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As we enter the holiest week of the Christian calendar, there is someone among us who claims to be the reincarnation of the man whose death and resurrection we remember and honor this Lent. However, this self-proclaimed appointed son of God, Apollo Quiboloi, is the complete opposite of the Biblical Son of God, Jesus Christ.
While Jesus chose to live as a wandering mendicant, Quiboloi lives on a large estate with well-kept gardens, with a large number of servants at his disposal. Although Jesus eschewed material possessions, Quiboloy evoked in the United States an “embarrassment of wealth,” including multiple million-dollar mansions, a fleet of luxury cars, an $18 million private plane, and an expensive helicopter. Jesus shunned unscrupulous political leaders, but Quiboloy got along well with some of our country’s most scandalous politicians.
While Jesus lived a dignified life, Quiboloy is accused of a dastardly crime. He has active arrest warrants from the United States, Davao City, and the Philippine Senate, and another pending arrest warrant in Pasig City. In the United States, he is accused of “serious human rights violations, including the systematic and widespread rape of an 11-year-old girl” and is currently on the FBI’s most wanted list. In Davao City, he is charged with child sexual abuse. In Pasig City, he faces a non-bailable crime of human trafficking. He refused to appear at the inquiry and was ordered arrested for contempt by the Senate.
Normally, politicians would run away from associating themselves with a disgraceful figure like Quiboloy for fear of public backlash. However, this is not the case with Quiboloy. Influential national leaders, including Vice President Sara Duterte, former President Rodrigo Duterte, and five sitting senators, including Immy Marcos, Robin Padilla, Christopher Go, Ronald dela Rosa, and Cynthia Villar. has publicly defended him.
It’s not hard to see why politicians calculate there are more benefits than drawbacks to defending Mr. Quiboloy. The religious group, led by Quiboloy, claims between 4 million and 7 million members, who are expected to act as a solid voting bloc during elections. Quiboloy runs Sonshine Media Network International, a television station that is increasingly becoming a mainstream news source for the masses, despite accusations that it provides disinformation and political propaganda. A series of radio stations, newspapers, magazines, and even a higher education institution, the José María College Foundation, have ties to the controversial religious leader.
Although Mr. Quiboloy’s denomination is small compared to larger religious congregations, he has become a more powerful and influential figure in the life of our country than the much larger Roman Catholic Church and mainline Protestant churches. I am. The same is true for other religious sects that share the template followed by Quiboloi of enlisting sect members into political blocs.
Politicians aspiring to higher political office did not hesitate to publicly support the disgraced Quiboloy. This is because they cunningly calculate that they have much to gain from gaining support from the strong bloc of Quiboloi and nothing to lose from the mainstream churches they support. It is recognized that it does not influence the political choices of its members. As a result, the mainstream church unwittingly supports the growth of unethical politicians.
Mainstream churches have good reasons not to follow Quiboloi’s template of shrewdly managing members like sheep in someone’s political pen. But they fail to hold politicians accountable, political or otherwise, who protect and empower spiritual leaders with questionable principles and morals. It would be neglecting one’s duty.
The rise of religious leaders like Quiboloi mirrors the rise of political leaders currently thriving among us. It is unscrupulous and immoral to be flashy and exaggerated, flaunting your wealth and luxurious lifestyle. Unless mainstream churches, civil society, and principled mass organizations embark on concerted action to counter the evolving model of our spiritual leadership, our deep-rooted race of political leadership will , will be successful in their efforts to dethrone Jesus as the Son of God of the Bible and place him on their throne. Comrade Apollo Quiboloi in our midst as God’s appointed sons. If they succeed, Filipinos will become the new chosen people. Heaven or hell? Of course it’s Heaven, but that’s because it would be an evolved name for Hell.
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