THE RELIGIOUS FRONT

SECULARIZATION
Aside from the need to secure political
and social reforms, there was also the
persisting issue of the secularization of
the Philippine Church. This was
basically a matter involving the
Catholic clergy in the Philippines.
 As early as the 16th century, it was the wish of the
King of Spain and of the Pope to turn over the
country’s parishes to the secular priests. At the
beginning of the Spanish colonization, the task of
establishing and administering the country’s
parishes was done by the regular priests who
belong to different religious orders. These were the
Augustinians, Recollects, Jesuit, Franciscans, and
Dominicans.
 During the course of Spanish rule, there were
demands by the seculars to implement the royal and
papal orders. For a time, this was actually
implemented but turned out to be wanting and deemed
to be unready to head the parishes. The expulsion of
the Jesuits in 1767 created some opportunities for
secular to occupy some parishes. However, when the
Jesuits were allowed return in 1858, parishes held by
seculars were given back to the regulars once the
secular priests holding the post died.
 What happened was a reverse secularization of the
churches the parishes held by the seculars were
reverted to the regulars. Since the issue pitted
Filipino seculars against the Spanish regular clergy,
the secularization issue has become a race issue.
 During the Spanish colonization, the Spaniards born
in the Philippines were called Filipinos. This issue was
between the Spanish regulars versus the Filipino
seculars. In the forefront of this struggle were Filipino
priests like Fathers Pedro Pablo, Jacinto Zamora,
Mariano Gomez, and Jose Burgos who championed
the cause of equal rights with Spaniards and reduction
of the influence of the Church in politics. Also, among
the suspects were the leaders of the Filipino secular
clergy who fought for secularization of the Philippine
Catholic Church.
 The King of Spain and the Pope himself gave
instructions for the secularization of the country’s
parishes, but this was resisted by the orders of friars
who contended that the Filipino seculars were never
ready to take over. During the previous administration
of the liberal Governor-General Carlos Ma. de la
Torre, these Filipino liberals and secular were allowed
to voice their grievances.
 Under Governor-General Izquierdo’s regime, this
right was suppressed. The Filipinos, on the other hand,
struggled to defend their gains under the old regime.
They were already identified by the conservative
Spaniards for elimination. The Cavite Mutiny provided
the pretext for the conservatives to eliminate the Filipino
liberals.
 The Spanish forces arrested several known liberals,
among them were Jose Ma. Basa, Antonio Ma. Regidor,
Balbino Mauricio, Joaquin Pardo de Tavera, and Filipino
secular priests like Pedro Dandan and Toribio H. del
Pilar, the brother of propagandist Marcelo H. del Pilar.
 Father Gomez, Burgos, and Zamora were identified by a
false witness named Francisco Zaldua, who pointed out
that the three priests were indeed out to lead a government
that would overthrow the Spaniards and install Father
Burgos as the future leader of the Philippines. Despite the
protests and insufficient evidence, the three priests were
garroted at Bagumbayan on February 17, 1872.
 The others were identified as sympathizers of the
secularization issue also underwent trial and were found
guilty. They were sentenced with deportation to Guam in the
Marianas and were never allowed to return as long as Spain
ruled the Philippines.
 Reinforcing Spanish domination in the country were
Spanish clergymen. At the beginning of Spanish rule, they
helped establish the country’s parishes and even several
towns in the course of their evangelization. Through
centuries of Spanish rule, they performed an important role
not only as spreaders of the Christian faith but also as
representatives of the colonial government.
They also controlled education in the country’s educational
institutions were controlled by the religious orders. On the
local level, the Church operated parish schools which were
the primary schools until the enactment of religious reforms.
Religious officials were also guardians of public morals as
they sat on bodies such as those concerning censorship. In
the local level, the parish priest often endorsed candidates
for political positions. This gave him a political role in
addition to a religious role. In the national level, religious
officials acted as advisers to the governor-general.
 Many of these officials belong to the regular orders such
as the friar orders. More often not, religious officials serve
longer than the governor-general whose average term lasted
around three years.
 Given this condition, the religious officials were deeply
entrenched and it was difficult for a new governor-general to
enforce sweeping reforms especially those that threaten the
supremacy of the religious officials. With the cries for
reform, especially those concerning secularization, the
religious orders strongly opposed the effort.