Churches

BACKGROUND HISTORY

OF CHRISTIANITY

The Philippines is the fifth largest Christian country, with about 93% of the population being adherents. It is also one of two predominantly Roman Catholic nations in Asia (the other being East Timor), and is the third largest Catholic country in the world.

An estimated 92.5% of Filipinos are Christians which consists of 80.9% Roman Catholic, 2.8% Evangelical, 2.3% Iglesia ni Cristo, 2% Aglipayan, and 4.5% other Christian groups including other Protestant denominations (Baptist, Pentecostal, Anglican, Methodist, and Seventh Day Adventist) as well as Orthodox. In the southern Philippines (especially in Mindanao Island) roughly 5% of the population is Muslim; 1.8% of the entire population adheres to other independent religions, while 0.7% are irreligious.

Religion in the Philippines (2000)

  Roman Catholic (80.9%)

  Islam (5%)

  other Christian (4.5%)

  Evangelical (2.8%)

  Iglesia ni Cristo (2.3%)

  Aglipayan (2.0%)

  Other (1.8%)

  Unspecified and none (0.7%)

Christianity arrived in the Philippines with the landing of Ferdinand Magellan in 1521. In the late 16th century, the archipelago was claimed for Spain and named it after its king. Missionary activity during the country's colonial rule by Spain and the United States led the transformation of the Philippines into the first and then, along with East Timor, one of two predominantly Christian nations in East Asia, with approximately 92.5% of the population belonging to the Christian faith

Most Filipinos are very religious, the belief in God permeating many aspects of life. Christians celebrate important holidays in many different ways, the most important of which are Christmas, Lent and Holy Week, All Souls' Day, as well as many local fiestas honoring patron saints and especially the Virgin Mary. Filipinos residing in Metro Manila and occasionally those overseas often return to their respective home provinces and towns to observe these holidays with their birth families, much like the practice in Mainland China for traditional holidays. Filipino infants and individuals are more often than not expected to be baptized as Christians to affirm faith in Christ and their belonging to a specific denomination.

By Antonio G. Gilana

Since 1994, when Sorsogon Province celebrated its Centennary (1894-1994) as a province, the commemoration of the First Holy Mass in the Island of Luzon has been done in the neighboring town of Magallanes, in a place called Sitio Gibal-ong (Barangay Siuton). Both the Civil and Religious (Catholic) authorities in Sorsogon Province have followed this annual tradition over the last 19 years.

I think it is about time to rectify this error in history.

During my incumbency as Municipal Councilor of Bulan (1995-2004), I advocated for this rectification. I authored a council resolution informing the Provincial Government of the need to conduct research and further studies on where indeed the First Holy Mass in Luzon was celebrated. But this fell on deaf ears. I found some support in the work and research of Dr. Luis Camara Dery of Gubat, a historian of caliber. It was his research that became the basis of a documented statement/ declaration that it was not in Magallanes , BUT in OTAVI, BULAN, that the First Holy Mass in Luzon was held. THE FIRST CHAPEL WAS BUILT IN MAGALLANES, BUT THE FIRST MASS WAS HELD IN OTAVI.

For every world religion, there is a place to worship. For Christianity, there are a confusing variety of names for these places, which are frequently—but incorrectly—used interchangeably. Church, chapel, and cathedral are the trio of terms most commonly used to denote a religious space, but how are they different? As with most questions on the nature of language, it depends not whom you ask, but when you ask.

Chronologically speaking, the words “church” and “chapel” emerged into widespread use at about the same time, dating back to approximately the thirteenth century. Church evolved from a motley collection of sources: the Old English cirice, West Germanic kirika, Middle Dutch kerke, and from the Greek kyriake. Chapel has a more straightforward derivation, from the Old French chapele, which in turn had roots in the Medieval Latin cappella, literally meaning “little cape,” honoring the story of St. Martin of Tours’ holy garment. Of the two, “church” is the broader term, referring both to the worship space in an architectural sense as well as the congregation as a collective group of people meeting within the church building. Though the word’s original connotations were of a building designated for holy worship, church services now often take place in secular locations, and former church buildings are frequently converted into private homes, bookstores, and bars.

THE DIFFERENCES OF CHAPEL TO CHURCH

Chapels are commonly smaller spaces, usually a room within the church or a larger, non-faith-based institution like an airport, hospital, or university, and they are not necessarily consecrated ground. Even chapels of considerable size or with their own freestanding grounds differ from the traditional Christian church in welcoming nondenominational or interfaith worship. Perhaps the loosest definition of “chapel” refers to those peculiar Las Vegas wedding locations for hasty, and occasionally poorly thought out, marriages—a far cry from most established religion.

Unlike both churches and chapels, which originated in the general Christian tradition but are not specific to any particular incarnation of it, cathedrals fulfill a specific role within the Catholic faith. Named for the bishop’s throne, the cathedra—and despite its implications of stained glass and grandeur—a “cathedral” is simply the designated principal church within a diocese. Naturally, where the bishop goes, lofty arches and flying buttresses often follow, but those are just a side effect. If the bishop’s seat moves elsewhere, so too does the designation of “cathedral.” Such was the case with Crotia’s Church of the Holy Cross, once billed as “the smallest cathedral in the world”—in the absence of a bishop, the Croatian Tourist Board is pushing the definition just a bit.

Jorge Imperial Barlin was the first Filipino bishop of the Catholic Church. His miter as the 28th bishop of Nueva Caceres was granted to him by the Vatican in secret consistory on December 14, 1905. His Episcopal consecration was held on June 29, 1906 in Manila.

His rise to that exalted ecclesiastical post was not only a personal triumph but also the fulfillment as well of every Filipino Catholic priest’s aspiration. It, too, was a triumph of the Filipino people, of a race that had been considered inferior for over 300 years by a regime which had itself brought Catholicism into the country.

Jorge Barlin was ordained priest when he was 28 years old, at a time when the Catholic Church, headed by Spanish friars, was persecuting Filipino priests who were fighting for reforms within the Church structure. Father Burgos, Gomez, and Zamora were garroted on February 17, 1872 for their alleged complicity in the Cavite revolt, a charge which has since been debunked by history.

As a priest, Father Barlin would have been subjected to the racial discrimination experienced by his fellow secular priest, and permanently relegated to the lowest rungs in the Church hierarchy. This fate did not come to him early, though. Bishop Gainza, his benefactor and mentor, was fond of him and, hence, did his best to ensure the future of his protégé. Right after his ordination, he was appointed capellan de solio and majordomo of the Cathedral, by Monsignor Gainza. He held those posts, which ensured his proximity to the bishop, throughout Gainza’s term. He discharged his responsibilities with exceptional competence, bearing in mind at all times his teacher’s example.

Upon the death of Bishop Gainza sometime in 1880, father Barlin was assigned to Siruma, in Bicol. The adjustment he had to make from the royal episcopal society to that isolated town would have been traumatic, but he bore the hardship in silence, his patience and obedience fortifying his character. Three years later, in 1883, Barlin was reassigned to the pastoral village of Libog, Albay, which was near Siruma.