Elaborate

Now that you have read the arguments of Fr. Amalia, outline the major points he made to
uphold the Butuan claim as the site of the First Catholic Mass in the Philippines. Write them on
the table below.
Table 2. Arguments in favor of Butuan as the Site of the First Philippine Mass

1. Limasawa was largely inaccessible and inhabited, its first parish was formed in 1994, while
around Butuan in 1596 there were already Christian settlers. Limasawa also has a rocky
shoreline that is contrary to Pigafetta and Albo's accounts of the natural harbor.
2. The Butuan Heritage Society states that in 1521 in Butuan, Mazaua was a deltaic island at the
mouth of the Agusan River.

3. It is believed that the island where the mass took place is now part of a "graben" in Butuan
(supported by ASEAN, which existed but fused and clumped together to form the valley-like
depression of the islands.)
4. It is stated in the document "Anales Ecclesiasticos de Philipinas 1574-1683," that the Chaplain
of Magellan celebrated Easter Sunday Mass in 1521. This reinforces the accounts in Mazaua
that state that the first mass was held.
5. It is said by Fr. Joesilo Amalla that the records state that in Mazaua the first mass was held.
He also states that within the contents of the accounts of both Albo and Pigafetta, Limasawa
was never written.