At age 23, Mark Zuckerberg successfully established Facebook.com, an online social networking website, and eased his way to become one of the world’s youngest millionaires. Just a decade or so before this young man broke into the scene, Bill Gates and Steve Jobs showed that sheer talent even without the confirmation of a college diploma is not absolutely necessary to make it big! Gates founded Microsoft and Steve Jobs, Apple Computers. They were both in their early twenties.
Hundreds of years before these guys, young people also tried to shake the world they were in. Josiah was barely in his twenties when he initiated a nationwide revival that took a nation by storm. With his youthful exuberance and a desire to follow God and rectify the mistakes of his predecessors, he went against the popular practices and led his kingdom back to God. Jeremiah was petulant and complained to God a lot. But he was called to be a prophet at a young age. His job description included being hit by false prophets in the face or elsewhere, imprisonment and proclaiming the bad news after nobody paid attention to the good news.
The National Heroes’ Day came and went on August 31. Is the sense of heroism still alive among the Filipino youth?
The Manila Times Editorial didn’t think so. But perhaps, the lament is not only directed to the youth but to the overall Filipino society:
“It is not just the youth, though.The majority of Filipinos in every generation—young and old—do not have the proper sense of history, no thirst for knowledge about our heroes and the conditions they labored in, no wish to learn what the Filipinos of earlier generations did to survive and develop, what amused them, what made them weep, what gave them joy.”
Let’s break down these accusations and try to address them one by one.
No Proper Sense of History. Filipinos, in general, do not have a strong sense of history. This can be seen in the way that the voters keep on electing people accused of wrongdoing against the Filipino society in the past. In this time and age of globalization and increasing online connectivity, most young people become interested in computers, fashion and gadgets.
Amazingly, there’s Wi-Fi access here at the Carwash service I chose along Quirino Avenue near San Jose del Monte Bulacan. The van needs cleaning! Ugh. Quite a number of bugs courageously beat against my windshield last night as we traversed the SCTEX from Victoria, Tarlac.
Technically, it was morning already when we passed through SCTEX. Together with Earlie and Aaron (national leaders of the Methodist Youth), I went to Victoria to deliver a talk on youth leadership. I talked to about 30-40 youth on what it means to be a leader. To make my talk interesting, I didn’t simply present principles of leadership. Instead, I drew upon the story of John Wesley’s life from his childhood, his life as founder and member of the Holy Club at Oxford University to his career as an itinerant preacher and founder of a movement. Alongside John Wesley, I also presented the life of Nelson Mandela and how he became instrumental in ending apartheid in South Africa.
My talk was done at about 9:15 in the evening. But I shared coffee time with the national leaders who are also my friends. We ended up leaving Tarlac at 12 midnight. Whew. I was sleepy while driving. Thankfully, Aaron and Earlie kept me company. I arrived home (at Tala, Caloocan City) by 3:30 AM. Exhausted and wanting to simply get some rest.
The Philippine Bible Society is sponsoring an event for young people so they can be more aware of how the Bible can help them in their lives and the issues that they have to face.
Do you ever wonder why we are hooked with video games? We can spend at least 2 hours playing games like DOTA, Cabal, RAN and Rising Force among others. How do you know that you are already a video game addict?
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