Manny’s new calling
WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao, the only man ever to capture eight world titles in eight different weight classes, has been enlightened by the Lord in a dream to walk the straight path and lead others to the way of rebirth.
It’s not the first time that Pacquiao has been touched by a dream. “The first dream I remember having as a child was that of a table of bowls overflowing with food,” said Pacquiao in the book “Pacman: My Story of Hope, Resilience and Never-say-never Determination” he co-authored with Timothy James. “My family smiled as they ate their fill and their stomachs were content for an entire day. In my dream, my family’s bellies were full and their smiles were content. No one went to sleep at night with that rumbling in the pit of his or her stomach that shouted that we were too poor to feed everyone.”
That dream motivated Pacquiao to work hard and find a ticket out of poverty. His second dream as a boy growing up had to do with living in a comfortable home because before moving to General Santos City from Bukidnon when he was 10, he stayed in a run-down shack with a dirt floor and hundreds of cracks in the roof. And his third dream was to someday become a Catholic priest. It was Pacquiao’s mother Dionisia who introduced prayer to the family. “Praying gave my mother so much comfort,” he said in his book. “It was something that she taught me to do almost as soon as I could speak. She taught me the meaning of prayer and the meaning of hope. We would all gather together every evening in our one-room home and pray together. Our prayers were always those of faith and hope – faith in God and a hope that He would take care of us. My mother taught me early on to never doubt myself or God.” As Pacquiao became a successful prizefighter, he strayed from where he walked with God. But he never lost his faith. His eyes were opened to worldly things and being only human, he enjoyed the perks of a global celebrity. Then came a reawakening after his third fight against Juan Manuel Marquez last November. Somehow, victory wasn’t as sweet as it was before. Pacquiao wrestled with family problems and had personal issues with God.
But as Pacquiao struggled to find inner peace, he rediscovered the Lord. He got back on track, his soul touched by a dream where God asked why he was turning away from Him. Pacquiao said when we woke up, his pillow was wet with his tears. God reached out to Pacquiao in a dream and inspired him to bring His message of salvation to others.
Now, Pacquiao is a changed man. He is done with gambling, late nights of frivolous fun and betraying the trust of his family. He has even given away his fighting cocks. Every day, he reads and learns from the Bible. God has made him a messenger of His word and before a global audience, he wants to speak out for Christianity.
“People know I have been successful through God and hard work,” said Pacquiao in his picture book produced by David Drebin. It is this awareness that Pacquiao hopes to tap in delivering his new message of Christian faith.
“It is through hope, love and the understanding of our purpose in life that we create happiness in ourselves and become the person God intended us to be,” said Pacquiao in his book with James. “The power I possess comes from deep inside. It comes with the synchronization that God has bestowed upon me. It comes with the hours of training that have been going on for years. It comes with the glory that I have found in victory. The power I possess also comes from love and from hope.” There is no conflict in God’s message and Pacquiao’s profession which is boxing although the world’s No. 1 pound- for- pound fighter admitted an irony. “There is an irony in the fact that I am able to instil hope in people through my profession of boxing which some view as one of violence – a fighter willing to go to war with anyone at any time,” he continued.
“The truth is, I am fighting for people to show them what they can become. I am fighting for people to believe. If I were fighting for anything but that, I would be angry with my opponents and I would want to hurt my opponents. It is quite the opposite. I pray for my opponent’s safety. I pray that nobody will get hurt in that ring.”
Even as he has rediscovered the Lord, Pacquiao remains focused as a fighter. It is what God wants him to be. It is how God wants him to deliver His message of hope. Pacquiao said he plans to fight thrice more before hanging up his gloves next year. Top Rank chairman Bob Arum once said the plan was to do four more with the last to be staged in Manila. One of those remaining fights could be against Floyd Mayweather Jr.
It is a blessing that in our lifetime, a phenom like Manny Pacquiao has come along to bring pride and honor to our country.