The Varsitarian

INTERNATIONAL stalwarts in the field of bioethics will gather in the University next month to discuss from the ethical and moral standpoints as well as resolve some sticky debates on continuously advancing scientific and medical interference in the life process.

The Vatican-based Pontifical Academy for Life, UST, and the Office of Bioethics of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines will sponsor the International Congress on Bioethics 2005 at the St. Thomas Aquinas Research Complex on Dec. 5 to 7.  read more »

Last August 15, Environment Secretary Mike Defensor lifted a 16-year logging moratorium in Samar, allowing the Juan Ponce Enrile-owned San Jose Timber Corporation (SJTC), to once again cut trees in a protected area inside the Samar Island Natural Park. Of course, the decision was a shock to environmentalists, clergy, and the people of Samar, who longed for the ban after a typhoon unleashed massive flashfloods in their province that killed 100 people and displaced thousands.

“It was immoral and unjust,” was all that they could say.

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THE JOURNEY out of innocence usually leaves an invisible scar that makes one wince once in a while. But the scar can sometimes become a sad reminder, or symbol, of our faults, stupidity, imprudence, or recklessness, especially if we can’t escape its consequences.  read more »

A CORRECTION must be made as regards the unfortunate and seemingly ceaseless breaches by brigands and street robbers of UST students’ safety and security these recent weeks.  read more »

DIMMED lights, serene atmosphere, and historical artifacts as backdrops—it was a perfect setting to envelope oneself with hymns and classical melodies performed by one of the top chorales in the world. And indeed, the performance of the UST Singers last Nov. 11 to 12 was a delightful mix of rhythm and symphony, their grandiose sounds echoing within the jam-packed halls of the UST Museum.  read more »

THOMASIAN artistry has hit platinum.

In celebration of the 70th anniversary of the Fine Arts program in the University, the College of Fine Arts and Design (CFAD) presented Visions at Platinum, showcasing the works of Thomasian visual artists of the four disciplines—painting, advertising, interior design, and industrial design—from Nov. 8 to 18 at the GSIS Museo ng Sining.

CFAD Dean Jaime delos Santos said approximately a hundred artists lent their work for the exhibit.  read more »

IF A PICTURE paints a thousand words, certainly a hundred is more than enough to portray 150 years of culture?

150 Years of Photography in Spain, a traveling exhibit curated by Publio Lopez Mondejar, features 113 images of people, landscapes, and different man-made wonders that exhibited the Spanish culture of the mid-19th century up to the late 1970s and was the attraction at the National Museum last Sept. 27 to Nov. 6.  read more »

WHAT do you get when you combine punk with a touch of old school and sing it-”pinoy” style? A fresh sound that sets it apart from the Eraserheads, Teeth, and Rivermaya-inspired music of most rock groups today. The fresh act is Join The Club (JTC).  read more »

THE UST community has joined the rest of the Filipino faithful in mourning the death of former Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin, one of the country’s most influential religious and political figures of the past 30 years.

Rector Fr. Tamerlane Lana, O.P. said Sin is a great loss to the Church.

“He fulfilled the pastoral mission of balancing spiritual and socio-political dimensions of our lives,” Lana told the Varsitarian. “He left a mark on all the Filipino Catholics.”  read more »

RECTOR FR. Tamerlane Lana urged UST Alumni Association (USTAA) officers and board members to focus on uniting UST alumni in preparation for the University’s celebration in 2011 at the Thomas Aquinas Research Center last June 10.

“The best articulation of the role of the alumni in the celebration in 2011 would come not from the ideas of the committee, but from the ideas of all the alumni whom you represent,” Fr. Lana said.  read more »