Persuasion Map

First Mass in the Philippines

Introduction
This topic is one of the historical events that happened in the Philippines which up until now
caused confusion and complex to where really the first catholic mass held in the Philippines. To provide
some information that proves that the first mass was truly held in Masao, Butuan City not in Limasawa,
Southern Leyte. The evidences that supports the claim that the first mass was held in Butuan City, Masao
was the Account of Antonio Pigafetta and the Chronicles of Magellan’s Voyage, which according to
different sources that it is very credible especially that he wrote every detail and how he described each
place, events, person and he or they even named each of the places according to how they see it and as
how they named after it to a saint. In the source given it says there that the expedition traveled 20 to 25
leagues from Homonhon where was the first landing point. According also to the account of Pigafetta
the distance between Cebu and Mazaua was 35 leagues (140 miles) while the distance between
Limasawa and Cebu is only 80 miles. It was also mentioned there that the king came to their ship was
riding a balanghai which Butuan now is the site of balanghai relics, in contrast to that, Limasawa has no
significant archeological relics or that kind of tradition. Lastly the abundance of gold which is in Agusan
Valley. These all means that Magellan never landed at Limasawa, Southern Letye. Although, there is a bill
that declared the place where the first mass was celebrated was in Limasawa, however all the evidence
points to Butuan City.

Balahanghai Boat evidence The Historical Account of Gines de Mafra New Evidence Found

According to Butuan City
Cultural and Historical
Foundation Inc. (BCHFI) they
gathered 28 new pieces of
scientific evidence and they
compare it between the two
islands which were Mazaua
and Limazawa, also the
recovered 10 balanghai boat
in 1976 near the Mazaua
river. In addition to that,
Gregorio Zaide a historian
who originally supported the
claim of Limasawa, stated
that “it is high time for the
contemporary historians and
the Philippine government
to correct their mistake and
accept that the first
Christian mas was
celebrated in Masao,
Butuan, Agusan del Norte
and not in Limasawa, Leyte,
on Eastern Sunday March
31, 1521.”
Gines de Mafra was a Portuguese or a Spanish explorer According to the historians they
who sailed to the Philippines at 16th century. He was a have new evidences that the
member of the expeditions of Ferñao de Magalhaes and first mass was truly held in
Ruy Lopez de Villalobos. The independent scholar Vicente
Butuan City. The mass ended in
C. De Jesus stated that these historians did not consider
Mazaua a place located in
the eyewitness account of De Mafra which supports the
Butuan claim. And also claimed that some parts of
Butuan now called as Masao
Ambrosiana Codex a to where the Limasawa claim was
founded, was largely mistranslated. The geographical
mysteries of the island of Mazaua. Lurence Bergreen used Geographical Mystery
De Mafra’s account as his source to his work titled Over
Mazava or Mazaua is located 9
the Edge of the World, Magellan’s Terrifying
Circumnavigation of the Globe. That became the
and 1/3 latitude and located
incomparably important geographical testimony which south of Seilani or Leyte which
unlocks the mystery. For the reason that the shape of the is 10 latitude.
isle is almost circular, 3-4 leagues translate to an area from
2,214 to 3,930 hectares, while Limasawa is only 698
hectares only. He also stated there that they anchored
west of the isle where Mazaua is officially, an isle without
anchorage, and the port is located east of the island. His
most certain testimony was Mazaua was 15 leagues,
roughly 45 leagues miles or 83 km. Through this the team
of archaeologist went to validate the theory of Mazaua is
in 9-degree North, also geo-political entities say that
Butuan in northern Mindanao was in fact an island. As
stated in the account of Pigafetta the geographical
coordinates 8.9910-degree north, 125.4946-degree East.
 Conclusion
The two primary sources came from the log kept by Francisco Albo
and the Account of Antonio Pigafetta intitled Primo viaggio intorno
al mondo (First Voyage Around the World). In the Account of Albo
he didn’t mention the first mass, contrast to that Pigafetta
mentions the first mass was held on Easter Sunday, March 31, 1521
in Mazaua. Overall, all our formulated and gathered data can prove
that the first Christian mass in the Philippines was held or
celebrated at Mazao, Butuan. All for the reaaon that the historians,
archaeologist and what not were able to find credible source and
also artifacts in Butuan which the claim of Limasawa did not
contain.