Divorce in the Philippines: Balancing Faith and Compassion
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I grew up in the shadow of the church, the heavy bells marking the passage of time. As an ex-seminarian, I believed no man should part in what God joined. Family meant a father and a mother, a unity I never knew. Raised without a traditional family, I was blessed with the warmth of my aunt's home. Now, with a daughter of my own, I face the paradox of my beliefs and the reality of life in the Philippines. Here, where divorce is a ghost, it haunts us. We are the last to hold out against it, a country clinging to an ideal while ignoring the cries of those trapped in unions that bring harm, not harmony. I understand the sanctity of marriage, the vows made before God. Yet, I've seen the other side—the need for a law that allows people to part, not on a whim, but with heavy hearts seeking peace. This is the story of that struggle, the balance between faith and the harsh truths of life. It is about finding a middle ground where the law respects both the sanctity of marriage and the we