* * *

But what struck me in the story was the inner struggle taking place within Peter Parker in his twin role as "born loser" young man and gifted Spider-Man.

As Spider-Man, he was always busy fighting crimes and helping people in desperate need. So busy that as an ordinary working student, he was always late and hardly had time for himself and his lady love, Mary Jane Watson.

* * *

Fed up with his role, Parker called it quits. This is shown when he threw away in the garbage bin his Spidey attire. To the tune of "Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head," he declared himself free as any normal young man.

It was when he visited his lovable old aunt, who didn’t know her nephew as the Spider-Man, that his eyes opened and realized the great benefit of his role and commitment.

* * *

After Spider-Man had quit, the crime rate soared. The city was orphaned by his disappearance, the aunt lamented.

We need heroes, she said, who are able to forget themselves, sacrifice their comforts in order to serve the people. Without these gallant men, society would deteriorate.

* * *

The words of Parker’s aunt sank deep in his heart, inspiring him to return to his lonely task of fighting crimes and helping people in desperate need.

I find the predicament of Peter Parker similar to the vocation of a priest. A priest is given the gift of the priesthood, ordained to dispense the sacraments, to reach out to the needy, always trying to live a holy life. The priesthood is not for himself but for others, much like the powers of Spider-Man.

* * *

The message is very timely as the clergy all over the country have gathered for spiritual RENEWAL in the ongoing National Congress of Clergy in Manila.

In his role and obligation, the priest has to deny himself a lot of personal comforts in order to carry out his "lonely" work of saving and serving people.

Sometimes he gets so tired and discouraged that, like SpiderMan, he wants to throw away his priestly garb. But as Parker’s aunt neatly put it, the decision to be faithful to one’s calling spells the difference between being just an ordinary man and a hero.

* * *

This reminds me of the story of a despondent man who complained to his mother, "I’ve stopped going to church for two reasons: I don’t like the people, and the people don’t like me."

The mother gazed at him and consoled him, saying: "My son, you should go back to church; I’ll give you two reasons why: First, you’re already 58 years old, and you are the parish priest!"

* * *

Who would say masses, absolve sinners, speak out against abuses and injustices if the priests stop serving? "The moment you stop to burn with love, the world will die of the cold," someone once said.

Of course, we can also say that of our dedicated and faithful people in public service – the low-paid government officials, teachers, school principals, to mention some.

In all this, one needs unswerving fidelity to his commitment. When the going gets tough, the tough gets going!