Ang katotohanan sa pagtaas ng bilang ng mga katoliko sa Pilipinas

Totoo nga bang LUMALAKI ang bilang ng mga katoliko sa Pilipinas?

Sa paanong paraan?

Dahil ba marami silang napapaconvert galing sa ibang relihiyon?

Bibigyang linaw ito satin ayon na rin sa CBCP sa panayam kay Archbishop Oscar Cruz:

“More people are getting baptized now. Is this a sign of the growth of the Church? Not necessarily. It can be because the population is growing,” said Archbishop Emeritus Oscar Cruz

source: inquirer.net

Hindi naman pala dahil sa mga nabanggit na dahilan sa itaas, bunga lang pala ito ng PAGTAAS NG POPULASYON NG PILIPINAS. Imaginin nyo nalang, halimbawa, kung 40 million ang bilang ng katoliko sa Pilipinas na nasa edad ng pag aasawa, kalahati babae kalahati lalaki (ibig sabihin 20 million couples), at nagkaanak ng dalawa ang bawat mag asawa, ibig sabihin 40 million ang mababautismuhang sanggol. Kaya 40 million (Catholic couples) + 40 million (babies) = 80 million.

Ang galing ng doktrinang INFANT BAPTISM ano?

Yung mga walang kamuang muang na sanggol nagiging katoliko agad in an instant, walang kahirap hirap ang simbahan.

At kung hindi nyo po alam, sa bawat nababautismuhang sanggol binibilang agad silang mga katoliko, at yun ang inilalabas na statistics ng simbahan kung saan pinagmamalaki nilang DUMADAMI ANG BILANG NG MGA KATOLIKO. Pero ang hindi alam ng marami, doon sa mga sanggol na katoliko pag laki non ay umaalis din at umaanib sa ibang relihiyon. Yun ang hindi nila BINIBILANG, ayon mismo sa arsobispo:

Cruz admitted that the Catholic Church didn’t monitor how many of its flock left the fold for other religious denominations. “We only monitor those that come in [but] to me, the increase in baptisms is a very good sign,” he said. 

source: inquirer.net

Huwag na rin tayong magtataka kung bakit laban ang simbahan sa paggamit ng contraception at sa RH BILL, pag nagkataon kasi kokonti ang magiging anak ng mga katoliko, kaya kokonti rin ang "PAGTAAS" ng populasyon ng katoliko sa bansa.

Eh ano ba talaga ang TUNAY na mga pangyayari ayon sa pag aaral ng SWS survey?

In his opinion column, “Public Lives,” sociologist Randy David in April highlighted three findings of a survey conducted by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) in February: 

“First, that weekly church attendance has significantly gone down from a high of 64 percent in July 1991 to a low of 37 percent in February 2013.  

Second, that only 29 percent of Filipino Catholics consider themselves “very religious,” compared to 50 percent of Protestants, 43 percent of Iglesia ni Cristo members, and 38 percent of Muslims. 

And finally, that 9.2 percent (one out of 11) “sometimes think of leaving the Church.”

source: inquirer.net

Kahit anong pagtatakip ng mga depensor katoliko sa KATOTOHANAN, sa huli ay mabibigo lang din sila, dahil yung pinagmamalaki nilang "PAGLAGO" diumano ng populasyon ng katoliko ay hindi pala dahil sa pag eefort nilang magmisyon kundi dahil sa mga sanggol na ipinapanganak ng kanilang mga magulang na katoliko.

Ang kapalit ng pag-endorso ng Iglesia ni Cristo

Ano-ano ang mga kapalit ng pagsuporta o para sa ilan ay "pag-endorso" ng Iglesia ni Cristo sa mga pulitikong kumakandidato?
 
Meron ba o wala?

Ano ba talaga ang KATOTOHANAN?





Marahil ay meron pa ring magpupumilit ng kanilang SARILING OPINYON. Pero kahit ipilit nyo yan ng 1 milyong beses, MANANAIG at MANANAIG pa rin po ang KATOTOHANAN. 

Decline in Catholics' church attendance: Fact or Lie?

It is not even shocking for many that there is a huge decline in Filipino Catholic's weekly church attendance, it is evident not in the number of people in their chapels who attend mass but through their catholic neighbors/friends/relatives/family/classmates/workmates that do not attend mass at all, they attend mass only when there is a special occasion like Christmas or birthdays etc.

But the question is, Is there really a decline in Filipino Catholic's church attendance?

Its a fact. Let's read the news:

The SWS conducted the survey on its own account as a “public service” and to determine if Fr. Joel Tabora’s assertions on his blog, posted on February 7, that “the Catholic church is in trouble is true.

Four topics were covered: Leaving the Catholic Church, how often they go to church, assessment of Church attendance, and religiosity.

The results of the survey showed that about 9.2 percent or one out of 11 Catholics said they “sometimes think of leaving the Catholic Church.” Of the 9.2 percent, only 2.5 percent “strongly agrees” in leaving the Church while 6.7 percent said they “somewhat agree” with the statement “sometimes I think of leaving the catholic church.”

However, the poll firm said those who consider leaving the church “do not consider themselves as very religious, attend church monthly mostly and whose church attendance is less now than five years ago.”

Among the Catholics who contemplate leaving the Church, 4.9 percent consider themselves as “very religious”, 9.1 percent were “somewhat religious”, 16.1 said that they were “not very religious”, and 57.3 said they “have no religious belief”.

The survey, conducted from February 15 to 17, involved 1,200 registered voters.

It did not only cover Catholic voters but also voters from other religions. Of the 1,200, 81 percent were Catholics, six percent were Protestants, three percent were members of the Iglesia ni Cristo, and three percent were of other religions.

Among the Catholic respondents, 43 percent said they hear mass once a week; 22 percent go to Church two to three times a month; 21 percent hear Mass once a month; nine percent attend two to 11 times a year and five percent, once a year at most.

“Only 37 percent of Catholics attend church weekly. In comparison, there are nearly twice as many of other Christians who are weekly churchgoers: 64 percent among Protestants, 70 percent among Iglesia ni Cristos and 62 percent among other Christians,” the SWS said.

SWS noted that in 70 SWS surveys regarding church attendance conducted from 1991 to 2013, weekly attendance was always lower among Catholics in general.

SWS said that only 29 percent of Catholics consider themselves very religious, compared to 50 percent among Protestants, 43 percent among Iglesia ni Cristo members, 41 percent among those from other Christian denominations and 38 percent from Muslims.

“Compared with other religious groups, Catholics are the least religious,” the SWS revealed.

source: manilatimes.net

Its not surprising that Catholic priests, bishops, archbishops and even catholic defenders immediately defend their church saying that church's weekly attendance in fact increased and that their chapels are always full of people.

There is maybe a truth that some of their chapels or lets say many of their chapels are filled with churchgoers, but is it a proof that churchgoers really increased? Do they think about the number of catholic population in the Philippines and the number of their chapels across the country? How about their chapels' seating capacity and the number of Catholics in that area? 

My point is, even there are thousands and thousands of catholics attend mass every sunday, we should think that there are MILLIONS of Catholics in the Philippines. The number of Catholic's weekly church attendance in their chapels does not reflect the Catholic's church attendance as a whole.

What's the current situation of Catholics in the United States?

Only about one in four American Catholics attend mass once a week, a number that has been cut in half in the past 40 years, according to a survey by the Pew Research Center released Wednesday.

Only 24 percent of US Catholics said they went to mass on a weekly basis in 2012, down from 47 percent in 1974, according to the study, which was published as the world's 1.2 billion Catholics await the election of a new pope.

Among self-identified "strong" Catholics, only 53 percent went to mass once a week last year, down from 85 percent in 1974.

About a quarter (27 percent) of respondents identified themselves as "strong" Catholics last year, down more than 15 percentage points from the mid-1980s and among the lowest readings since 1974, the Pew data showed.

The figure is in sharp contrast to the 54 percent of Protestants who say they have a strong religious identity -- one of the highest levels since Pew began asking the question nearly four decades ago.

Agence France-Presse March 14, 2013 14:32

source: globalpost.com

How about Catholics in European countries? 

In France, Germany and Spain, where multiple Pew Research surveys have asked respondents how often they attend church, few Catholics report going to Mass on a weekly basis. In four surveys conducted between 2009 and 2011, no more than 10% of French Catholics said they attend Mass at least weekly. By comparison, between 24% and 31% of Spanish Catholics have said they attend church at least once a week in polls conducted between 2009 and 2011.Among Catholics in Germany, roughly one-in-five said they go to Mass on a weekly basis in 2009 and 2010. In Pew Research polling in 2011, a slightly lower proportion of German Catholics (16%) reported attending Mass at least once a week.

 
Pew Research surveys have not routinely asked about attendance at religious services in Italy.
 

March 5, 2013
source: pewforum.org

And how about the center of the Catholic Church, Italy?

ROME, August 8, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Despite regular polls showing that about 30 percent of Italian Catholics claim to attend Sunday Mass regularly, a closer look at the numbers reveals a more uncertain future for the Italian Church, and consequently for Italy as a moral vanguard in Europe.

For many years, Italians responding to surveys have said that between 30 and 50 percent attend Mass more than once a month. But in 2004-5, the Patriarchate of Venice undertook a study that showed the actual attendance numbers were no more than 22.7 percent, with only 15 percent attending every Sunday. Those who attended one to three times were 7.7 percent. The survey noted that Mass attendance increases with the level of education, in contrast to findings in other parts of Europe. 

While this number still compares favorably to that of other EU countries like France, where regular attendance is thought to be below 5 percent, it is likely to slide further in the coming years. 

A survey conducted by Professor Paolo Segatti of the University of Milan, published in the magazine “Il Regno” in May, found that the news is even worse among younger Italians. Among those born after 1981, Segatti found, Mass attendance, self-identification as Catholic, and adherence to Catholic teaching are “in collapse.” Segatti predicted a near future in which Catholicism holds only “minority status in Italy.”

“It is imaginable that when the children of the younger generation become parents, they will make a further contribution to secularization.”

Segatti writes. “The youngest Italians are the ones to whom religious experience is most foreign. They clearly go to church less, believe in God less, pray less, trust the Church less, identify themselves as Catholic less, and say that being Italian does not mean being Catholic.”

Vatican expert and Italian journalist Sandro Magister noted last week that the loss of faith among young people has strongly affected women: “The collapse is so clear that it also wipes out the differences in religious practice between men and women – the latter of whom tend much more to be practicing – typical of the previous generations. Among the youngest, very few of the women go to church, on a par with the men.”

Mon Aug 09, 2010 11:15 EST
source: lifesitenews.com

You can search other surveys in other countries in the internet.

Now, Is there a DECLINE in the Catholic Church?

First Latin American Pope could counter declining Catholicism

Pope Francis, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, is the first non-European pontiff since the eighth century, bringing a distinctly New World flavor to the Vatican that Catholics hope can reverse the decades-long trend of Latin Americans leaving the church.

Pope Francis, formerly Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, acknowledged how unusual his non-European origins are as he greeted thousands of faithful outside St. Peter's Basilica on Wednesday night. "As you know, the duty of the conclave was to appoint a bishop of Rome. It seems to me that my brother cardinals have chosen one who is from far away, but here I am," he said shortly after his election.

Pope Francis shares his faraway home of Latin America with about 40 percent of the world's Catholics, a plurality of the world's faithful that has nonetheless eroded significantly in the past 50 years as droves of Catholics converted to evangelical Protestantism.

Roberto Blancarte, a professor at the Center of Sociological Studies at El Colegio de México, found that about 1,000 Catholics left the church every day between 2000 and 2010, adding up to a loss of 4 million congregants. Overall, Blancarte estimates that about 90 percent of Latin Americans were Catholic in 1970, compared with about 70 percent today, though the percentage varies widely by country. In the United States, the percentage of Hispanic Catholics has also been declining, but more because they are becoming more secular than converting to competing religions.

Having a Latin American pope, whose native language is Spanish, might lure back some of those Catholics to the fold.

"It could be part of an overarching process of helping to revitalize the Latin American church," said R. 

Andrew Chesnut, the Bishop Walter Sullivan Chair in Catholic Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University. 

"A lot of Latin American Catholics will feel very proud and elated that the new pope is one of theirs and his native language is their native language."

The precipitous decline in Catholic affiliation might have nudged the cardinals into selecting a non-European pope for the first time in centuries. Seventeen percent of the cardinals in the conclave were from Latin America.

"With this bleeding of members over the last half-century it made so much sense strategically to choose a Latin American. Europe is lost, the church is in a real crisis there, but Latin America still has a chance to be salvaged," Chesnut said.

Robert P. George, a Christian conservative thinker and law professor at Princeton, said the move will be interpreted by people in Latin America as a recognition "that there is a strong Catholic culture and many faithful Catholics in Latin America."

But not all experts on Catholicism agreed. Blancarte pointed out that Pope John Paul II was unable to battle the larger trend away from Catholicism despite his unprecedented attention to the region during his 26-year papacy.

"John Paul II visited almost every country in Latin America. ... He was as much Latin American as anyone can be," Blancarte said. "The fact that [Francis] is Latin American is a marginal fact."

Miguel Zamora, an Argentine immigrant who lives in New York and works for a pharmaceutical company, said he was elated to learn the new pope is from Argentina. "I think this is going to be a big boost for Argentina," Zamora said.

But he added that the pride he feels for the pope's nationality will not necessarily coax him back to attending mass on Sundays. "I still have hopes that the church is going to change," he said.

Wed, Mar 13, 2013

source: news.yahoo.com 

You decide! 

Is this really the TRUE CHURCH OF CHRIST? 

And the Church that will Christ save?

Normal ba na ligawan ng mga kumakandidato sa eleksyon ang Iglesia ni Cristo?

Mababasa sa mga komento sa ibat ibang website ang mga saloobin ng mga asar na asar sa Iglesia ni Cristo. Sinasabi nila, napaka gahaman talaga sa kapangyarihan yang Iglesia ni Cristo na yan, tignan mo at ang mga pulitiko eh nagkukumahog sa panliligaw para sa boto ng Iglesia ni Cristo!

Tanong: Normal lamang ba na ligawan ng mga kumakandidatong pulitiko ang Iglesia ni Cristo para mapunta sa kanila ang boto nito?

Sagot: NORMAL NA NORMAL. Napaka abnormal at napaka ipokrito naman ng mga kumakandidato kung alam nilang nagsasagawa ng kaisahan sa pagboto ang INC at hindi nila ito papansinin, o hindi sila gagawa ng mga paraan para makuha ang boto nito!

Ang hindi normal ay ang Iglesia ni Cristo ang manliligaw sa mga pulitiko para lumapit sa kanila para manghingi ng tulong!

Kung ako ay katolikong tumatakbo para sa eleksyon, ganun na ganun din naman ang gagawin ko. Kung gusto mong manalo, gagawin mo ang lahat, magpapaka effort ka, gagawa at aalamin mo ang lahat ng paraan para lang marami ang bumoto sayo.


Kaya nga andyan ang VOTE BUYING, at FLYING VOTERS. 

Ano pa?

Andyan ang cheating in the counting of votes, harassment of voters, at use of harassment during campaign period. source: sws.org.ph 

Sino ba ang gumagawa ng mga PANDARAYANG ito?

Di ba yung Catholic at Protestante candidates?

At syempre ang latest, dumami na rin ang gumagaya sa Iglesia ni Cristo tulad ng El Shaddai, The Kingdom of Jesus Christ, Jesus Miracle Crusade, at Jesus is Lord movement. Isama na ang Catholic Church na may pinagmamalaki pang "Catholic Vote".

Ang tawag sa kanilang ginagawa ay ENDORSEMENT. Nag eendorso sila ng mga political candidates at bahala na ang kanilang mga miyembro kung susundin ba nila o hindi ang inendorso sa kanila ng kanilang mga lider.

Ang tawag naman sa ginagawa ng Iglesia ni Cristo ay KAISAHAN SA PAGBOTO. Hindi po ito endorsement na pag may sinuportahan ang mga lider sa INC na mga political candidates ay bahala na ang mga miyembro kung susunod ba sila o hindi. Ang Iglesia ni Cristo kasi ay may doktrina sa KAISAHAN, kasama sa fundamental doctrines yun ng INC at ipinaliliwanag iyon bago pa man mabautismuhan ang mga kaanib, kasama na ang kaisahan sa pagboto. 

Responsibilidad ng mga miyembro ng INC ang gawin ang KAISAHAN na ito bilang pagsunod sa bibliya:

“I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.” I Cor. 1:10

“here is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.” Eph. 4:4-6

Dapat bang sundin ng mga miyembro ang KAISAHAN sa Iglesia?

“then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling,” Philip. 2:2-3,12 

Ang akusa naman ng marami ay DINIDIKTAHAN daw ng Iglesia ni Cristo ang mga miyembro nito kung sino ang iboboto. Ang pagdidikta ay ang PAG UUTOS ng kung sino ang iboboto. Kabaligtaran naman sa katotohanan dahil kung meron mang iniuutos ang Iglesia ni Cristo ay walang iba kundi ang PAKIKIPAGKAISA ng bawat miyembro, kaya nga kapag nalalapit ang eleksyon ay ang mga lesson sa pagsamba ay tungkol sa pagkakaisa ng Iglesia ni Cristo, hindi tungkol sa KUNG SINO ANG IBOBOTO na kung hindi namin sila iboboto ay ititiwalag nila kami. 

Napagdebatihan na ito sa korte ng Pilipinas at pinayagan ito dahil sa huli, ang mga myembro pa rin naman ang magpapasya kung sino ang kaniyang iboboto, dalawa lang naman ang choice niya kung sino ano ang susundin nya-- ang personal choice niya o makikipagkaisa siya sa Iglesia.

Hindi tungkol sa PAGDIDIKTA ang aral ng Iglesia ni Cristo kundi tungkol sa PAGSUNOD, magkaiba kasi yun. PAGNAGDIKTA ka kasi, walang choice yung dinidiktahan mo kundi sundin ka. May konsensyang pinapairal sa Iglesia ni Cristo at sa pagboto, nasa konsensya mo na yun kung makikipagkaisa ka sa Iglesia o mas pipiliin mo ang gusto mong kandidato, pagboboto kana IKAW LANG ANG MAKAKAALAM SA IBOBOTO MO, kaya pwede kang magdalawang isip kung gugustuhin mo. Pero dahil Iglesia kami ni Cristo kung choice namin sumunod sa kaisahan sa Iglesia, BAKIT APEKTADONG APEKTADO KAYO?

Balik tayo sa topic...

Ang pagsuporta ng INC sa mga kandidato ay para sundin ang nasa bibliya, para magkaroon ng pagkakaisa sa Iglesiang kay Kristo. Ngayon, kung naniniwala ang mga kumakandidato sa boto ng Iglesia ni Cristo ay malamang sa malamang ay lalapitan at HIHINGIAN nito ng tulong ang Iglesia. Ang pagtulong na ito ng Iglesia ay WALANG KAPALIT. 

Nagkakaroon lang ito ng tinatawag na "kapalit" kapag ang mga nanalong sinuportahan ng Iglesia ay gumanti ng tulong o gumawa ng bagay in favor sa Iglesia which is NAPAKA NORMAL sa isang tao lalo na sating mga Pilipino. Ngunit itong "kapalit" na tinatawag nilang ito ay hindi kailanman NIREREQUEST ng INC sa mga pulitiko, sila mismo ang nagbibigay nito sa INC, para magpapansin o sincere man ang intensyon.

Kapag tinulungan ka ng kaklase mo sa assignment mo, hindi mo ba siya tutulungan kung saka sakaling isang araw ay manghingi siya ng tulong sayo sa assigment niya???

Tanong #1: Pero UMAASA ba ng TULONG ang INC sa mga pulitiko?

Tanong #2: Kapag ba tumulong ka NAG EEXPECT ka ng sukli para sa ginawa mo?

Kung ano ang sagot mo sa tanong sa no. 2 ay ganoon na rin ang sagot sa tanong #1... Ikaw na ang bahalang sumagot...


Ano ano ba ang mga bagay ang sa tingin mong gagawin ng mga pulitko upang suportahan sila ng Iglesia ni Cristo?

Sa tingin mo ba gagawa muna sila ng mga bagay na magbebenefit ang INC o mga myembro nito para lang mapunta sa kaniya ang boto ng INC?

Pupuntahan ba nila at kakaibiganin ang mga ministro sa lokal at bibigyan ito ng panuhol mapa pera o materyal na bagay?

Bibilhin ba ng pulitiko ang boto ng INC sa pamamagitan ng "name your price"?

o mayroong tamang proseso upang maikonsidera ng INC ang mga iboboto nito?

Hindi ko man maidedetalye ng buong buo ay alam ko na may ipapasang form ang mga kumakandidato sa district offices ng Iglesia ni Cristo at inaalam yung background niya sa lugar kung saan siya kakandidato. Ang magiging pasya ay hindi sa lokal mangagaling kundi sa Central, dahil finoforward ng district offices ang mga ito sa Central.

Hanggang dyan lamang ang nalalaman ko sa ngayon. Strikto ang INC sa usaping ito kaya strikto rin ang proseso, tulad ng sabi sa balita:

"The INC recently issued a circular by Executive Minister Eduardo Manalo during worship services all over the country, advising its members not to get involved in any partisan activity or ask any favor from any candidates to avoid confusion in the flock’s electoral moves. It reiterated in the same circular that the “unity vote” would be strictly observed" source: inquirer.net

Bawal sa mga ministro ang tumanggap ng kahit ano sa mga pulitiko. Bawal makisama ang mga miyembro sa mga political activity ng mga kandidato lalo na kung sila ang nangangampanya para sa mga ito. Bawal makisawsaw ang mga miyembro o sila ang magiging tulay para mahingi ang suporta ng isang kandidato. Itong mga bawal na ito ay hindi para MANIOBRAHIN ang mga miyembro kundi para patas at hindi mahaluan ng kung ano man ang proseso at ang magiging pasya ng pamamahala. Ang sinumang lumabag, kung hindi suspendido ay matitiwalag.

May mga pagkakataon na HINDI BUMOBOTO ang INC dipende sa lugar at sitwasyon, lalo na kung halimbawang sa lugar na ganito ay wala namang lumapit at nanghingi ng tulong sa INC. Totoo po ito. Ayon na rin sa pagpapatunay ng isang kapatid:

"Halimbawa, dun sa baranggay namin ay may 10 lang na INC members, kaya ung incumbent na bgy chairman ay hindi na humingi ng suporta para sa kanyang candidacy. Yun kalaban naman nya ay lumapit at humingi ng suporta at nakuha naman nya ang tulong na hiningi nya.

Sa isang baranggay na may 500 botante, ano ba ung 10 boto na mawawala sa kanya? mukhang hindi naman mahalaga...pero dun nakita ang epekto ng "swing vote" ng pagkakaisa ng INC.

Nanalo ang tinulungan ng INC by 5 votes.
Eh kung ung incumbent ay lumapit at kung sakali na sya ang tinulungan ng INC, lalamang pa sya ng 10 boto"

"MAY PAGKAKATAON PA NGA NA ANG PAGKAKAISA AY "WALANG IBOBOTO"o, di ba, yan ang katunayan na ang IGLESIA AY AFTER SA UNITY AT HINDI SA SINOMANG POLITIKO." source

Ngayon, ulitin natin ang tanong, normal ba na nilalapitan ng mga pulitiko ang Iglesia ni Cristo?

Sagot: Oong oong OO. 

Kung ikaw ay babae at nasa hustong gulang na, hindi ba normal na LIGAWAN ka ng isang lalaki?

Kung ikaw ay isang pulitiko at nangangailangan ng mga boto para manalo sa eleksyon, at nalaman mong nagsasagawa ang INC ng kaisahan sa pagboto na libre naman, hindi ba NORMAL na lapitan at ligawan ang INC para dito?

Isa sa mga atake pa nila ay ang appointment daw sa mga miyembro ng Iglesia ni Cristo pag nanalo na ang Presidenteng sinuportahan sa mga posisyon sa gobyerno. Ang sabi pa ng iba ay NILOLOBY daw ng Iglesia ni Cristo ito.

Tanong: Totoo ba ito?
Sagot: Hindi.

Recommendation ang ginagawa ng Iglesia ni Cristo. Hindi nito dinidiktahan ang Presidente o kung sino sa gobyerno para ma-appoint ang mga myembro na gustong manungkulan sa gobyerno. Ganito kasi ang totoong nangyayari, may mga miyembro ng Iglesia ni Cristo na gustong manungkulan sa gobyerno, at sympre para ma apoint sila bukod sa sarili nilang paraan ay humihingi sila ng tulong sa pamamahala, at ang pamamahala naman ay nagrerecommend ng mga tao, hindi ito basta basta dahil PILING PILI ito, alam nyo naman ang usaping pulitika, madumi, kaya pagnagkataong nasangkot sila sa isang pangyayari ay dala nila ang pangalan ng Iglesia ni Cristo kaya ang pamamahala rin naman ay maingat sa nirerecommend.

Nasa pangulo na yon kung meron siyang iaapoint tulad ng ginawa ng mga dating Pangulo ng Pilipinas.

 Ayon na rin sa balita, may katotohanan man ito o wala:

"Sen. Franklin Drilon, who serves as Team PNoy campaign manager, made the disclosure in light of reports that President Benigno Aquino 3rd had recently bypassed at least three recommendations of the Iglesia ni Cristo to three appointive posts namely: Office of the Ombudsman, Bureau of Corrections and Court of Tax Appeals." source: manilatimes.net

Ito ay isang normal na bagay tulad ng pagrerecommend ng INC sa mga miyembro nito sa mga kompanya na naniniwala sa kakayahan ng mga INC members at gusto kumuha ng INC members para maging empleyado tulad ng SM at Hizon lab. inc. 


Alam nyo ba ang tungkol sa CATHOLIC VOTE?

Hindi man ito tulad ng sa Iglesia ni Cristo na ispisipikong mga kandidato ang iboboto, nag iisue naman ang kanilang mga lider at ibat ibang catholic groups ng listahan ng mga kandidato na pro-life. Inshort, SILA ANG NANGANGAMPANYA PARA SA MGA KANDIDATO at hinihikayat ang mga kapwa nila katoliko na huwag iboboto ang mga di kasali sa kanilang listahan o ang mga kandidatong hindi "Pro-life" daw. 

Eh hindi ba PAG IINDORSO ANG TAWAG DOON?

At hanggang pag iindorso lang naman talaga ang kaya nila dahil kahit kailan hindi nila kayang bumoto bilang isa. Mapa usaping pulitika nga ay mismong mga pari at obispo ay hindi magkaisa paano pa ang mga myembro nito na ang karamihan ay hindi naman regular na nagsisimba?

INC Giving Philippines

Wow, INC Giving Project is now in the Philippines! We will expect future INC giving activities in our local congregation from now.

Here is the Official facebook page of the INC giving Philippines.

About

“Whenever you possibly can, do good to those who need it.” Proverbs 3:27 TEV

Description

The mission of the INC Giving Project is to extend the presence of the Iglesia ni Cristo members to its community partners by supporting their efforts to provide solutions to help families succeed and achieve.

And their Official website.


The very first activity was held at the local congregation of Pilot, Metro Manila Central:

The very first INC Giving activity here in the Philippines starts here – at the Locale of Pilot, District of Metro Manila Central.

Some of you may remember that a few weeks ago, this locale was dedicated to our Lord God. And now, to introduce us to the community where this church now stands, the district decided to conduct this INC Giving activity in order to extend our help to the people of this community and to our brethren who are also living nearby.

Feeding the kids: Our free merienda this afternoon also aims to help in meeting the nutritional needs of the children of this community.

This is one of the services we have today – The Livelihood Training. You’ll see Sis. Patricia Pena teaching participants how to make puto pao. Puto pao is a Filipino-style dimsum which is great for snacks, and as a business, they require minimal capital and are easy to make.

Free medical consultation and free dental check up are also available here at INC Giving. Our free dental care is a service well-appreciated by the community surrounding our new locale. Here, people can get free check-up, extraction and some medicine for their tooth aches

Brethren lawyers are also here to help those who seek legal advice, and answer any questions they may have about the law and certain procedures they may have to go through in court.

Also something to check out here at INC Giving: the free bone scan sponsored by a leading adult milk brand. In truth, most of those with osteoporosis, mostly women, don’t even realize they have it until they do a bone test. After the test, the patients can submit their form for a free milk drink.

Job placement is also available for our fellowmen of this community who are unemployed and seeking for job matching his/her knowledge and skills.

The line at the Children’s Show and Games area is filled with kids excited to watch the program and join the games that has been in stored for them.

Scrabble is a word game in which two to four players score points by forming words from individual lettered tiles on a gameboard marked with a 15-by-15 grid. It develops our English vocabulary! Board games are not just fun, they’re also educational!

The brethren of Metro Manila Central also prepared some entertainment for the attendees of this event. A good way to make people smile as they wait for their turn at the doctors’ and dentists’ services area.

The spread of Catholicism in the Philippines

How Catholicism spread in the Philippines?
Why "Philippines" is a Catholic country?
Why many Filipinos are born-Catholic?


Finally, we can now answer these questions as this post will tackle about the spread of Catholicism in the Philippines. Many of us wonder why there are more than 80% of the population were Catholics.


The question is: Did our catholic ancestors (former animists) converted WHOLEHEARTEDLY to the Catholic Church?

Then, let us know the answer!


History:

Spanish Era (1521-1898)
"In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, Spain had three major goals for the occupation of the Philippine Islands.

• One was to colonise the Philippines and participate in the spice trade dominated by Portugal.
• Second, Spain wanted to use the islands' geographical location to trade with China and Japan and to spread their religious belief to those advanced civilisations.
• Third was for Spain to spread Catholicism in the archipelago itself.

While many history books claim that the first Mass in the archipelago was held on Easter Sunday of 1521, others present evidence that it was elsewhere. Some books claim that this was done on the same day in a little island near the present day Bukidnon Province. Still, there are legends that say that Saint Francis Xavier, on his way to Japan stopped at an island belonging to the present day Pangasinan, which was way before the real entry of the Spaniards in the country. There is only one recorded Christian Mass in the Philippines that is provable, and that was held at the island-port named Mazaua on Easter Sunday, 31 March 1521. This incident was recorded by the Vicentine diarist Antonio Pigafetta.
The Legazpi expedition of 1565 marked the beginning of the Hispanisation of the Philippines. This expedition was an effort to occupy the islands with as little bloodshed and conflict as possible, ordered by Phillip II. Regretful bloodshed in Mexico and Peru motivated him to exercise pacifism during these campaigns. Lieutenant Legazpi was in charge of making peace with the natives and through swift military conquest, he set up colonies.
Under the encomienda system, Filipinos had to pay tribute to the encomendero of the area and in return the encomendero taught them the Christian faith and also protected them from enemies. Although Spain had used this system before, it did not working quite as effectively for the Filipinos as it did in America, the missionaries were not as successful in converting the natives as they had hoped. In 1579, Bishop Salazar and other clergymen were outraged because the encomenderos had abused their powers. Although the natives were resistant, they could not organise into a unified resistance towards the Spaniards due to geography, ethno-linguistic differences, and overall mutual indifference."
to know more about the encomienda system, click here.
"In 1599, negotiation began between a number of chieftains and their freemen and the Spaniards. The natives agreed to submit to the rule of a Castilian king and in return, the natives were indoctrinated into Christianity and were protected from their enemies, mostly Japanese, Chinese, and Muslim pirates. However, the conquest and conversion efforts were neither as easy nor as negotiable as this contract. The missionaries faced many obstacles and successes along the path to Christianization."

Difficulties

"Several factors hindered the Spaniards' efforts to spread Christianity throughout the archipelago. An inadequate number of missionaries on the island made it difficult to reach all the people and harder to convert them. This is also due to the fact that the route to the Philippines was in itself a rigorous task and some clergy never had the opportunity to set foot on the islands.
Some clergy fell ill or waited years for their chance to take the journey, or for some the climate difference once they arrived was unbearable. Other missionaries desired to go to Japan or China instead to spread their faith, or were more interested in mercantilism. The Spaniards also quarreled with the Chinese population in the Philippines. The Chinese had set up shops in what was called the Parian or bazaar during the 1580's to trade silk and other goods for Mexican silver.
The Spaniards anticipated revolts from the Chinese and therefore, were under constant suspicion. The Spanish government and conquest were also highly dependent on this silver because it supported the necessities to run the government in Manila, the main city, and to continue Christianization. The most difficult obstacles facing the missionaries were the dispersion of the Filipinos and their seemingly endless varieties of languages and dialects. The geographical isolation forced them into numerous small villages and every other province supported a different dialect.
Evangelism was done in the native language. Doctrina Christiana is a book of prayers in Tagalog published in the 16th century. When, Miguel Lopez de Legaspi set up the colonial system beginning 1565, he implemented an encomienda system where a native could acquire land if he underwent baptism and registered as a Catholic. Massive conversion occurred at this time. Many of which have, since then, adopted the same values of Catholics."


Filipino Resistance

The Filipinos, to an extent, did resist because they felt an agricultural obligation and connection with their rice fields. They felt that the large villages took away their resources and they feared the compact environment. This also took away from the encomienda system that depended on land, therefore, the encomenderos lost tributes.

However, the missionaries continued their efforts to convert the natives to the Christian faith. Their strategy was to take children of the chieftains and put them under intense education in religious doctrines and the Spanish language so that they in turn could convert their fathers and eventually native followers would emulate their leader. Between 1578 and 1609, missionaries saw an optimistic and enthusiastic attitude from the natives there were more converts than ever.
Despite the progress of the Spaniards, it took many years for the natives to truly grasp key concepts of Christianity. In Catholicism, four main sacraments attracted the natives but only for ritualistic reasons, and they did not fully alter their lifestyle as the Spaniards had hoped. Baptism was believed to simply cure ailments, while Holy Matrimony was a concept many natives could not understand and thus had violated the sanctity of monogamy. They were however, allowed to keep the tradition of dowry which was accepted into law.
“Bride-price” and “bride-service” were not observed by the Spaniards, but were performed by natives despite labels of heresy. Confession, or Penance, was required of everyone once a year, and the clergy used a bilingual text aid called confessionario to help natives understand the rite's meaning and what they had to confess. They were initially apprehensive to the concept but they gradually used Penance as a way to excuse excessive actions throughout the year. Communion was given out selectively for this was one of the most important sacraments that the missionaries did not want to risk having the natives violate.

Filipino Diaspora

Overseas Filipinos have spread Filipino culture the world over, and have brought Filipino Catholicism with them. Filipinos have established two shrines in the Chicago Metropolitan Area: one at St. Wenceslaus dedicated to Santo Niño de Cebú, as well as another at St. Hedwig's with its statue to Our Lady of Manaoag.

source: wikipedia

See? The spread of Catholicism in the Philippines is not by conversion through faith, but for personal interests. Spaniards did a lot of strategy for our ancestors be converted to Catholicism.

Let us know more about it:

'Christianization' Strategies Employed by the Spanish:

In little more than a century, most lowland Filipinos were converted to Roman Catholicism. There are a number of reasons why Spanish missionaries were successful in this attempt:

1. Mass baptism - the initial practice of baptizing large numbers of Filipinos at one time enabled the initial conversion to Christianity. Otherwise, there is no way that such a small number of Spanish friars, or Catholic priests, could have accomplished this goal.

It is said that many Filipinos associated baptism with their own indigenous 'healing rituals', which also rely on the symbolism of holy water--very typical of Southeast Asian societies.


2. Reduccion policies - in areas where Filipinos lived scattered across the landscape in small hamlets, the Spanish military employed a resettlement policy that they had used successful in Central and Latin America. This policy was called reduccion, and essentially meant a forced relocation of small, scattered settlements into one larger town.

The policy was designed for the convenience of administration of the Spanish colony's population, a way for a small number of armed Spanish constabulary to control more easily the movements and actions of a large number of Filipinos. It was also designed to enable Spain to collect taxes from their Christianized converts. Throughout Spanish rule, Christianized Filipinos were forced to pay larger taxes than indios, or native, unChristianized peoples.

The reduccion policy also made it easier for a single Spanish Catholic friar to 'train' Filipinos in the basic principles of Christianity. In reality, the policy was successful in some areas but impossible to enforce. Spanish archives are full of exasperated colonial officials complaining about how such settlements were 'all but abandoned' in many cases after only a few weeks.


3. Attitude of the Spanish clergy in the early phase - Spanish friars were forced to learn the native language of the peoples they sought to convert. Without schools that trained people in Spanish, the Spanish friars had no choice but to say Christian mass and otherwise communicate in the vernacular languages of the Philippines.

There are over 200 native languages now; it is unknown how many existed in the beginning of Spanish rule. In the first half, or 150 years of Spanish rule, friars often supported the plight of local peoples over the abuses of the Spanish military.

In the late Spanish period, in contrast, Spanish priests enraged many Filipinos for failing to

a) allow otherwise 'trained' Filipino priests to ascend into the higher echelons of the Catholic Church hierarchy in the Philippines;
b) return much of the land they had claimed as 'friar estates' to the Philippine landless farmers; and
c) recognizing nascent and emerging Filipino demands for more autonomy and a greater say in how the colony was to be managed.

4. Adaptation of Christianity to the local context - Filipinos were mostly animistic in their religious beliefs and practices prior to Spanish intervention. In most areas they revered the departed spirits of their ancestors through ritual offerings, and also believed in a variety of nature spirits. Such beliefs were central to healing practices, harvest rites, and to maintaining a cosmological balance between this world and the afterlife.

Spirits were invisible, but also responsible for both good and bad events. Spirits could be blamed for poor harvests, illness, and bad luck generally. Yet Filipinos believed that proper ritual feasting of the spirits would appease them, and result in good harvests, healthy recovery of the ill, and the fertility of women. The legacy of Spanish conquest and colonial rule in the Philippines, as is true of all colonial attempts to 'master' or manage indigenous populations, is mixed. On the one hand, Spanish clergy were very destructive of local religious practices.

They systematically destroyed indigenous holy places and 'idols', or statues and representations of indigenous spirits, gods or goddesses. They also tried to stamp out all examples of native scripts and literature for fear that Filipinos were using exotic symbols to foment rebellion. The Spanish also imposed new 'moralities' on Filipinos by discouraging slave holding, polygamy, gambling, and alcohol consumption that were a natural part of the indigenous social and religious practices.

At the same time, Hispanic rule left a legacy of syncretic, rather than totally destructive, elements. Spanish clergy introduced some very European features of Catholic practice that blended well with indigenous ritual practices. Spanish Catholic priests relied on vivid, theatrical presentations of stories of the Bible in order to help Filipinos understand the central messages of Christianity. Today, this colonial legacy lives on whenever Filipino Catholics re-enact through religious dramas the passion of Christ, or Christ's martyrdom, during Holy Week.

source: seasite.niu.edu

Another thing why the Catholic population grows in the Philippines is because of the growth of the population in the country in spite of the fact that many Catholics leaves the Catholic Church because of knowing its unbiblical doctrines and practices.

How this happened?

Its because of the mighty-powerful invented "infant baptism" doctrine. Where babies are baptized and registered in the church unfairly with their Catholic parents without their knowledge. (That's why dont be surprised if the Catholic Church opposed the RH bill, because it will lessen the conversion of innocent babies^^)

If we will compare the spread of INC and the spread of Catholicism in the country, there are differences. First, people converted to Iglesia ni Cristo is because of FAITH, nothing else while people converted (in the past) to Catholicism is because of personal interests and force.

Imagine this: Expansion of the Iglesia ni Cristo never hurdled by major wars (World War I and World War II) and persecutions from the Catholic and Protestant sects and denominations. Cant you imagine that while there is a war happening in the country, Bro. Felix is tirelessly preaching the words of God in that situation?

So now, do you still wonder why you and many are born-catholics and that the Philippines is called a "Catholic country"?