Category: PEACE WITH THE CREATION
Economic-Ecological Transformation
This prophetic-theological critique argues that the U.S. National Prayer Breakfast, rather than serving as a space for moral accountability and humility before God, has increasingly functioned as a ritual that blesses political power—especially through white evangelical leaders’ unwavering support for Donald Trump—thereby undermining Christian credibility both in the United States and globally. Drawing on biblical prophetic traditions and contemporary data showing evangelical alignment with a leader widely perceived as unethical, the essay contends that prayer divorced from justice becomes complicity rather than witness. The participation of Filipino evangelical leaders intensifies this crisis, as their presence signals alignment with a politicized form of Christianity that risks being imported into the Philippine context. The result is a weakened Christian witness marked by moral inconsistency and public disillusionment, as faith becomes entangled with political expediency. The essay ultimately calls for repentance rather than rebranding, urging evangelical leaders—American and Filipino alike—to reclaim a prophetic faith that speaks truth to power and restores prayer as an act of justice-centered faithfulness.
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Permanent link to this article: https://waves.ca/2026/02/06/from-washington-to-manila-the-global-fallout-of-american-influenced-evangelical-complicity/
25–29 January 2026, Barangay Managa, Bansalan, Davao del Sur — The Malipayon Peace Hub came alive as Coffee for Peace, Inc. (CFP) and PeaceBuilders Community, Inc. (PBCI) conducted an Agri-Aqua Social Entrepreneurial Training under the Bangsamoro Agri-Enterprise Programme – Leveraging and Expanding Agri-Aqua Production in Bangsamoro (LEAP). Twelve (12) key coffee farmers have shown commitment to the agricultural segment of this program. They are from the Island Province of Basilan and journeyed across Mindanao to take part in this intensive learning experience. Hosted by the Malipayon Peace Hub staff, the training created a safe and nurturing space for skills-building, dialogue, and shared reflection—rooted in the belief that sustainable livelihoods are essential foundations of lasting peace. Over five days, participants engaged in hands-on learning, peer exchange, and practical discussions on agri-aqua production, social entrepreneurship, and market access. The training also emphasized cooperation, trust-building, and shared leadership as vital elements of enterprise development in conflict-affected communities.
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Permanent link to this article: https://waves.ca/2026/01/30/our-cfp-pbci-team-hosted-and-conducted-social-entrepreneurial-training-at-the-malipayon-peace-hub/
Human transformation—personal and collective—rarely unfolds in a linear or painless way. Across Scripture, psychology, history, and political economy, transformation follows a recognizable rhythm: orientation, disorientation, and new orientation. This triadic pattern, articulated most clearly by Old Testament theologian Walter Brueggemann, offers a powerful interpretive lens for understanding spiritual-ethical, psychological-physical, social-political, and economic-ecological transformation in a decolonizing world. Transformation, in this sense, is not merely change. It is re-formation—the dismantling of old meanings, identities, and structures, and the emergence of new ones rooted in truth, justice, and relational wholeness.
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Permanent link to this article: https://waves.ca/2026/01/05/orientation-disorientation-new-orientation-going-through-a-process-of-transformation/
The Philippines celebrates Christmas this year amid overlapping spiritual-ethical, psychological-physical, socio-political, and economic-ecological crises that challenge families across the nation. Many experience deep moral fatigue and despair, yet bayanihan (communal sharing or koinonia) and community compassion continue to spark ethical renewal. Rising living costs, despite easing inflation, create physical and psychological strain, but shared meals and local celebrations help restore resilience. Political distrust grows due to corruption and inequality, even as more citizens demand transparency and engage in grassroots solidarity. Economic indicators show mixed progress, with declining poverty overall but persistent vulnerabilities, especially in rural and climate-impacted communities. Still, generosity through remittances, donations, and community aid becomes a grassroots safety net for struggling households. Amid hardship, Christmas emerges as a season of quiet transformation — affirming dignity, hope, and the resilient Filipino spirit.
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Permanent link to this article: https://waves.ca/2025/12/20/were-celebrating-christmas-in-the-context-of-current-philippine-realities/
This article, sent today by PBCI Board Chair Emil Jonathan L. Soriano to Bishop Noel Alba Pantoja, critically examines the participation of the Philippine Council of Evangelical Churches (PCEC) in the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC). While the task force promotes a “whole-of-nation approach” to peace and development, its record of red-tagging and militarized posture has made it a controversial institution within the peacebuilding community. Drawing from field-based perspectives of peace practitioners, civil society critiques, and academic literature on faith-based peacebuilding, this essay analyzes the opportunities and risks inherent in PCEC’s engagement with NTF-ELCAC. The paper argues that while PCEC’s involvement presents a possibility for moral oversight and community engagement, it also carries the dangers of co-optation, erosion of prophetic distance, and complicity in harmful state practices. The analysis concludes by proposing conditions under which faith actors may engage state programs while safeguarding ethical commitments to human rights and civilian protection.
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Permanent link to this article: https://waves.ca/2025/12/18/church-state-and-counterinsurgency-a-critical-peacebuilding-analysis-of-pcecs-participation-in-ntf-elcac/
For many Christians, the Nicene Creed is a sacred summary of faith—timeless, universal, divinely inspired. But when we peel back the layers of imperial history, the Creed looks less like a purely theological achievement and more like a carefully engineered imperial document produced in service of Constantine’s political project. What emerged from Nicaea in 325 CE was not simply a consensus of early Christian spirituality. It was a consensus manufactured inside the machinery of empire. This blogpost critiques the imperialist religiosity behind the Nicene Creed by grounding the discussion in historical data and scholarly research.
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Permanent link to this article: https://waves.ca/2025/12/04/constantines-nicene-creed-a-decolonial-reflection-on-empire-shaped-christianity/
Today, 30 November 2025, thousands of Filipinos rallied across Manila and throughout the country against corruption in flood-control projects, with left-wing activists, faith-based groups, youth, and community organizations raising diverse demands. While each group highlighted legitimate concerns, their separate messages created fragmentation that limited the collective impact of the mobilization. From my perspective as a peacebuilder, corruption affects all sectors, so resistance must be multi-sectoral, integrating diverse voices around shared values of justice, dignity, and transparency. I propose People’s Assemblies, Community Action Hubs, regular Solidarity Convergences, and a diversity-of-tactics approach to unite differing strategies toward sustained civic transformation. Ultimately, this multi-sectoral unity can turn indignation into meaningful action that restores integrity, protects human dignity, and fosters long-term social change in the Philippines.
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Permanent link to this article: https://waves.ca/2025/11/30/reclaiming-moral-political-solidarity-my-take-on-the-anti-corruption-rallies-in-the-country-last-30-november-2025/
