Group 2Alexis Avilla

Pamela ChanLianne Chua

Miguel Da SilvaMelissa Manay Alfredo Reyes

Mikhail TenderoJohn Wong

Edison Yatco

The Guardian of the Guards:Who do Filipino security guards say that Jesus is?

NarrativeAccount

Objectives of the Interview• Become acquainted with the New Testament

understanding of Christ from the point of view of the security guards

• Seek a better understanding of how people from other sectors of the society view Jesus Christ

• This is one approach of doing Christology from below since it deals with the point of view of simple people

The Interviewees: Security Guards

• Security guards from different establishments: the Ateneo de Manila University, banks, restaurants, and condominiums

• Important roles in our society today: overlook the safety of entire establishments

• We see them as if they blend in with the background or worse, like they are invisible

Lessons Learned

• The Security Guards chose their job not because they wanted to. They had higher hopes and dreams but they needed to make a living.

• Realization of how blessed and fortunate we are that we have a lot of opportunities and privileges that enable us to go after our own dreams and aspirations.

Lessons Learned

• Even though they do not have a high-paying job, they are honoured to be serving members of society

• They do not deserve the kind of treatment that we are giving them

• We became more appreciative of their contributions to society

• We realized how we should appreciate the simplest things in life

The Interview

• Prior to this: Name, Age, Religious Affiliation, Permission

• All Said they were Christian• questions about their faith and Jesus Christ.

(who Jesus is in their lives)• The book “Christology of the Inarticulate” by

Fr. Benigno Beltran served as a tool for us.

Two kinds of reactions from the respondents:

• Confident in choosing their answers: -had little questions and clarifications-had a clear picture of who Jesus Christ is in

their lives.• Puzzled and hesitant in choosing their

answers..-only aware of a general idea of Christ.

Their Answers to The Questions

• Varied from one person to the other. • Jesus Christ, through different times and

contexts, is viewed differently by different people from different societies

• The guards turn to Christ in hard times• They might not know full well the strict

Church definitions and the historical facts on Jesus Christ, but when it comes to their faith, they are absolutely sure.

Conclusions

• People have different perceptions of who Christ is in their lives.

• Their beliefs may be unclear. But what matters most is that they have a strong faith in Him.

• We saw how significant Jesus Christ is for Christians.

• It is in their unwavering faith and ours that we, both as individuals and Christians, are able to go through even the most difficult of times

Statistics

Interviewees Name Age Gender

1 B.E. Custodio 29 Male

2 Franchesca B. Porras 29 Female

3 Sony Santos 36 Female

4 Orlando S. Dominguez Jr. 51 Male

5 Eduardo Vistal 35 Male

6 Winston J.F. Fernandez 51 Male

7 Josie S. Banhao 39 Female

8 Ruby De Mesa 29 Female

9 JR Santos 36 Male

10 Victoria Abad 41 Female

AnswersAll

Q Most %

1 c 60% Redeemer and Savior

2 c 50% Christ Crucified

3 b 40% Lamb of God

4 d 60% Good Teacher

5 d 40% God

6 b 60% Savior

7 a 60% God the Father

8 a 70% God the Father

9 a 50% Bible

10 a 50% Priests

11 c 80% Church

12 a 80% Mass

13 c 60% Fast and Abstinence

14 a 90% Going to Mass

15 c 40% Begotten

16 a 60% Image

Answers (Male)MaleQ Most %

1 c 80% Redeemer and Savior2 c 60% Christ Crucified

3 b 60% Lamb of God

4 d 40% Good Teacher

5 c 60% Savior

6 d 40% Messiah

7 a 80% God the Father

8 a 60% God the Father

9 a 40% Bible

10 a 60% Priests

11 c 80% Church

12 a 80% Mass

13 c 80% Fast and Abstinence14 a 80% Going to Mass

15 c 60% Begotten

16 b 60% Word

Answers (Female)FemaleQ Most %

1 a 60% King and Lord

2 b 60% Jesus of Nazareth3 a 60% Sacred Heart

4 d 80% Good Teacher

5 d 80% God

6 b 80% Savior

7 c 60% God the Holy Spirit8 a 80% God the Father

9 a 60% Bible

10 d 40% Parents

11 c 80% Church

12 a 80% Mass

13 a 40% Self-sacrifice

14 a 100% Going to Mass

15 a 40% Conceived

16 a 80% Image

Answers (Ages 29-36)All Ages 29-36Q Most % 1 c 67% Redeemer and Savior2 c 50% Christ Crucified 3 b 50% Lamb of God 4 d 50% Good Teacher 5 b 33% Lord 6 b 67% Savior 7 a 67% God the Father 8 a 50% God the Father 9 a 50% Bible 10 a 50% Priests 11 c 83% Church 12 a 67% Mass 13 c 50% Fast and Abstinence14 a 100% Going to Mass 15 a 33% Conceived 16 a 50% Image

Answers (Ages 37-51)All Ages 37-51Q Most % 1 c 50% Redeemer and Savior2 c 50% Christ Crucified3 c 50% Good Shepherd4 d 75% Good Teacher 5 c 50% Savior

6 b 50% Savior

7 a 50% God the Father 8 a 100% God the Father 9 a 50% Bible 10 a 50% Priests 11 c 75% Church 12 a 100% Mass 13 c 75% Fast and Abstinence14 a 75% Going to Mass 15 c 75% Begotten 16 a 75% Image

Analysis of the Findings

• Interviewed 10 security guards– 5 female, 5 male– Age bracket 29 – 51

• Answers were consistent with all age and gender groups, except for the 14th question

• Security guards– Social class – lower brackets of income– Profession requires a lot of time, patience and

loyalty

• From these, we can draw interpretations of Christ as seen from the following groups of questions

Questions 2 and 3

• Security guards: ‘Deals with visual images of Christ’• They see the humble Christ – the suffering Hesus

Nazareno, and the obedient Lamb of God.• We find this consistent with the traditional notion of

Jesus to the Filipinos –humble and accepting towards suffering, the same way we are as a nation, especially with the Spanish evangelization

• Consistent also with their profession, which demands humility in the form of patient, selfless service.

Questions 1, 4 and 6

• Deal with notions regarding the word ‘Christ’• Answers revolve around the idea of Jesus as a

Saviour or Redeemer• Humility – they recognize themselves in a state of

hardship and/or poverty• The interior of Christ, the connotations of the name

and not the image, is that of a Saviour of hope.• Christ is, then, a God-send Redeemer with the

exterior of a relatable human.

Questions 7- 8 and 15 - 16

• Delineates the idea of Christ being the Human Christ, differentiated from God the Father

• For security guards, there is a distinct difference between the two – the Father is the authoritative Lord and Master, where the son is the Image of God the Father, more specifically the human image, which they can identify with.

Questions 9 -12• Branch out into the origins of the knowledge of Christ• Most knowledge of Christ for them come through Church services

– Mass– Bible (through the mass where the Bible is read)– Priests (celebrants of mass, homily)

• Religious knowledge are not attained through classroom-based methods, nor modern methods such as media

• Because of their time-consuming profession, the only source of information for them is the Sunday mass

• In a traditional sense, the Church is then held to particularly high regard.

Questions 13 - 14

• Reinforce the conclusion of traditionalism through practical references

• They are most drawn to the Holy Mass, Fasting and Abstinence.– Most traditional – obligatory and endorsed by the

Church

Who do security guards say Jesus is?

• To them, Jesus is part of their everyday lives• Every day, they struggle through their profession and

making a living.• Every day, they live in hope of Christ, their Redeemer

– the Redeemer who works by example, teaching them to live in patience and humility. Because they live in hope, they embrace the Church, its tradition, and Jesus himself.