The Matters that People Need to Hear

By The Double-Edged Sword Staff
Ask Bro. Eli, 9/10/2007 Vigan, Ilocos Sur, Philippines from U.S. via Satellite

The Old Path Trailed
In this Bible Exposition, a vital issue was raised regarding the origin of Ang Dating Daan (the Old Path) where an inquirer mistakenly assumed that it is also the name of the congregation that Eliseo Soriano is leading. Soriano took the opportunity to clarify matters. Ang Dating Daan, he said, is the name of the program he is hosting that bears the interactive program Itanong mo kay Soriano (Ask Bro. Eli). However, the public commonly refers to the congregation as Ang Dating Daan.

As explained by Soriano, the words, “the old path” comes from the biblical verse, Jeremiah 6: 16, where a commandment says something about seeking the former way which is the Lord’s. As is known to all, at present, people are walking in their own lifestyle. These are new paths that are mostly invented in accordance with people’s own preference – which are not the Lord’s. The program’s name, therefore, is an initiative suggesting compliance with the verse cited.

Identifying Each Power
In Soriano’s broadcast programs, he is often asked the delicate topic about the trinity concept being of God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In this event an inquirer asked about the distinction of the three entities.

Complicated and deep this issue seemed to be, Soriano answered this in a very simple manner yet biblically-based. The Father is the Creator, he said. He is the greatest among them. The Son is the appointed preacher of Christianity. He is the savior of the believers. The Holy Spirit is the comforter. As the spiritual comforter of the Christians during persecutions, it is the help to Christian’s personal infirmities in order to obey fully the doctrines.

Who Created you?
A very bold atheist identified himself, marched to the front and before the audience asked Soriano this question, “Who created you?” Bro. Eli answered patiently that it is God who created every living creature. Logically he is included in the creation.

The atheist followed up with another question. He challenged Soriano to prove that it is God who created him. He asked, “Have you seen Him while creating you?” Soriano shot back at the atheist, “How can you tell yourself that an open wire has current? Do you need to get electrocuted first in order to believe?”

“How about your mind? Do you believe you have a mind in your head? If you do believe you have, are you literally seeing it?”

The atheist did not utter a word in response to those questions. Instead, he argued that if there is a God why are there flaws or handicaps among His creation, like the blind, the deaf and mentally-challenged people?

Soriano replied that flaws are with people because God wills it to be. It is His way of showing that human beings are powerless over Him. In this manner of teaching humans to be humble, people may learn to give way to reality despite their own preferences.

News that People Need
The host of the program, Itanong mo kay Soriano (Ask Bro. Eli), said that people wouldn’t get anything productive in what people in the country are talking about: showbiz, politics, money-making operations, fake government contracts, and who’s who are involved in rampant corruption, as these are the content in the news today.

He said these talks that people are hearing about never please God, but actually are repugnant to him. He said that what would please God are the talks that matter to Him, as these also benefit people. The importance of talking about God is that it leads us not to be victimized by false beliefs and practices, he said.

Soriano pointed out that major television channels in the Philippines are preventing the more pressing and more significant news from being known by public viewers. There are news from abroad that should be exploited but were never given emphasis by responsible networks. The important of this kind of information is that they are food for social inquiry, and more importantly, for the salvation of souls.

News like Catholic Pope Benedict’s saying that there is no limbo after hundreds of years in this belief is indeed news. The Catholics had imposed this belief to their members, Soriano noted. Accordingly, limbo is a concept arising from the Catholic Church accounting for those dead who cannot clearly be assigned to heaven or hell. Just imagine, how long people with this belief were being fooled, and many continuously are being fooled, he said.

Soriano's programs on television may go down in history as the most suspended by a censor's board, particularly the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) upon the influence of some groups who do not want to listen to him.