It is worth emphasizing that if Belardo was strong and fit enough to go out of her way to sue Esperon, then it can be reasonably presumed that she is strong and fit enough to defend herself in another suit.

The highly politicized Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines never seems to run out of issues.

Earlier this month, Sister Elenita Belardo, an 80-year old nun, posted bail in the amount of P18,000 at the Metropolitan Trial Court in Quezon City, after the trial court issued a warrant for her arrest.

An information for perjury was filed against Belardo by the Quezon City prosecution office. National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr. initiated the criminal case as the private offended party.

Belardo claims to be the president of her religious order, which calls itself the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines (RMP).

The nun’s problem began when the RMP joined other anti-administration groups in filing a petition for a writ of amparo and a writ of habeas data against Esperon in the Supreme Court.

All petitions filed in the Supreme Court must be verified, i.e., the petitioners must take an oath that the allegations in their petition are true. Under the Revised Penal Code, making a false declaration under oath constitutes the crime of perjury.

In affixing her signature on the petition, Belardo declared under oath that her RMP is “a duly registered non-stock and non-profit organization.” Esperon discovered, however, that the certificate of registration of the RMP was revoked in 2003.

Thereafter, Esperon instituted a criminal complaint for perjury against Belardo. The nun claimed that she made the declaration in good faith. Esperon’s camp argued that as RMP president, Belardo should know the real status of her organization.

When Belardo posted bail, she was accompanied by someone from an organization called Karapatan. Where the nun got the money for bail, however, is not ascertainable.

The Belardo incident reveals how politicized priests and nuns in the Philippines are, and shows how church leaders brazenly mock the constitutionally mandated separation of Church and State.

It is unsettling enough to see friars and nuns openly siding with politicians critical of the administration of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, and personalities identified with the communist movement.

More unsettling is learning about nuns like Belardo who actually go out of their way to sue the government in a court of law and, according to the prosecution, make a false declaration under oath, or fail to verify what they alleged under oath.

Equally disturbing is a recent revelation in the news media that some funds held by a Catholic charitable institution in the Philippines have made their way to local communist organizations.

There is also the news report about a friar who admitted praying for President Duterte to get sick.

If a nun can’t be expected to tell the truth, even under oath, and a priest unashamedly admits in public that he asked God to make a fellow human being fall ill, one can only imagine in horror what is being taught in Catholic schools in the country.

Several years ago, the Catholic Church filed a criminal case against the late Carlos Celdran, a tour guide in Intramuros, who dared call the priests at the Manila Cathedral “Damaso,” a reference to the evil friar in Jose Rizal’s novel “Noli Me Tangere.”

Now, the shoe is on the other foot, so to speak. A nun is at the receiving end of criminal raps. What is the Catholic Church going to do about it?

Many expect Belardo to invoke her status as an octogenarian to woo the sympathy of the trial court. That may be so, but it is worth emphasizing that if Belardo was strong and fit enough to go out of her way to sue Esperon, then it can be reasonably presumed that she is strong and fit enough to defend herself in another suit.

By experiencing how it feels to be sued, Belardo may yet realize the folly of disregarding the separation of Church and State.

Public interest demands that Esperon should prosecute the criminal case against Belardo to its logical conclusion. If he doesn’t, many nuns similarly minded will be emboldened to make a mockery of court procedures.

The lawyer who represented Belardo should also face administrative raps for failing to ascertain the legal status of the RMP and for allowing the false statement to go into the court record.