The heroism of thousands of Filipinos who risked lives and limbs to come to the aid of the victims of Typhoon Ondoy and Typhoon Pepeng has opened once again a lively debate on whether or not we as a people can work for the common good of the nation. As Felicisimo P. Gorospe wrote in a column he circulated in the internet: "Despite the nightmare the nation's capital experienced, a ray of hope exposed itself, as selflessness reigned supreme amid the disaster. The spirit of 'bayanihan' comes alive, that innately Filipino values system of communal unit and effort on helping other people in need. In the same manner, cash and in-kind donations and well-wishes continue to flow from people here and abroad just to reach out to the typhoon victims. If there is one good thing that typhoon 'Ondoy' brought to us, it is that the culture of sharing one's blessings and helping each other comes distinctly to the fore. If we are only capable of fostering this culture in our everyday lives, despite the existence of major differences that separate and divide, then the achievement of a communal objective is well within reach."

Mr. Gorospe poses the big "if." Why is it that Filipinos in general can act like the Good Samaritan when they find others in distress but in everyday living seem to be unconcerned about the common good in the way they violate traffic rules, throw their litter around with abandon, and leave the toilets dirty after use? Let me venture an answer.

Filipinos in general have a high EQ (emotional quotient). They are quick to emphatize with people whom they perceive as suffering or in need of some help. Filipinos, whether rich or poor, have what we call "puso" or heart. It is not difficult for them to feel for the agony of others. Beyond just the love of attraction or the love of friendship, we can readily have the love of benevolence for others whom we see as needing our help. This love of benevolence moves us to do good to some very specific others without expecting anything in return and even at great expense to ourselves. As demonstrated in not a few cases during the killer floods, some of us even demonstrated the greatest love defined by Jesus Christ: giving one's life for others.

We can say, therefore, that Filipinos in general have the virtue of charity, the queen of all virtues. But what they lack and still have to incorporate into their culture is the virtue of social justice, which is a combination of justice and charity. Let us use the very mundane example of leaving the toilet clean after use. In the airplanes, there is always the sign in the wash room "Please use your paper towel to clean after use for the benefit of the next user." If someone follows this instruction, he is doing so despite the fact that no one is looking and that he does not know the person he is benefiting. That is the essence of social justice: to do the right thing for the common good even if no one is watching and the beneficiary is unknown. One is doing the good thing for society in general, that is the common good.

In this light, I will never forget the scene I witnessed at the Luneta many moons ago. A Singaporean family (I recognized them from their accent) was touring the Luneta. I saw the children unwrap some candies. I watched them as they looked in vain for some wastebasket into which to throw the wrappers. When they couldn't find one, they dutifully put the wrappers into their pockets. Almost at the same time, I saw some Filipino children with their parents throwing their litter into the ground. The concern for the public good is instilled in children by their elders in a society like Singapore. Unfortunately, we have not done the same thing for our children.

The concern for the common good can be called social justice. It is a combination of the virtues of justice and charity. It is part of the virtue of justice because justice is the habit of giving everyone his due. Each of us ought to give to society its due, which is the common good. It is also the virtue of charity because it is seeking the good of others without waiting for anything in return. This virtue is very well explained in Caritas in Veritate, the latest social encyclical of Pope Benedict XVI: "Another important consideration is the common good. To love someone is to desire that person's good and to take effective steps to secure it. Besides the good of the individual, there is a good that is linked to living in society: the common good. It is the good of 'all of us', made up of individuals, families and intermediate groups who together constitute society. It is a good that is sought not for its own sake, but for the people who belong to the social community and who can only really and effectively pursue their good within it."

The Pope makes it crystal clear that the virtue of social justice combines the virtues of justice and charity, which are among the most important virtues that every human being has to cultivate if he is to respond to God's command "to be perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect." As the Pope continues: "To desire the common good and strive towards it is a requirement of justice and charity. To take a stand for the common good is on the one hand to be solicitous for, and on other hand to avail oneself of, that complex of institutions that give structure to the life of society, juridically, civilly, politically and culturally, making it the polis, or 'city'. The more we strive to secure a common good corresponding to the real needs of our neighbors, the more effectively we love them. Every Christian is called to practise this charity, in a manner corresponding to his vocation and according to the degree of influence he wields in the polis. This is the institutional path--we might also call it the political path--of charity, no less excellent and effective than the kind of charity which encounters the neighbor directly, outside the institutional mediation of the polis."

In the values formation program of parents, teachers and leaders of organizations, we must exert every effort to instill the virtue of social justice in all Filipinos, especially among the young. The love for the common good is indispensable in the building of a just and humane society. It is indispensable in the attainment of integral human development, i.e. the development of every person and the whole person. For comments, my email address is bvillegas@uap.edu.ph.