion. As to the killings like genocide/holocaust that Father mentioned, I honestly do not get it. How can this bill kills?

5.)Philippines is the conscience in Asia

Are we really? In fact we are one of the most corrupt country in Asia and maybe in the world.

6.) Anti Labor

Let me quote a comment here from limestories in youtube.

According to Fr. Arellano, the country's number one export resource is its labor? Now I'm scared. How can that be a celebration of life when a man's life per se is degraded, sent to work and toil overseas to be away from their families and friends. It robs the life from the living.

Also, over population would just result more unemployed people.

So these are just some of the points that Father Bing Arellano states in his video. As you can see, he is either telling and spreading lies which is contradicting to the 9th Commandment of his God or he is simply ignorant to the problems and issues that our country faces. I hope that someday he will realize that he is making a big mistake here in influencing people not to pass this bill.

Theodicies

Our country was hit by two strong storms in the last few weeks. If my memory serves me right, there was only less than a week before another storm hit the northern part of our country again. These two storms caused a lot of casualties. It killed more than 200 people, displaced thousands of people from their homes, and destroyed a lot of properties. Not to mention the trauma that it left to the survivors especially to the young ones.

Instances like this is a challenge to the lives of the people who are affected. How will they move on with their lives when they have almost nothing left? How will they move on if their loved ones were killed? Where will they get money to start again? Where will they get help? I think all of these questions and problems can be answered and solved as time will pass by or if eventually some will help these people. Time will heal the wounds as a quote say. But a more important question still remains unanswered for a long time. Well many have tried but I guess their answers still faces a lot of criticisms and contradictions making the problem still a problem.

Where was the God that believers, mostly Christians, claim to be true/existing, loving, and powerful? Why God would allow this to happen? Well these questions are not really original and new but I think it would be good to ask this question again and again for more emphasis. I asked these questions subtly (subtly so that they will not be offended) to my theist friends and they all have their own explanations and theodicies. I wasn't able to reply and criticize them because of time constraints and that I do not want to offend, and  humiliate them. So below is the four and most common theodicies that I encountered and my reply and criticisms to these four.  

Punishment Reply. The people that suffered in the in the two storms were just punished by God because these people disobeyed God laws or that these people were very sinful. 

My reply: Not all of the people that were killed or suffered are sinful. There were children and good people too who suffered and died on the said storms. Theists could reply that this is just a result of the original sin. But I say that this is not just and it do not show that God is loving. I mean, is it just to punish the grand grand grand grand grand grand100x children of a person who committed a sin long ago?  You know the answer. 

The Heavenly Reply. These people and children may have suffered and died but they will be compensated many times in heaven/eternal life. 

My reply: But what's the point of them suffering here on earth? Why did'nt God put them straight to heaven even before they suffered? Heaven do not justify their suffering. This act is immoral even if heaven is so good because God could've put them to heaven or give them eternal life without suffering them. 

Soul making theodicy. This contends that God allows evil because this builds up a positive character to the victims. And this compensate evil and suffering. 

My reply: Is this how a loving God build up positive character to its followers? I think there are still many other ways that is less evil and crude. Also evil and suffering do not necessarily build up a positive character. Greater losses also occur. Families would break up, morale would go down, people would turn away from God. 

The Privation response. Evil is just the absence of good just as darkness the absence of light. 

My reply: Evil is not really a privation of good. If you are hurt, say you were punched or kicked in the ass, you know that it hurts. It is a positive sensation and not just the absence of pleasure. People who are numb or asleep do not feel pain, even though they experience the absence of pleasure and any other feeling. 

So where's your God now?