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 PHILIPPINE

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PHILIPPINE

liquor), thus food was placed at the graves of the dead, a custom which still survives among some of the uncivilized tribes of Mindanao.

The ministers of religion were priestesses — crafty and diabolical old women, who offered sacrifices of animals and even of human beings. Sacrifices of ani- mals still occur among the tribes; and accounts of recent human sacrifice will be found in the reports of the Philippine Commission. The superstitions of the Filipinos were numerous. In Supreme Case no. 5381 there is given the testimony of Igorrotes, who before starting to murder a man, a couple of years ago, killed some chickens and examined their entrails to discover if the time was favourable for the slaying of a man. The hooting of owls, the hissing of lizards, and the sight of a serpent had a supernatural sig- nification. One of the most feared of the evil spirits was the asuang, which was supposed to capture chil- dren or lonely travellers. A fuller description of these superstitions is given in Delgado, "Historia General de las Islas Filipinas" (Manila, 1894), bk. Ill, xvi, xvii, and in Blumentritt, "Mythological Dictionary". As might be expected from idolatrous tribes in a tropical climate, the state of morality was low; wives were bought and sold, and children did not hesi- tate to enslave their own parents. It was on material such as this that the Spanish missioners had to work. A Christian Malay race, a people that from the lowe.'^t grade of savagery hai advanced to t he high- est form of civili- zation, was the result of their efforts.

Up to the year 1896 the Augustin- ians had founded 242 towns, with a population of more than 2,000,000. There were 310 religious of the order; this includes (and the same applies to the following figures) lay brothers, students, and invalids. The Franciscans numbered 45.5 in 153 towns, with a population of a little more than a million; there were 200 Dominicans in 69 towns, with about 700,000 inhabitants; 192 Recollects in 194 towns, with a population of 1,175,- 000; 167 Jesuits who ministered to about 200,000 Christians in the missions of Mindanao. The total religious therefore in 1906 was 1330 to look after a Catholic population of more than 5,000,000, while secular clergy were in charge of nearly a million more. The members of religious orders in the Philippines in 1906 did not amount to 500. The condition of the Filipino people, as they were prior to the revolution of 1896, forms the best argument in favour of the labours of the religious orders. The islands wore not conquered by force; the greater part of I he fighting was to protect the natives from enemies from without. It was not until 1822 that there was a garrison of Spanish troops in the archipelago. And, as all im- partial historians admit, the small number of troops needed was due solely to the religious influence of the priests over the people. The total strength of Amer- ican regiments in the Philippines in 1910, including the Philippine Scouts, was 17,102. To this should be added more than 4000 members of the Philippine Constabulary, a military police necessary for the maintenance of order.

Besides their far-reaching influence for peace, the religious orders did notable work in literature and

science. Father Manuel Blance, an Augustinian, was the author of "Flora Filipina", a monumental work in four folio volumes, illustrated with hundreds of coloured plates reproduced from water-colour paint- ings of the plants of the Philippines. Father Rodrigo Aganduru Moriz, a Recollect (Augustinian Discalced), (1584-1626), after evangeUzing the natives of Bataan, and founding houses of his order in Manila and Cebii, and missions in Mindanao, set sail from the Phil- ippines. He spent some time in Persia, where he brought back numerous schismatics to the Faith and converted many infidels. Arriving in Rome, Urban VIII wished to send him back to Persia as Apostohc delegate with some religious of his order, but he died a few months later at the age of forty-two. Among his works are: "A General History of the PhiUppines", in two volumes; "The Persecution in Japan"; a book of sermons; a grammar and dictionary of a native dialect; "Origin of the Oriental Empires"; "Chronology of Oriental Kings and Kingdoms"; a narrative of his travels written for Urban VIII; a collection of maps of various islands, seas, and prov- inces; the work of the Augustinians (Discalced) in the conversion of the Philippines and of Japan ; a family book of medicine for the use of Filipinos.

The number of Augustinian authors alone, until 1780 was 131, and the books published by them nuirc than 200 in nine nativr dialects, more than 100 in Spanish, besides a number of volumes in the Chi- nese and Japanese languages. How ex- tensive and how varied were the mis- sionary, literary, and scientific works of the members of the religious orders may be gathered from their chronicles. The Philip- pines constitute an ecclesiastical province, of which the Archbishop of Manila is the metropolitan. The suffragan sees are: Jaro; Nueva Caceres; Nueva Segovia; Cebu; Calbayog; Lipa; Tuguegarao; Zam- boanga; and the Prefecture Apostolic of Palawan. There are over a thousand priests, and a Catholic population of 6,000,000. (See Cebu; Jaro; Manila, Archdiocese of; Manila Observ.\tory ; Nueva C.icEREs; Nueva Segovia; Palawan; Samar and Leyte; Tuguegarao; Zamboanga.)

Diocese of Lip.a. (Lipensis), erected 10 April, 1910, comprises the Provinces of Batangas, La Laguna, Tayabas (with the Districts of Infanta and Prin- cipe), Mindoro, and the sub-Province of Marinduque, formerly parts of the Archdiocese of Manila. Rt. Rev. Joseph Petrelli, D.D., the first bishop, was ap- pointed 12 April, 1910, and consecrated at Manila, 12 June, 1910. There arc 95 parishes; the Discalced Augustinians have charge of 14, and the Capuchins of 6. The diocese comprises 12,208 sq. m.; about 640,000 Christians; and 9000 non-Christians.

Aglipayanism. — The Aglipayano sect caused more annoyance than damage to the Church in the Phil- ippines. The originator of the schism was a native priest, Gregorio Aglipay. He was employed as a servant in the Augustinian house, Manila, and being of ingratiating manners was educated and ordained priest. Later he took the field as an insurgent general. Being hard pressed by the American troops he sur- rendered and was paroled in 1901. In 1902 he arro-