Author’s note. I received a message from a bishop. This evolved into a short dialogue between us, which I am featuring in this column, along with other issues. He requested anonymity.

BISHOP: After the Baltic Russia-Ukraine crisis, then after the Israel-Hamas crisis, don’t you think the West Philippine Sea or the South China Sea will be the next conflict area? After all, the USA is already committed to defending us, and practically all allies have started gathering the mighty force in this area. Are we in the place where they will try their more recent and more potent war tools? Expect a new and bloodier chapter in the ungodly story soon to unfold.

AUTHOR: There is panic, not just fear, in your words, bishop. You foresee that the Philippines will be sucked helplessly into a big war similar to Gaza or Ukraine that we will regret later, where the results are unpredictable, and the casualties may be huge. The forces are gathering towards that war — especially alliances with Japan and Australia. An anti-China coalition is evolving rapidly in the WPS as we conduct joint naval games. This is a proxy war deadly emerging. What should we do, bishop?

BISHOP: You ask me what to do? Mary asks us what to do. I pray for all anti-God people. I pray for the leaders of nations, including that of China. I pray for the overwhelmingly good Chinese people as well as for other people. God wants all to be God (good)-people. That all be converted to the true God and renounce evil.

AUTHOR: Bishop, everyone is preparing for the big confrontation in our backyard, namely, the WPS, which is legally ours as decided by international law, which China refuses to adhere to. The Filipino nation is going to be a rope in a tug-of-war of giants, the foremost victim of a proxy war.

BISHOP: The Blessed Mother in Lipa said (in 1948), “China will create troubles in your area (Philippines) and elsewhere in the world. This is happening seven decades after (the 1948 prophecy); 2).” Pray … pray … pray for the conversion of China.

AUTHOR: You recommend prayers for the “conversion” of China, which I perceive is not so much a conversion to Catholicism as they are essentially forever Buddhists, Taoists, or sectarian. It is more of a conversion to attain goodwill towards the Philippines and to stop the oppression of the Catholic Church in China. As you explained before, bishop, the Catholic Church in China is split into the “Underground Church,” which is a target of assassinations, and the Church with open communications with the Vatican.

Although the dialogue may continue in the future, this is all I got from the bishop for now. Notice that his perspective is not so much geopolitical as spiritual or “meta-political,” and it is important for us to see such a fresh perspective. We are primarily concerned with the geopolitical and the “earthly,” which we can juxtapose with the bishop’s Marian perspective.

Related geopolitical issues

Right now, some Western media analysts say that the US is weakening and “losing the initiative” and that China has slowly matched its supreme naval prowess. Is China looking for a fight in the WPS to take advantage of US weakness? Timing is of utmost importance for China, and the time may be now or soon. Is China ready for a confrontation in the WPS after decades of preparation — naval bases in the WPS, missile silos, lasers, and electronic jammers the US carrier warplanes are helpless to contain?

The US is using the Philippines as a staging point for its war with China. Defending the Philippines is only good if it fits US geopolitical interests. With Japan and Australia, there is only a deadly proxy war equal to or worse than those in Syria, Afghanistan, and Ukraine.

The Philippines is trapped in that war whether we like it or not. Neutrality is impossible. We are either for one or the other. Duterte chose China. Marcos Jr. chose the US. Either way, a WPS war looms. This is the geopolitical dilemma facing our nation today.

But the bishop has a seeming answer to our dilemma. Let us simply pray hard. Our ways are not God’s ways. The bishop suggests that we leave it up to the Lord. If God taught David how to beat Goliath with a slingshot, he can do the same for us. It is just a matter of our strong faith.

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