We are bringing back this article In commemoration of the 100th birth anniversary of the late Vice President Emmanuel “Maning” Pelaez on November 30, 2015
Cagayan de Oro City- In the place of honor on the living room wall of the Pelaez residence in Ayala Alabang hangs a painting entitled “The Washing of the Feet” by the renowned painter Anita Magsaysay-Ho. The late vice president and ambassador to the U.S. Emmanuel “Maning” Pelaez liked telling his guests the story about how the painting came to be.
In an article published April 17, 1960 in “The Citizen”, the late statesman tells about how the painting was directly related to his concept of public service took shape under the guidance of a young Jesuit priest during his formative years.
The Washing of the Feet by Mrs Anita Magsaysay-Ho. 1959 Photo by Mrs. Sonia Ner (courtesy of the Pelaez family)
When Mr. Pelaez was still in high school at the Ateneo de Intramuros (the campus moved to Padre Faura in 1932 after the Intramuros campus was razed by fire), American Jesuits had taken over its administration and he came under the tutelage of a young Jesuit from the U.S., Fr. John Patrick Delaney, S.J.
“I remember many things about Father Delaney, but what stands out in my mind is what I heard him say to a group of students whom he was advising them on what career to pursue.
“If you are after personal advantage, if you are seeking personal and material success, then public service is not the career for you. Public service is an apostleship of sacrifice and service. You must use it to give of yourself unsparingly in the service of your people, not to make something for yourself.“
Then he gave a piece of advice that burned itself into my mind:
“If I had my way,” he said, “I would put in the office of every public official the picture of Christ washing the feet of the apostles to remind them that even God went down on his knees to serve his fellowmen. This must be the symbol of service for all public officials.”
Years later, Mrs. Anita Magsaysay-Ho, the distinguished Filipina painter , noted the print of the Washing of the Feet hanging on my office wall. When she asked me about it, I told her the story of Fr. Delaney and how the picture had come to symbolize my personal concept of public service.
Mrs. Magsaysay-Ho was so fascinated by the idea of having the spirit of the Washing of the Feet hover over public officials as they discharge their functions that she later executed her own version of the Washing of the Feet and presented it to me as a gift.
“To me, it is more than a gift of a friend– it symbolizes my ideal of public service; it is a constant reminder that a public servant cannot be true to his office unless he imbues it with a Christ-like spirit of service to his fellowmen.”
The Pelaez family plans to distribute prints of “The Washing of the Feet” to all LGU heads all over the country.
“We would like to share Papa’s concept of public service with all local government chief executives,” said Eduardo “Bong” Pelaez, son of the late statesman. “Instead of the usual picture of the President or some other politician, we can hang Mrs. Magsaysay Ho’s The Washing of the Feet behind the desk of all mayors and governors all over the country.”
“In this way, we can share Papa’s legacy of his concept of public service for all public servants as inspired by Fr. Delaney and brought to life in Mrs. Magsaysay Ho’s painting, in the way Fr. Delaney wanted it to be.”
A priest who believed in teaching honesty and integrity, a public servant who believed and lived it, and an artist inspired to pass it on as a legacy to future generations, all coming together to bring hope that true public service is an attainable ideal in the Philippine bureaucracy.
Fr. James Reuter, S.J. relates a story told by one of Fr. Delaney’s students about their first exam as high school freshmen: Father Delaney said: “Gentlemen, I am leaving you alone to take this exam. You will now learn whether or not you have character.” And he left the classroom! Challenged that way, the boys were all honest. No one cheated.
But they all got low marks! But when they went to Father Delaney and pleaded with him to let them retake the exam because not one of them cheated, he replied: “No. The marks stay as they are. That is the second lesson you have to learn: whenever you are honest, you have to pay for it.“
Born in Manila in 1914, Ms. Magsaysay-Ho gained international acclaim when her 1956 master piece In the Marketplace fetched US$669,250 at an auction in Christie’s Singapore in 1999. She was recognized by National Artist Victorio Edades as one of the “13 Moderns” of the country and vindicated that accolade by winning the Art Association of the Philippines annual competitions with The Cooks (1952) and Two Women(1960).
Although she can no longer be nominated as a National Artist since she is now a Canadian citizen, the National Commission for Culture and the Arts says she can still be nominated as such if she opts for dual citizenship.
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