The Politics of Religion in

the Philippines
By Maria Isabel T. Buenaobra
February 24, 2016

ASTILLO, TWIGGY FRITZ M. OBTEC-M-I-2

Presenter
• Feb. 22, 1986, then Jaime
Cardinal Sin made an
urgent call on church-
owned Radio Veritas for
Filipinos to take to the
streets and support the
revolt against President
Ferdinand E. Marcos.

Jaime Cardinal Sin

  Jaime
(born Aug. 31, 1928, New
Washington, Phil.—died June 21,
2005, Manila, Phil.)
Cardinal Sin,
Philippine Roman Catholic
cleric, was the spiritual
leader of Roman Catholics in
the Philippines for more
than a quarter of a century;
his service as archbishop of
Manila from 1974 to 2003
was marked by his
influential involvement in
Philippine politics.
 Radio Veritas Asia is the non-commercial
Catholic shortwave station broadcasting to Asia.
It is based in Quezon City, Philippines, and is
owned by the Philippine Radio Educational
and Information Center, which previously
owned the original Radio Veritas from 1969 to
1991.
• It was a show of force and a moment of truth
for a nation that wanted freedom from the 20-
year Marcos dictatorship.
• Historically, organized churches have been
involved in electoral politics in the Philippines,
including in the selection of candidates and
church members who have run in elections
themselves.

Photo/Flickr user Wayne S. Grazio

• The notion of a “politics of religion” refers to the
increasing role that religion plays in the politics
of the contemporary world and the
consequences that a politics of religion has on
inclusive nation-building, democracy, and
human rights.

• The involvement of
religious groups in Philippine politics is not
new.
• During the Spanish colonial era, the “indio
priests” advocated for the “secularization” of
the Catholic church to allow “native priests”
to head parishes.
• The 1872 mutiny which resulted in the death
of the three priests, Gomez, Burgos, and
Zamora, became the “seed” of the Philippine
Revolution, inspiring the Filipino heroes Rizal
and Bonifacio to “imagine a Filipino nation”
and lead a revolution against Spain to
achieve it.
• The human rights violations under President
Marcos and the increase in the number of
“desaparecidos” (victims of human rights
abuses who have disappeared) resulted in the
collective anger and frustrations that exploded
into the People Power movement.
• According to the Center for Media Freedom
and Responsibility, from July 1973 to October
1984 there were at least 22 military raids on
church establishments, four of them on
institutions of the Protestant Church.
Seminaries, Catholic schools, and other
facilities were ransacked or closed. Priests,
nuns, and laypersons were detained.
• While the People Power movement led to the
downfall of President Marcos, the Catholic
Church has remained a powerful opposing
force on issues such as the Reproductive
Health Bill and divorce.

• President Aquino signed the Reproductive

Health Bill in December 2012, but it wasn’t
until 2014 that the Supreme Court declared it
constitutional.
 The Responsible Parenthood and
Reproductive Health Act of 2012, informally
known as the Reproductive Health Law or
RH Law, is a law in the Philippines, which
guarantees universal access to methods on
contraception, fertility control, sexual
education, and maternal care.
• Historically, organized churches have been
involved in electoral politics in the Philippines,
including in the selection of candidates and
church members who have run in elections
themselves.
• For instance, the Iglesia ni Cristo (Church of
Christ), with a tradition of bloc voting required
from its 1 million voting members, has allegedly
supported presidential candidates throughout
history:

Pres. Marcos in 1986 Eduardo Cojuangco in 1992 Joseph Estrada in 1998

Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in 2004 Manny Villar in 2010
• The Jesus is Lord movement ran campaigns
themselves.

(Bro. Eddie Villanueva in the 2004 Presidential elections,

where he won 3% of the votes)
• The Pilipino Movement for Transformational
Leadership (PMTL), a community composed of
Catholics, Protestants, and Born Again groups,
bonded together to elect “God-centered
servants.”

• For the May 2016 elections, the PMTL claims it

can muster up to 10 million voters out of the 54.6
million Filipinos registered to vote.
• The Catholic Church, though not endorsing
political candidates, exhorts the voters to vote
“according to one’s conscience.”

• In the launch of the “One Good Vote” campaign

against bribery and vote buying, Luis Antonio
Cardinal Tagle recalled the casting of ballots
during the papal conclave, and exhorted voters to
pray and have a formulation based on one’s
religion.
  Luis Antonio Gokim
Tagle, is a Filipino
cardinal of the Catholic
Church and prefect of
the Congregation for the
Evangelization of
Peoples since December
2019. Prior to the
appointment, he served
as Archbishop of Manila
from 2011 to 2019.

(born June 21, 1957)

 Just how potent are the
political endorsements of
religious groups?