NAAWAN, Misamis Oriental (MindaNews / 2 July) – President Duterte’s concept of a perfect and intelligent God who created the cosmos and holds the heavenly bodies together is a concept that doesn’t come from empty space but apparently originate from his exposure to the Bible and, perhaps, with the Quran’s account of creation, the two accounts of which hardly vary in substance.
When he said “Your God is stupid,” “your” logically refers not just to Catholics but to all his Filipino audience or listeners when he said it, to everyone for that matter who believes in the God of creation as narrated in their holy books.
Mr. Duterte lambasted the God of holy-book believers for this God’s stupidity in creating man as a perfect being and then making him imperfect by temptation.
The President owes us an account how his perfect God created humans. Did his perfect God create humans or did he not at all to avoid imperfection? Duterte publicly admitted that he is imperfect and only his God is perfect.
His logic in castigating the Abrahamic God, that Jews, Muslims and Christians revere, runs that a perfect God could not have an imperfect creation, say, in man.
Why not if it’s God’s purpose to remain supreme above everyone.
Is the President not a hard evidence in this regard – his perfect God creating an imperfect Rodrigo Duterte? Otherwise, if he is not his God’s creation nor of the God of Abraham, whose stupidity and association he abhors, then whose product is he?
Everybody is entitled to freedom of expression and freedom of religion, to his belief or unbelief; but to glorify one’s belief and mock what others believe is uncouth.
It is self-righteousness and meanness in the highest order.
MindaViews is the opinion section of MindaNews. William R. Adan, Ph.D., is retired professor and former chancellor of Mindanao State University at Naawan, Misamis Oriental, Philippines.)