I joined the Order in Manila in 1972 (visited Fifth City in '67, and had JWM for our Senior Retreat Speaker while John Epps and former guy in Boston - memory lapsing) because of the paradigm shift of the Earthrise that I assumed was operational in the Order. The categories of atheist and theist are therefore, irrelevant. The sunrise perspective (from the Rah, Sun god of the Pyramids), we looked up for Santa in Sky, of mirages of palaces in heaven that became irrelevant when we started looking seriously at the Earth. Who did we find? Us. First, we discovered that of 250 million sperms my Dad gifted my Mom in moments of passion, I was the only one who made it. That's is a two year attempt, at conservatively three times a month, and you can figure out the odds. I was a WINNER on the first 45 minutes of conception. Second, the egg that received the sperm did not automatically allowed the first arrival to enter. Somehow, it choose. As such, I was also FREE. The two formed a zygote that in 9 months created a respiratory, circulatory, muscular, skeletal, nervous systems, et al, a labor of inordinate CREATIVITY. Born, I GREW and will keep going until the day I die. So, I am naturally a WINNER, FREE, CREATIVE, and miraculously and mysteriously GROWING. This is where I begin, like everyone else. Oh, we can save all those anthropomorphic nouns and adjectives that we used on the deity and take it down to Earth. Now, we are in business, real and authentic business, on the proper subject, US, and our choice to be human. I left the Order in 1986 when the authority of hierarchy replaced the authority of authenticity. Ironically, the Order made Sudtonggan choose between the Vergaras and the ICA. This was about two weeks before the EDSA Peoples Revolution against Marcos. Guess which one Sudtonggan choose? There was an institutional global Order incorporated in Illinois. It seems like organizationally, that was the one that went out of being in Mexico. That was two years after I left, or, rather, I was "sent out." The Manila House did help me conduct a LENS course for employees of PLAN International in Bicol. I owed Manila their fee, but the Order went out of being! No offense meant, John. We all have our perspectives, and our given histories. The first of 9 editions to my digitized Global Odyssey is due in August. That is a compendium of my perspective, to encourage others to write their own. By the way, when I went to teach in China, I donated all my books to the Saipan Public Library, including Brother Joe and Bending History (2). Anyone has extra copies they want to donate for my reading? I will most likely be in Saipan the next four years. Thank you. Jaime Vergara P.O. Box 503717 Saipan MP 96950