Wednesday, October 28, 2015

ATIENZA'S MISFIT AGENDA

The following letter was sent via the Editor for The Guam Daily Post (formerly Marianas Variety).

Dear Ms. Tabornes-Reilly,

You can hardly be faulted for relying on a work published by an anthropology professor currently employed at UOG for your Sunday article: "Death rites in Guam..." (The Sunday Post, 10/25, pg. 5)

However, for future reference, you may want to know that one of the authors, David Atienza, has an agenda to discredit Chamorro culture in order to justify the intrusion of the Neocatechumenal Way into Guam's Catholic Church. 

Most of what he said is not just slanted, it is absolutely wrong and demonstrably unscholarly. Please read Chuck White's fine analysis of Atienza's misfit agenda here:

AN ACADEMIC HACK


Also, from Eileen Benavente-Blas' column today:

...this past "Sunday Post" covered the topic of death and one article quoted extensively from UOG professor David Atienza's research article on Guam's death rituals. He erroneously states, "At the end of the Mass with the body present, the casket is closed." According to guampedia.com: "The immediate family takes one last opportunity to view their loved one before the coffin is closed and the funeral Mass begins." This is common knowledge.

It's disrespectful and a disservice to the Chamorros and our culture that this error has been published and perpetuated. Does it matter? I'm Chamorro. Yes, it matters. If you're Chamorro, I hope it matters to you too. Respetu y Chamoru yan y kuttura.



13 comments:

  1. Two things bothered me with this write-up:
    1) "it is crucial for there to be a great deal of food" at the rosaries -- it's not always so. In fact, when the rosaries were predominantly at 8pm, it was a simple fare of soup and sandwiches, with some desserts, and coffee or punch/tea. When rosaries began to be scheduled earlier in the evening I believe people felt they needed to provide dinner to thank their guests. And it wasn't just the in-laws who prepared the food, it was also extended family members. The "jetna" (oldest in-law) is usually the one who organizes it all.

    2) I feel the significance of the "ika" was not explained---even though the authors described it as "one of the most characteristic features of funeral rites on Guam". Ika demonstrates how Chamorro families help each other in times of greatest need. It's more than just a "pay back"---it's a way to help each other do what needs to be done for a proper send-off.

    I found it bothersome that the authors referred to visits with the family members as "to be seen". I'd like to think the visits were to express condolences. Yes, it was important for the deceased's family to know that I came to pay my respects---because I want them to know I care. It's not just to be seen.

    Wish I would've seen this article when printed so I could responded right away!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You still can. Write a letter to the editor@postguam.com. While I went easy on the actual author of the article and heavy on the idiot she quoted, more should have been done than just quote someone else's study. It seems that the author herself was not familiar with local practices.

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    2. Read David Atienza's complete article:

      http://www.academia.edu/2272229/Death_Rituals_and_Identity_in_Contemporary_Guam

      Scroll down the page to find the article.
      Email complaints to: atienza.david@gmail.com
      Eileen Benavente-Blas

      Delete
  2. Thank you, Tim, for posting this. The tone of his article is smug and condescending. Yes, he definitely has an agenda. He not only teaches anthropology at UOG but also is listed among the faculty in the Micronesian studies graduate program.

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  3. Remember Archie was going around telling people to shorten the rosaries....now we see it was his Neo indoctrination. He meant forget it.

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    Replies
    1. He also wanted communicants to remain standing after receiving Holy communion... the NEO influences are evident in hindsight.

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    2. I first saw people standing after receiving communion at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in Santa Rita. Later found out the Neos had taken over.

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  4. David, if you don't like our traditions, you are free to leave our beautiful island. We are not going to change our ways because some outsider doesn't agree with it. What next? The NEO missionaries in China are going to say that the Chinese eat a lot of rice? It's our culture and we will continue to say the Rosary until the end of time.

    James T.

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    Replies
    1. James,
      Please email David Atienza directly. His email is posted above.
      Eileen Brnavente-Blas

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  5. The question is what credibility Chuck White has? Does he have a PHD also? What sources of research?

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    Replies
    1. LOL. It’s not Chuck White who is trying to pass himself off as an expert on the Chamorro people. It’s not Chuck White who is pretending to be a “professor” sucking off the government teat while aiming at the destruction of the Catholic Church. Chuck doesn’t need any credibility. One doesn’t need credibility when one has facts. This is something your poor idiots miss because you live lives of lies. Thus you must constantly depend on constant accolades, strokes, and fake academics and theologians like the fake Atienza and the joke of a “priest” who tried to convince us that Jesus was a sinner. Got it? Truth. Facts. Try it some time, Adrian.

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    2. ANON 7:21....so.......one needs a PHD to be "credible"? I know some PHD holders who lack "common sense". I wouldn't trust their judgement. Chuck speaks "truth". Try seeking truth. It might just surprise you.

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  6. Look at the present "rector " of the Cathedral. ....he is a doctor in Canon law..... we have seen the results. ..

    ReplyDelete