Naquem.

How Narciso Claveria altered our genealogical chart ...

2012-02-03T12:26:00.004+08:00

This may help Filipinos configure their genealogical trees specially if they fail to find some ancestral links before 1850. Hopefully though, the baptismal and matrimonial records of their hometown Roman Catholic churches are all preserved in microfilm at the Family Research Center of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS or Mormons, for short) to help them out.

In our case, the church records of the San Sebastian Church of San Narciso, Zambales are still there on top of the convent shelves, now very brittle and gathering dust, some pages burned by acidic ink or mangled by generations of termites. Fortunately, these were microfilmed sometime in the ‘60s or ‘70s; thus, we were able to read the extant bautismos, matrimonios and defuntos of the Hispanic period of our town’s history starting from 1849, when the church was built.

However, records of our ancestors when San Narciso was the Ilocano barrio Alasis or Alasiis attached to the Zambal town of Cabangaan (now Cabangan), and was a visita of that parish around 1836-1838 to 1849, are forever lost.

Folk lore tells that our town was formed by settlers from Paoay, Ilocos Norte. The microfilmed baptismal and marriage records of this town's St Augustine of Hippo Church confirmed that our forebears really came from there.

One thing was clear: there was no Farin among the surnames of Paoay folks before the Ilocano migration in the 1830s and 1840s to the coastal plain of Zambales between Cabangan town and the barrio that later evolved into Castillejos town. Into this plain also settled Sur and Norte Ilocanos whose barrios would become San Marcelino, San Antonio and San Felipe.

The name of one woman started our journey of discovery through the Paoay records. She was our great-great-greatgrandmother, Ana Gonong, who, in the Zambales records, was married to Carlos Farin.

She was born on 24 July 1804. We stumbled on her other siblings in the Paoay baptismal files--Damiana (23 September 1806) and Andrea (24 November 1811)—and in the matrimonial books—Santiago, Petrona, Francisca and Venancio. They were children of a well-off couple Don Pasqual Gonong and Doña Pasquala Bernabe who belonged to the barangay of Don Pasqual Concepcion (their names suggest they were baptized on a Sunday that was a Christmas day).

Matrimonial record of Don Carlos de Dios and Dna Ana Gonong, 03 Jun 1822, Paoay, Ilocos Norte.

That an Ana Gonong married a Carlos de Dios on 03 June 1822 in the Paoay books jolted our memory to an antique document signed by the cura parroco of Paoay attesting that he baptized Juan de Dios, son of the couple, on 10 Mar 1828. That document is being kept by an aunt in California who remembers being told by her father, also a Juan, patriarch of our youth, that this de Dios changed his surname to Farin. They also had an older son, the earliest Juan, who was baptized on 24 May 1823.

Carlos descended from another well-off family, Don Manuel de Dios and Dna Sebastiana Abad. He was born on 02 November 1803.

One link was finally found: the Geronimo Farin line to which we belong started from the Carlos de Dios-Ana Gonong matrimony in Paoay, Ilocos Norte. Carlos Farin and Ana Gonong were listed as abuelos paternos (paternal grandparents) of Geronimo’s children born after 1865 (baptismal records did not have abuelos in the earlier years).

Claveria declared, “[f]amilies who can prove that they have kept for four generations their surname, even though it may be the name of a saint, but not those like de la Cruz, de los Santos, and some others which are so numerous that they would continue producing confusion, may pass them on to their descendants; the Reverend Fathers and the heads of provinces are advised to use their judgement in the implementation of this article.” The last clause suggests why not all the de Dios in San Narciso at that time switched to Farin.

Baptism of Manuel Farin Eugenio, 27 Jul 1851, as recorded in the San Narciso, Zambales church files. He was the son of Modesto Farin Eugenio and Francisca Gonong,

When we found Andrea and Francisca Gonong, we remembered that these names are in two other Farin lines in our town, both of which we were able to establish as both Eugenio on the paternal side, finally configuring relationships through the church records of San Narciso and Paoay.

It baffled that there was only Francisca in the Eugenio family line before 1849. She married Modesto Eugenio, son of another well-off couple, Don Manuel Eugenio and Doña Paula Evangelista in the Paoay records, on 11 April 1842. When Manuel was born to Modesto and Francisca in San Narciso, he was baptized Manuel Farin Eugenio on 27 July 1851.

Ana could have convinced Modesto Eugenio and her sister Francisca to adopt their new Farin surname as well even if the Eugenio surname was not in the banned list or those that were “so numerous.” Could Ana and Francisca have contrived to perpetuate their sisterhood by this new surname? During the Spanish regime, men and women carried their given names to the grave; women did not assume their husbands’ surnames. Ana and Francisca could have thought then that their Gonong link would be preserved among future generations through their common stamp, the Farin surname.

Juan (surnamed Farin Eugenio in post-1849 records of San Narciso),brother of Modesto, married Eduarda Fontillas de los Santos (as also recorded), and their son Mariano was born and baptized in San Narciso in December 1851.

Mariano, son of Juan Farin Eugenio and Eduarda Fontillas de los Santos, was baptized on 07 Dec 1851 at the San Sebastian Church, San Narciso, Zambales. Before he turned 20, he married Nicolasa Guieb, daughter of Bonifacio Guieb and Andrea Gonong.

Since Modesto’s son Manuel was baptized a Farin Eugenio earlier in July, would it not be appropriate to have Mariano be baptized a Farin Eugenio as well? It could have been Modesto urging his brother Juan to do so.

Mariano Farin Eugenio would, sometime in the late 1860s, marry Nicolasa Guieb, daughter of Bonifacio Guieb and Andrea Gonong. Andrea was, serendipitiously, the aunt of his uncle Modesto Farin Eugenio's children.

“In the lists that will be made for the cabecerias, in order to complete the register later,” the Claveria decree stated, ”each person shall indicate (a) his baptismal name, followed by the new surname which may be assigned to him, and (b) the name which, until then may have served him as surname, leaving him free to retain this as long as he wishes.”

The Eugenio and the de Dios surnames were not retained for long.

This genealogical map was constructed from baptismal and matrimonial records of San Sebastian Church, San Narciso, Zambales and St Augustin of Hippo Church, Paoay, Ilocos Norte. These records are in microfilms at the Family History Center, Philippine Temple of the Mormon Church in Quezon City. The core of the Farin map comprises the descendants from the union of three Gonong sisters with gentlemen from the Eugenio and De Dios families

It was under the regime of Gov. Gen. Narciso Claveria that the Ilocano barrios of Cabangan were constituted into a new town in 1846, and it was also under him that many genealogies were altered because of his 1849 decree urging for the change of surnames.

Thus, there exists today kinships on nominal terms (sharing the same surname) or on true bloodlines. In this story, we have gone as far as tracing the Gonong roots. We have yet to flesh the Eugenio and De Dios sides of the big Farin umbrella.

References:

1. Manuscripts in films at the Family History Center, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Temple Drive, Quezon City:

Registros parroquiales, 1758-1979 of the Conversion of St Augustine of Hippo Catholic Church, Paoay, Ilocos Norte.

Registros parroquiales, 1849-150 of the San Sebastian Catholic Church, San Narciso Zambales.

2. Decree of 21 November 1849. Retrieved from http://www.zahlerweb.info/pm/claveria.htm

When there was a Chinese question, not a Chinese new year ...

2012-01-23T02:37:00.001+08:00

There was a time in our nation's history that the Filipino had no great love to greet the Chinaman in his town or city with "kung hei fat choi" during the Chinese new year in January or February. He expressed as much disdain for the Sangleyes following the example of his Spanish colonial masters.

Baptismal record of a Sangley unbeliever from Ymen in China who was baptized as Pedro Siatoycho in Vigan, Ilocos on 09 Feb 1795 at the age of 42, more or less. He was brought to the provincial capital by Chinese Christians. (Source: Microfilms of the Vigan church's baptismal records at the Family History Center of the Philippines Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.)

The Chinese were not allowed to celebrate their new year with the traditional revelry as they would with their families in their villages in mainland China. Many of these imported laborers would take leave from their jobs early enough so that they can reach their native land in time for the traditional new year festivities.

In the early years of the American regime, the immigration division of the Philippines customs service would be deluged with applications for return certificates from the Chinese workers who intend to come back to work. The rule of the customs-house was for applications to be filed 30 days before the departure date.

Baptismal record of Victorio Posadas, a mestizo Sangley, on 27 Dec 1857. (Source: Baptismal book of the San Sebastian Church, San Narciso, Zambales).

It is interesting to read today the testimony of Carlos Palanca (Chan Quiensien, Cheuy Long) before the Philippine Commission in July 1899 "in aid of legislation" with regard to the "Chinese question" of that time. The hearing was conducted by Col. Charles Denby as chair, Professor Dean Worcester, and John MacArthur as secretary. Below are excerpts from Palanca's testimony --

"Q [Denby]. Please give us your name, residence, and occupation.

"A [Palanca]. Carlos Palanca; residence, Manila; occupation, merchant.

"Q. How long have you lived here?

"A. Forty-three years. I came here and commenced in the draper business, piece goods. At present I am in the sugar and rice business. I do every kind of business. I am a contractor also.

"Q. Do you do any work for the Government, for the United States?

"A. I do a lot of work for the United States.

"Q. What do you do?

"A. Get the coolie laborers out to the lines, building barracks.

"Q. What else?

"A. I am also a ticket broker.

"Q. Have you anything to do with carabaos? Do you furnish transportation of any kind?

"A. When the Americans came here I furnished the carabaos on the transportation lines. In September, October, and November I furnished all the carabaos and transportation.

"Q. Was that work done for the Government of the United States? What other work did you do?

"A. I used to give a lot of information to the American Government, and assisted in getting houses in the commencement for the troops, furnishing my own godowns out at San Miguel for the quartering of the troops, too.

-x-x-x-

"Q. How many Chinamen have you got under you?

"A. Over 40,000 men at a time.

"Q. Are you the captain now?

"A. I am not captain now, as there is a consul now. I was acting consul four months also.

"Q. When you say 40,000 men, do you mean that to cover all the Chinese who are in the Philippine Islands?

"A. Yes.

"Q. How many are there in Manila?

"A. Twenty-two or twenty-three thousand Chinese in Manila.

"Q. How many of them come here every year?

"A. Formerly in the Spanish time the Chinese that came here amounted to between ten and twelve thousand, and those returning to China between seven and eight thousand a year.

"Q. Do the seven or eight thousand go for good--go to stay?

"A. They don't go for good; they generally return here. They go to China in the sixth moon and in the eleventh moon of the Chinese year they return to China. They come back again to Manila in the Chinese eighth moon of the third after spending the feast of the seventh moon of the Chinese new year. (Highlighting ours.)

-x-x-x-

Keeping track of the Chinese population of Zambales in the fiscal years 1885-86 and 1886-87. (Source: Microfilm of statistical data at the Family History Center, Philippine Temple of the LDS.)

"Q. How many Chinese come here every year?

"A. Between ten and twelve thousand men come here every year.

"Q. What is the regulation about their coming? What was the regulation under the Spanish rule?

"A. They were at liberty to come. There was a year once, one time, when 15,000 Chinese came. In 1863 15,000 men came here.

"Q. Did they have to pay anything to get in?

"A. In 1863, when I came here, there were only about 20,000 Chinese. In that year 15,000 more came over.

-x-x-x-

"Q. What do the Chinese do after they come here--what labor?

"A. It is not easy to mention all that they do. However, when they get here, they go to their trade or they go to these timber yards, or are employed by these other merchants, or they are employed for the provinces in order to go and carry sugar and hemp, and in any kind of work generally.

"Q. Are they industrious, good workmen?

"A. They are industrious; they are good workmen.

"Q. If there were no Chinese here, couldn't the Filipinos do the work that the Chinese do?

"A. Formerly, in the Spaniards' time, about seventy or eighty years ago, there were no Chinese here, and so the Filipinos couldn't do anything; they had no vegetables, they had no proper workmen, they couldn't do anything, and Simon de Anda, the governor, asked somebody to go to China and get the Chinese to come here and do the gardening work in these islands. The governor sent Mantayou de Pico to go to Canton, and he got a great many Chinese. (Highlighting ours.)

-x-x-x-

"Q. What do you think would be the probabilities of their coming, as to the numbers that would come under the American flag

"A. At present in the Philippine Islands there are many possibilities of mines--silver mines, copper mines--and there are no men to work them.

Q. I ask, what do you think of the probability of their coming in great numbers?

A. Then the Philippines would be wealthy.

-x-x-x-

"Q. How many hundred thousand do you think would come here from China?

"A. I can not say how many hundred thousand will come, only that Chinese can not live along with the Filipinos, because the Filipinos will kill them.

"Q. Why do the Filipinos object to the Chinese?

"A. The Filipinos have a lot of vices, cockfighting, gambling, etc., and the Chinese have come here to work and get their living in order to provide for their families in China and to lay by something for themselves.

"Q. And is that the reason the Filipinos hate them?

"A. Yes; the Filipino does not like the Chinaman because he goes in poor clothing, wears one coat that costs him 20 cents, and trousers that cost 20 cents. As the Chinese are so miserly and do not spend their money they are hated by the Filipinos, because the Filipinos no doubt dress in nice clothes and wear shoes and all sorts of things, and don't care for work.

"Q. How can the Filipino work if the Chinese do all the work?

"A. There would be work for 500,000 men--there would be much more work for them--because there is a lot of land for agriculture and there are no men to do the work.

"Q. Do you think there would be plenty of work for all?

"A. Any amount of work. There will be several hundred thousand tons of timber to be worked up.

"Q. Can you tell us anything about the mines?

"A. In Ilocos there are copper mines. There are gold mines in Camarines; also in Cagayan. ... There are coal mines in Cebu.... There are copper mines in Ilocos....Tin in Bulacan. There are some iron mines at Angat.... In Nueva Ecija there are gold mines, too. There are other mines which have not been prospected.

"Q. Well, these mines that you mention; have they been worked?

"A. Only the copper mines have been worked; but they do the mining work there as long as there are any men to do it.

"Q. Do the Chinese work in any of these mines?

"A. Formerly when the Spaniards hired the Chinese they worked in the mines. The copper mines at Ilocos were worked by Don Tomas Castro. The coal mine at Cebu is worked by Don Rafael Reyes.

"Q. Do these people employ Chinese?

"A. Yes; they employ Chinese. They have no machinery; they simply work with their hands and pickaxes.

"Q. Do you think that we could get Chinese to come over and go into the mining business?

"A. With the employment of machinery you are bound to be successful, and if you would employ Chinese they are bound to come, too.

"Q. Can't the Filipinos work in these mines?

"A. The few Filipinos that work, and get a certain amount of money to-day, won't work to-morrow; they will stop work when they have got a little money.

"Q. Do you think there could be a limit put on the number of Chinese that would come here?

"A. I don't think that a limit should be put.

"Q. You think all should be allowed to come that want to come?

"A. I think they should be allowed to come at present. The situation is not settled. As soon as everything is settled and everything is quiet and in working order, there will be any amount of work required. At present Smith, Bell & Co. wanted to engage some Chinese to go down to some of the out ports, and they had to pay $30 to each man.

-x-x-x-x-

"Q [Denby]. The Chinese that come here are generally uneducated, aren't they?

"A. Yes; the well educated do not come here; it is only those that have very little to begin with who come here to be clerks. When I came here I was only 14 years of age. I had no education what ever, and on arriving here I had to learn any kind of trade that was handy. I know all about the affairs of all the people in the Philippines.

"Q. You have made a good deal of money, haven't you?

"A. Yes; I made a lot of money, but I spent a lot of money, too. (Highlighting ours.)

The Chinese have truly come and settled. We ride his planes, shop at his malls, keep a savings account in his banks, eat at a Chinese restaurant, and watch every now and then a Mother Lily movie. Our writers in English and Pilipino dream of receiving an award given out annually in memory of Carlos Palanca.

More than a century after Palanca's testimony before the Philippine Commission, the Filipino is an overseas worker in mainland China, among other destinations.

Kung Hei Fat Choi!

References:

Foreman, J. (1899) The Philippine Islands. [Chapter VIII. The Chinese. 116-128]. New York: C. Scribner's Sons. Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/afj2134.0001.001

Report of the Philippine Commission to the President. (1900). Testimony and Exhibits. II:215-230. Washington: Government Printing Office. Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/aex9637.0001.002

Philippines Custom Service. (1908). Chinese and immigration circulars (annotated), constructions and decisions, December, 1901, to December, 1907. 1(1-197):103 . Manila: Bureau of Printing. Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/acf2698.0001.001

Going for fun in the Philippines some 65 years ago

2012-01-09T01:01:00.000+08:00

After the second world war, people visiting the Philippines either came by sea or by air.

The American President Lines (APL) had its Round-the-World service with passenger ships calling on 23 ports in 14 countries including the Philippines.

"Picture, if you can, your Philippine welcome!" was its enticement for people to get on board the passenger ships bound for the Orient. The advertisement circa 1947 featured "gay sketches" ("gay" did not have sexual connotations yet at that time) of country scenes done by Sgt. Tom Scott for his wife. He humored his wife by labeling the horse drawn cart a 'taxi'.

Source: Duke University Libraries Digital Collections.

In 1973, the President Wilson completed her last voyage around the world, which also marked the end of the trans-Pacific service that started way back in 1867.

Source: Duke University Libraries Digital Collections

By that time too the airline had become the more favored mode of travel. It was faster, and Philippine Airlines (PAL), for example, had come-on amenities like cocktail and snack bar service, spacious lounges, and real sleeping berths ("not mere adjustable chairs," the 1948 advertisement said).

PAL had a one night sleeper service from San Francisco to Manila with a stopover in Honolulu.

The image of two women chatting their time away before bed tells that they did not have to deal with fasten-your-seat-belts events. We wonder what passenger safety measures were in place around that time.

Upon arrival, PAL was there to assist them with customs, entry and clearance forms, and even hotel reservations.

What fun was in store for them after landing at the Nielson airport in Makati, and later at the Nichols Field in Pasay?

References:

American President Lines history timeline. Retrieved from http://www.apl.com/history/index.html

"Picture, if you can, your Philippine welcome!" adverstisement. Retrieved from Duke Univ Libraries Digital Collections at. http://library.duke.edu/digitalcollections/adaccess_T3452/

"Fly, PAL" adverstisement. Retrieved from Duke Univ Libraries Digital Collections at. http://library.duke.edu/digitalcollections/adaccess_T1601/

The Sultan was a no-show for his photo shoot on Christmas day, 1879

2011-12-24T10:24:00.024+08:00

The photo session was scheduled 25 December 1879, but was postponed for the next day, because the Sultan was not well. But Montano dated his account of how this portrait was taken on 27 December.

The Sultan of Sulu Mohammed Yamalul Alam [Jamalul Alam] was a no-show for his photo session with the French scientists Joseph Montano and Paul Rey on Christmas day, 25 December 1879. They were told the Sultan has a terrible headache.

Everything had been prepared for this major photo-op. They had, in fact, been allowed to install a dark room under the palace.

They had been waiting for this big event since arriving in Tianggi (Jolo) on 15 November as part of their biological and anthropological mission to the Philippines and some Malayan islands for the French Ministry of Education . Their letter request for a photo session with the Sultan was never answered. They were finally able to have an audience with the Sultan and his court, and a photo date agreed on, after they were introduced by Herman Leopold Schuck, a German in good relations with the Sultan ever since they met in 1864.

Still they waited, reminiscing about Christmas day being devoted to reunions with their family and friends in their country, entertaining ridiculous questions from the crowd about portraiture without pencil or brush and beards of white men against thin hair on the Chinese or Malay chins, and listening to loud objections to their task because Allah forbids the making of portraits, and the Sultan would die of it. The datus swore that no portrait would leave the royal village of Maibun.

Before this appointment with the Sultan, they had been subject to violent encounters. They were visiting with Schuck when his place was assaulted by armed men. There was also an instance when huramentados attempted to attack them but their Spanish guards gunned them down.

All they needed now was a jewel, a portrait of the Sultan Jamalul Alum, since they have already collected interesting biological specimens, and have logged down their observations on the physical and cultural structure of the place and the people.

They then pretended to depart, destroying the dark room with heavy crashes, packing their bottles of chemicals, and shouting that they would be punished by their own “Sultan” for not completing this assignment. The pretext had an immediate effect. The son Brahamuddin appeared suddenly half-naked and without his turban and told them his father would be well the next day, which we take to be 26 December but this was dated the 27th in Montano’s account of their mission from May 1879 to June 1881.

It turned to be a great day for the French scientists when the Sultan, pale and magnificently dressed, appeared, surrounded by his court, all in their gala costume with the clothes and ornaments glittering under the sun.

They mounted the camera, measured the distances, and when everything was ready for the shoot, the Sultan withdrew and had his son take his place. The click proceeded just the same and the result served as the test shot. The plate was developed, and Brahamuddin almost came out perfectly. The Sultan then became very enthusiastic, losing his usual serious mien. He imposed silence among his datus, and pretty soon, he had himself photographed—bust, sitting, standing, alone or in company. “If I listened,” Montano wrote, “I could have taken photos up to the last slave.”

Montano and Rey had to strategize next how to leave with the plates and return to their haven within the Spanish fortifications in Jolo without any hindrance. They were quite certain the Sultan would allow them to bring the plates but not the Sultan’s men. They developed several copies while the armed datus kept the dark room under surveillance.

The scheme worked. They brought back the portrait not only to Jolo but also to the world. With his portrait in Montano's “Voyage aux Philippines et en Malaisie”, which was published in 1886, Sultan Jamalul Alam remains very much alive to this day. We see him in almost in every book or publication about Muslims in the Philippines either in the cover or as an illustration of an article on Muslim cultural or political issues.

Anybody who asks who he is would be surprised to know that significant events in the history of the country under Spain and of Sulu happened during his reign (1863-1881), and until today, the Sultan continues to impact on our country’s foreign relations particularly with regard to the Sabah claim.

Jolo fell to the Spanish forces under Admiral Jose Malcampo on 21 February 1876. Two years later, the Sultan signed a treaty putting the whole of Sulu under the protectorate of Spain on 22 July 1878.

Six months earlier however, on 22 January 1878, Sultan Jamalul Alam and his datus signed the “Land Grant of 1878” or the “Grant by the Sultan of a Permanent Lease Covering His Lands and Territories on the Island of Borneo” to Gustavus Baron de Overbeck of Hongkong and to Alfred Dent, Esq., of London, who were acting as representatives of the British Company, for the “sum of five thousand dollars annually, to be paid each and every year to his heirs and successors “until the end of time.”

There had been disputes among this Sultan’s heirs and successors to this day, and of course, conflicts in the interpretation of the January and July 1878 agreements had been subjects of arguments among the signatory countries with regard to the land grant.

References:

Montano, J. (1886). Voyage aux Philippines et en Malaisie. Paris: Hatchette et Cie. Retrieved from http://www.archive.org/details/voyageauxphilip00montgoog

Ang, J.C. (n.d.). Historical timeline of the Royal Sultanate of Sulu including related events of neighboring peoples. Retrieved from http://www.seasite.niu.edu/Tagalog/Modules/Modules/MuslimMindanao/historical_timeline_of_the_royal.htm

Julabbi, SM. (n.d.) The Land Grant of 1878. Retrieved from http://www.freewebs.com/julabbi_cairo12/articles9.htm

77 fathers & sons in Jesus Christ's genealogy according to Luke 3:23-28

2011-12-22T02:22:00.002+08:00

This is one of two framed genealogy charts at the Family History Center of the Philippine Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Quezon City. The other one is that of Jose Rizal.

We've been doing genealogical research at the Family History Center on Temple Drive, Quezon City, poring through microfilmed baptismal, matrimonial and baptismal records dating back as early as 1795 in the church documents of Paoay, Ilocos Norte, and 1849 for those of our hometown, San Narciso, Zambales, in search of Ilokano roots in both our maternal and paternal sides of the family.

The first time we visited the center, our attention was immediately caught by two framed genealogy charts: that of Jesus Christ right beside His portrait near the entrance door, and that of Jose Rizal close to the cubicle of microfilm readers.

What intrigued us right away was the mathematics in the design of Christ's genealogy chart: 7 columns with 11 rows each, or a total of seventy-seven (77) names to trace from God to Jesus, based on Luke 3:23-28. Sometimes we ask new friends there if they've looked at the frame closely and if so, to tell us how many names there are in the Jesus tree. If we get a 'what' expression, we tell them to do a little math with the rows and columns.

While the number is less than 77 in 'the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah' according to Matthew 1:1-17, his summation of generations are interestingly multiples of 7: "So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; from David to the deportation to Babylon, fourteen generations; and from the deportation to Babylon to the Messiah, fourteen generations (Matt. 1:17)."

Luke, according to church scholars, traced Jesus Christ's lineage to Mary while Matthew traced it to Joseph. This we gleaned from 'Why are there different genealogies for Jesus in Matthew 1 and Luke 3?' by the Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry.

References (without the footnotes) from BibleGateway.com:

Luke 3:23-38

New International Version (NIV)

²³ Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph,

the son of Heli, ²⁴ the son of Matthat,

the son of Levi, the son of Melki,

the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph,

²⁵ the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos,

the son of Nahum, the son of Esli,

the son of Naggai, ²⁶ the son of Maath,

the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein,

the son of Josek, the son of Joda,

²⁷ the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa,

the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel,

the son of Neri, ²⁸ the son of Melki,

the son of Addi, the son of Cosam,

the son of Elmadam, the son of Er,

²⁹ the son of Joshua, the son of Eliezer,

the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat,

the son of Levi, ³⁰ the son of Simeon,

the son of Judah, the son of Joseph,

the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim,

³¹ the son of Melea, the son of Menna,

the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan,

the son of David, ³² the son of Jesse,

the son of Obed, the son of Boaz,

the son of Salmon, the son of Nahshon,

³³ the son of Amminadab, the son of Ram,

the son of Hezron, the son of Perez,

the son of Judah, ³⁴ the son of Jacob,

the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham,

the son of Terah, the son of Nahor,

³⁵ the son of Serug, the son of Reu,

the son of Peleg, the son of Eber,

the son of Shelah, ³⁶ the son of Cainan,

the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem,

the son of Noah, the son of Lamech,

³⁷ the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch,

the son of Jared, the son of Mahalalel,

the son of Kenan, ³⁸ the son of Enosh,

the son of Seth, the son of Adam,

the son of God.

Matther 1:1-17

New International Version (NIV)

The Genealogy of Jesus the Messiah

¹ This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham:

² Abraham was the father of Isaac,
   Isaac the father of Jacob,
   Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
³ Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar,
   Perez the father of Hezron,
   Hezron the father of Ram,
⁴ Ram the father of Amminadab,
   Amminadab the father of Nahshon,
   Nahshon the father of Salmon,
⁵ Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab,
   Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth,
   Obed the father of Jesse,
⁶ and Jesse the father of King David.

   David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife,
⁷ Solomon the father of Rehoboam,
   Rehoboam the father of Abijah,
   Abijah the father of Asa,
⁸ Asa the father of Jehoshaphat,
   Jehoshaphat the father of Jehoram,
   Jehoram the father of Uzziah,
⁹ Uzziah the father of Jotham,
   Jotham the father of Ahaz,
   Ahaz the father of Hezekiah,
¹⁰ Hezekiah the father of Manasseh,
   Manasseh the father of Amon,
   Amon the father of Josiah,
¹¹ and Josiah the father of Jeconiah and his brothers at the time of the exile to Babylon.

¹² After the exile to Babylon:
   Jeconiah was the father of Shealtiel,
   Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,
¹³ Zerubbabel the father of Abihud,
   Abihud the father of Eliakim,
   Eliakim the father of Azor,
¹⁴ Azor the father of Zadok,
   Zadok the father of Akim,
   Akim the father of Elihud,
¹⁵ Elihud the father of Eleazar,
   Eleazar the father of Matthan,
   Matthan the father of Jacob,
¹⁶ and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.

¹⁷ Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen from the exile to the Messiah.

A Philippine Christmas tradition--Misa de Aguinaldo then, Simbang Gabi today

2011-12-17T16:36:00.002+08:00

Belen on the grounds of the Philippine Temple of the Church of Latter-Day Saints, Quezon City.

The countdown began yesterday morning (16 December) with the first of the nine dawn masses in Roman Catholic churches all over the archipelago. As we write, that would be 8 days to Christmas proper--the 'twelve days of Christmas' of the popular song that starts with a partridge on pear tree and ends with twelve drummers drumming--the twelve days between Christmas day, 25 December, commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, and the feast of the Epiphany, the traditional Three Kings day of 06 January of the next year.

We remember that our father was not a church goer. But until he retired from his job at the US naval facility, he never failed to hear the dawn masses before boarding the Victory Liner bound for Subic, almost an hour away.

For some time, we were utterly confused if this aguinaldo mass was the same as the misa de gallo, and which one referred to the midnight mass on the eve of Christmas . The first means 'Christmas presents,' and 'gallo' insinuates the cockcrow that should rouse us up from bed for the morning mass.

Childhood in an Ilocano-speaking coastal town of Zambales meant braving the chill of December dawn to attend the misas de aguinaldo. When we moved to Manila, the misas became Simbang Gabi (night mass, literally) and we missed the peaceful walk on unpaved streets to the church in the town plaza.

To Puerto Ricans, and probably other Hispanic countries, aguinaldos refer to their Chrismas songs; hence, in their nine-day dawn masses, they sing aguinaldos, villancicos (which the indios of las yslas Filipinas learned to sing) and other religious hymns. They call the midnight misa de aguinaldo of Christmas eve the misa de gallo.

According to popular legend, the Spanish friars had the misas at dawn so that the indios labradores can hear them before they hie off to farms outside of town to tend their crops. A recent account suggests that our Simbang Gabi has its roots in Mexico when, in 1587, the pope approved the petition of Fray Diego de Soria of the San Agustin Acolman convent there to hold Christmas mass outdoors for the overflow of churchgoers attending the evening service.

Church historians however tell us that the midnight mass had its origins among the Christians of Jerusalem, citing the account of Egeria, a woman pilgrim to the Holy Land in 381-384, about the commemoration of Christmas "with a midnight vigil at Bethlehem, followed by a torchlight procession to Jerusalem arriving at dawn [at] the Church of the Resurrection" on January 6. The second dawn mass is said to have been celebrated around 550 by the Pope at the Church of Anastasia on December 25, which happened to be also the feast day of St. Anastasia.

Belen in the lantern made of dried coconut materials. Photo taken at the Lantern Parade of UP Manila.

More than a century after the Christianization of the Philippines, Fray Juan Sanchez (1683-89) was writing about the misas de aguinaldo being contaminated "with practices that were superstitious, and contrary to the holy rites of the church." Thus, there was a time after 1680 that the archbishop prohibited the celebration of the masses here.

Around a century later, Fray Pedro Murillo Velarde (1749) was writing about the nine-day early morning misas de aguinaldo being sung with great solemnity.

More than a hundred years later, Fray Pedro Rosell (1885) described to his superior the religious ceremonies being held "to honor the birth of our Blessing, Jesus." To prepare for Christmas, he wrote of the celebration of the immaculate conception "a week beforehand", and then followed by "a daily mass of the [Virgin Mary]," which we read as the nine-day dawn misas de aguinaldo.

"On the last day or the vigil of the feast," wrote Father Rossel, "a pleasing, although simple Belen was made at one side of the presbytery in which were placed the images of the Child, Mary, and Joseph. Christmas eve came, and at eleven o'clock the bells were rung loudly, and from half past eleven until twelve, a continual ringing of bells two at a time announced to the people that the mass called Gallo was to be celebrated in memory of that holy hour in which the eternal Son of God the Father, made man in the most pure entrails of the Virgin Mary willed to be born on that poor and abandoned manger threshold [portal de Belen]. Hence when twelve o'clock had struck, the missa-cantata was said, which was followed by the adoration of the holy Child. That was made enjoyable by the singing of some fine Christmas carols. The twenty-fifth dawned bright and joyful."

That scene still rings familiar today although the Belen is constructed as early as the first day of December. There was one big reason why we went to the midnight mass when we were very young. That was to watch the lighted star lantern moved high above us from the choir loft to the Belen at the side of the altar at some part of the mass with all the lights turned off.

We haven't seen a "moving star" in midnight masses for a long time, nor an adoration of the image of the newborn Jesus, especially if these are celebrated outside the churches - in grandstands, parks and shopping mall grounds.

The fact is there are no longer misas de aguinaldo or gallo at midnight on the eve of Christmas. These have been moved earlier to 9 o'clock these recent years, which we'd like to think, is an accommodation of another Christmas tradition, the noche buena after the mass, when family eat together the best food they can lay on the table.

Whether you're still of the old Roman Christian faith or not, whether you still go to the dawn masses as a matter of devotion or not, Maligayang Pasko (Merry Christmas), everyone!

References:

Sanchez, Juan, et al. (1683-89). Felipe Pardo as archbishop. The Pardo Controversy. The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898 : explorations by early navigators, etc. (Blair, E.H. & Robertson, J. A., Eds., Bourne, E.G., Tr.). 39(1):245-246. Mandaluyong, Rizal: Cachos Hermanos, 1973. Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/atd7328.0039.001

Velarde, P. M. (1749). Jesuit missions in the seventeenth century. The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898 : explorations by early navigators, etc. (Blair, E.H. & Robertson, J. A., Eds., Bourne, E.G., Tr.). 44(1):108-109. Mandaluyong, Rizal: Cachos Hermanos, 1973. Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/atd7328.0044.001

Rosell, P. (1885, Apr 17). Letter from Father Pedro Rosell [S.J.] The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898 : explorations by early navigators, etc. (Blair, E.H. & Robertson, J. A., Eds., Bourne, E.G., Tr.). 43(1):225-228. Mandaluyong, Rizal: Cachos Hermanos, 1973. Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/atd7328.0043.001

McNamara, E., Fr. (2006, Dec 19). 3 masses on Christmas. Zenit Daily Dispatch. Zenit International News Agency. http://www.ewtn.com/library/liturgy/zlitur156.htm or http://www.zenit.org/article-18492?l=english

The History of Midnight Mass. (no date). Retrieved from Aquinas&More Catholic Goods at http://www.aquinasandmore.com/catholic-articles/the-tradition-of-midnight-mass/article/119

Puerto Rican Christmas Traditions. (no date) El Boricua. A monthly bilingual, cultural publication for Puerto Ricans. Retrieved from http://www.elboricua.com/traditions.html

The Pinoy's Marian religiosity

2011-12-05T12:30:00.002+08:00

In the 1900s, the 'war' among the religious was as to who should be proclaimed the patroness of the Philippines. The Dominicans wanted Our Lady of the Holy Rosary (La Naval); the Jesuits favored the Immaculate Conception. The Aglipayans insisted on Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage (Antipolo) because she's katutubo, a native of the country. (Source: Lipang Kalabaw, 04 Jan 1908)

The rains yesterday, 04 December 2011, did not stop the grand Marian procession from the Manila Cathedral to wend its way around Intramuros, the walled city. The annual event held on the first Sunday of December is an echo of the first procession held on 08 December 1619 to commemorate the feast day of the Immaculate Conception.

Thus, as photo-documented by the media, some eighty flower-bedecked and beautifully lit carrozas of Marian images, under an umbrella or covered by clear plastic, were pulled by devotees through the streets along the ancient walls of Old Manila. Because of the rains, we could only recall the pleasure of photographing the event from various vantage points atop the walls during the last two processions.

The images invoke the many titles of the Virgin Mary. Our Lady of the Holy Rosary (La Naval de Manila), Immaculate Conception, Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage (Our Lady of Antipolo) are some of the more popular ones, and they happen to have figured in intense religious arguments in the early 1900s, more than a century ago.

We found two issues of the satirical weekly Lipang Kalabaw in 1908 heckling the Dominicans and the Jesuits because of their un-holy war on who should be Patroness of the Philippines. The Dominicans were rooting for Our Lady of the Holy Rosary, and the Jesuits, the Immaculate Conception. In one of these satirical illustrations (04 Jan 1908), Gregorio Aglipay was depicted arguing for the Our Lady of Antipolo.

A perplexed Marian devotee asks a Dominican friar and a Jesuit priest on who should be the patroness of the Philippines.

The Dominican tells her to stop this nonsense when told about the Jesuit claim, that it's thedevotion to Our Lady of the Rosary that's most profitable being the patroness of these unhappy islands. He calls the Jesuits rogues.

The Jesuit tells the woman that the Holy Father has not yet resolved the issue, but the Immaculate Conception is the official patroness. He admonishes the woman to honor the La Purisima if she wants to save her soul.

Since she doesn't know who to believe, she thinks she will just go to the [Philippine] Assembly. (Source: Lipang Kalabaw, 30 May 1908)

The Dominicans and the Jesuits had very strong historical arguments for their respective Marian titles.

The Immaculate Conception was invoked in 1578 by Pope Gregory XIII with the construction of the Manila Cathedral, and in 1595 by Clement VIII with that of the Nueva Segovia and Caceres cathedrals.

The image of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary arrived in the Philippines in 1587 and has been honored ever since with the La Naval procession in October every year. To her has been attributed the incredulous Spanish naval victories against the Dutch invaders in 1646. The image was canonically crowned on 07 October 1907.

The Antipolo image also had its own history. It was brought to Manila in 1626 from Acapulco, Mexico and was placed in the San Ignacio church of the Jesuits in Intramuros. Tradition has it being transferred to a new church where it disappeared twice to be found in the branches of a tipulo (breadfruit) tree. The Antipolo church was built near this site. This popular lore and its dark color could have made Aglipay to claim, in the words of Lipang Kalabaw, that Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage is a katutubo, a Philippine native, and therefore the right patroness.

We can imagine this debate among the clergy and the Marian devotees that rankled for years until the Vatican stepped in. First it was Pope Pius XI who declared Our Lady of Guadalupe the patroness of the Philippines in 1935. However, seven years later in 1942, Pope Pius XII declared the Immaculate Conception as the country's principal and universal patroness of the country. Thus today, Our Lady of Guadalupe is considered the secondary patroness.

The pastoral letter of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) in 1975 entitled "Ang Mahal na Birhen. Mary in the Philippine Life Today" spoke of "over 100 of the parishes honor[ing] the Immaculate Conception, over 60 are dedicated to Our Lady of the Holy Rosary, while others carry various titles like the Assumption, Our Lady of Carmel, Mother of Perpetual Help, Our Lady of Lourdes, etc." ... and "some of the shrines dedicated to Mary have won nation-wide popularity either as focal points of national pilgrimages or as well-known centers of devotion [like] Our Lady of Charity and Our Lady of Badoc in Ilocos, Our Lady of Piat in Cagayan Valley, Our Lady of Manaoag in Pangasinan, Our Lady of Salambao in Obando, Bulacan, Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage in Antipolo, Rizal, the Purification of Our Lady (or La Candelaria ) in Mabitac, Laguna, Our Lady of Caysasay in Taal, Batangas, Our Lady of Peñafrancia in Naga City, Nuestra Señora Virgen de Regla in Lapulapu City, Our Lady of the Pillar in Zamboanga, etc."

The Marian religiosity of the Filipinos was the subject of that pastoral letter, which was addressed to "the people of God in the Philippines, especially the clergy, religious men and women, and members of the mandated organizations" so as to encourage them "to continue fostering a fervent and authentic devotion to Mary."

The CBCP acknowledged "that the cult of Mary and the devotion to her image have helped many simple people to remain Catholics" but it called for "reform and renewal" with regard to the "aspects of the devotion [possibly deflecting] from genuineness and purity."

We wonder how Marian devotees with their images, medals, scapulars,and novenas, and organizers of Marian processions, Flores de Mayo and Santacruzan events, take to heart paragraph 85 of the pastoral letter: "Above all we wish to emphasize that all veneration of Mary is to be subordinated to the adoration of the triune God and of Christ who is the Mediator. Mary's dignity is the most exalted among all the saints because of her divine maternity and hence she is worthy of special veneration as the Mother of God. Her place and role in the economy of salvation is to be clearly proposed to the faithful, as the Second Council of the Vatican has expressed. This, we think, is a very important point and, if wrongly understood, is the root and source of any ill-advised form of Marian devotion."

The next time we visit our churches, let's check if the parish priest remembers this particular instruction of the CBCP: "We cannot approve, for instance, of the presence of several images of Mary in the same house, chapel or church -- even parish churches -- with their devotees extolling the power of their statues over the others as if they were rivals."

References:

Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines. (1975, Feb 02). Ang Mahal ng Birhen. Mary in Philippine Life Today. Pastoral letter on the Blessed Virgin Mary. Retrieved from http://www.cbcponline.org/documents/1970s/1975-mahal_na_birhen.html

Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. (n.d.). Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage Antipolo. Retrieved from http://www.kintera.org/site/apps/nl/content2.asp?c=etITK6OTG&b=309286&ct=160378

Darang, Josephine. (2010, Jul 11). Purely Personal. Our Lady of Guadalupe is secondary patroness of the Philippines. Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved from http://lifestyle.inquirer.net/sundaylifestyle/sundaylifestyle/view/20100711-280491/Our-Lady-of-Guadalupe-is-secondary-patroness--of-the-Philippines

De la Rosa, Fr. Rolando V. (2011, Oct 09). Through Untrue. Veneration of the Blessed Mother. Manila Bulletin. Retrieved from http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/337088/veneration-blessed-mother

Front Cover. (1908, Jan 04). Lipang Kalabaw. 2(24):1. Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/aah0606.0001.001

Rivalidad.(1908, May 30). Lipang Kalabaw. 2(42):18. Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/aah0606.0001.042

Andres Bonifacio & Emilio Jacinto, best frat brods forever!

2011-11-21T12:53:00.002+08:00


*Emilio Jacinto with his Cartilla ng KKK* and his best friend Andres Bonifacio at the Dambana ng Kagitingan atop Mt Samat, Bataan.**

"Ayon din kay Andres Bonifacio ay si Emilio Jacinto ang kaluluwa ng katipunan. Naging kalihim ng kapatiran ng mga manghihimagsik at siyang kinikilalang mata ng K.K.K.N.M.A.N.B. [Kataastaasang, Kagalanggalang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan] (Santos, 1935).” Tr.: According to Andres Bonifacio also, Emilio Jacinto was the soul of the katipunan. He was the secretary of the revolutionists and was considered the eye of the K.K.K.N.M.A.N.B.

His cousin-in-law Jose Turiano Santiago led Emilio Jacinto to the Katipunan, and thus began his amazing friendship with supremo Andres Bonifacio.

We wonder how Bonifacio sized up the long-haired young man, 12 years his junior, during their first meeting. We don't know how true it was that when Jacinto was enrolled in San Juan de Letran and later in the University of Santo Tomas, he only had his haircut when he could no longer bear the teasing of his classmates (Santos).

Freshman pre-law student Jacinto was about to enter a fraternity of older men, and it could not have been different from what the young lads in the University of the Philippines today would go through once they opt to join a Greek-letter fraternity there.

We imagine master Bonifacio ribbing his prospective brod to first go and see a barber before they can even begin talking about the fraternity, what this brotherhood of this country's noble sons is all about, and going through the secret initiation rites that he, the supremo, and other founders originated.

The master could have discerned a treasure in the neophyte at the very start. In today's setting, would Jacinto be a potential Collegian editor, chairman of the UP Student Council, or a Bar topnotcher? It's not unusual for senior fratmen to have promising brods to be groomed for the national leadership, in Congress, the Supreme Court and even the Palace!

It didn't take long for Jacinto to gain the trust and affection of the fraternity head. "Nagkaroon agad sa kaniya ng malaking pagtatapat at pagmamahal si Andres Bonifacio na hindi maaaring matularan ng iba .. (Santos)."

The young man spoke the language of Manila, kastilang tindahan (roughly today's Taglish), so he had to learn the dialect fast. Fraternal discussions were in Tagalog. The supremo himself would be his Tagalog tutor, and in due time, the young katipunero surpassed his mentor in the quality of his oral and written Tagalog.

One of the first things they could have found in common between them was passion for books on revolutions. Both were fond of the History of the French Revolution. Jacinto could have read La Solidaridad, El Filibusterismo, Les Miserables, The Wandering Jew, among others, from his mentor's personal library.

"They were like brothers," Gregoria de Jesus, a katipunera herself, wrote of the supremo, her husband, and Jacinto. She had custody of the society's belongings for Jacinto, the Katipunan secretary, who lived with them.

Emilio and Andres as featured in the Bonifacio monument, Kalookan City.

The supremo wrote the first regulations or ten commandments of the Katipunan, and later, the younger brod put out his own version, the Cartilla, which, of course, echoes Bonifacio's decalogue. Because of his affection for the younger brod, but more so because he found it better than his own, the supremo deferred to Jacinto's version.

Bonifacio had so much trust in him. They shared secrets, and the supremo made sure he consulted his younger brod before they pursued any plan or activity. "Walang nang uuna kay Andres Bonifacio sa paghanga at pagdakila kay Emilio Jacinto. Wala siyang lihim na hindi ipinagtapat ditto at walang bagay at pangyayaring hindi muna niya isinangguni kay Emilio Jacinto bago niya isagawa (Santos)."

Together, they refined the policy structure and set up the propaganda machinery of the Katipunan. They secured a printing press, published the primer Cartilla, some sort of codes--the revolutionary Liwanag at Dilim (Light and Darkness) and the commercial Samahan ng Bayan sa Pangangalakal (Commercial Association of the People)--and their organ Kalayaan, which came out with two issues in 1896 (Fernandez, 1926; Cruz, 1922).

When they went to war after the discovery of the Katipunan, it's said that the supremo was more worried about the safety of his young trusted brod even he was more at risk in the battlefield.

How close they were can be gleaned when they entered, side by side, Magdalo territory in 1897. Here's Artemio Ricarte (1927) dramatic recollection of it --

"... Pagkatanggap ng anyaya, si G. Andres Bonifacio ay umalis na kasama sina GG. Baldomero Aguinaldo, Daniel Tirona at ang sugo ng Magdiwang, upang magtungong Nobeleta; sila'y nagdaan ngunit di na nagtigil pa sa Cavite el Viejo, at dumating sila sa Nobeleta nang unang oras ng hapon ng araw ding yaon, na di na kasama si G. Baldomero Aguinaldo. Sila'y tinanggap ng maraming pinunong naghihimagsik sa maliwalas at bagong bahay ng hukom pamayapa ng Nobeleta na siyang ipinahandang pangsamantala. Nang ika-3 ng hapon ding yaon, si G. Andres Bonifacio at G. Emilio Jacinto ay lumulan sa isang sasakyang natatalibaan sa magkabilang tabi; sa gawing kanan, ang nakakabayong si G. Daniel Tirona ay bunot ang sableng sumisigaw ng buong lakas tuwing matatapat a pook na may pulutong na tao, ng:- Mabuhay ang Supremo ng Katipunan! Nasa kaliwa naman si G. Esteban San Juan, sa likod nito'y kasunod ang mga sasakyan ng tanang mga Kagawad ng Magdiwang at saka dalawang pulutong na kawal na nakaunipormeng pula, isang pangkat sa harap at isa pa rin sa likod, at sa ganitong ayus ay nagsilakad ang lahat na patungong San Francisco de Malabon. Dito'y tinanggap ng buong sigla si G. Andres Bonifacio sa tugtog ng banda ng musika at saka "Te-Deum" sa simbahaln. Ilang nasa lansangan ang sumigaw ng:- Mabuhay ang Hari ng Pilipinas! bagay na narinig at sinagot naman ni G. Andres Bonifacio ng:- Mabuhay ang Kalayaan ng Pilipinas! Ang Kataas-taasang Pang-ulo ay tumuloy muna sa bahay ni G. Santos Nocon, komandante noon ng hukbong naghihimagsik, at nang huli ay sa kayayaring bahay ni Ginang Estefania Potente, hanggang sa araw na ikinakuha ng mga kastila sa bayang San Francisco de Malabon noong nagsimula ang Abril ng 1897 (Ricarte, 1927)."

An English version can be read from the translation of revolutionary General Santiago Alvarez's memoirs, published in 1992:

“The Supremo left Imus for Noveleta in the company of Messrs. Emilio Aguinaldo, Daniel Tirona, Baldomero Aguinaldo, Esteban San Juan, and others. They did not stop at Kawit, although it was along their way to Noveleta. When they reached Noveleta before two in the afternoon, they were joyfully greeted by the Magdiwang leaders and troops. They were welcomed by a brass band, flags, fireworks and gunfire, and by shouts of “Long live the Supremo!” The Supremo would then answer back, “Long live the Motherland!”

“The party was led to a house where they ate and rested for a while. At past three that afternoon, the Supremo and Sec. Emilio Jacinto boarded a luxurious carriage by well-fed, swift white horse to inspect the defense positions of the Katipunan territories. A cavalry detachment led by Col. Santos Nocon provided the honor guard in front, on the left and right sides, and at the rear of the carriage. Astride a magnificent horse, Magdalo Secretary of War Daniel Tirona rode abreast on the right side of the Supremo and Sec. Emilio Jacinto. His sword was drawn and he was wearing a cap. Whenever they passed a crowd he would shout, “Long live the Supremo!”

“On the left side was Maj. Esteban San Juan, and at the rear were Magdiwang infantrymen. They were followed by a cavalry detachment and armed troops dressed in red. After inspecting the Katipunan country and its defenses, they proceeded to San Francisco de Malabon. There the Supremo was also welcomed most warmly. There was a brass band, pealing of the church bells, and a Te Deum said by Fr. Manuel Trias, a Katipunan member.

““Along the streets, some shouted, “Long live the King!” to which the Supremo would answer, “Long live the Motherland!”

“At San Francisco de Malabon, the Supremo stayed for some time at the house of Col. Santos Nocon and later moved to the house of Mrs. Estefania Potente.”

We've been looking for Emilio Jacinto after this triumphant entry to Magdalo country. Where was he during the prosecution of his supremo in Cavite? We were expecting a John the Beloved accompanying and protecting Gregoria during the trial, and when she went looking for her missing husband and his brother.

Alas, there's no passion and death of Andres Bonifacio according to Emilio Jacinto, the beloved brother.

There's an account though of how Jacinto eluded the Spanish authorities after getting wounded in a battle in Majayjay, Laguna in 1898. He recovered and went back to Manila, staying there briefly. When he returned to Majayjay, he got sick and never got well again. He died on 16 April 1899.

References:

Alvarez, Santiago V. (c1992). The Katipunan and the Revolution: Memoirs of a General with the Original Tagalog Text / Translated into English by Paula Carolina Malay. Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University Press. Available in parts at http://books.google.com.

Cruz, Hermenegildo.(1922). Kartilyang makabayan : mḡa tanóng at sagot ukol kay Andres Bonifacio at sa Kataastaasan, Kagalanggalang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan. Manila: S.P. Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/ADT3553.0001.001

Fernández, Leandro H. (1926). The Philippine Republic. New York:Columbia University. Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/afj2313.0001.001

Jesus, Gregoria de. (1930, June). Autobiography of Gregoria de Jesus. Tr. by Leandro H. Fernandez. Philippine Magazine. 27(1):16-18,65-68. Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/acd5869.0027.001

Ricarte, Artemio. (1927). Himagsikan nang manga Pilipino laban sa Kastila. Yokohama, Japan:"Karihan Cafe". Available at http://name.umdl.umich.edu/acs6869.0001.001

Santos Cristobal, Epifanio de los. (1918, June). Emilio Jacinto. The Philippine review (Revista Filipina). Gregorio Nieve, ed. 3(6)412-429. Manila, P.I. Retrieved at http://name.umdl.umich.edu/acp0898.0003.001

Santos, Jose P. (1935). Buhay at mga sinulat ni Emilio Jacinto. Paunang salita ng Kgg. Rafael Palma. Place of publication and publisher not indicated.

JP Rizal and the "Moros"

2011-11-07T11:35:00.001+08:00

We do not know the Philippine national hero as deeply as the chairman of Ateneo's history department, Facebook friend/columnist/history lecturer with a very large fan base, JP Rizal authority Ambeth R Ocampo; hence, whatever we write here is subject to his critical appreciation, which we will most welcome.

Front cover of the satirical weekly Lipang Kalabaw issue of 28 Dec 1907. It says "Rizal healing Moro boys in Dapitan."

We combed through JP Rizal's notes and letters regarding his stay in Dapitan to see if he hinted at giving medical attention to "Moro" children even if he was not a pediatrician but we found none. He did run some kind of 'boarding school' for boys though, who we take to be the sons of Christian families in the town.

We know that the "Moros" did not figure in the Noli and Fili. The only Rizal work we found where they were major characters was his poem The Battle: Urbiztondo, the Terror of Jolo that he penned when he was a young Ateneo Municipal de Manila student. Here he celebrated how Governor-General Antonio de Urbiztundo vanquished the "Moros" of Jolo.

Could the publisher, writers and illustrators of Lipang Kalabaw of the early 1900s, and may be most of our countrymen at that time, thought of Mindanao as largely Moroland, and hence the cover of the December 1907 issue (probably the Rizal Day commemorative number) had JP Rizal "healing the Moro boys in Dapitan"?

Probably still etched in their collective memory were tales of "Moro" pirates, reason why there were watch towers in some coastal towns. They could also have been thinking of the "Moro Province" comprising Zamboanga, Sulu, Lanao, Davao and Cotabato that the Philippine Commission created in 1903, alongside their demarcation of the Filipinos into Christians and non-Christians.

There were no "Moros" among the indios bravos in the propaganda movement, nor were they part of the revolution instigated by the Magdiwangs and Magdalos against Spanish rule. It took some more years for the "Moros" to be represented in government and their plight included in the national agenda.

This editorial cartoon of The Independent was reprinted in the December 1926 issue of the monthly magazine Philippine Republic published in Washington DC.

By 1926, when the US Congress was arguing on the Bacon Bill, the Filipinos have already assimilated the "Moros" into the national consciousness. The Independent, a Philippine newspaper at that time, took up the cause of opposing the bill. It's editorial cartoon showed how Bacon proposed to "take the Moro provinces containing vast tracts of rubber land away from the Philippine government and administer them as a separate government under the United States."

The cartoon depicted JP Rizal asking his countrymen what they're doing about Bacon's intent. History tells us that there were mass protests against the bill, and Senate President Manuel Quezon, Speaker Manuel Roxas and Minority Leader Claro Recto went to Washington to convey to the US Congress their country's opposition to it.

This graphic illustration reminds us of the creation of the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) in 1987 as a result of an accord between the Philippine government and the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF). But despite this, peace has yet to prevail in the southern Philippines.

The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) came around with a different political agenda. New peace negotiations were initiated. Recently, its officially recognized head secretly met with President Benigno Aquino III in Japan about the possibility of creating a sub-state. But this idea was met with critical opposition in the public media, and in social networks. Tragically, talks about the resumption of the peace negotiations had been disrupted by violent encounters between the Philippine armed forces and supposedly break-away MILF groups or lawless Abu Sayyaf elements. Aquino's response to these recent developments is not to make war but "all-out justice."

Would waging "all-out justice" result in a Moro sub-state? Is this Aquino's Bacon Bill?

References:

Front cover. (1907, Dec 28). Lipang Kalabaw.1(23). Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/aah0606.0001.001

Reprint, The Independent editorial cartoon. (1926, Dec). The Philippine Republic. 3(11):16. Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/acc6198.1926.011

Rizal, Jose. (1875, Dec 05). The Battle: Urbiztondo, the Terrór of Jolo. National Historical Institute. Retrreved from Filipiniana.net at http://www.filipiniana.net/publication/the-battle-urbiztondo-the-terror-of-jolo/12791881729528/1/0

Modern day witch hunting, legacy from the Salem Witch Trials of 1692

2011-11-01T12:18:00.002+08:00

As we write this, the street party of Halloween revelers in downtown Salem, Massachusetts, dubbed the Witch City, is in crazy fever despite the early autumn cold, the threat of rain or unexpected snow in October.

Also known as the Jonathan Corwin House, the only remaining structure with direct links to the Witch Trials of 1692. Magistrate Corwin served with the Court of Oyer and Terminer that sent 20 innocent victims accused of being witches to death between June and September, 1692. (Photo by the author.)

We've enjoyed this Halloween party each time we visited in Salem in early fall. The last day of the Haunted Happenings of October has all the state roads lead to the city, and parking would be a problem for visitors arriving in the afternoon. Those in the know take the bus, ferry and commuter train because they can immediately jump into a boisterous crowd in colorful, absurd, funny and horrific costumes. It's one big holiday for camera buffs like us.

"Witch" is spelled in almost every visitor's sightseeing agenda in the, well, Witch City. Those who are interested in witchcraft can go to the Salem Witch Village, which aims "to promote religious tolerance and participation in a positive society that encourages growth and acceptance of all its people." They can walk with the Salem Witches and learn the truth about spells, love potions, herbal charms, among others. These Witches celebrate the Witches' New Year on October 31!

Salem derived it's nickname Witch City from the religious hysterical events of 1692, the Salem Witch Trials in American history. These events are recreated in the visitors' imagination in the Salem Witch Museum, the Witch Dungeon Museum, the Witch House, and the Salem Witch Trials Memorial. Since 1983, historian/author Jim McAllister has been conducting every October the popular one-hour outdoor candlelit tour that explores the sites and the story of the 1692 witch trials.

The Memorial was dedicated by Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel in August 1992 to commemorate the 300th anniversary of the Trials of 1692. (Photo by the author.)

There is a "historically accurate live presentation" of "untold stories of1692" at the Witch Museum. Here, visitors meet Tituba, the Caribbean slave in the household of the Reverend Parris, one of the three women that the girls Elizabeth Parris, daughter of the reverend, and Abigail Williams, his niece, blamed for their mad afflictions. The three women were accused of witchcraft but it was only Tituba who confessed of having met "the Devil" and told the court that there were other witches out to destroy their community. The witch hunt began with Tituba's "confession."

At the Witch Dungeon Museum, visitors can watch a reenactment of the trial of Sarah Good based on the original transcript of 1692 (the court records are found in various documentary archives listed in the webpage Salem Witch Trials).

There's also the long-running play, "Cry Innocent: The People vs. Bridget Bishop" mounted by History Alive! of the Gordon College theater department at the Old Town Hall. The audience acts as part of the jury, listening to testimonies, cross-examining the witnesses and deciding the verdict. The actors respond in character to comments and questions from the audience.

The Witch House is the only remaining structure in Salem that has direct links with the Witch Trials. It is also called The Jonathan Corwin House. Corwin was the local magistrate who served on the Court of Oyer and Terminer, which sentenced nineteen innocent citizens accused of witchcraft to death by hanging. The 20th victim was pinned with stones to death. He was 24 in 1675 when he bought the house, which remained with the Corwin family until the mid-1800s.

The Salem Witch Trials Memorial was designed by Maggie Smith and James Cutler. It was chosen from among 246 entries in an international competition. Picture shows 20 granite benches jutting out from a low stone wall surrounding the area. Each bench is inscribed with the name of the victim and the date of his/her execution. Behind the wall on the left is the Old Burying Point. (Photo by the author.)

In August 1992, Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel dedicated the Salem Witch Trials Memorial to commemorate the tercenary or 300th anniversary of the events of 1692. This adjoins the Old Burying Point behind the Essex Peabody Museum in downtown Salem. It consists of 20 granite benches jutting out from a low stone wall, and each is inscribed with the name of the innocent victim and his/her date of execution. There were 14 women and 6 men who were executed on separate dates - 10 June, 19 July, 19 August, 19 and 22 September, 1692.

Bridget Bishop was the first to go to the gallows. She cried, "I am no witch. I am innocent. I know nothing of it." (Photo by the author.)

There were five of them who were hanged on 19 Jul 1692. The other four were Sarah Good, Rebecca Nurse, Susannah Martin and Sarah Wildes. Howe cried, "If it was the last moment I was to live, God knows I am innocent..." "Oh Lord, help me!," Rebecca Nurse implored, "It is false. I am clear. For my life now lies in your hands...." "I have no hand in witchcraft,"Susannah Martin professed. (Photo by the author.)

Four men and one woman--John Proctor, John Willard. George Burroughs, George Jacobs and Martha Carrier--met their death on 19 Aug 1692. "I am wronged. It is a shameful thing that you should mind these folks that are out of their wits," Martha Carrier cried. (Photo by the author.)

Giles Corey, 80 years old, expired after two days of being pressed by stones piled on his chest. Till death, he refused to plead guilty before the court. (Photo by the author.)

Six women and two men were hanged on 22 Sep 1692: Mary Eastey, Martha Corey, Ann Pudeator, Mary Parker, Alice Parker, Margaret Scott, Wilmot Redd and Samuel Wardwell. "Ye are all against me," Martha Corey told the jurors. "If it be possible no more blood be shed," implored Mary Eastey, "I am clear of this sin." (Photo by the author.)

It would take years before the 20 victims were cleared of their accusation. Many of those involved publicly confessed their error and guilt. "On January 14, 1697, the General Court ordered a day of fasting and soul-searching for the tragedy of Salem. In 1702, the court declared the trials unlawful. And in 1711, the colony passed a bill restoring the rights and good names of those accused and granted £600 restitution to their heirs. However, it was until1957--more than 250 years later--that Massachusetts formally apologized for the events of 1692 (Blumberg, 2007)."

Marker on the grave of Col. John Hathorne, one of the magistrates of the Court of Oyer and Terminer that tried and sentenced to death the 20 innocent victims of the Salem Witch Trials. His grave is in the Old Burying Point that adjoins the Salem Witch Trials Memorial. (Photo by the author.)

"Witch hunting" is the legacy of 1692 that survives today. During the McCarthy era in US history from after the second world war to the late 1950s, thousands of American government employees, entertainers, writers, artists, educators, labor unionists, etc. were suspected to be communists or communist sympathizers and accused of subversive activities based on questionable evidences. There was a similar period in Philippine history when academicians from the University of the Philippines were accused by the Legislature's committee on un-Filipino activities of being communists.

Other modern-day witch hunting can be discerned in the discrimination of one religious group against another (the Muslim and the terrorist tags after 9/11, for example), the gay bashing and the expired "Don't ask, don't tell" policy in the US military, and the "trial by publicity" in a much-hyped controversial criminal or social case by tabloid journalists, usually.

References:

Blumberg, Jess. (2007, Oct 24). A Brief History of the Salem Witch Trials.One town's strange journey from paranoia to pardon. Smithsonian.com at http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/brief-salem.html?c=y&story=fullstory

Salem Witch Trials. Documentary Archive and Transcription Project at http://www2.iath.virginia.edu/salem/archive2.html

Salem Witch Trials. The Comprehensive Salem Guide at http://www.salemweb.com/guide/witches.shtml and http://www.salemweb.com/memorial/

Terms of interment then and now

2011-10-31T11:51:00.001+08:00

The 'brains of the Katipunan' could have been buried simply 'rezado' (a priest prayed over his body), or if he had the means, 'cantado con posas, vigilia, cajon y tumba' (there was a wake, he was laid in a coffin, and a priest sang prayers behind it during the funeral procession from their house to his tomb in the cemetery). [Picture Source: Heroes Photo Collection of Ambeth Ocampo.]

We were listening to a woman from the urban poor sector telling a TV reporter that she does not think of having her deceased husband cremated even if this is a less expensive option than doing business with a funeral parlor for her dear departed's coffin, wake and interment. Her reason: cremation is for the rich!

Burial of Don Catalino Abiva, 53, a man of means, on 22 Sep 1889: "Fue entierro cantado con posas, vigilia, tumba y cajon." His remains were contained in a coffin (cajon) and laid to rest in a tomb (tumba). There was a wake or vigil (vigilia) in the church. "Cantado con posas" could mean the priest fetched the remains from the Abiva house and accompanied it to the cemetery singing prayers along the way, a practice still done today by the Aglipayan church of San Narciso, Zambales. The bill for the services are listed on the right of the burial entry. (Source: Burial records of the San Sebastian Church 1887-1944, San Narciso, Zambales.)

Going to the Great Beyond really does entail considerable expense for those who are left behind. Hence, the pre-need plans for those who can afford to prepare for the inevitable end, and the financial KBL (kasal-binyag-libing, wedding-baptism-burial) assistance of local government executives for both charitable and political reasons. We were neighbors to a block of informal settlers in Cubao in the 1970s, and we witnessed that wakes for the dead could last more than a week to raise funds for interment, although there were rumors that these provided the cloak to run a small-scale neighborhood casino.

Burial of ordinary citizen Dionisio Gregorio Amon, 32, on 25 Jun 1889: "Fue su entierro rezado con cajon (the priest prayed over his body laid in a coffin)." The church services were "gratis" (free). (Source: Burial records of the San Sebastian Church 1887-1944, San Narciso, Zambales.)

During the Spanish regime and into the 1930s, the people of our town buried their dead within 48 hours. Definitely, the art/science of embalming had not reached this coastal town yet. Funeral parlors are recent business ventures there. There were no coffins of various styles and colors with different price tags yet to choose from. Even into the 1950s, when we were an innocent boy, we still saw carpenters make coffins for the dead in our neighborhood using carefully measured and cut pieces of wood from the hardware store. Superstition had it that the coffin must exactly fit the departing body.

Burial of Chinese Christian Tomas Barretto, 36, on 13 Mar 1892: "Fue su entierro cantado (the priest sang the prayer over his body)." The bill for the church services are written on the right margin of the burial entry. (Source: Burial records of the San Sebastian Church 1887-1944, San Narciso, Zambales.)

Electricity came late to our town. The Ramos Electric Company of our relatives provided power after the second world war, and we remember we had lights only six-to-six, early evening to early morning. We imagine candles and wicked oil lamps lighting up a one-night wakes during the pre-electricity period. These could have been held in the town church because one of the services paid to the church was for "vigilia" (wake or vigil).

Wakes in the cities are now held in the chapels of funeral homes or memorial parks or large churches. Expense for these are included in the pre-need plans. Many sleepless nights for the bereaved also entail funds for food, snacks, coffee, etc. in the entertainment of friends who come to condole, and for novena masses until before the body is taken out for burial.

Burial of Don Anacleto Sugui, 62, a past cabeza de barangay, on 08 Nov 1889: "Fue su entierro rezado (the priest prayed over his body)." This suggests that he was not laid in a coffin, nor did he have a tomb. He was buried under the ground. The priest's service was free. (Source: Burial records of the San Sebastian Church 1887-1944, San Narciso, Zambales.)

Wakes in the countryside have taken a new twist. In our town, the funeral parlor services also include a live band event during the last-night vigil, which comes as a package with a brass band for the funeral procession the next day. The live band is to attract more people to hopefully spend a sleepless night with the bereaved family.

For those with lesser means, the live band may be a karaoke or sing-along music system. Filipinos are musical, and it is expected that there would be a queue to the microphone of the town's or barrio's undiscovered singing talents.

Unless the bereaved family is strict about gambling in the premises, there would always be tables for the mahjong or card players.

All these mean that a kitchen cabinet of friendly neighbors and relatives would be around to serve the late night snack of sandwiches and/or arroz caldo, and to keep the supply of hot water for 3-in-1 coffee running.

Burial of R.Padre Fraile Celestino Fernandez de Retana de San Jose, Agustine Recollect, parish priest of San Narciso, Zambales, 35, on 15 Jul 1889. He was the first in the list of cholera victims in the burial records. The entry did not say anything about his burial. It is presumed that Fraile Cipriano Acha prayed over his body before this was wrapped and buried. (Source: Burial records of the San Sebastian Church 1887-1944, San Narciso, Zambales.)

The funeral procession today has the deceased in a coffin conveyed to his grave in a funeral car. One suspects that there is a funeral cortege ahead if the traffic slows down on Metro Manila streets or on the stretch of MacArthur highway from Pampanga to Zambales. This service of course comes with the pre-need plan.

In our town, the funeral car may be done away with and replaced with a horse-drawn caisson or carriage. It could still be a carroza (float) decorated with flowers ceremonially pulled by the menfolk using a pair of long ropes. The horses are rented from Pampanga thus the dramatic effect of a horse-drawn carriage equates to quite a hefty sum of money.

When our parents died, they were buried with the Aglipayan (Philippine Independent Church) priest attending them. Both were fetched by the priest and brought to the church where a mass was said. Before their remains were brought out of the house, the priest and some elder women sang prayers for them. We remember that in the case of our mother, the funeral procession paused a couple of times and the priest and the women again sang prayers. In the case of our father, who was a widower for around 25 years, the priest and the women just said the prayers. Probably, it was faster that way or they did not know tune of the prayer song.

Thus in recent memory, "cantado con posas" was still in practice.

Then and now, burial services depends on capability to pay.

68,000 classrooms needed; TEN Moves go for 10,000 units

2011-10-23T18:52:00.000+08:00

“Plan No. 1.--This building contains one unit, 7 meters by 9 meters. It provides classroom space for approximately 50 pupils. It is suitable for construction in the smaller barrios. Future additions to this building cannot be made without seriously interfering with the original structure. This type of building has been constructed for P2,100 [around US$1,000].

“Plan No. 3.--This building contains three units and provides classroom space for approximately 150 pupils. The units are so arranged that two additional classrooms may be constructed at the rear or front of the building, thus forming a complete structure of five classrooms. This building is suitable for central barrios where the attendance will, in all probability, not exceed 250 pupils. This type of building has been constructed for P6,000 [around US$3,000].” -- Bulletin No. 37-1912.

The Philippines department of education (DepEd) recently launched in San Francisco, California its TEN Moves (short for ‘The Entire Nation Moves’) project to attract US-based Filipinos and other nationals to support the construction of 10,000 classrooms, which is estimated to cost Php600,000 (US$14,000) each.

The DepEd strategy aims to raise some PhP6-billion (US$140M) from two million supporters, which means each donor contributing Php3,000 (US$70) each.

This partially addresses the need for 68,000 classrooms for students going into the 10-year basic schooling from kindergarten to junior high school. Current budget is reported to be sufficient only for the construction of 58,000 units.

“Plan No. 2.--This building contains two units and provides classroom space for approximately 100 pupils. It is suitable for larger barrios, but should not be authorized in places where future additions are contemplated, as this cannot be done without seriously affecting the general construction. This type of building has been constructed for P4,100 [around US$2,000].

“Plan No. 10.-This provides for six classrooms and an assembly room with storeroom and office. The assembly room occupies space equivalent to three classrooms. This type of building is suitable for large central schools and is recommended for large growing towns. It has been constructed for P18,000 [US$9,000].” -- Bulletin No. 37-1912.

TEN Moves is a private sector initiative, part of the bigger Bayanihang Pampaaralan campaign of the 57-75 Education Reform Movement, which is an alliance of the Ateneo Center for Educational Development (ACED), Foundation for Worldwide People Power (FWWPP), League of Corporate Foundations (LCF), Philippine Business for Education (PBEd), Philippine Business for Social Progress ((PBSP), and Synergeia Foundation (Synergeia).

The reverse-image 57-75 speaks of the mission of the alliance-- “to reverse the educational crisis.” The number 57 reflects the current state of affairs of the Philippine public education system being the national average score in percentage points in the National Achievement Test (NAT) of public elementary school pupils. The reverse image 75 is target passing mark within the next five years.

It’s not only the perennial shortage of classrooms that has to be addressed though to turn 57 around to 75. There are other needs as well like blackboards, desks, and salaries for teachers. And even sanitation facilities!

“Plan No. 6.--This plan provides for foul classrooms and an assembly room equivalent to two units. It is suitable for the ordinary central school where office room and storeroom space may be provided outside of the buildings. This type of building has been constructed for P10,500 [around US$5,200].

“Plan No. 7.--This plan is similar to No. 6 but has provisions for a larger assembly room, equivalent in space to three units, and containing a storeroom and an office room. This building is considered more serviceable than Plan No. 6 and is recommended in all cases where sufficient funds are available and where the average attendance will exceed 400 pupils. This type of building has been constructed for P12,500 [around US$6,200].

“Plan No. 8 provides for a special building designed for use in connection with shop work. It should be constructed in connection with large intermediate schools or provincial schools of less importance. This type of building has been constructed for P15,000 [around US$7,500].” – Bulletin No. 37-1912.

We’d like to think that Ten Moves considered the seismic and climate threats in the design and construction of the “brick-and-mortar” classrooms, which we read as “concrete” buildings, the same critical elements that were deemed significant in the design of standard school buildings a century ago.

“In the Philippines,” said the Bureau of Education Bulletin No. 37-1912, “a building to be permanent must be prepared to withstand earthquakes and severe storms, and resist the ravages of insect pests. White ants alone have destroyed buildings worth thousands of pesos. Only the best timber, stone, or concrete will resist them.” It did not say anything about floods though. There could have been minor floods in some parts of Manila and major towns but these were not as life-threatening as we know of them today to cause suspension of classes when heavy rains occur.

Back then, the Bureau of Education faced “the threefold problem of organizing the schools, training a corps of Filipino teachers, and providing them with the buildings essential to their success.” The American administrators inherited from the Spaniards predominantly “temporary structures, poorly built and of perishable materials. The best of these were great oblong buildings of stone, with earth floors, roofs of grass or tile, low eaves, and deep-set, heavily barred windows. They were usually damp and poorly ventilated. “

“Plan No. 20.--This plan provides for a twenty-room building, the largest of the series. It should be constructed in provincial capitals and large growing towns where the needs of the schools require a large number of classrooms. It is essentially Plan No. 7 with additions and changes in a few minor details which make it superior to Plan No. 7. It is advisable to authorize a part of this building to be constructed in all places needing a school building larger than Plan No. 7 for the reason that this offers the best structure, if additions are contemplated at any time in the future.” – Bulletin No. 37-1912

Then as it is now, the “need of buildings was so pressing, and the funds available locally, whether provincial or municipal, were so limited that it was impossible for the local authorities to effect the construction of permanent school buildings unaided.” The Insular Government infused capital funds for school buildings through legislative action starting with Php350,000 [around US$175,000] in 1904 and by 1911, it had appropriated a total of Php4,149,000 [around US$2.075M] including the Php1,000,000 [around US$500,000] for primary schools provided for by the Gabaldon Law of 1907.

The standard schoolhouses built a century ago were of concrete re-enforced with steel in “combination with timbers of superior quality for roof trusses, floors, and partitions, and galvanized iron for roofing.”

The unit system of construction had the standard classroom size of 7 by 9 meters. “[The] classrooms are so arranged in the plans that additions may be made at a minimum cost and without prejudice to the original structure. In Plan No. 6 and those for larger buildings, provision is made for an assembly room. These buildings are enlarged by adding units at the rear of the original building on both sides of the assembly room, forming a continuous row of classrooms on either side. These additions may be extended almost indefinitely without injury to the original structure and without interfering with the lighting or ventilation of any of the classrooms. The largest building of this kind at present contemplated is a twenty-room building containing two wings, each having six classrooms in addition to the large assembly room connecting these in front, and four additional classrooms in the rear, which completes the quadrangle, thus forming an open court within the structure. This court is faced by porches or open corridors from which doors lead into the various classrooms.”

The Plans were numbered 1 (the unit building) to 14, and 20 (see pictures with descriptive captions). Plan No.12, which is not shown here was a special designed for trade schools in the provinces.

Plans No. 4 and 5 were abandoned, and the use of Plans No. 9, 11, 13 and 14 were discontinued.

The classroom sizes may have evolved through the years to accommodate more students and the introduction of technologies for teaching like audio-visual equipment and computers.

The TEN Moves classrooms may well be standard school houses of 1912 re-configured to withstand the risks of fire and floodwater, to be adaptable to modern teaching tools, and to accommodate increases in class sizes.

References:

Bureau of Education. (1912). Bulletin No. 37—1912. School buildings and grounds. Manila: Bureau of Printing. Retrieved from http://name.umdl.umich.edu/acp1028.1912.037

Reporter not named. (2011, Oct 08). Department of Education Initiative to Raise Funds for Classrooms. Inquirer.net. Retrieved from http://globalnation.inquirer.net/14913/department-of-education-initiative-to-raise-funds-for-classrooms

Ronda, Rainier Allan Ronda. (2011, Oct 22). DepEd to end classroom shortage by 2014. Philippine Star Online at Philstar.com. Retrieved from http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=739987&publicationSubCategoryId=63