Readings in Philippine History

Module No.6

Chapter 2 - Site of the First Mass

LEARNING OUTCOMES
Upon completion of the lessons, the student will be able to:

1. Discuss the location of the earliest mass in the Philippines

LEARNING CONTENT

Site of the First Mass

The first documented Catholic Mass in the Philippines was held on March 31, 1521, Easter
Sunday. It was conducted by Father Pedro de Valderama along the shores of what was referred to in the
journals of Antonio Pigafetta as "Mazaua". Today, this site is widely believed by many historians and the
government to be Limasawa at the tip of Southern Leyte, though this is contested by some who assert that
the first mass was instead held at Masao, Butuan.

Landing on Philippine shores

When Ferdinand Magellan and his European crew sailed from San Lucar de Barrameda for an
expedition to search for spices, these explorers landed on the Philippines after their voyage from other
proximate areas. On March 28, 1521, while at sea, they saw a bonfire which turned out to be Mazaua
(believed to be today's Limasawa) where they anchored.

Francisco Albo’s Log: Route of Magellan’s Expedition in the Island of Saint Lazarus

On March 16, 1521 as they sailed in a westerly course from Ladrones or known as Mariana
Island at the present, they saw land towards the northwest but they didn't landed there due to shallow
places and later found its name as Yunagan. On that same day, they went in a small island
called Suluan which is a part of Samar and there they anchored. Leaving from those two islands, they
sailed westward to an island of Gada where they took in a supply of wood and water from that island;
they sailed towards west to a large island called Seilani (now Leyte). Along the coast of Seilani, they
sailed southwards and turned southwest until they reached the island of Mazaua. From there, they sailed
northwards again towards the Island of Seilani and followed the coast of Seilani towards northwest and
saw three small islands. They sailed westwards and saw three islets where they anchored for the night. In
the morning, they sailed southwest. There, they entered canal between two islands, one of which was
called Subu (now called Cebu) and the other was Matan (now called Mactan). They sailed towards
southwest on that canal then turned westward and anchored at the town of Subu wherein they stayed there
for many days.

The Account of Antonio Pigafetta: Route of Magellan’s Expedition in the Island of St. Lazarus

Antonio Pigafetta was a famous Italian traveler who studied navigation and known by the name
of Antonio Lambardo or Francisco Antonio Pigafetta. He joined the Portuguese, Captain Ferdinand
Magellan and his Spanish crew on their trip to Maluku Island. Pigafetta has the most complete account
of Magellan expedition entitled Primo viaggio intorno al mondo (First Voyage around the world). He was
one of the eighteen survivors who returned to Spain aboard the "Victoria" and therefore considered as an
eyewitness of the significant events happened on the first mass of which Magellan names it the Islands of
Saint Lazarus that is later called the Philippine Archipelago. Pigafetta narrated on his account the events
happened from March 16, 1521 when they first saw the Island of the Philippine group up to April 7, 1521
when the expedition landed on Cebu.

On March 16, 1521, there was a "high land" named "Zamal" that was sighted by the Magellan's
expedition which was some 300 leagues westward of the Ladrones Island. On March 17, 1521, they
landed on "uninhabited island" or known as "Humunu" (Homonhon) which Pigafetta referred to as
"Watering place of good signs" because the place is abundant in gold. Humunu lays right of Zamal at 10
degrees north latitude. They stayed there 8 days from March 17 to March 25, 1521.

On March 25, 1521, they left the island of Homonhon and change route towards west southwest,
between four islands: namely, Cenalo, Hiunanghan, Ibusson, and Albarien. Afterwards, they sail
westward towards Leyte, then followed the Leyte coast southward passing between the island of Ibusson
on their port side and Hiunangan bay on their starboard, and then continued southward, the returning
westward to Mazaua.

On March 28, 1521, there is an island lies on a latitude of 9 and 2/3 towards the arctic pole and in
a longitude 100 and 62 degrees from the line of demarcation. It is named as Mazaua which is 25 leagues
from the Acquada. On April 4, 1521, they left Mazaua bound for Cebu and guided by their King who
sailed on his own boat. All throughout their route, it took them past five islands namely: Ceylon, Bohol,
Canighan, Baibai, and Gatighan. They sailed from Mazaua west by northwest into the Canigao channel,
with Bohol island to port and Leyte and Canigao islands to starboard.

Then they continue sailing northwards along the Leyte coast, past Baibai to Gatighan (it was 20
leagues from Mazaua and 15 leagues from Subu or Cebu. At Gatighan, they sailed westward to the three
islands of the Camotes group namely: Poro, Pasihan, and Ponson. From the Camotes Island they sailed
southwestward towards "Zubu". On April 7 they entered the harbor of "Zubu" (Cebu). It takes them three
days to negotiate the journey from Mazaua northwards to the Camotes Islands and then southwards to
Cebu. That was the route of Magellan expedition as stated in the account of Pigafetta. In that route, the
southernmost point reached before getting to Cebu was Mazaua, located at nine and two-thirds degrees
North latitude.
Blood compact

The island's sovereign ruler was Rajah Kolambu. When Magellan and comrades set foot on the
grounds of Mazaua, he befriended the Rajah together with his brother Rajah Siagu of Butuan. In those
days, it was customary among the indigenous—and in most of Southeast Asia—to seal friendship with a
blood compact. On instigation of Magellan who had heard the Malayan term for it, casi casi, the new
friends performed the ritual. This was the first recorded blood compact between Filipinos and Spaniards.
Gifts were exchanged by the two parties when the celebration had ended.

First Mass

On March 31, 1521, an Easter Sunday, Magellan ordered a Mass to be celebrated which was
initiated by Father Pedro Valderrama, the Andalusion chaplain of the fleet, the only priest then.
Conducted near the shores of the island, the First Holy Mass marked the birth of Roman Catholicism in
the Philippines. Colambu and Siaiu were the first natives of the archipelago, which was not yet named
"Philippines" until the expedition of Ruy Lopez de Villalobos in 1543, to attend the Mass among other
native inhabitants.

During the stay of Magellan and his crew in the inhabited island of Humunu as what Pigafetta has
documented in his Chronicles, according to Gomez (2019), argues that the "first mass" on Philippine soil
was not in ''Agusan'' nor Southern ''Leyte'' and pointed out Palm Sunday must have been celebrated first
before the mass on Easter Sunday, which is obviously practiced up until today.

In the account of Pigafetta, Gomez noticed that he failed to mention some points of the journey
where the masses were held, one example is when they were at the port of San Julian. Pigafetta mentioned
about a mass held on Palm Sunday which was held on April 1, 1520 during their voyage to the west but
never mentioned about Easter Sunday. Same situation happened when the fleet arrived in the Philippines,
Pigafetta only mentioned about the Easter Sunday Mass while he is silent on the Palm Sunday.

For further investigation, some points at Pigafetta's account was translated as follows: At dawn on
Saturday, March 16, 1521, (feast of St. Lazarus, Gomez inserted) we came upon a highland at a distance
an island named Zamal (Samar) the following day (March 17, Sunday) the captain general desired to land
on another island (Humunu) uninhabited in order to be more secure and to get water and have some rest.
He had two tents set up on shore for the sick. On Monday, March 18, we saw a boat coming towards us
with nine men in it.” ''This marks our first human contact with Europeans giving signs of joy because of
our arrival.” “At noon on Friday, March 22, those men came as they had promised.” “And we lay eight
days in that place, where the captain every day visited the sick men who he had put ashore on the island to
recover.”''

As observed by Gomez, the instance wherein Pigafetta had written about the mass said it had two
things in common; they are both held in the shores and there are Filipino natives present. Another passing
evidence, a document found concerning the landing of Magellan's fleet in Suluan ''(Homonhon)'' and the
treaty with the natives featured in a blog post in 2004. It first came out in an article published in 1934 in
Philippine Magazine featured by Percy Gil, and once again featured by Bambi Harper in her column at
the Philippine Daily Inquirer back in 2004.
Planting of the cross

In the afternoon of the same day, Magellan instructed his comrades to plant a large wooden cross
on the top of the hill overlooking the sea. Magellan's chronicler, Antonio Pigafetta, who recorded the
event said: "After the cross was erected in position, each of us repeated a Pater Noster and an Ave Maria,
and adored the cross; and the kings [Colambu and Siaiu] did the same."

Magellan then took ownership of the islands where he had landed in the name of King Charles
V which he had named earlier on March 16 Archipelago of Saint Lazarus because it was the day of the
saint when the Armada reached the archipelago.

In the Account of Francisco Albo, he did not mention about the first mass in the Philippines but
only the planting of the cross upon a mountain top from which could be seen three islands to the west and
southwest, where they were told there was much gold. This also fits the southern end of Limasawa. It
does not suit the coast of Butuan from which no islands could be seen to the south or the southwest, but
only towards the north.

Proclamation of the national shrine

On June 19, 1960, Republic Act No. 2733, called the Limasawa Law, was enacted without
Executive approval on June 19, 1960. The legislative fiat declared the site in Magallanes, Limasawa
Island in the Province of Leyte, where the first Mass in the Philippines was held is hereby declared a
national shrine to commemorate the birth of Christianity in the Philippines. Magallanes is east of the
island of Limasawa. In 1984 Imelda Marcos had a multi-million pesos Shrine of the First Holy Mass
built, an edifice made of steel, bricks and polished concrete, and erected on top of a hill overlooking
barangay Magallanes, Limasawa. A super typhoon completely wiped this out just a few months later.
Another shrine was inaugurated in 2005. Limasawa celebrates the historic and religious coming of the
Spaniards every March 31 with a cultural presentation and anniversary program dubbed as Sinugdan,
meaning "beginning. Yet this has no reference at all to a Catholic mass being held on March 31, 1521.

Historical controversies

Masao

Some Filipino historians have long contested the idea that Limasawa was the site of the first
Catholic mass in the country. Historian Sonia Zaide identified Masao (also Mazaua) in Butuan as the
location of the first Christian mass. The basis of Zaide's claim is the diary of Antonio Pigafetta, chronicler
of Magellan's voyage. In 1995 then Congresswoman Ching Plaza of Agusan del Norte-Butuan City filed a
bill in Congress contesting the Limasawa hypothesis and asserting the "site of the first mass" was Butuan.
The Philippine Congress referred the matter to the National Historical Institute for it to study the issue
and recommend a historical finding. Then NHI chair Dr. Samuel K. Tan reaffirmed Limasawa as the site
of the first mass.
Bolinao

Odoric of Pordenone, an Italian and Franciscan friar and missionary explorer is heartily believed
by many Pangasinenses to have celebrated the first mass in Pangasinan in around 1324 that would have
predated the mass held in 1521 by Ferdinand Magellan. A marker in front of Bolinao Church states that
the first Mass on Philippine soil was celebrated in Bolinao Bay in 1324 by a Franciscan missionary,
Blessed Odorico.

However, there is scholarly doubt that Odoric was ever at the Philippines. Ultimately,
the National Historical Institute led by its chair Ambeth Ocampo recognized the historical records
of Limasawa in Southern Leyte as the venue of the first Mass, held on March 31, 1521.

Confusion on meeting the king of Butuan

According to Bernard (2002), the confusion originated on the misinterpretation of some of the
17th century historians such as Colin and Combes, often yielding incorrect representation of Magellan’s
voyage, which ultimately led to the misconception of the first mass being held at Butuan, rather
than Limasawa. The writings of the previous historians failed to depict the correct route of Magellan’s
ships toward the Philippines. Some write-ups accounted for the entrance of the ships from the southern
part of the country whereas the account of Antonio Pigafetta revealed the entrance from the eastern part
of the country, from the direction of the Pacific region.

Of utmost significance other than the non-verisimilar picture of the route of the voyage is the
confusion on the encounter between the explorer Ferdinand Magellan and the two datus when the former
reached the island of Limasawa, formerly called "Mazaua". According to the previous writings, after the
Spaniards visited the island, they went, together with the two native kings to Butuan and there erected a
cross on top of a hill to symbolize friendship with the natives and to serve as a sign to future Spanish
explorers.

After the erection of the cross and going about the events in the first mass, the men went to Cebu,
by the initiative of Magellan, in search for resources. This account rooted from the misunderstanding of
the meeting between the three persons. According to Pigafetta, Magellan met the datu of Limasawa, and
another datu, whom the scribe himself called “one of his brothers”, namely the king of Butuan. This
highlights the origin of the confusion – Magellan in fact never went to Butuan; he and his men celebrated
the first mass on the island of Limasawa, together with the two datus: one from the island and another
from Butuan, before proceeding to Cebu.

Previous historians, in difference from Pigafetta’s account, thought that Magellan went
to Butuan and there held the first mass on the basis of the explorer’s meeting with the island’s king. In
reality, Magellan’s route never included Butuan as one of its destinations. From the eastern part of the
Philippines, reaching the island of Homonhon, Magellan proceeded to Limasawa and thereupon met two
kings, namely the datu of Limasawa and the datu of Butuan. After celebrating the first mass in that same
island, the explorer and his men set out for Cebu in search for greater resources.
Government position

The National Historical Institute first took action on Limasawa-Butuan controversy in 1980
followed by creation of two more panels in 1995 and 2008. The government has consistently concluded
Limasawa as the site of the first Easter Sunday Mass in the country. Another panel led by prominent
historian Resil B. Mojares was formed in 2018 by now National Historical Commission of the Philippines
(NHCP) to further review continued claims in favor of Butuan. The pro-Butuan group presented non-
eyewitness accounts decades after the Mass as their proofs. Meanwhile, the pro-Limasawa group
provided the panel coordinates of Mazaua given by the eyewitnesses, studies and projects that retraced the
Magellan-Elcano expedition using modern navigational instruments, and the copies of Pigafetta's original
accounts.

Ahead of the quinte-centennial celebration of the Christianization of the Philippines, the NHCP
dismissed the Butuan claim due to insufficient evidences to change the government's current position and
reaffirmed Limasawa as the site of the first Easter Sunday Mass in the country. The panel also endorses
the changes proposed by historian Rolando Borrinaga to recognize Barangay Triana instead of Barangay
Magalles as the specific location in Limasawa of the first Mass and Saub Point in Triana as the site of the
cross planted by the Magellan expedition.

Source:
https://www.essaydaily.org/2013/11/antonio-pigafettas-first-voyage-around
https://www.studocu.com/ph/document/ama-computer-unive
rsity/life-and-works-of-rizal/lecture-notes/3-content-and-contextual-analysis-for-selected-primary-
resources-ii/5213485/view

READINGS

http://www.philippine-history.org/https://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/322613

ASSIGNMENT

Assignment:

A. Create a summary of the important events on Magellan’s Voyage around the World, and the
customs of the Tagalogs.
B. Write a reflection paper about this lesson.
 ASSESSMENT

I. Modified True or False:

Directions: Write TRUE if the statement is valid and FALSE if otherwise. If the statement
is FALSE, underline the word(s) that makes it wrong. (2–pt each)

1. The first Catholic Mass in the Philippines was held on March 31, 1521
2. They left Mazaua on April 14, 1521 bound for Cebu and guided by their King
3. Antonio Pigafetta was a famous Italian traveler who studied navigation.
4. On March 28, 1521, they saw a bonfire which turned out to be Mazaua where they anchored.
5. The Limasawa Law which enacted without executive consent on July 29, 1950 under Republic
Act No. 2733.
6. They landed on Homonhon On May 7, 1521 in which Pigafetta referred to as "Watering place of
good signs".
7. Miguel Lopez de Legazpi gave the name Las Islas Filipinas to the Philippines.
8. Father Pedro Valderrama who conducted the first Catholic Mass on March 31, 1521
9. Antonio Lambardo joined, Captain Ferdinand Magellan and his Spanish crew on their trip to
Montokud Island.
10. The first recorded blood compact between Filipinos and Spaniards was in Bohol

II. Reflection Essay

Directions: Write a reflection essay in any two of the following topics.

a. Site of the First Mass d. First Mass

b. Landing on the Philippine shores e. Planting of the cross
c. Blood Compact

REFERENCES

Ariola, Mariano. ( 2018). The life and works of Rizal. Manila: Unlimited Books Library Services &
Publishing, Inc.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVKim4 SqPV8&feature=share