Friday, September 23, 2016

THE MAN OF THE HOUR: JOE SANTOS OF SILENT NO MORE.

Posted by Webster.

SILENT NO MORE.

What a difference three words can make and do. As inspiring and moving as, I love you.

And what a difference one man can do when he picks up a cause and runs with it. Inspired by the righteousness of these three words, Joe Santos started the Silent No More movement. As he felt a duty early in his life to serve his country in the United States Army, he felt a duty later in his life to serve the cause of justice for child sex abuse victims.

He put a Silent No More sign on the back of his truck and took it everywhere he went, from morning to evening. He initiated a petition to have the Statute of Limitations lifted to protect our children. He collected signatures. He took his message everywhere and anywhere, even to places where he was not welcomed. People listened, and people responded. He amassed a following.

He drove his message all the way to the Legislature and then to the Governor, who signed the bill into law several hours ago. A knight in shining armor indeed.

We all became a part of Silent No More, willingly or unwillingly, by being reminded daily that our silence and our lack of inaction can easily lead to the destruction of others. We all watched in silence as certain members of our clergy abused our defenseless and innocent children.

We cannot afford anymore to be silent in the face of injustice and depravity. Our Church learned that lesson today.

Let us thank the Joe Santos of this world, and let us pray that our Church will take this lesson to heart.

Will our Church leaders take heed? That remains to be seen.

Archbishop Hon and Fr. Jeff: Are you listening?







24 comments:

  1. Many thanks, Joe. I'll be on the phone with the governor of the CNMI and if we are successful you will be deported back to Guam in the next few weeks. : )

    We need more people like you to get this church in order.

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    1. Plse, let him be; we are in need good Christian leadership in the CNMI as well. Very immature leaders in both civil and church matters. Yes, we need more Joe Santos! Welcome, Mr Santos! Spn2

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  2. Joe Santos - an American hero. I have often seen his white pick up truck. It is hard to miss with the large sign extending beyond the bed of his truck.

    Thank you Webster for pointing out some of the details of this hero many of us never knew. The thing I respect most about Joe Santos is that he never tooted his own horn.

    He did this because he loves children. And he did this because he has a deep love for his Church. Some people may question that because of the barrage of negative publicity the Church ran this past week. A campaign that struck fear into many.

    But like a parent who has to correct a child, sometimes it hurts...the child and the parent. But it is out of love, especially in those difficult times, that we act out of moral conscience rather than the path of least resistance.

    All of us who love the Church dearly, but see the many ills that have crept inside, feel compelled to act to correct our Church. We do this regardless of the cost or pain. It is through this cleansing process that our Church will emerge stronger. Joe Santos, an American hero, lead the way in his crusade to cleanse our Church and bring a safer environment for our youth.

    This last week was one of the most difficult weeks for the laity of our Church. The leadership created a civil war, pitting brother against brother, and family against family. But it is now over.

    Now the laity must re-unite to continue to press our beloved Church to continue the reform in all those other areas that have wrought so much discord to our house. We must demand that these issues be taken seriously, with swift and just action.

    But for now, I will pray a rosary of thanksgiving for Joe Santos, Governor Calvo, and all the others who brought us to this point. St Padre Pio, continue to watch over us. Santa Marian Kamalen, watch over us as well.

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    1. Yes, Janet - As we give thanks to God for guiding our hero Joe (and all his supporters) all the way from the beginning to the successful end of his journey, we now need to "re-unite to continue to press our beloved Church to continue the reform in all those other areas that have wrought so much discord to our house". If we follow the example of Joe Santos in his tenacity to pursue those other issues we had been demanding (the return of RMS and the cleansing of our Church of the NCW influence/interference on our Faith and the way we practice it), we may be well on our way toward that peace, harmony, and unity that AB Hon had been unable to effectuate. Yes - CCOG and LFM and the rest of us could certainly use another SNM Joe Santos. The power of the Laity should never be under-estimated. While Joe pursued his goals, he always had charity in his thoughts, in his words, and in his deeds in what he accomplished. "And there remains these three: faith, hope, and charity -- and the greatest of these is charity". May we all be inspired by Joe's actions.

      Let us all stand firm in the Faith (Fortes in Fide) and "be vigilant, for our enemy, the Devil is ever roaming like a lion seeking whom he may devour". As the cliche goes: "we have just begun to fight". May God give us all the strength to emulate our hero Joe, even as we continue to pursue our other issues. (jrsa: 9/23/16).
      PS: A Rosary and a Divine Chaplet is my Kudos to Joe Santos. Thank you, Rosa, for supporting him.

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  3. so Fr. Jeff was it really worth slaping the face of victims as you did a week ago? Last week defined you in our nations history. Perhaps you did some good in press conference who knows. But for me you will forever be the face of the priest who supported abuse. in fact all those who supported veto of 326 supported Apurons abuse. Many priests knew his crimes for years. yet to the last hour you supported a vicious malicious reckless evil individual. God alone be your judge.

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  4. Thank you uncle joe santos. God bless you and your family.

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  5. As usual, Webster nails it.nPretty easy this time though. Joe is a hero.

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  6. - From the USofA - DANGKULU NA SI YU'US MA'ASE and THANK YOU Joe Santos! Without All Your Hard Work with your message "Silent No More" campaign, this law would not have been signed. God Will Continue to Bless You and Your Family!

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  7. Thank you Mr. Santos. May God continue to bless you in all that you do. You are a true Soldier of God. Dangkulu Na Si Yu'us Ma'ase.

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  8. Thank you too Rose Santos

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  9. Joe, you have led by example, conviction, and strength of character. Dangkulo Na Si Yu'os Ma'ase', yan meggai na bendision para hagu yan i familiamo! Respetu ginen todos i Katolikun Guam.

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  10. Savio Hon and Jeff are not listening to the cries of the victims, just the jingle of their coins, which they now have to unload for the victims. Sweet sounds of justice are now ringing.

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  11. Joe, your "SILENT NO MORE" message paved the way for this significant bill to be passed. We extend our heartfelt gratitude for firmly standing by the survivors while our church leaders stood by in silence. You are indeed a shining example that moving mountains begins with one push!
    We will miss seeing you driving your truck around the island and wish you and your family well in your next endeavor. Si Yu'us Ma'ase and may God bless you always.
    Ann Auyong

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  12. thank you joe for your resolve and hard work in bringing this issue to the forefront. may we never be silent anymore.

    thank you also, tim, for all your hard work and sacrifice in the pursuit of truth and of righting the wrongs in this church.

    thank you of course also to ccog, to lfm, and all the people who came out to picket at the cathedral and to pray at adelup.

    i'll say prayers of thanksgiving and continued prayers for the victims and their families. may the Lord be with all of you as you continue this work.

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  13. Glad to be back in Holy Mother ChirchSeptember 24, 2016 at 6:12 AM

    WE ARE NOT YET DONE!
    There is still more to do on other issues.
    But for now, thank you Koe Santos! SILENT NO MORE. Great job, but now all of us must also take up our battle positions and also be silent no more.
    One of the reasons this horrible abuse took place is that people did not soeak up when these abuses were happening.
    They maybe stayed away. Or they told there children not to go there. Or they whispered their little secrets. But no one spoke up to stop the abuse. Now we must all be silent no more.
    Whenever we see abuse we must report it and trust that the authorities will do the right thing. And if the Church does nothing they must be called to task.
    The Fr Luis Camacho issue comes to mind. Deacon Steve Martinez reported this over a year ago and still nothing has been done. While it is true that Claros, Cristobal, Quitugua and Apuron failed to act on this complaint, we can no longer just blame them.
    Hon and San Nicolas and Stohr and Castro are now in charge and have been for a long time. Yet no action has been taken against Fr Camacho.
    The entire community must be SILENT NO MORE! We cannot be complacent as in the past. We must demand that swift action be taken to prevent abusers from stalking our children.
    Joe Santos taught us that we do make a difference. Let's hold our leaders to this new standard and demand that they too are:
    SILENT NO MORE!

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    1. Joe, God Bless you for your courage and compassion! Hero's are not born, they rise to fight injustice and protect the sheep from the wolves. Lt. Colonel Dave Grossman calls them SheepDogs. (Joe will understand)

      A salute to Silent No More, JW, CCOG and the LFM and the many Church Militant who defended the victims and the Church.

      Praise to the Holy Trinity for the graces granted and prayers from the Our Lady of Sorrows, the Angels, the Saints and the faithful.
      St. Michael the ArchAngel protect us! St, Athanasius Pray for us.

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  14. "Silent No More" is but one of the several battles we're fighting, but we've won this particular battle led by Joe Santos -- Thank you, Joe!

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  15. First let us give Thank’s to the Lord above who is alway’s on our side and to ALL those who are fighting to bring back our One True Catholic and Apostolic Church. Thank’s and God Bless!

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  16. Joe, you performed a great service in helping the loyal and dedicated Catholics of Guam and to correct the injustice. Although I moved to Saipan, I still remember you and your great family. Thank you.

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  17. Rose de los Reyes (Seattle, WA)September 25, 2016 at 12:33 AM

    Thank you, Joe! Man-of-the-Hour and The-Man-for-Our-Time, indeed !!! Biba, Joe !!!

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  18. Si Yu'os Ma'ase' to Joe and Rose Santos! Proud to march with you! Biba, Katoliku!

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  19. Thank you Mr Santos for the unselfish hard work you did for the people of our island . It was an honor to picket with you this morning. God bless you and your family on your new journey.

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