A saint in the house of Arroyo

Hate her and bad-mouth her. But Gloria Macapagal Arroyo is assured of heavenly intercession amidst allegations of lying, cheating and stealing in high office - all mortal sins according to the Catholic doctrine. The Catholic faith is now working on making an Arroyo kin the second Filipino saint (after Lorenzo Ruiz, beatified in Manila on February 18, 1981 by Pope John Paul II , the first beatification ceremony held outside the Vatican, and elevated to Sainthood and canonized by Pope John Paul II in Vatican City, Rome on October 18, 1987) and the first saint from Iloilo.

Last Wednesday, PGMA and family flew in to Iloilo sans much noise and funfare, to join the Liturgical Celebration which marked the formal diocesan process of the cause of canonization of Mother Rosario Arroyo de la Visitacion at the St. Anne Parish Church in Molo, Iloilo City. Mother Rosario was the founder of Beaterio de Molo and the congregation of the Dominican Sisters of the Most Holy Rosary in Molo. The mass was officiated by Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo.

PGMA and party were met at the airport by the Dominican nuns, a visibly old Raul Gonzales, Sr., unshaven Iloilo City mayor Jerry Treñas, Gov. Niel Tupas who stood far from the others, and other politicians and government functionaries possibly out to ask for electoral intercession.

And how is PGMA related to Mother Rosario?

Mother Rosario Arroyo was born in Molo, Iloilo City, Philippines. She was the only daughter of a wealthy couple, Don Ignacio Arroyo and Doña Maria Pidal. She had four brothers – Jose, a lawyer, became a senator in 1917; Mariano, a physician, became the governor of Iloilo in 1928; and the other two died in infancy. (Remember the Jose Pidal account divulged by Sen. Panfilo Lacson? Now you know where the account name came from.)

Jose Pidal, ah… Arroyo pala, later married Jesusa Lacson from Negros Occidental and had 7 children, one of whom was Ignacio Arroyo who later married Lourdes Zaragoza Tuason. Ignacio and Lourdes were the parents of Jose Miguel "Mike" Arroyo, as well as Ignacio Arroyo, Jr., the one who admitted in the Senate hearing to owning the Jose Pidal account.

Back to Mother Rosario…

At the age of 27 she entered the Congregation of the Dominican Sisters of Sta. Catalina de Siena. She was given the name Sr. Rosario Arroyo de la Visitacion. Following her piety, she donated her inheritance to the congregation and lived an austere life. Don Ignacio and Dona Maria gave up their residence in favor of the Sisters. A free school was built. The Dominican convent now stands on the site of the original Arroyo residence.

According to the Dominican Sisters of the Most Holy Rosary of the Philippines website, Mother Rosario was very observant of her vow of poverty. She loved simple things and was detached from material and worldly goods. She wore darned and patched clothing and had very few of them. Her simplicity enabled her to share what she had with the poor, sometimes even giving to the sick neighbors the food prepared for her. Vanity did not have a place in her heart. Despite her position and patrimony, she never boasted of them. She preferred the obscurity of the convent life.

And when will Mother Rosario become a full pledged saint?

The Catholic process of sainthood have four long steps – the Initiation led by the Bishop of the Diocese; the Investigation of the life and works of the candidate employing a "general promoter of the faith," or devil's advocate, whose role was to raise objections and doubts as regards the virtuosity of the candidate; the Beatification; and the Canonization. Each of the last two steps requires a miracle attributable to the candidate saint, and which was verified and confirmed by the Church.

Question: If PGMA becomes a Prime Minister in 2010, and her net satisfaction rating in surveys goes up to above zero in the coming months, will the Catholic Church consider these as miracles worth consideration in the pursuit of sainthood? @