Silliman University

Transcription

Silliman University

Silliman Journal
Margaret Helen Udarbe-Alvarez, Ph.D., Editor
Warlito S. Caturay Jr., MA, Associate Editor
Ian Rosales Casocot, MA, Production Editor
Nenith P. Calibo, Business Manager
Editorial Board
Myrish Cadapan-Antonio, LlM
Jane Annette L. Belarmino, MBA
Gina Fontejon-Bonior, MA
Jose Edwin C. Cubelo, Ph.D.
Roy Olsen D. De Leon, MS
Theresa A. Guino-o, MS
Enrique G. Oracion, Ph.D.
Muriel O. Montenegro, Ph.D.
Betsy Joy B. Tan, Ph.D.
Lorna T. Yso, MLS
Overseas Editorial Board
Dennis Patrick McCann, Ph.D.
Alston Professor of Bible and Religion, Agnes Scott College, Decatur, Georgia, USA
Ceres E. Pioquinto, Ph.D.
English Lecturer, HMZ Academy/Dialogica Zug, Baar, Switzerland
Laurie H. Raymundo, Ph.D.
Director, University of Guam Marine Laboratory, Mangilao, GU, USA
Lester Edwin J. Ruiz, Ph.D.
Director, Accreditation and Institutional Evaluation,
Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada,
The Commission on Accrediting, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Dr. Margaret Helen Udarbe-Alvarez, Chair
Volume 53 Number 2 | July to December 2012
Prof. Victor Aguilan, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Divinity School
Silliman University
Dumaguete City, Philippines
Prof Ma. Arve B. Bañez, M.A.
Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology
Ateneo de Davao University
Davao City, Philippines
Chih-Wei Chang, Ph.D.
Associate Research Fellow/Director
Department of Exhibition,
National Museum of Marine Biology and Aquarium
Taiwan, Republic of China
Prof. Roy Olsen D. De Leon, M.S.
Chair, Biology Department
Silliman University
Prof. Robert Guino-o, M.S.
Assistant Professor, Biology Department
Silliman University
Prof. Gail Tan-Ilagan, Ph.D.
Chair, Department of Psychology
Prof. Lorna Peña-Reyes Makil, M.A.
Sociologist
Prof. Ruben C. Mendoza, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Theology
Ateneo de Manila University
Quezon City, Philippines
Prof. Enrique G. Oracion, Ph.D.
Director, Research and Development Center
Silliman University
BOARD
OF
REVIEWERS
Prof. Robert V. Panaguiton, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Social Sciences Department
School of Liberal Arts,
Ateneo de Zamboanga University
Zamboanga City, Philippines
Kang-Ning Shen, Ph.D.
Assistant Researcher,
Department of Environmental Biology and Fisheries Science
National Taiwan Ocean University
Taiwan, Republic of China
Prof. Margaret Helen Udarbe-Alvarez, Ph.D.
Dean, College of Arts and Sciences
Silliman University
Prof. Brigitt Bernadel Villordon, M.P.H.
Assistant Professor, Biology Department
Silliman University
Silliman Journal
Volume 53 Number 2 2012
The Silliman Journal is published twice a year under the auspices of Silliman
University, Dumaguete City, Philippines. Entered as second class mail matter at
Dumaguete City Post Office on September 1, 1954.
Copyright © 2012 by the individual authors
and Silliman Journal
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in
any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording
or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from
the authors or the publisher.
ISSN 0037-5284
Opinions and facts contained in the articles published in this issue of Silliman Journal
are the sole responsibility of the individual authors and not of the Editors, the Editorial
Board, Silliman Journal, or Silliman University.
Annual subscription rates are at PhP600 for local subscribers, and $35 for overseas
subscribers. Subscription and orders for current and back issues should be addressed to
The Business Manager
Silliman Journal
Silliman University Main Library
6200 Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental
Philippines
Issues are also available in microfilm format from
University Microfilms International
300 N. Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor
Michigan 48106 USA
Other inquiries regarding editorial policies and contributions may be addressed to
the Silliman Journal Business Manager or the Editor at the following email address:
sillimanjournal@su.edu.ph.
Or go to the Silliman Journal website at www.su.edu.ph/sillimanjournal
Cover and book design by Ian Rosales Casocot
Cover painting, “Irresolute Individual” by Gian Centeno, courtesy of the artist.
Printing by SU Printing Press, Dumaguete City
Editorial Notes
Margaret Helen F. Udarbe | 13
Baylor and Silliman:
Historical and Academic Comparison
of Two Christian Universities
Enrique G. Oracion | 19
Walking Humbly With the Moros
Towards the Kingdom:
A Reflection on the Catholic Church’s
Mission in Muslim Mindanao
Ruben C. Mendoza | 44
Toward a Pauline
Hermeneutic of Dialogue
Dennis Solon | 76
Local Government-Academe Partnership:
Touching and Inspiring Students in
Environmental Monitoring
Enrique G. Oracion | 100
Adolescents’ Emotional Awareness,
Regulation and Transformation:
Emotion-Focused Therapy
as Anger Management
Nelly Zosa Limbadan and
Margaret Helen F. Udarbe | 122
Community Awareness and Perception of
the Implementation of the
Coastal Resource Management Programs
In Four Coastal Areas of Bolinao,
Pangasinan, Philippines
Annie Rose D. Teñoso
and Annie Melinda Paz-Alberto | 144
CONTENTS
Length-Weight and Length-Length
Relationships and Fulton Condition
Factor of Philippine Mullets (Family
Mugilidae: Teleostei)
176 | Robert S. Guino-o II
Physico-chemical and Bacteriological
Characteristics of Señora River,
Siquijor Island, Central Philippines
190 | Hermilita L. Paculba, Rosalina E. Catid,
Ronald Alexis L. Tan, Glory J. Barrera,
Septima C. Aque, and Diogenes M. Barrera
Notes
Cultural Practices in Relation to the
Utilization and Conservation of the
Señora River and Other Community Practices
213 | Josel B. Mansueto, Expedita O. Duran,
and Ricky C. Jumawan
The Philippine-American War in Verse
219 | Myrna Peña-Reyes
BOOK Review
Reconnecting with the Sillimans: On Tawny
Ryan Nelb’s Mission Accomplished: Robert
and Metta Silliman’s Missionary Work in the
Philippines, 1924-1966 (2012)
231 | Lorna Peña-Reyes Makil
NOTICE TO AUTHORS
PUBLICATION GUIDELINES
Silliman Journal welcomes submission of scholarly papers, research
studies, brief reports in all fields from both Philippine and foreign
scholars, but papers must have some relevance to the Philippines, Asia,
or the Pacific. All submissions are refereed.
Silliman Journal is especially receptive to the work of new authors.
Articles should be products of research taken in its broadest sense and
should make an original contribution to their respective fields. Authors
are advised to keep in mind that Silliman Journal has a general and
international readership, and to structure their papers accordingly.
Silliman Journal does not accept papers which are currently
under consideration by other journals or which have been previously
published elsewhere. The submission of an article implies that, if
accepted, the author agrees that the paper can be published exclusively
by the journal concerned.
Manuscripts of up to 20 pages, including tables and references,
should conform to the conventions of format and style exemplified in
a typical issue of Silliman Journal. Documentation of sources should
be disciplined-based. Whenever possible, citations should appear in
the body of the paper, holding footnotes to a minimum. Pictures or
illustrations will be accepted only when absolutely necessary. All
articles must be accompanied by an abstract and keywords and must
use gender-fair language.
Silliman Journal likewise welcomes submissions of “Notes,”
which generally are briefer and more tentative than full-length
articles. Reports on work-in-progress, queries, updates, reports of
impressions rather than research, responses to the works of others,
even reminiscences are appropriate here.
Silliman Journal also accepts for publication book reviews and
review articles.
Manuscripts should be submitted electronically in one Microsoft
Word file (including title page, figures, tables, etc. in the file),
preferably in RTF (.rtf). Please send one copy of the manuscript as an
e-mail attachment, with a covering message addressed to the Editor:
sillimanjournal@su.edu.ph
The Editor will endeavor to acknowledge all submissions,
consider them promptly, and notify the authors as soon as these have
been refereed. Each author of a full-length article is entitled to one
complimentary copy of the journal plus 20 off-print copies of her/his
published paper. Additional copies are available by arrangement with
the Editor or Business Manager before the issue goes to press.
Other inquiries regarding editorial policies and contributions may
be addressed to the Business Manager at npcalibo@yahoo.com, or the
Editor at sillimanjournal@su.edu.ph.
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
13
“Perhaps there is nothing in the whole of creation
that knows the meaning of peace. For is not the soil
restless by comparison with the unyielding rock?”
Ugo Betti
The Fugitive
(1953)
“The only condition of peace in this world is to have
no ideas, or, at least, not to express them.”
Oliver Wendell Holmes
The Professor at the Breakfast Table
(1860)
“I know of no more disagreeable situation than
to be left feeling generally angry without anybody in
particular to be angry at.”
Frank Moore Colby
(1926)
EDITORIAL
NOTES
W
elcome to this issue of Silliman
Journal. Please don’t let the “irresolute
individual” on the cover deter you
from reading the variety offered by this issue.
In addition to unpeace, peace is also discussed
here.
Our full-length papers begin with Silliman
University research director Enrique Oracion’s
essay on two higher education institutions—
Baylor in Texas, U.S.A., and the other, Silliman
in the Philippines. The paper developed during
Ike’s four-month fellowship stint at Baylor
University. While this article compares the two
universities from a historical and academic
perspective, a second article will highlight the
quality of the faculty at both universities in SJ
VOL. 53 NO. 2
July TO DECEMBER 2012
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
EDITORial notes
14
2013.
The paper is followed by Dr. Ruben Mendoza’s “Walking Humbly
with the Moros towards the Kingdom: A Reflection on the Catholic
Church’s Mission in Muslim Mindanao” and Dennis Solon’s “Toward
a Pauline Hermeneutic of Dialogue.” Both papers tackle the matter of
dialogue in Muslim Mindanao, despite the odds. Ruben says that the
Catholic Church has been inadequate in responding to the Moro issue
and suggests it “move out of its comfort zone.” For his part, Dennis
uses Paul’s letter to the Romans, stating that “Filipino Christians can
draw lessons from this letter about some significant and positive ways
for dealing with peoples of other religious persuasions.”
Then, Ike Oracion’s second contribution to this issue describes
the service-learning involvement of undergraduate and graduate
anthropology students in environmental monitoring. In particular,
Ike and his students checked on the impact of a waste management
center upon residents in Bayawan, a city south of Dumaguete City in
the Visayas Region, Central Philippines, finding that service-learning
can be a very emotional experience, yet beneficial for educational
partnerships and changes in policy.
The fifth article evaluates an anger management intervention
program for applicability to a group of adolescents. The authors,
psychotherapists Nelly Limbadan and Marge Udarbe found that
emotion regulation and transformation can indeed occur in a brief
period of time, with proper facilitation and supervision as well as
direct counseling.
The next three studies are all somehow related to marine and
riverside conservation awareness, practice, and investigation. The
first article describes how coastal residents in Bolinao, Pangasinan,
Philippines perceive the implementation of coastal resource
management programs in the area. Next, biologist Robert Guino-o
specifically studies Philippine mullets, considered economically
important food fish in the Philippines. Robert’s research reports for the
first time the occurrence of the longfinned mullet Osteomugil perusii
and the dwarf mullet Osteomugil engeli in Philippine waters. Finally,
physico-chemical and bacteriological characteristics of a river in Central
Philippines is looked into by Hermilita Paculba and colleagues.
Notes Section
The two contributions to the Notes Section could not be so different
from each other. First, Josel Mansueto and others investigate
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
VOL. 53 NO. 2
Margaret Udarbe-Alvarez
15
community practices in the use of the Señora River on Siquijor Island
(related studies appear both in this issue and in SJ 2011, vol. 52, no. 2).
Then, the poet Myrna Peña-Reyes in “The Philippine-American War
in Verse,” tells us about the “Yankee Rudyard Kiplings”—American
poet-soldiers and war correspondents who recorded in verse America’s
colonial adventure in the Philippines. Cited poems tell of battles and
heroism, death and propaganda, homesickness and humor.
Book Review
The lone book review in this issue is by the Dumaguete City resident
sociologist Lorna P. Makil who, in “Reconnecting with the Sillimans,”
reviews Tawny Ryan Nelb’s Mission Accomplished: Robert and Metta
Silliman’s Missionary Work in the Philippines, 1924-1966 (2012). Nelb is
an American archivist and historian commissioned to write about the
missionary work of Presbyterians. To Nelb’s meticulous research and
facts, Prof. Makil adds her own personal notes, making the review in
itself interesting reading.
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank Gian Centeno whose painting is showcased on
this issue’s cover. Gian is in the pioneering batch of Fine Arts majors
at Silliman University and graduates in March, 2013.
My gratitude also goes to my staff—Nenith, Warly, and especially,
production editor Ian Rosales Casocot, for countless reasons, and the
editorial board, especially Ike Oracion and Roy de Leon whose time
and commitment to peer reviewing I have called upon repeatedly.
Our contributions are many and diverse and my thanks go to the
authors and their colleagues for their confidence in SJ as well as to our
readers and reviewers, including our overseas board for always being
there and coming through, sometimes after my last-minute requests.
As Shakespeare wrote in The Merchant of Venice, “How many things
by season seasoned are / To their right praise and true perfection!”
Margaret Helen F. Udarbe
Editor
VOL. 53 NO. 2
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
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VOL. 53 NO. 2
17
VOL. 53 NO. 2
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
VOL. 53 NO. 2
Baylor and Silliman:
Historical and Academic Comparison
of Two Christian Universities
Enrique G. Oracion
Research and Development Center
Silliman University
Employing historical and comparative approaches, this paper
describes how Christian commitment has inspired Baylor University
and Silliman University in establishing quality higher education
institutions that have surpassed the test of time and continued to
develop academic and community programs that bear and transmit
Christian values and ideals to students amidst the secularization of
higher education in the world. Informed by their vision and mission,
both institutions demonstrated efforts in promoting faith-learning
integration and at the same time ensuring quality education at par
with other universities in the US and the Philippines, respectively.
Certainly, the younger Silliman still has something to learn from
Baylor although it has its own ways of integrating faith and learning
and in improving the quality and scholarships of its faculty and
students, evident in the recognition it received in recent years.
Keywords: Christian university, Protestant, Baptist, Presbyterian,
faith-learning integration
I
Introduction
was struck by some parallel events in the history of Baylor
University (henceforth, Baylor) and Silliman University
(henceforth, Silliman) and their common foundation as Christian
higher education institutions, which they claim in their respective
mission statements, even though they are widely separated by the
VOL. 53 NO. 2
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
20
comparisons of two christian universities
Pacific Ocean. And speaking of a body of water, Baylor can be aptly
described as a campus by the river with reference to the Brazos River
on its northern side, while Silliman is a campus by the sea because, on
the eastern side, it directly faces Bohol Sea. Metaphorically, water is life
and the connection of these two institutions to certain bodies of water,
by coincidence, incidentally symbolizes their commitment to nourish
life and to promote quality living, a commitment that is evidently
embedded in their degree programs and community engagement in
both the sacred and secular fields. Both are Protestant universities; in
fact, Baylor is the largest Baptist higher education institution in the
world while Silliman is one of the largest Presbyterian universities in
the Philippines.
Baylor is situated in Waco—a small city in Texas—while Silliman
is situated in Dumaguete City, also a small city and the provincial
capital of Negros Oriental. Each is the oldest university in its locale:
Baylor in Texas and Silliman in Negros Oriental. Silliman is also the
oldest Protestant university in the Philippines. Baylor was established
on February 1, 1845 and is now (i.e. 2012) 167 years old (Baker, 1987,
p. 15), while Silliman, which was founded on August 28, 1901, is 111
years old (Carson, 1965, p. 1). They have both surpassed their hundred
years of struggle for existence amidst the challenges of modern times.
It was the Texas Education Baptist Society, as recommended by
Reverend William Milton Tryon and District Judge Robert Emmett
Bledsoe Baylor, which established Baylor University (Baker, 1987,
p. 12). Meanwhile, Silliman was founded under the auspices of the
Board of Foreign Missions of the Presbyterian Church, USA through
a donation from Dr. Horace B. Silliman, a retired businessman from
the town of Cohoes in New York (Carson, 1965, p. 1).
Although establishing a school was originally the idea of W.M.
Tryon, it was after R.E.B. Baylor that the university was named
because the former refused the honor. Tryon did not want to be
misconstrued as having personal interest for suggesting the idea of
creating a school, so he endorsed the name of Baylor. Actually, Baylor
also refused in favor of Tryon because, according to him, he had done
nothing worthy of being honored. In the end, the highest officials
of the Republic of Texas supported Tryon’s suggestion of having
Baylor’s name (Baker, 1987, p. 15). In the case of Silliman, although
Dr. David S. Hibbard, together with his wife Laura, had done all
the work to start Silliman Institute and was its first President, it was
named after Dr. Silliman in recognition of his persistence in building
a school for the Filipino people because they “need a new kind of
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
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E.G. ORACION
21
education” (Carson 1965, p. 2).
The foregoing events were just a few of the historical facts about
Baylor which got me more interested to discern how Silliman is
similar or different from Baylor. It also led me to further examine
how Silliman may stand among other universities in the Philippines
some years from now like in the case of Baylor in Texas or in the US.
Certainly, the experiences of Baylor is a good benchmark for Silliman
being both Christian and private non-profit universities. I stayed with
Baylor as a Fellow of the United Board for Christian Higher Education
in Asia (UBCHEA) from January to May 2012. The opportunity to be
in the campus of Baylor for four months allowed me to read books
and documents in its libraries; to participate in its academic and cocurricular activities; to intellectually interact with Dr. James Benighoft,
the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs and Policy; and to interview
some faculty and administrators to validate the information about
Baylor I got from my readings and observations.
In the following sections, I will compare Baylor and Silliman
in terms of the political events that unfolded when they started as
educational institutions and eventually expanded, the challenges
met and opportunities enjoyed, and the adaptability of programs
they pursued that described or characterized the quality of Christian
education they have produced through the years.
Political Events
It is interesting to point out the parallel political events in Texas and
the Philippines prior to the coming of the Americans. Texas was once
part of Mexico and the latter was a former Spanish colony, which
was also the case with the Philippines, but the Mexicans gained their
independence earlier—on August 24, 1821—than the Filipinos did.
According to the Handbook of Texas On-line, “New Philippines or Nueva
Filipinas and Nuevo Reino de Filipinas were secondary names given
to the area of Texas above the Medina River at the time of Domingo
Ramón's expedition of 1716” (de la Teja, cited in Baker & Pohl n.d.).
The same source also notes that in using these names the Franciscan
missionaries were actually trying “to equate their work in Texas under
Philip V with that of their brethren in the Philippine Islands under his
predecessor, Philip II, thus engendering royal support.” They wanted
the province of Texas to be like a “new” Philippines. However, the
name was no longer commonly used in legal documents by the early
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1800s except in land grants.
The residents of Mexican Texas and the Republic of Texas were
disgruntled with the Mexican government because of its shift to
centralism during the rule of General, then President, Antonio Lopez
de Santa Ana. They revolted, led mostly by immigrants who were
accustomed to federalism in the United States where they came from,
which produced the Republic of Texas on March 2, 1836. But it was
not that easy for the young republic which was always threatened
by invasions of Mexican troops in some of its territories as well as by
Indian attacks. These had also impeded the plans of the Texas Baptist
Education Society to establish a school (Baker, 1987, p. 12).
On the other hand, in the Philippines sometime later, the Filipinos
did gain independence from Spain but it was short-lived because the
Philippine-American war erupted. The sovereignty of the United
States over the country by virtue of the Treaty of Paris, resulting from
the defeat of Spain in the Spanish-American war in 1898, was not
recognized by Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo. The general played a major
role in the final stage of Filipino revolution against Spain up to 1898.
He proclaimed the First Philippine Republic on January 23, 1899 and
became the first president to mark the end of Spanish occupation of
the country.
So while Baylor was chartered a university in the last year of
the Republic of Texas when it became part of the United States of
America, more than 50 years later the establishment of Silliman
coincided with the end of the Philippine Republic when it became
a US colony. Certainly, American missionaries thought of education
a very important tool to meet various challenges in life particularly
under newly acquired or imposed political statuses of the people of
Texas and the Philippines, respectively.
Christian Vision and Mission
In its decision to proceed with the establishment of a school, the
Education Society was guided by a major goal of meeting “the need
for educating ministers as well as those individuals interested in
secular learning” (Baker, 1987, p. 12) through a school that “…would
be fully susceptible of enlargement and development to meet the
needs of all ages to come” (originally quoted in Baker 1987, p. 12).
The Society already had a vision that the school it could establish
would not only be parochial in scope and provisional in character but
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E.G. ORACION
23
would grow so as to significantly impact not only Texas at a certain
period in its history but even beyond for many years to come. On
the other hand, Dr. Silliman’s proposal to the Presbyterian Board to
establish an industrial school in the Philippines was inspired by the
Hampton Institute model in Virginia which he also supported. But
because of the religious background of its founders, “Silliman has
been intimately associated with the Protestant missionary movement
and with the formation of and growth of evangelical churches in the
Philippines” (Carson, 1965, p. 1).
Baylor and Silliman as Christian educational institutions have
Protestant orientation that strongly determined their directions in
the succeeding years up to the present. Baylor upholds a moderate
Baptist orientation, as opposed to fundamentalism, founded upon
an ecumenical Christian mission that “historically stood for religious
liberty and tolerance” (Parsons, 2003, p. 64). In the same manner,
Silliman, with its Presbyterian and Congregational traditions, also
plays a significant role in the Ecumenical Movement and is, therefore,
liberal in its religious perspective. With similar historical beginnings
and religious foundations, Baylor and Silliman undeniably have the
vision and motto that are filled with notions of delivering excellent
education to all, regardless of religious affiliation and beliefs, in order
to produce the kind of leaders who will serve not for personal gain
but for the well-being of others in society, within and beyond one’s
community, and within the natural environment with a commitment
to pursue Christian ideals in the process.
The mission of Baylor says “to educate men and women for
worldwide leadership and service by integrating academic excellence
and Christian commitment within a caring community” with Pro
Ecclesia, Pro Texana (For Church, For Texas) as its motto. Similarly,
Silliman’s mission is to become “a leading Christian institution in Asia
committed to total human development for the well-being of society
and environment” with the motto of Via, Veritas, Vitae (the Way, the
Life, the Truth). Guided by these mission and mottos, both institutions
have visualized that their respective students and graduates are both
intellectually equipped and spirituality inspired by Christian ideas,
values, and practices that put their education not only for personal
pursuit of grandeur but likewise for the service of humanity. For
Baylor, being a Christian university is not enough just to have an
atmosphere of high moral and religious kind of campus life, but that
which also integrates faith and learning into the whole process of
educating its students (Schmeltekopf, 2003, p. 11). Silliman shares
VOL. 53 NO. 2
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the same expressions without compromising “academic dignity and
secular scholarly pursuits” and equally recognizes the “reality and
supremacy of the Divine” (Silliman Strategic Plan 2008, p. 31).
Small Beginnings
It was not immediately in 1845 that Baylor started to operate. It had
to open a year after because the location had to be identified, and
the president and the faculty had to be named. In its first opening,
the students had to be content with what was immediately available
to become their classroom. From the documents he examined, Baker
(1987, p. 23) described later the scenario of the first class in this manner:
On May 18, 1846, twenty-four young boys and girls gathered in a small partially
refurbished frame schoolhouse on the southern edge of Independence to open
the first class of Baylor University. Thirty-year-old Henry F. Gillett, a native of
Connecticut who had been in Texas teaching and farming for about six years, greeted
the students. He was the only employee of the University, as president Henry L.
Graves had not yet arrived.
The scenario of the first class at Silliman Institute (its first name)
was not far different from the experience at Baylor. Although there
were more students at Baylor representing both sexes with only one
school official around, the first batch of students at Silliman was all
boys, because that was originally intended to be an industrial school,
and the school President and a teacher were both present to receive the
students. Similarly to the Baylor students, the first batch of Silliman
students had to start from scratch but their commitments to learn very
well prevailed as they continued to meet during the succeeding school
days. From the letter of Dr. Hibbard, Carson (1965, p. 1) quoted the
following lines that show how the first class at Silliman started:
There were fifteen boys that morning. The equipment consisted of four desks about
ten feet long, two tables and two chairs, a few McGuffey’s Readers, a few geographies,
arithmetics and ninth-grade grammars. I was President; Mrs. Laura Hibbard was the
faculty (italics mine).
I am showing the earliest enrollment and classes to compare those
with the scenarios now after more than a century of the existence of
these two universities. With such limited resources and enrollment
when they started, one may ask how they continue to operate during
times when the political climates were unstable in those places.
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E.G. ORACION
25
Moreover, formal education would have been a novelty which few
locals would have considered very important, since they had been
making a living without finishing school or earning degrees. Even
at present, newly established schools have to have enough capital to
sustain their operation when income from tuition fees is not enough
or not reliable to pay for faculty and staff as well as to purchase what
equipment and facilities are needed in order to attract more students
and to become competitive. Baylor and Silliman were, therefore,
navigating the seas without clear assurance that they could reach land
with limited resources at their disposal. Establishing school as part of
missionary work, I would say, they may have been motivated by faith
that God would provide for a noble cause, and indeed, donations kept
coming from philanthropists who believed in them.
The Expanding Present
Baylor was merged with Waco University (another Baptist school
in Texas) in 1886 and was moved from Independence to Waco. The
merger was primarily driven by the desire of some trustees to have
only “one central university which the entire denomination could
support,” and Baylor was retained as its name because of loyalty
to the denomination’s first school (Baker, 1987, pp. 40, 42). Baylor
presently occupies an area of 735 acres (297 hectares). For the school
year 2010-2011 it had a student population of which 80 percent came
from within Texas and 20 percent from 48 states and 86 countries.
The enrollment for that period was 15,029 wherein 12,575 (83.67%)
were undergraduate students and 2,454 (16.33%) were graduate and
professional students (www.baylor.edu/about/index.php?id=48867).
Although Baylor has only 11 schools and colleges, these academic units
offered 151 degree programs at the undergraduate level, 76 master's
programs, 33 doctoral programs and the juris doctor. Previously, it
also included a medical school.1
Meanwhile, Silliman, which is centrally located in Dumaguete,
occupies an area of only 153 acres (62 hectares). It includes all academic
levels: pre-school and basic education, both elementary and high school,
and collegiate and post-graduate education. In 2012, it has 17 academic
units but its degree programs are limited as compared to those at Baylor.
It only offers 63 degree programs at the undergraduate level, 27 master’s
programs, 9 doctoral programs, juris doctor and medicine. In the school
year 2010-2011 (Annual Report of Silliman, 2011) it had an average
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enrollment for the two semesters of 8,732 covering the following academic
levels and degree programs: undergraduate (5,920), graduate (291),
medical (91),2 law (95), special students (18), high school (981), elementary
(991) and preschool (345). In summary, the undergraduate students
comprised 68% of the total enrollment followed by those enrolled in basic
education (26.53%) and the graduate and professional degree programs
(5.46%). The small percentage of special students (0.21%) refers to those
who only took English orientation classes (usually South Koreans) or
other lessons for a limited period in a semester. As a whole, the foreign
students from about 23 countries comprised only 4 percent (368) of the
total student population.
The growing number and mixture of academic programs Baylor and
Silliman have acquired since their modest beginning is a fulfillment of
their missions of providing holistic education in response to the needs
and demands of a modern and globalizing world. They did not simply
stop with what they had offered during the first half of the century of
their existence, nor did they cater only to the communities immediately
within their surroundings as well as the church that they are directly
affiliated with, but they chose to spread their wings and soar high and
wide to meet both the opportunities and threats in the secular world.
Nevertheless, they both retained their religious schools which are
tangible expressions of their beginnings and commitments. But it was
only in 1905 that a Theological Seminary was organized in Baylor, only
to separate from it in 1907 and later move to Forth Worth, Texas in 1910.
To have a seminary on campus was important enough that in 1993 the
George W. Truett Theological Seminary was organized in Waco, but
classes only began in 1994 (Baylor University, 2011, p. 5). Meanwhile, at
Silliman, a Bible School was opened in June 1921 to train students who
wanted to go into church ministry. This was the rationale of Dr. Frank
Laubach, a member of the American Board Mission, when he proposed
having this school (http://www.su.edu.ph/college/divinity/). Today it
is called Divinity School and offers Bachelor of Theology, Master of
Divinity, and Doctor of Theology.
Expanding Beyond the Main Campus
The academic program of Baylor does not only transcend time but
likewise space. It has expanded to other places in Texas in order to
bring quality education to areas where it is appropriately needed
and resources are available. In 1909, it opened as a diploma program
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the Baylor School of Nursing within the Baylor Hospital in Dallas—
the predecessor of the Baylor University Medical Center.3 It is now
called the Louise Herrington School of Nursing, which started to
offer degrees in nursing in 1950. The first Bachelor of Science in
Nursing degrees were awarded in 1954 and this made the school
one of the oldest baccalaureate nursing programs in the United
States (Baylor University, 2011, p. 296). The School of Nursing is
now conveniently housed in the Harry W. Bass Academic Center at
the Dallas campus of Baylor. This is just a few blocks northeast of
downtown Dallas and is highly accessible to students who want to
enroll in the nursing program. Pre-requisite courses may be taken
either at the Baylor-Waco campus or elsewhere.
Meanwhile, three new off-campus academic programs are in
partnership with the state and situated in Fort Sam Houston, San
Antonio, Texas. First is the Army-Baylor Graduate Program in
Health and Business Administration, which produces graduates
with Master of Health Administration (MHA) degrees, which may
be combined with the Master in Business Administration (MHA/
MBA). The program is fully accredited by the Commission on
Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education (CAHME)
and the Association for the Advancement of Collegiate Schools of
Business (AACSB) (http://www.baylor.edu/graduate/mha/). Second
is the U.S. Military-Baylor Graduate Program in Nutrition and the
U.S. Military Dietetic Internship Consortium which award Master
of Science in Nutrition degrees (http://www.baylor.edu/graduate/
nutrition/). And the third is the U.S. Army-Baylor University
Doctoral Program in Physical Therapy which started to offer masters
degrees in 1971 and the doctoral physical therapy program in 2003
(http://www.baylor.edu/graduate/pt/). All the above programs are
especially designed to meet the needs of personnel in the uniformed
services. But what is noteworthy here is the high regard of the state
for Baylor’s reputation in the fields of health research and education,
reflected in the fact that the former forged partnerships with the
latter rather than with other private or state universities in Texas.
The other recent off-campus academic program of Baylor is the
21-month Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA)
program which actually started on the main campus in 1991. It is
now offered in its extension schools in Dallas since 1993 and in
Austin since 2001. The professors from the main campus would
travel to these places to hold classes as scheduled although local
lecturers who are practitioners are also being tapped to handle
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certain courses. Meanwhile, paper submissions and other assigned
activities are conducted on-line. According to Dr. Gary Carini,
Associate Dean for Graduate Studies of the Hankamer School
of Business, the EMBA Program is unique because it illustrates a
campus in a learning environment. The knowledge from classroom
instruction is immediately applied by students in their existing
professions. Classes are also conveniently scheduled so as to fit the
work schedules of these students who want to advance their careers.
Although Silliman is already more than a century old, it has never
expanded to other cities in the country, unlike other private sectarian
or religious universities in the Philippines (e.g., Saint Paul University,
La Salle University, Ateneo de Manila University, University of San
Carlos) to cater to people who wish to enroll but are hampered by
cost and time because of the distance. The geographic extension of
classes or having campuses in other places is not actually new in
the Philippines. In fact, several state universities in the country (e.g.,
University of the Philippines, Negros Oriental State University,
Cebu Technological University) have campuses in some parts of
the province where they are located or in other provinces which are
managed as one system.
Actually, Silliman had a plan to have an MBA Program similar to
what Baylor has that will particularly cater to professionals who are
working in Manila, the capital city of the Philippines. A feasibility
study was conducted to determine its viability, considering strong
competition with other universities. If this is to be pursued, lessons
about how to proceed can be gleaned from the opinion of Dr. Carini
that to have a competitive off-campus program is to offer quality
instruction but with a relatively comparable price—not necessarily
the lowest—with other universities. Often price is associated with
quality, and professionals who are conscious of their investments
would naturally select the best university but with a fairer price.
Silliman has a high national reputation and a number of alumni
working in Manila who may avail themselves of its MBA Program.
Likewise, qualified alumni in Manila with related advanced degrees
can be tapped to handle classes in addition to the pool of faculty
coming from the Dumaguete campus at certain times.
Challenging and Sharpening the Intellect
Another feature of the academic program of Baylor is its dedication
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in providing students a broad range of learning opportunities that
cater to individual preferences and abilities. It may be appropriately
considered a special program, because it has stricter requirements
and expectations for students who want not only to deepen but
also to broaden their understanding of the various aspects of life in
relation to the disciplines that they are currently pursuing. Baylor’s
Honors College provides talented students with superior academic
records and independent motivation with several “innovative and
challenging interdisciplinary programs.” These programs include the
Baylor Interdisciplinary Core, the Great Texts Program, the Honors
Program, and the University Scholars Program (Baylor University
2011, p. 248). I remember when I was yet in college that Silliman
also had an Honors Program which was opened only to university
scholars, but it had stopped in the 1990s after the faculty who
supported it had either retired or left the university. Although it was
just one program and was not sustained, it nevertheless showed that
Silliman also has that desire to provide a more specialized academic
program for talented students.
The Honors Program which started in 1959 at Baylor is a fouryear departmental and interdisciplinary program which inspires
students to intensely explore their major fields of study by integrating
several areas of knowledge through independent research with
guidance from faculty members from various disciplines. The
Baylor Interdisciplinary Core, on the other hand, offers an “option
for the general education requirements of all undergraduate degree
programs.” In this case, there is an integration of the various academic
disciplines within a set of comprehensive interdisciplinary courses so
the students can see and appreciate the relationships and connections
among issues, disciplines, and thinkers. As a result they are able
to critically examine and synthesize the materials that they study
towards a more comprehensive understanding of the matters at hand.
There are five sequences of courses in the program, including The
Examined Life, World Cultures, The World of Rhetoric, The Natural
World and The Social World (Baylor University, 2011, p. 250). The
incumbent Silliman president Dr. Ben S. Malayang III has proposed
this mode of integrating core courses as part of strengthening the
liberal education program of the university. However, this has yet to
be realized and adopted by the faculty members who have initially
shown some apprehension because of the problem of integrating
several topics in a single course.
The Great Texts Program of Baylor is akin to Dr. Malayang’s
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proposal of exposing Silliman students to various readings in the
humanities for the same reason of broadening their liberal arts
education. As practiced at Baylor, the Great Texts Program is an
“interdisciplinary program that explores the richness and diversity
of the Western intellectual heritage” (Baylor University, 2011, p. 266).
The students select a major and minor concentration of studies as the
focus of their undergraduate education. If they major in Great Texts of
the Western Tradition, they will find this useful especially if they are in
the Bachelor of Arts programs or will pursue graduate study. Having
Great Texts as a minor will strengthen their background in liberal arts
as well as broaden their learning. The University Scholars Program
likewise seeks to broaden the liberal arts background of students
while they are being prepared “for a career through concentrated
study in several areas” (Baylor University, 2011, p. 269). They are
free to create an individualized course of study and are exempted
from having specialized course requirements of a traditional major.
Throughout their entire four years in college, they get advice from a
program director that mentors them.
Adaptive Academic Programs
While remaining true to its heritage the academic program of Baylor
does not only aim to produce graduates who are knowledgeable and
skilled in their specialized disciplines in order to meet the demands
of the labor market and to provide substantial return of investments
for their college education; it also makes sure that its graduates
have a broader, integrative, and humane understanding of issues
confronting them when they will start to practice their professions
by providing them a strong background in liberal arts education.
The adaptive nature of the academic programs of Baylor is seen in
its expanding degree programs and in bringing Baylor education offcampus coupled with scholarships for those who need them. This
likewise indicates Baylor’s commitment to make education available
to anyone who has the motivation and talent but may be hampered
by social inadequacies. Meanwhile, the creation of Honors College
provides extra opportunities to students who crave more learning
and demonstrate love for greater challenges beyond what the regular
academic program can offer them.
Comparatively speaking, the academic programs of Silliman
may lag behind Baylor in terms of quantity and resources, but the
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essence of responding to the demands of time and the market as
well as in producing well-informed graduates is apparent. Some of
the programs of Baylor which have been reaping positive results,
such as its EMBA and Honors College are actually within the plans
or had been practiced in the past, but they are not further pursued
by Silliman administration. However, given its limited human and
financial resources, Silliman has to be careful about expanding or
reviving programs unless it is assured of sustainable support of
alumni and faculty. It has to re-assess the proposal to offer off-campus
MBA or other graduate programs, to review the need to re-establish
its Honors Program in terms of the interest of students, and to reevaluate the capacity of faculty to teach integrative courses.
In general, the major concern of Baylor and Silliman on liberal arts
education is informed by its importance on providing broader human
and spiritual dimensions on the learning of students promoted by
early philosophers and the forerunners of Christian education. This
perception about the importance of liberal arts is summarized by
Holmes (2001, p. 10-11) who particularly reiterated the argument of
philosopher Seneca: “While liberal studies cannot actually bestow
virtue…they do prepare the soul for its reception…prepare one for
wisdom.” Furthermore, Holmes (2001, p. 26) also wrote that according
to Augustine, “liberal learning leads to the contemplation of God….”
Thus, institutions supportive of Christian higher education, like the
United Board, always look for programs that promote whole person
in the liberal arts tradition (http://www.unitedboard.org). Liberal arts
education helps in preparing students “for service to both church
and society” as well as in bringing them to “the unity of truth that
Scripture implies” (Holmes, 2001, pp. 2, 20).
Integration of Faith and Learning
Talking about commitment to Christian faith and quality education
is like discussing how religion and science can be reconciled given
their perceived inherent tensions. In fact, even the past trustees of the
United Board that link Baylor and Silliman in the Fellowship Program,
which I had participated, had to grapple with the question of whether
Christian higher education really exists. One group argued that there
is no such kind of education, while the other said that it is what
Christian schools offer. According to Dr. Paul Lauby (1996, p. 192),
former executive director of the United Board and was with Silliman
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for 16 years, Christian education takes “religion seriously in all areas
and dimensions of life, and… fosters a cohesive and comprehensive
educational experience” but is “completely committed to a free
exchange of ideas and serious consideration of all world views.” It
is a kind of education that does not adhere to self-righteousness and
attitudes of exclusion, he added. This is the view that has ultimately
guided the United Board in partnering with Christian higher
education institutions in Asia, both Protestant and Catholic. But Dr.
Lauby was, at the same time, alarmed by the growing secularization
of Christian colleges and universities.
For Baylor, the tension within its organization was real and had
caused a division between the conservatives and moderates who
upheld different views of how to face the threats of secularization
of Christian institutions. The tension was marked with the charter
change of Baylor that made it independent from the Baptist General
Convention of Texas. The centrists viewed this to have allowed the
university to be “both intellectually enlightened and religiously
faithful” (as quoted in Baker, 2007, p. 113). I do not have to elaborate on
the details of the tension because they have been thoroughly described
in the book The Baylor Project: Taking Christian Higher Education to the
Next Level edited by Hankins and Schmeltekopf (2007). But what is
important to note from my reading of this book is that there is a way
to maintain Christian heritage without abandoning the pursuit for
quality education, which Baylor has successfully done and clearly
shown in the recognitions and achievements it has earned.
Dr. Herbert H. Reynolds, Baylor president from 1981 to 1995,
pledged during his inaugural speech “that we will continue to remain
true to that heritage and respond faithfully to the trust granted us”
(as quoted in Baker, 1987, p. 301). He favored the integration of
faith and learning because of his belief that Baylor had a unique
purpose: “to be a first-rate university which acknowledges that
humankind is God’s creation and that the best type of education is
that where discovered truth and revealed truth exist side by side in
a complementary fashion” (as quoted in Baker, 1987, pp. 316-317).
Taking a comprehensive view about Christian faith allows a scholar to
use his or her religious orientation as “a starting point, the end point,
and the guiding inspiration” and not a “limiting label,” according to
Dr. Richard John Neuhaus, for scholarly pursuits or for seeking and
serving the truth (Baker, 2007, p. 119). Thereafter, I presume that what
Dr. Reynolds and Dr. Neuhaus advocated had informed the direction
of the academic programs of Baylor and driven the students to excel
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in their disciplines without abandoning Christian ideals. Dr. Robert
Sloan Jr., Baylor former president, later wrote that he was also for
faith and learning integration but he was criticized because of his
“managerial style and methods of implementation” (Sloan, 2007, p.
320).
Therefore, the expansion of academic programs of Baylor,
particularly on the physical and natural sciences, in order to respond
to secular demands should not be taken as a neglect of Christian
ideals. In fact, with more academic programs, more avenues are
opened by which these ideals can find application and interpretation,
provided that these ideals have been internalized by students in their
participation in various religious or faith-related activities and in
dialogues with their professors. Indeed, there are Baylor faculty who
do not see being a Christian and a scientist to be problematic, and it is
interesting to find them among faculty who handle courses at Honors
College. They certainly can influence the thinking of their students,
and they do not only speak inside the classroom but also in churches
that seek harmony between science and faith (e.g., Hendrickson, 2012,
p. 3). For example, when I was in Baylor, the Physics Department of
Baylor invited Dr. Hugh Ross, an astronomer and Christian apologist,
to lecture on the convergence of physics and faith (Allison 2012, p. 1).
The Annual Report of Baylor (2011) of its achievements provides
evidence of the strong Christian identity of the university not only in
academic realms but as demonstrated by students in campus ministry
activities and in the community. The Spiritual Life Center of Baylor
offers a variety of experiences and exposures for students to reexamine their faith and to find meaning for their being in a university.
These activities include chapel hour, mission work, pastoral care,
and spiritual growth and formation. Chapel is considered to be the
oldest tradition of Baylor where students and faculty come together
at scheduled times on Mondays and Wednesdays to listen to and be
inspired by people about their commitment to Christ. There is the
Seventh and James Baptist Church within Baylor campus where
students can attend services, in addition to the various Baptist churches
around Waco. Meanwhile, three groups aside from the Baptist Student
Ministries or religious structures intended for students are present
inside Baylor campus where worship services are also held. These are
the St. Joseph Catholic Student Center, the United Methodist Student
Center, and the Reformed University Fellowship which is the campus
ministry of the Presbyterian Church.
The students are also given opportunities to serve and learn
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in the community to instill the spirit of volunteerism and servicelearning into their lives as Christians even after they graduate from
the university. These opportunities are provided by its Community
Service Programs and the Baylor Interdisciplinary Poverty Initiative.
Baylor also sponsors the Global Mission Leadership Initiative of the
School of Social Work, which trains international students and sends
them back to their home countries to serve the needs and transform
the lives of marginalized people (Snoberger-Balm, 2012). During his
March 21, 2012 chapel remarks, Baylor incumbent president Judge Ken
Starr emphasized the realms where science and God intersect as well
as how faith and science are equally embraced by Baylor faculty and
students while working with or helping communities in need (http://
www.baylor.edu/president/news.php?action=story&story=111933).
This is another occasion which shows how at Baylor the opportunities
to link faith and science emerging from classroom or community
activities are made for students to appreciate.
The case of Silliman is not very different from that of Baylor.
Although it is affiliated with the United Church of Christ in the
Philippines (UCCP), it is officially non-sectarian or ecumenical
and its academic environment is generally liberal. Its Christian
orientation does not discourage the expression or exercise of other
beliefs and, therefore, any tension due to religious differences is not
common. Except the University Church, there are no other religious
buildings within the campus but there are several religious student
organizations pursuing ministries. So while it is known as a Protestant
university, the majority of its faculty and student population are
Roman Catholics with a good number also of Muslim students. As
of Baylor, religious freedom is promoted at Silliman but all students
have to take a Religion course as an institutional requirement and to
participate in church programs and activities. Moreover, ecumenical
and other religious celebrations, but not Catholic masses, are allowed
at Silliman with permission from the University Church as a matter
of policy.
The position of Silliman about the integration of faith and learning
is clearly articulated in its mission: “infuse into the academic learning
the Christian faith anchored on the gospel of Jesus Christ” (Annual
Report of Silliman 2011, p. 4). President Malayang emphasizes always
the place of the church in what he calls the 5 Cs of Silliman education
which include classroom, church, cultural center, court (athletic)
and community. And the church is not just a component that can
be removed for convenience, because Christian faith is considered
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“foundational to a Silliman education” where “various activities for
faith nurture, education, worship, fellowship, and service are in store
for Silliman students all year round” (Annual Report of Silliman 2011,
p. 10). Faith integration in classroom and campus activities is done
in a manner that does not discriminate students from other religious
denominations. But as a way to ensure that the theology and practices
of faith shall respect and conform to the Protestant heritage, the
University Spiritual Life Council (USLC) is organized and currently
led by a University Church Elder who happens to also head the Office
of Student Affairs (OSA). The Dean of the Divinity School co-chairs
the USLC and the memberships have both academic and church
representations which include the University Senior and Associate
Pastors.
The highlight of Silliman’s Christian celebration is the University
Christian Life Emphasis Week (UCLEW) during the first and second
semester which is spearheaded by the USLC. The activities designed
for the week take in the forms of faculty and staff retreat, church
convocations, Bible studies and devotions and Galilean fellowship
participated by students, which are spiritually relevant, Christcentered, and deeply rooted in the Word of God (Annual Report of
Silliman 2011, p. 13). The people involved in these activities, either
as convocation speakers or Bible facilitators, are Sillimanians who
represent the cross section of the community but are not necessarily
Protestants. They can be administrators, faculty, staff, students, alumni,
and the ministers of the University Church. Therefore, fostering of
spiritual growth among members of the Silliman community is part
of the academic calendar and programmed according to a chosen
theme for the semester.
Similar to Baylor, Silliman has a strong community engagement
by involving students through volunteer work and the employment
of service-learning as pedagogy. As part of their academic learning,
the students are brought to the community both to serve and to learn
in the process while at the same time instilling the values of sharing
to people in the community who are less privileged as compared to
them. So while they are able “to test theories and principles through
actual community work” (Annual Report of Silliman 2011, p. 12)
they are made to experience the Christian meaning of service to
others and an appreciation of the blessings they have as compared
to people who have not attended schools like Silliman. Their servicelearning experience challenges their elitist thinking that they are
superior because of their education and teaches them the notion
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that as privileged Christians they have responsibilities to fulfill. The
realization of the values of service and sharing come about during
reflection sessions in which they process their community experiences
with the help of their teachers (Oracion, 2010). Thus, faith and learning
integration in Silliman education ensures competence, character, and
faith among its graduates as results.
Measures of Quality Education
The quality of education that a university offers has some indicators
and these include the program accreditation and ranking it receives,
the graduates it produces, and the impacts it makes on society in
terms of government policies and programs. An indirect measure is
the amount of donations and grants it receives from institutions, both
private and public, that believe in its ability to produce graduates who
can make significant contributions to societal and environmental wellbeing. But in this paper, I will limit my discussion to the accreditation
of programs and rankings that Baylor and Silliman have achieved
during recent times. Although this is not the best way to demonstrate
how Christian commitment and quality education are related in the
absence of comparative data of a significant sample of non-Christian
and Christian schools, I may be able to show that a well-meaning
emphasis on faith will not hinder the delivery of quality education as
demonstrated by these two Christian universities.
The accreditation of academic degrees and programs given to
certain schools signifies that these have complied with the standards
set forth by the granting agencies, either private or governmental;
and therefore, accredited schools have satisfactorily demonstrated
competence and delivered quality education. Baylor has degree
programs at all levels accredited by the Commission on Colleges of
the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (CCSACS) and is
also a member of ten educational organizations (Baylor University,
2011, p. 8). Foremost of its memberships as a Christian university
is that with The Lilly Fellows National Network of Church-Related
Colleges and Universities which started during the administration
of Dr. Reynolds. This network is concerned with “the connection
between scholarly vocation and the Christian faith” (Baker, 2007, p.
116). Many of Baylor’s academic units are also accredited by their
respective professional organizations or specific accrediting agencies.
There are also some specific departments and programs that enjoy
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individual accreditation in addition to the accreditation given to their
mother academic units.
Meanwhile, Silliman is one of the few universities in the Philippines
granted autonomy by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED).
As an autonomous university, it has the authority to develop new
programs without the approval of the CHED. In 2010, it was also
granted Institutional Accreditation by the Federation of Accrediting
Agencies of the Philippines (FAAP)—a status enjoyed by only five
universities in the country. The two private, non-profit agencies that
accredited Silliman and are authorized by CHED are the Association
of Christian Schools, Colleges and Universities-Accrediting Agency,
Inc. (ACSCU-AAI) and the Philippine Accrediting Association
of Schools, Colleges and Universities (PAASCU). Of the 32 duly
recognized programs offered by Silliman, 94 percent are accredited
by ACSCU-AAI (60.00%) and PAASCU (40.00%) (Annual Report of
Silliman, 2011, p. 36). In 2012, seven of Silliman’s graduate programs
in English, History, Sociology, Public Administration, Nursing,
Social Work, and Psychology were given Level IV accreditation by
ACSCU-AAI. Also, seven of its undergraduate programs in Arts,
Science, Psychology, Mass Communication, Nursing, Secondary,
and Elementary Education were awarded the same level by PAASCU
(http://su.edu.ph/article/445-14-Academic-Programs).4 Meanwhile,
the masters and doctoral degree programs of the Divinity School are
accredited with the Association for Theological Education in South
East Asia (ATESEA).
Although national or international rankings of academic
institutions have their own biases and loopholes in terms of indicators
and methodology, they are nonetheless helpful in knowing how one
is generally perceived by others. Baylor ranks 75th in the 2012 U.S.
News and World Report ranking of national universities in the US
and some of its graduate programs are given high ratings as well
(http://www.colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com). There are
262 national universities in the US, which are doctorate granting
institutions, and composed of 164 public and 98 private universities.
Harvard University and Princeton University share the top ranking
among these national universities. It is interesting to note that all
those universities in the top 10 are private but do not have religious
affiliations except for Duke University which is ranked 10th and
identified with the Methodist Church. Meanwhile, Baylor shares the
rank of 75 with five public universities and one private university
which is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church.
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The above data roughly show that getting into the highest
rank may be difficult for universities that might be limited by their
religious principles and priorities unless they make deliberate
attempts to balance the demands between religious tradition and
scientific pursuits. How Baylor is able to balance these demands in
providing quality education and land above 50 percent of all ranked
universities in the US may be gleaned from the remarks of one of its
recent graduates and a former student body president:
“Now that I am in the workplace, it has become even more apparent to me how
important my education was at Baylor. Baylor was a place where I grew spiritually,
academically, and as a young leader”(Anonymous 2012, p. 8).
Silliman may not have the same fame that Baylor has enjoyed but
it is equally gaining recognition as one of the top 10 universities in the
Philippines. It is ranked sixth with the University of the Philippines, a
national public university in the country in the lead.5 The scores used
in rating come from the Asian University ranking for 2011 released
by Quacquarelli Symonds, a leading global career and education
network (http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/asianuniversity-rankings/2011?page=5). In contrast to the US, where the top
universities are private and non-religious, in the Philippines, aside from
the two public universities on the list, those universities belonging to
the top ten are private and affiliated with religious groups. Those based
in the national capital region are the Ateneo de Manila University,
University of Santo Tomas, De La Salle University and Adamson
University while those in the provinces are Silliman University, Xavier
University, University of San Carlos and Saint Louis University. All of
these universities are Catholic except for Silliman.
Conclusion
Both Baylor and Silliman have been seriously negotiating the
demands of religious traditions and scientific pursuits in order not
to fall into the trap of being too exclusive or of betraying the ideals
of their founding leaders. Since they have chosen to be true to both
worlds, faith and learning, they are managing two identities of being
Christian universities in the traditions of the Baptists or Presbyterians
and of being competitive scholarly institutions as expected by the
scientific community. They can, however, decide which should be
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their major concern, as did some American universities that started as
religious schools and eventually lost this affiliation when they turned
to secular education in the desire to be on the top (see Benne 2007,
p. xiii). This means that Baylor and Silliman could have been like
other seminary schools if they really wanted to pursue more religious
instructions. But they took the more challenging path of combining
religious instructions with the secular disciplines as a way of adapting
to the changing world where Christian faith and values are needed to
spiritually enlighten graduates as future workers and leaders.
But as noted earlier, the experience in the Philippines is more
interesting because the quality of education being offered by the top
religious schools does not diminish. Despite that Catholic educational
institutions are more conservative than the Protestant universities on
certain social and moral issues they are more able to combine faith
and science because of the priorities they set for using education as a
venue for evangelization. Thus delivering quality education becomes
an effective means of enlightening students about their faith, and not
religion questioning or limiting their pursuit for more knowledge.
For instance, the case of the Ateneo de Manila University, managed
by the Jesuits who are known to be more scholarly and liberal
among the Catholic religious orders, demonstrates effective faithlearning integration inspired by its motto “Light in the Lord” (http://
www.admu.edu.ph/index.php? p=120&type=2&sec=39&aid=7542).
Meanwhile, in the US in general, Benne (2007, p. xiii) would confirm
how every Protestant university lost its Christian identity as it pursues
top research university status but the Catholic universities had fared
better in this regard.
Indeed, secularization is slowly or quickly creeping into the
“soul” of Christian universities all over the world because times
have changed and they have to adapt or to directly confront the
challenges and threats brought about by this development. Should
they hold on to the notion of doctrinal purity of their religious
affiliation or to become Christian universities in a general sense as
in the cases of Baylor and Silliman? This question is begging for a
change in the definitions of their identity, perhaps different from how
they were envisioned a century ago, to meet the threats of “pervasive
secularism and loss of traditional moral virtues” (Sloan, 2007, p. 327)
confronting Christianity at present. As Schemeltekopf (2003, p. 11),
Baylor former Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, wrote
that a “Christian college or university which does not integrate faith
and learning will eventually collapse from within.” With this note,
VOL. 53 NO. 2
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40
Silliman can learn from the story of Baylor as to how it maintains
faculty and students who manifest commitment to Christian faith
and values that inspire, rather than limit, their scholarly search for
knowledge which they unselfishly share for uplifting the worsening
conditions of society and the environment.
NOTES
The Baylor University College of Medicine started in 1903, located in Dallas, as a
result of the alliance between Baylor and the medical doctors who decided to start a
medical school to improve the medical practice in north Texas. However, in 1969 the
College separated to become an independent institution which allowed it to access
federal funding. The Baylor College of Medicine is currently located in Houston
(Camp 2010; see also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baylor_College_of_Medicine).
1
Similarly to the Baylor College of Medicine, the Silliman University Medical School
was a brainchild of certain groups of physicians in Dumaguete City who realized
the need to establish a medical school. Given the required resources and processes
to start a school, the group worked with the Silliman administration on October 20,
1997 to prepare for all the documents for its approval by the Board of Trustees (BOT)
and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED). The BOT approved the Medical
School Program on March 20, 2004 and the CHED approved it to start in school year
2005-2006. So while Baylor College of Medicine later became independent from
Baylor University, the Medical School of Silliman University is yet in its infancy but
has already made a record of having 100% passing rate during the last two board
examinations.
2
The name Baylor University Medical Center was officially adopted by the trustees
only in April 1959 although it had been called the medical center previously (Baker
1987, p. 251). Presently, this hospital is not owned by Baylor University. Meanwhile,
Silliman University also includes the Silliman University Medical Center (SUMC)
which is managed by the Silliman Medical Center Foundation, Inc. (SMCFI)
where the College of Nursing and School of Medicine students are sent for clinical
instruction and internships. The SUMC was formerly the Mission Hospital but was
directly located inside the campus. It was first opened in December 1915 as part of
the medical missionary work of American educators and doctors in Negros Oriental
and the nearby province of Siquijor.
3
Level IV which is the highest, is given to “accredited programs which are highly
respected as very high quality academic programs in the Philippines and with prestige
and authority comparable to similar programs in excellent foreign universities”
(http://www.paascu.org.ph/paascuprimer.pdf).
4
There are a total of 2,180 higher education institutions in the Philippines classified
into private (1,573) and public (607) as of August 2010 (http://www.ched.gov.ph).
5
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41
Acknowledgement
I gratefully acknowledge the grant from the United Board for Christian Higher
Education in Asia for my Fellowship at Baylor University. Also, my appreciation to
James Bennighof, Ph.D. who served as my mentor, and to Treva Hall and Alexine
Burke for their assistance as coordinators of the Fellowship Program at Baylor.
References
Allison, T. (2012, March 2). Faith, Physics to converge in Monday lecture. The Baylor
Lariat, p. 1.
Annual Report of Baylor (2011). Baylor University, Waco, Texas.
Annual Report of Silliman (2011). Silliman University, Dumaguete City, Philippines
Anonymous (2012, Spring). What Baylor means to you. Baylor Magazine, 10 (3), p. 8.
Baker, E.W. (1987). To light the ways of time: An illustrated history of Baylor University
(1845-1986). Waco, Texas: Baylor University Press.
Baker, H. (2007). The struggle for Baylor’s soul. In B.G. Hankins & D.D. Schmeltekopf,
(Eds.), The Baylor project: Taking Christian higher education to the next level (pp. 110137). South Bend, Indiana: St. Augustine’s Press.
Baker, E.C. & Pohl, J.W. (n.d.) Texas revolution, Handbook of Texas online. Published by
the Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved from http://www.tshaonline.
org/handbook/online/articles/qdt01
Baylor University (2011). Undergraduate catalogue 2011-2012. Volume 114.
Benne, R. (2007). Foreword. In B.G. Hankins & D.D. Schmeltekopf, (Eds.), The Baylor
project: Taking Christian higher education to the next level (pp. xi-xiv). South Bend,
Indiana: St. Augustine’s Press.
Camp, K. (2010). Baylor University, Baylor College of Medicine considers closer ties,
The Baptist standard. Retrieved from http://www.baptiststandard.com/index.
php?option=com_content&task=view&id=10658&Itemid=53
Carson, A.L. (1965). Silliman University (1901-1959). New York: United Board for
Christian Education in Asia.
Hendrickson, M. (2012, March 30). Lecture series seeks accord of science, faith. The
Baylor Lariat, p. 3.
Holmes, A.F. (2001). Building the Christian academy. Michigan: William B. Eerdmans
Publishing Company.
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Lauby, P. T. (1996 ). Sailing on winds of change: Two decades in the life of the United Board
for Christian Higher Education in Asia, 1969-1990. New York: United Board for
Christian Education in Asia.
Oracion, E.G. (2010). Intercultural service-learning and multicultural symbiosis. In J.
Xing. & C. Ma (Eds.), Service-learning in Asia: Curricular models and practices (pp.
91- 110). Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press.
Parsons, M.C. (2003). Building a faculty at a Christian university: The significant
contribution model. In D.D. Schmeltekopf, D.M. Vitanza, & B.J.B. Toben (Eds.),
The Baptist and Christian character of Baylor (pp. 63-98). Waco: Baylor University.
Schmeltekopf, D.D. (2003). A Christian university in the Baptist tradition: History of
vision. In D.D. Schmeltekopf, D.M. Vitanza, & B.J.B. Toben (Eds.), The Baptist and
Christian character of Baylor (pp. 1-20). Waco: Baylor University.
Silliman Strategic Plan (2008). Silliman University strategic plan (2008-2016),
Dumaguete City, Philippines.
Sloan, R.B. Jr. (2007). The Baylor project: A response. In B.G. Hankins & D.D.
Schmeltekopf (Eds.), The Baylor project: Taking Christian higher education to
the next level. South Bend, Indiana: St. Augustine’s Press. Pp. 303-337.
Snoberger-Balm, E. (2012, Spring). The weight of the world. Baylor Magazine, 10(3),
pp. 30-35.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baylor_College_of_Medicine (Accessed: February 5,
2012)
http://www.admu.edu.ph/index.php?p=120&type=2&sec=39&aid=7542
April 3, 2012)
(Accessed:
http://www.baylor.edu/about/index.php?id=48867 (Accessed: March 24, 2012)
http://www.baylor.edu/graduate/mha/ (Accessed: March 24, 2012)
http://www.baylor.edu/graduate/nutrition/(Accessed: March 24, 2012)
http://www.baylor.edu/graduate/pt/ (Accessed: March 24, 2012)
http://www.baylor.edu/president/news.php?action=story&story=111933 (Accessed:
April 3, 2012)
http://www.ched.gov.ph (Accessed: April 14, 2012)
http://www.colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com (Accessed: April 3, 2012)
http://www.paascu.org.ph/paascuprimer.pdf (Accessed: April 3, 2012)
http://www. su.edu.ph/article/445-14-Academic-Programs (Accessed: April 20, 2012)
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
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http://www.su.edu.ph/college/divinity/ (Accessed: March 24, 2012)
http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/asian-universityrankings/2011?page=5(Accessed: April 3, 2012)
http://www.unitedboard.org
VOL. 53 NO. 2
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Walking Humbly with the Moros
Towards the Kingdom:
A Reflection on the Catholic Church’s
Mission in Muslim Mindanao*
Ruben C. Mendoza, Ph.D.
Department of Theology
Ateneo de Manila University
In this reflection, I address the question of the Catholic Church’s
mission in Muslim Mindanao as it responds to the long-standing
aspiration of the Moros for self-determination. First, I give an overview
of the dialogue between Filipino Christians and Moros, contextualizing
this within Philippine history, the changes brought about by Vatican
II, and the contemporary challenge of overcoming prejudices. And
second, I ask what kind of voice the church must speak if it is to
be a credible gospel witness in Bangsamoro. It seems to me that
the church needs to be a voice of compassion, justice, and peace
in a context that has seen so much violence. In addition, I will
suggest that there are two Filipino values, namely pakikipagkapwatao and pakikiramay, which are already operative in those who
engage in dialogue and peacebuilding efforts, but which need to
be foregrounded as cultural resources in responding to the conflict.
As ecclesia semper reformanda est, conversion will always be an
indispensable element of its journey toward the realization of the
Kingdom in Muslim Mindanao.
Keywords: interreligious dialogue, Bangsamoro, Catholic
Church, mission, peacebuilding, Mindanao, colonization,
reconciliation
I
was born and raised in a culture which was (and still is) proud of its
Catholic heritage. When I was in primary school, textbooks often
referred to my country, the Philippines, as “the only Christian/
Catholic country” in the whole of Asia. Growing up, I myself accepted
* The substance of this paper was presented in a conference, “Religions and Asian Public Life,” that was
efficiently organized and generously funded by the United Board for Christian Higher Education in Asia,
at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, last 6-7 July 2012.
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45
this claim with pride and unfortunately the hubris that went with
it. Coincidentally, that period in my life was roughly the height of
the armed conflict between the Muslims in Mindanao, the Moros1,
and the Philippine armed forces when thousands of combatants and
civilians on both sides of the conflict were killed and millions worth
of property were destroyed. Not surprisingly, this conflict reinforced
the deep-rooted prejudices of many Filipino Christians against
the Moros, an intolerance that has been manifested publicly in the
negative representations of the Moros in the popular media.2
Ironically, although the root causes of the conflict date back
much earlier, many of the festering wounds between Moros and
Filipino Christians occurred within the decade after Vatican II, the
first council of the Catholic Church which has a positive valuation
of other religions and which called on the church to engage the
adherents of other religious traditions in dialogue. It has been
nearly fifty years since the opening of Vatican II and although
many of its teachings have been received, contemporary issues
underscore the task of reception as an ongoing undertaking of the
local churches.
In this reflection, I will address the question of the Catholic
Church’s role in Muslim Mindanao as it engages in interreligious
dialogue and peacebuilding efforts, together with the various
stakeholders of the conflict-ridden areas,3 as means of responding
to the long-standing conflict between the Philippine government
and the armed Moro fronts. This essay will be two-fold. First, I will
give an overview of the dialogue between Filipino Christians and
Moros, contextualizing this within the Moro nationalist discourse,
the changes brought about by Vatican II, and the contemporary
challenge of overcoming prejudices. And second, I ask what kind
of voice the church must speak if it is to be a credible gospel
witness in Muslim Mindanao. It seems to me that the church needs
to be a voice of compassion, justice, and peace in a context that has
seen so much violence. In addition, I will suggest that the Filipino
value of pakikipagkapwa-tao, which appears to be already operative
in those who engage in dialogue and peacebuilding efforts, need
to be foregrounded as a cultural resource in responding to the
conflict. As ecclesia semper reformanda est, conversion will always
be an indispensable element of its journey toward the realization
of the Kingdom in Muslim Mindanao.
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46
CATHOLIC CHURCH'S MISSION IN MUSLIM MINDANAO
Moro Nationalism and the
Church’s Mission in Muslim Mindanao
Moro Nationalism and History
The Moro nationalist discourse4 is anchored on a reading of history
that regards the contemporary Moro armed struggle as a continuation
of the resistance of the Muslims in southern Philippines against Spain.5
For instance, Salah Jubair, the pseudonym of Mohagher Iqbal who
is the chief negotiator of Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) with
the Philippine government (GPH), frames his discussion of the peace
process with the claim that the root of the problem in Bangsamoro is
the annexation of Mindanao and Sulu to the Philippine state, “second
only to colonialism itself that started during the Spanish times and was
continued by the Americans.”6 In this section, I would highlight three
important elements of this discourse that have impacted ChristianMuslim relations7 and then, present a critique of the Moro nationalist
discourse which while providing explanatory value to the armed
conflict fails to address the complexity of the historical processes.
First, while the exact date of the arrival of Islam in the Philippines
is an unsettled issue, it is an incontrovertible fact that Islam predated
the coming of Christianity into the Philippines.8 The Sulu archipelago,
where Islam first came into the country, was part of a trading route that
ranged from the Arabian Peninsula to China and up to Southeast Asia.9
Muslim traders established trading colonies along these routes and it
was they who made possible the expansion of Islam in the Malaysian
peninsula and eventually in the Philippines.10 Prior to the arrival of
the Spaniards in the country, the locals of Sulu and Maguindanao
already had their own centralized system of government modeled
after Muslim states.11 There was even a thriving Muslim community
in Manila at that time.12 Jubair even speculates that “had not the
Spaniards come at that time there would have been at least three or
four kingdoms, one in Manila, two in Mindanao and one in Sulu, and
all or most of the inhabitants, like in nearby Malaysia, Indonesia and
Brunei, would have become all Muslims.”13 Moro nationalists take
pride in the fact that Islam came prior to Christianity and apparently
grew deep roots among the inhabitants of Mindanao and Sulu, a fact
which proved to be an insurmountable obstacle for Spanish Christian
missionaries.
Second, Christianity in the Philippines came as part of Spain’s
colonization of the New World in the 16th century, a conquest
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that was justified by papal bulls, primary among which was Inter
caetera of Pope Alexander VI in 1493,14 and as part of its attempt to
control the spice trade in Malaku. When Spain decided to make a
permanent settlement in the Philippines, the expedition of Miguel
Lopez de Legaspi in 1565 was accompanied by Augustinian friars.
Later on, other religious congregations arrived and carried on the
work of evangelization: the Franciscans in 1578, the Jesuits in 1581,
the Dominicans in 1587, and the Recoletos in 1606.15 Inspired by the
crusading spirit that saw Spain drive away Muslims from the Iberian
peninsula and consistent with the understanding of missio ad gentes as
conversion at that time, lowland Luzon and many areas in the Visayas
were Christianized by 1650.16
The mission to convert was inseparable from the goal of political
pacification. Missionary friars became parish priests, learning local
languages and living among their converts in order to “translate”
Christianity into local cultures and stamp out worship of local spirits.
Under their leadership, everyday life was framed and regulated
by church teachings and guidelines. The friar was everywhere—
mobilizing people for state and church work, cajoling their support
through sermons, and punishing their sins they revealed in confession.
For the friar, religion was a tool of both liberation and subordination.
Imbued with a deep sense of righteousness and moral ascendancy,
the friar hoped the conversion of “heathens” would bring about their
salvation. At the same time, the threat of eternal damnation helped
ensure loyalty to the church and colonial state.17
With the rise of Spain’s power in most of the Philippines through
military and spiritual conquest,
Earlier divisions of language and local polity now became religio-political, with the
rival states oriented to different universal centers, legal systems, and moral codes.
Language and naming were especially sensitive to the localization process,…. the
names of ordinary individuals became markers of identity tied to a larger Catholic or
Muslim world: Baptized Christians took Hispanic Christian names, while converts to
Islam adopted Arabic Muslim names.18
In contrast to their success in Hispanizing and Christianizing
most of Luzon and the Visayas, the conquistadores were generally
unsuccessful in gaining a foothold on the predominantly Muslimareas in Southern Philippines19 and the missionaries themselves failed
in their attempts to convert the people to Catholicism. According to
Majul, Islamic consciousness grew in the face of Spanish attempts to
subjugate them. For the ‘ulama, Spain came to uproot Islam from dar ulVOL. 53 NO. 2
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Islam. “They therefore preached resistance as a religious and patriotic
duty, with Paradise as a recompense.”20 It is not surprising then that
the Moros fiercely resisted the Spaniards and their Christianized indio
allies. The fact that Mindanao and Sulu were not colonized by the
Spaniards like Luzon and the Visayas has had a significant impact on
the contemporary Moro discourse and identity as an unconquered
nation. For instance, Salah Jubair argues about the term “Moro”:
It was a tag that was chosen for him by the enemy, not by himself. But unlike Filipino
which signifies allegiance, nay subservience, to Spain, his name was the result of
animosity and warfare—and resistance to foreign pressure. If Filipino was the child
of colonialism, Moro was the offspring of anti-colonialism.21
Such a contention while stated polemically appears to betray a
sense of superiority over Spain’s Christianized Filipino allies,22 whom
the Muslim datus never regarded as equals but “as inferiors worthy
only of being slaves.”23
When Spain ceded the country to the Americans in 1898 under
the Treaty of Paris, it included Mindanao and Sulu,24 an inclusion
that Moro nationalists question since Spain had no sovereignty over
those islands. The US conceived of its mandate in Moroland not
only “to develop, to civilize, to educate to train in the science of selfgovernment”25 but also to prepare the Moros for integration into the
predominantly Christian soon-to-be Philippine state.26 Nevertheless,
the American colonial policies that followed their initial statement of
intention reveal their imperialistic and economic motivations.27
Since they saw themselves as different from the rest of the
Philippines, many Moro leaders made representations to the new
colonial government that they should be treated differently from
Filipinos. 28 For instance, in a meeting in Zamboanga with US Secretary
of War Jacob M. Dickenson in 1910, Hadji Ujaton stated:
We [the Moros] are a different race; we have a different religion; we are Mohammedans.
And if we should be given over to Filipinos, how much more would they treat us
badly, when they treated even the Spanish badly who were their own mothers and
their own fathers in generation? How did they treat them?.... We far prefer to be in
the hands of the Americans, who are father and mother to us now, than to be turned
over to another people.29
However, in spite of such objections, the American pacification
efforts of predominantly Muslim areas had as one of its aims the
“Filipinization” of the Moros.30
With the Americans came, as part of the American imperial
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49
legacy, the Protestant traditions. Hence, with the two Western
colonial powers came Christianity, a faith that became a fabric of local
Philippine cultures but which was instrumentalized to promote state
interests. Like many of the churches during that period, the churches
in the Philippines, both Catholic and Protestant, failed in questioning
cultural biases, including the religious prejudices of many of its
members.31 It is noteworthy that at this period in the history of the
Philippines, the predominant paradigm in the Catholic Church in
relation to other religious traditions was, “Outside the Church, there
is no salvation.”32
A third important factor, which is related to the second one above
and that has impacted contemporary Muslim-Christian relationship
is the fact that many of the social ills that many Moros experience are
rooted in the actions and policies of both the Spanish and American
governments. Spain initiated the Regalian doctrine of land ownership.
This had the effect of disempowering the Moro traditional leaders
with regard to land distribution and effectively led to the loss of
many of the ancestral areas of the Moros. The Americans continued
this policy and initiated a resettlement program in Mindanao.33 After
independence from the Americans, the Philippine government in
Manila continued this resettlement policy in Mindanao in which
Christian Filipinos in the Luzon and Visayas were enticed with free
land to migrate to Mindanao, particularly in places which the Moros
consider as part of their ancestral domain.34 While this policy provided
land for the Christian settlers, it resulted not only to land loss by the
Moros but also to their minoritization.35
The Moros’ loss of political independence, the loss of their
land and their eventual minoritization in their ancestral domain
marginalized the Moros politically and contributed to the perhaps
unintended consequence of stunting the economic development of
the vast majority of Moro communities. Noteworthy is the fact that
the provinces that belong to the Autonomous Region of Muslim
Mindanao are the poorest in the country.36 In this context, it is not
surprising that Moros would assert their right to self-determination
through armed means.37
It must be pointed out, however, that the Moro nationalists’ reading
of history, particularly of the armed Moro fronts, is not without its
problem. It has to do with what Thomas K. McKenna refers to as the
“myth of Morohood”38 or what Patricio N. Abinales calls “the myth
of the eternal Moro resistance,”39 on which is anchored the Moro
uprising and is used as a bargaining chip in their peace talks with
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the government. While the Moro nationalist ideology contends that
“the Spanish ascription ‘Moro’ reflected an actual social entity—a
self-conscious collectivity of Philippine Muslims engaged in a
unified, Islamic-inspired, anticolonial resistance,”40 McKenna argues
convincingly that this narrative fails to do justice to “the complexities
and contradictions of that period” and even entails the “subjugation
of an unruly history” to support its stance.41 For McKenna, “Spanish
aggression against the Muslim polities of the archipelago did not, to
any significant degree, stimulate the development of an overarching
ethnoreligious identity self-consciously shared by members of various
Muslim ethnolinguistic groups”42—contrary to the claims of Moro
nationalists, like Jubair above, that Moro nationalism began during
the Spanish colonial period, antedating the development of Filipino
nationalism. In fact, for McKenna the roots of Moro nationalism are
found in and were nurtured during the American colonial period,43
particularly through the influence of Najeeb Saleeby.44
Furthermore, McKenna’s observation regarding the Moro
insurgents of the Bangsamoro Rebellion in the 1970s makes one
wonder how the Moro identity as understood by the rebel leadership
is appropriated by the Muslim masses: “… it was striking to note
how rarely any of the insurgents, in expressing their motivations for
taking up arms or fighting on against great odds, made spontaneous
mention of either the Moro nation (Bangsamoro) or Islamic renewal,
the two central components of Muslim nationalist ideology.”45 This is
quite telling for the insurgents and Moro nationalists who base their
claims on this ideology.
In his study of state formation during the American colonial
period, Abinales raises similarly hard questions about the politics
of identity.46 He questions the nationalist framework which
regards the armed Moro rebellion as an organic part of Filipino
nationalism.47 For instance, with regard to the Muslim responses to
American colonialism, he raises two issues about the categorization
of responses either as collaboration or revolution. First, he questions
the rigidity of this dichotomy since these responses overlapped in a
situation in which the Muslims found themselves in a situation of
social and political uncertainty brought about by American power.
Abinales argues that it is better to interpret them in terms of the
Muslims’ experiences in Southeast Asia—among the datus as actions
of “men of prowess” (orang besar) who positioned themselves to gain
more local power as they related with the Americans and the datus
become colonial politicos.48 Second, he questions the assumption that
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the Muslim responses were not any different from the Filipino elite’s
responses. For Abinales, Muslim revolts were efforts “to stave off
colonialism” and “[n]one indicated any forward-looking, anticolonial,
or nationalist perspective.”49 He considers the contemporary Moro
rebellions “as modern mobilizations against the intrusive reach of the
nation-state than as a latest edition of an epic Moro struggle against
various colonialisms.”50 In a similar vein, Medina asserts:
The Bangsamoro identities have been formed not through spontaneous processes of
self-definition but primarily according to the exigencies of power—the demands for
political autonomy and independence as a consequence of the state’s domineering
role. Their identities and communal interests are malleable and pliant as they interact
with the state’s power. It responds to the political, economic or social needs of group
members at any moment, depending on the contingencies of national politics.51
Nevertheless, while the genesis of the Moro identity is contested,
the Moro nationalist narrative appears to inform the current peace
talks between the MILF and the GPH. For instance, in the joint draft
of the MILF and the GPH in the recently concluded 32nd Exploratory
Talks in Kuala Lumpur where both sides reached a “framework
agreement” in 6 October 2012, it is stated:
Those who at the time of conquest and colonization were considered natives or original
inhabitants of Mindanao and the Sulu archipelago and its adjacent islands including
Palawan and their descendants, whether of mixed or of full blood shall have the right
to identify themselves as Bangsamoro by ascription or self-ascription.52
What is uncontested, however, is that many of the Muslim groups
in southern Philippines, whether they refer to themselves as Moro
or not, aspire for peace, justice, and development, desires which are
fundamental and legitimate.
A Watershed in the Church’s Relationship with Other Religions
It is with this backdrop that we can better appreciate the changes
brought about by Vatican II on the Catholic Church and their effects
on Muslim-Christian relations. After holding on to an exclusivist
theology of religions for a long time, Vatican II brought about a sea of
change in the Catholic Church. For the first time, official magisterial
documents have a positive appreciation of the religions and called
on the Church to engage them in dialogue. For instance, Nostra
aetate acknowledges that the “ray of Truth” may be found in them
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and affirms that the church rejects nothing that is true and holy in
them.53 Gaudium et spes goes on to stress that “the Holy Spirit offers
to all the possibility of being made partners, in a way known to God,
in the paschal mystery.”54 Given these assertions, the church is then
called upon to discern the Spirit’s presence in others and to affirm the
elements of the doctrines, rituals and life of peoples of other religions
that seem to manifest the fruits of the Spirit’s presence.55
In their reception of Vatican II in their own multi-religious contexts,
the Asian bishops appear to further develop Vatican II’s position. The
bishops firmly believe that other religious traditions participate in God’s
plan of salvation.56 This realization on their part is born out of the church’s
encounter with peoples of other religions who, in diverse ways, appear
to manifest the presence of the Holy Spirit in their lives and religious
practices.57 It is not surprising that the bishops “accept them [other
religions] as significant and positive elements in the economy of God’s
design of salvation.”58 In them, the bishops
recognize and respect profound spiritual and ethical meanings and values. Over
many centuries they [other religions] have been the treasury of the religious
experience of our ancestors, from which our contemporaries do not cease to draw
light and strength. They have been (and continue to be) the authentic expression of
the noblest longings of their hearts, and the home of their contemplation and prayer.
They have helped to give shape to the histories and cultures of our nations.59
Moreover, for these pastors,
God’s saving will is at work, in many different ways, in all religions... God’s saving
grace is not limited to members of the Church, but is offered to every person. His grace
may lead some to accept baptism and enter the Church, but it cannot be presumed
that this must always be the case. His ways are mysterious and unfathomable, and no
one can dictate the direction of His grace.60
It is because of God’s grace in others and the church’s sharing
in this realm of grace that one can view other religions as “sublime
realities of enjoyment, having value in themselves” and not as
something to be used to serve the Christian truth.61
Dialogue in the Philippines
Even before the reforms ushered in by Vatican II about the Catholic
Church’s relationship with other religious traditions, many Moros
and Filipino Christians were already engaged in dialogue although
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it was not referred to as such. In their day-to-day life, Christians have
had to deal and relate with their Muslim neighbors and vice-versa.
While the discourse of dialogue was not yet in vogue, many people
at the grassroots level practiced its meaning in their friendships with
one another, a “dialogue of life” as later church documents would
label these efforts. Those engagements served to make possible the
more formal dialogues that have taken place between the believers of
these two religious traditions.
The formal dialogues that have occurred between the Moros and
Filipino Christians since the 1960s are focused mainly on social issues
of common concern.62 In his review of Muslim-Christian dialogue
in the Philippines, Julkipli Wadi, a professor at the University of the
Philippines’ Institute of Islamic Studies, observes among other things,
that it is triggered mainly by problems in predominantly Muslim
areas and that the agenda for dialogue are not theological issues but
the social, political and economic problems that both Muslims and
Christians experience. The focus is not on religious differences but on
human values.63 However, Wadi claims:
In the Philippines, the lukewarm reception, if not suspicion, by some Muslims
about inter-religious dialogue is dictated by the fact that it is merely used to
profile personalities and to explore Muslim issues but not to resolve their age-old
aspirations for political liberation and seek solutions to specific problems like peace
and order, poverty or unemployment. It is observed that resolutions and statements
of concern passed during dialogue conferences and peace advocacy seminars are
mere recommendatory, with no guarantee of being heard, let alone implemented, by
the government. Hence, some Muslims view inter-religious dialogue just as a venue
to ventilate emotions, fears and problems, which does not help them address their
more immediate problems like poverty, discrimination and oppression.64
Hence, it seems that while collaboration on social concerns have taken
place between the two groups, the efforts between the dialogue partners
have not made any significant political and economic impact in bringing
about a just and peaceful settlement to the Moro aspiration for selfdetermination. A probable reason for this is the non- or partial reception of
the teachings of Vatican II on other religions by many Filipino Christians.
The (Non-)Reception of Vatican II on Other Religious Traditions
The reception of church teachings is a complex and contested process.
On one hand, teachings may serve to question and challenge cultural
conditionings and biases, and purify them of what is contrary to the
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gospel. On the other hand, they may also serve to affirm the goodness
that is found in one’s culture. After all, it is in and through one’s
culture that one interprets, understands, and lives the gospel. Just as
one’s culture may facilitate the reception of church teachings, it also
happens that cultural presumptions and unquestioned seemingly
self-evident truths may prove to be stumbling blocks in the reception
of the same teachings. The latter case seems to be evident with respect
to the church teachings on other religious traditions. While the
teachings of both Vatican II and the Asian bishops on interreligious
dialogue eventually became part of the teachings of the local church
in the Philippines, enshrined in both the Second Plenary Council of
the Philippines and the Catechism for Filipino Catholics, much remains
to be done in changing the prejudices and animosity felt by many
Filipino Christians toward the Moros,65 a fact that militates against
their reception.
For instance, in a 2005 national survey that was intended to
measure the bias against Muslims, it emerged that many Filipinos are
biased against Muslims:
It…appears that a considerable percentage of Filipinos (33% to 39% based on Indices
4 and 5) are biased against Muslims notwithstanding the fact that only about 14%
of them have had direct dealings with Muslims. The bias appears to be adequately
captured by the questions on stereotypes and serves to explain hiring and leasing
decisions of Filipinos, as well as perceptions of Muslims as terrorists and the adoption
of a hard stance with respect to approaches in pursuing peace in Sulu.66
Given this attitude, it is not surprising that peace advocates in
Mindanao find it hard to establish and build constituencies of peace
that are supportive of the peace process between the GPH and the
armed Moro fronts. This bias against the Moros appears to be a
backdrop of the opposition of many Christian politicians against the
initialed Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOAAD) between the GPH and MILF in August 2008. While the protesters
ostensibly argued that there was lack of consultation of the various
stakeholders and a lack of transparency in the negotiations, I think
that the underlying reason for their objection to the MOA-AD was
not only the fear of many politicians of losing political power and
influence in a few areas of their bailiwicks but also the fear of being
governed by Moros and their imagined dire consequences.67
Even living near Moros is unthinkable for some. For example, the
Barangay Council of Libungan, Cotabato, an area that is traditionally
part of Moro land, rejected the proposed construction of a mosque in
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their barangay. While the barangay’s resolution ironically states in
part that the barangay is a Christian community that is “in harmony
with other people and tribes and their ways of living,” it asserts
that “the construction of mosque for the practice of religion in the
barangay is not a necessity considering the very limited number
of Muslim families, the proposed site is surrounded by Christians
raising backyard livestock projects [euphemism for piggeries?] that
will augment family income.”68
In the aftermath of the 18 October 2011 Al-Barka incident in Basilan
in which 19 soldiers were ambushed and killed by the MILF, ABSCBN’s TV Patrol, one of the most popular prime time news programs
in the Philippines, in an apparent knee-jerk reaction, made a poll
two days after the ambush in which it asked a leading and telling
question which reveals more, I think, of the bias of the program, “Do
you agree that the peace talks with the MILF should be stopped and
that the government should launch an all-out war against the MILF?”
Not unpredictably, a whopping 97% of TV Patrol’s respondents said
“Yes.” A week after the same incident, Ramon Tulfo, a prominent
Manila-based journalist but who hails from Mindanao, made the
following commentary which appeared in the country’s most widely
distributed national broadsheet, Philippine Daily Inquirer (PDI):
Whatever he says to justify not going to war with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front,
President Noy [Aquino] is perceived as a weakling. He can never appease the Moros
who, when you give them your hand, will ask for your entire arm. Moros smell fear:
Don’t be surprised if they continue to pillage and kill. The only time they will stop
their mayhem and plunder is when the government launches a punitive expedition
like what President Erap did when he was in power. The Moros, especially the
Tausugs, love to fight, and how! The only way to earn their respect is to fight back
instead of cowering in fear.69
Tulfo’s portrayal of the Moros, unflattering to say the least,
captures many of the stereotypes that many Filipino Christians have
of Moros. It is writing such as this that perpetuates the negative
images of the Moros in many a Christian’s popular imagination.
Eight months after, another PDI commentator, Ramon Farolan, a
retired military officer, makes a point similar to Tulfo’s:
The lesson from the past is that peace talks do not solve our problems. In fact,
they embolden the enemy, giving it time to consolidate its forces and increase its
weaponry. In 1996, we made peace with Nur Misuari and his MNLF, only to see them
go on a rampage a few years later. We can sign another peace treaty with the MILF.
It will not guarantee peace.
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I have said this in the past—the only guarantee of peace in Mindanao, the only way
to defend our territorial integrity is to have a strong and disciplined Armed Forces,
certainly one that will not allow the brutal murder of its soldiers to go unpunished;
one that can protect the people from terrorists, local or foreign, so as to enable them
to live in peace and security.70
Given the reactions of the respondents in the survey, Tulfo, and
Farolan, all of which are symptomatic of the unquestioned prejudice
of many Filipino Christians against Moros, it is all the more imperative
that the church exerts the effort to address this issue. Moros have been
pilloried in the public arena for a long time and the church cannot
simply wash its hands for its complicity in this matter.71 While the
church engages the Moros in dialogue, it must also be an instrument
of eradicating the biases of its own members and develop in them an
open attitude toward the Moros if it hopes to garner their support
for a just and peaceful resolution of the armed conflict in Mindanao.
In this regard, intrareligious dialogue that enables the airing of
and addresses prejudices, and promotes the healing of memories
appears to be necessary. Church leaders must necessarily take the
initiative in this regard even if it means becoming unpopular in their
own communities72 and if it hopes that its teachings be received by
the Christian community. While the voice of the Catholic Church
has been heard in other areas of the public sphere, this is one area
unfortunately where the church apparently speaks only in whispers.
Living the Kingdom in a Time of Conflict
To Speak or Not to Speak
There are many social ills facing contemporary Philippine society,
many of which are seemingly intractable like the poverty of so
many Filipinos. In this discussion, I will focus on only two issues,
the proposed Reproductive Health Bill (RH Bill) in Congress and
peacebuilding in Mindanao. I will use the church’s response to the
former as a foil for the church’s (seeming lack of) response to the latter.
A polarizing question confronting the Filipino nation is the pending
RH bill in which the Philippine bishops have been so vociferous in
their opposition.73 As early as 2003, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference
of the Philippines (CBCP) issued a pastoral letter in which the bishops
called for the rejection of an earlier version of the bill since it “has
many errors that contravene the teaching of the Church.”74 After that,
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the CBCP issued one letter after another that touched on the issue
of reproductive health and the related bills in Congress.75 The latest
CBCP pastoral letter on this issue, “Choosing Life, Rejecting the RH
Bill,” called for the present RH bill’s (HB 5043) outright rejection. In
an effort to galvanize broad public support, the CBCP argues, “Far
from being simply a Catholic issue, the RH bill is a major attack on
authentic human values and on Filipino cultural values regarding
human life that all of us have cherished since time immemorial.”76
Some bishops warned politicians that they would campaign against
them in the elections if they support the RH bill, a tactic which appears
inconsistent with Catholic social teaching and a distortion of the role
of the church in politics.77 A few went so far as to threaten the Catholic
supporters of the bill that they would be refused communion in the
Eucharist. In the acrimonious debates surrounding this issue, the
bill’s supporters are labeled “anti-life” while those who oppose it are
“pro-life”—characterizations which oversimplify the issues involved.
For all intents and purposes and notwithstanding the church’s
attempts to portray the debate as an issue for all peoples of faiths and
for all Filipinos, the Catholic Church’s opposition to the RH bill boils
down to its teachings on sexual morality. Now that the trial of the
chief justice of the Philippine Supreme Court is over, debates about
the RH bill have resumed in the public arena.78
In comparison to the Catholic Church’s position on the RH bill is
the apparent lack of support, as manifested in its relative “silence”
on the issue, from the bishops for the ongoing peace process between
the GPH and the MILF.79 At the local level, it must be pointed
out that efforts have been made by the churches in Mindanao to
promote and engage in interreligious dialogue. For instance, the
different local churches in Southern Philippines have established
the ministry of interreligious dialogue. Various grassroots efforts to
promote interreligious harmony and peace efforts have also been
ongoing.80 At the national level, the CBCP was conspicuously silent
on the Bangsamoro issue when the armed conflict was at its height
in the 1970s. In the 1980s, the Philippine bishops first issued general
statements on peace although they were in response to a context
under Marcos’ Martial Law and the aftermath of Marcos’ ouster from
office and did not directly deal with the Moro question.81 The first
statement of the CBCP that referred to the Moro issue was its letter,
“Seek Peace, Pursue It,” in 1990, although this issue was only one
among others that were mentioned in it. In that letter, the bishops
argued for the inseparability of peace and justice, and the need for
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reconciliation. Among the agenda the bishops proposed for the
Decade of Peace (1990-2000) was the peaceful resolution of questions
of self-determination by various groups, which included the armed
Moro fronts, “within the context of national sovereignty.”82 The CBCP
also issued statements on peacebuilding in support of the National
Unification Commission established by the president of GPH then.83
The first CBCP pastoral letter that directly and solely dealt with the
Moro issue was “An Urgent Appeal for Peace in Mindanao” in 2000.
This was issued in the aftermath of President Joseph Estrada’s all-out
war against the MILF which resulted to the displacement of more than
a million people. In this letter, the CBCP called on the government
and the MILF to end their hostilities and go back to the negotiating
table.84 Aware of prevailing sentiments, the bishops observed “that
our words for peace run against the prevailing opinion, including
that of our own flock. We might even be misinterpreted as against
the government.” Nevertheless, the CBCP asserts that its position on
the issue is not political but evangelical. It commits itself to a plan of
action:
We observe the trauma, the bitterness, prejudices and biases, resentment and even
hatred that are building up among our people because of the war. We, therefore,
pledge that the pastoral programs of the Church shall assist in healing the
psychological wounds and hurts of people, in reconciling conflicting groups, and in
building a culture of peace in our country, especially in Mindanao.85
The CBCP issued a similarly named pastoral statement, “Urgent
Appeal for Peace,” three years later, when due to a series of bombings
in Davao, the peace talks were halted and the government waged war
against the MILF. In its statement, the bishops challenged the church
to be peacemakers and ambassadors of reconciliation. The bishops
also reiterated their call to both parties to end their fighting and find
a just and lasting solution to the enduring conflict.86 Unfortunately,
the bishops did not have a collective statement in light of the MOAAD fiasco when armed battles broke out once again in 2008 and 2009.
The most recent statement from the Catholic hierarchy regarding
the peace process was “Toward Building a Just and Lasting Peace in
Mindanao” which was issued after the signing of the “framework
agreement.” In it, the Mindanao Catholic bishops expressed “vigilant
optimism” about it, called for continuous consultations with all the
stakeholders, and stressed the need for six values “that constitute
a ‘people’s platform for Peace in Mindanao’”: sincerity, security,
sensitivity, solidarity, spirituality and sustainability.87
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If the frequency of a particular theme in its pastoral letters is
the basis of an issue’s importance for the bishops, then it appears
that the issues related to reproductive health (read: sexual issues)
are more important for them than the Moro issue. While there is a
concerted effort on the part of church leaders to block the pending RH
bill in Congress, e.g. prayers for the defeat of the bill in sacramental
celebrations, the mass mobilization of people, and tarpaulin
advertisements in parishes rejecting the bill, there appears to be a lack
of it with respect to the latter. Perhaps, given this context, it is not
surprising that Mohagher Iqbal, chairman of the MILF peace panel,
claimed that there are “spoilers” to the ongoing peace negotiations
between the GPH and the MILF. For Iqbal, they
are the decision-makers; they are those whose vested interests are radically affected or
altered if there is a change in the status quo, because many of them owned vast tracts
of lands in Mindanao; and they are also engaged in mining, plantation economy,
logging, banking, trade and industry.88
He further claimed:
Of course, there are other groups, not in the level of spoilers, who have reasons to
fear for radical alteration in the status quo. I think it is not wrong to say if I include
the Catholic Church and to a little extent the Protestant Church in this categorization,
although the latter has shown greater flexibility or accommodation as far as solving
the conflict in Mindanao is concerned, while the former has not yet to come out with
a definitive stance on the Moro Question, except by individual Church leaders like
Archbishop Orlando Quevedo.89
Probably in response to his challenge for the church to get involved in
the peace process, a month after Iqbal’s statement, Antonio Ledesma,
the archbishop of Cagayan de Oro, a predominantly Christian city in
northern Mindanao, called on all dioceses and Catholic universities
in Mindanao to help in furthering the peace process.90 Whether
true or not, partially or totally, many Moros perceive the church as
indifferent, at best, and hostile, at worst, not only to the ongoing peace
talks between the MILF and the GPH but also to their valid concerns.
The Face of the Church and How to Speak
What emerge from the above comparison are two different faces of the
church. On one hand, we have a church that has been so vocal in its
opposition to the RH bill, a church that is so sure of the righteousness
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of its cause that it threatens those who oppose its stand. It is a church
that has tried to flex its political muscle and use it as a weapon to get
what it wants. While this church complains that the government is not
really interested in dialogue (read: the proponents and the supporters
of the bill in Congress will not change their mind), the irony of it is
that the church leadership will also not change its stand regarding
the bill.
On the other hand, we find a church, that is biased against the
Moros and is also seemingly apathetic to their valid concerns. It is a
church that has responded inadequately to the Moro issue and has
failed to address their justifiable concerns. It is also a church that is
complicit to the colonial and postcolonial policies that have resulted
to the deminoritization and marginalization of the Moros in their
own land.91
These two faces of the church are insufficient in the church’s task
of proclaiming the Kingdom and in responding to the context of
Mindanao. In order for the church to be a more credible witness of the
Kingdom, the Christian community needs to all the more embody the
virtues of compassion, justice, and peace as it works together with the
Moros for the attainment of what John Lederach calls “justpeace.”92
This is not to say that Christian communities have not lived these
virtues but to simply underscore their significance in Mindanao and
the need of the church to be perceived as living these virtues. The
Catholic Church has been so ensconced in the corridors of power
that it has refused, consciously or unconsciously, to move out of its
comfort zone to the margins of society.
First, just as Jesus had compassion for those who suffered in his
time, including the Gentiles, the church is called to be compassionate
to the Moros. The Kingdom demands a privileging of the margins
where the Moros often are and where one encounters “the surprising
God in unexpected locations.”93 In many and diverse ways, the
church in Mindanao has been the face of compassion in many conflict
areas. For instance, the vast majority of those who get displaced
because of the armed conflict has been Moros. In many places, the
Catholic parishes in the affected areas have served as safe havens for
the “bakwit,” the local term for internally displaced persons (IDP’s).94
More than showing compassion for the “bakwit,” however, the
church must ensure that they are not put into that miserable position
in the first place.95
Second, the church must also work for justice. For the present
bishop of Cotabato, Orlando Quevedo, injustice is the root cause of
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the Moro struggle and he highlights three aspects of this injustice—
injustice to the Moro identity, injustice to Moro political sovereignty,
and injustice to Moro integral development.96 If we agree with
Quevedo’s contention that the Bangsamoro struggle is basically
a question of justice, then the church as a justified community and
as a community which considers the work for justice as an integral
part of evangelization (Justice in the World) is challenged to rectify
this situation as part of its becoming church. While the social action
ministries of the local churches are concerned with and promote
human rights, their work for integral evangelization has not touched
on the Moro quest for justice. Perhaps, the local churches in Mindanao
can collaborate with each other and with the Moros about this issue,
particularly as they work and lobby for good governance on the part
of both Christian and Muslim political leaders.
And third, as communities called and formed by the Prince of
Peace (cf. Is 9:6) and to whom Jesus offers peace (cf. Jn 14:27; 20:26),
the church is challenged to engage in the task of peacebuilding.
Although Catholic social teaching still has to further develop in this
regard,97 there are enough resources in the Christian tradition that
can serve as bases and inspiration for this undertaking. In times of
armed conflict, it may include the task of working for the cessation of
hostilities and acting as mediators. For example, when armed clashes
broke out between the GPH and the MILF in 2009 which resulted to
the displacement of thousands of families, Quevedo appealed to the
warring parties to end the war:
From the depths of my soul I can only cry out to all warring parties, “Enough is
enough!”…
For the sake of the evacuees and in the name of our one God of peace, end your
war! Go back to the negotiating table. Let the thousands of evacuees return safely to
their home. Collaborate with one another toward this objective. Together, rehabilitate
their destroyed properties. Give them another chance for a truly human life.98
At other times, the church needs to be seen as one that accompanies
the communities in peacebuilding. The Christian communities
need to see the Moros as fellow pilgrims in building the Kingdom
as they, together with Christians, effect reconciliation within their
communities and with each other. It is only when both the Moros and
Christians have become reconciling communities that peace between
the two religious communities may be realized.99 Here, perhaps, just
as the Philippine church emphasizes the importance of building basic
ecclesial communities, it too can, like what the local church of Jolo in
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southern Philippines has been doing, focus on the development of
basic human communities—inclusive communities where both Moros
and Christians refuse to live in their own “ghettoes” but rather choose
to build bridges of friendship with each other. It is a movement from
negative peace—the cessation of armed hostilities, to positive peace—
the building of the social fabric of the nation, a “relationship-building
based on the inherent dignity of each person.”100
In addition to embodying these virtues, I would add a core value
which springs specifically from Filipino culture: pakikipagkapwa-tao.101
I think that this value has been operative and fundamental in the
Christian community’s efforts to relate to Moros in positive terms.
It seems to me that it needs to be integrated into the discourse of
what it means to become a Filipino church in the concrete context
of Philippine culture and history since they are expressive of a
Filipino’s psyche. Pakikipagkapwa-tao means to engage the other as a
person and to treat her or him as such. She or he is another person
just like oneself. It is recognition of a shared identity—that the self
and the other are both persons, “an inner self shared with others.”102
As such, one treats the other, the kapwa-tao, as an equal. The sense of
the other as a kapwa-tao (another person) is particularly important in
conflict situations in Mindanao where one sees the other as simply
ibang tao (a person who is not one of us; an outsider) and even not as
a person. The distinction between ibang tao and hindi ibang tao (one
of us) has in many cases resulted to sectarianism, regionalism and
parochialism. Perhaps, more problematic is the situation in which a
person refuses to regard the other as a kapwa-tao, making it easier for
her or him to ignore, abuse, and kill the other. When war broke out
between the GPH and the MILF in 2009, many church-people in Sta.
Teresita Parish in Datu Piang, Maguindanao were at the forefront of
helping more than 28,000 “bakwits.” The church-people were actively
involved in the bringing of the people into safe areas, the provision
of medical needs, and the solicitation and distribution of relief goods
for the people.103 This is a concrete instance of pakikipagkapwa-tao—a
bright light shining in the midst of the darkness and horrors of war. A
“bakwit’s” religious affiliation was a non-issue for those who helped
but what mattered was that she or he was a kapwa-tao.
In this task of becoming a voice of compassion, justice and peace,
in pakikipagkapwa-tao, and in the process become a credible voice in
the public sphere, conversion as a listening to and collaboration with
the Spirit is indispensable. In its interreligious engagement with the
Moros, the church needs to let itself be disturbed by the Spirit—to
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journey to the periphery and to discern and discover the Spirit’s
movement in it. Like the blind man, Bartimaeus (cf. Mk 10:46-52), the
church needs the courage and the humility to ask Jesus, “Lord, I want
to see.” In so many instances, the church has not only been blind to the
plight of the Moros but also turned a blind eye to them. Like Peter, who
needed to learn the boundlessness of God’s compassion and mercy (cf.
Acts 10:34-35; 11:1-18), the church needs to recognize the Spirit that is
poured out to all (cf. Acts 2:17-18) and reject nothing that is true and
holy in others (cf. Nostra aetate, 2). This would mean, I think, a letting
go of our false images of God and to discover the reality of Desmond
Tutu’s assertion, “God is not a Christian,” particularly in relation
with the Moros. It would also mean for the Christian communities a
letting go of prejudices against the Moros. Since in conflict situations,
the “enemy” is often demonized and dehumanized, it would mean
seeing and recognizing the Moros as persons with dignity, as kapwatao and as kapwa-anak ng Diyos (a fellow child of God), and beloved
of God. It would mean the “conversion of heart and mind from
violence to nonviolence as a means of conflict transformation, from
sectarianism to… the sense of belonging to a universal human family,
which counters nationalism and narrow globalization”104 and one may
even add, a sense of belonging that counters religious triumphalism
and fundamentalism. In this way, one may hope that interreligious
dialogue will truly be a dialogue of salvation.
Conclusion
Several days after I wrote the substance of this paper, I went to
Cotabato City, the seat of the Autonomous Region of Muslim
Mindanao. The last time I was there was fifteen years ago. It was the
place where I began my journey of overcoming my own prejudices
against the Moros. My conversations with friends over there made
me appreciate the complexity and difficulty of the church’s mission in
Bangsamoro. They put many of the things I claim here in perspective.
Indeed, the church cannot but walk humbly with the Moros as they
collaborate with one another to build a more peaceful and just society
for all.
The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his
field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of
shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its
branches (Mt 13:31-32 NRSV).
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It appears that this parable best describes the efforts of the church
in Muslim Mindanao to sow the seeds of the Kingdom. While it sows
the seeds of compassion, peace, justice, and pakikipagkapwa-tao, it can
only hope that they will be “the greatest of shrubs” where all the
peoples of Muslim Mindanao, burdened and weary because of the
conflict, will find rest for their souls (cf. Mt 11:28-30 NRSV) “in its
branches.” When that time comes, then the people will no longer walk
in darkness, the yoke of their burden and the rod of the oppressor
broken, for there shall be endless peace (cf. Is 9:2-4.6-7). But until then,
one continues on the journey towards the Kingdom one step at a time
and hopes that whatever the travails are of the present, they too shall
pass.
END NOTES
My use of the term “Moro” to refer to the Muslims in Mindanao and Sulu is
more for the sake of convenience. Nevertheless, I am aware of the contested and
negotiated nature of this identity marker as a social construct, cf. James F. Eder,
“Ethnic Differences, Islamic Consciousness, and Muslim Social Integration in the
Philippines,” Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs 30 (2010): 317-32; Patricia Horvatich,
“The Martyr and the Mayor: On the Politics of Identity in Southern Philippines,” in
Cultural Citizenship in Island Southeast Asia: Nation and Belonging in the Hinterlands,
ed. Renato Rosaldo (Berkeley: University of California, 2003), 16-43; and Lanfranco
Blanchett-Revilli, “Moro, Muslim, or Filipino: Cultural Citizenship as Practice and
Process,” in Cultural Citizenship in Island Southeast Asia, 44-75. More will be said
about this identity below.
1
Cf. Vivienne SM. Angeles, “Moros in the Media and Beyond: Representations of
Philippine Muslims,” Contemporary Islam 4 (2010): 29-53. In order to build good will
with the media, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) made a deliberate effort
to engage them in dialogue and urged them to be fair in their reports regarding the
Moros, particularly about the ongoing peace process between the government and
them (cf. Ed Lingao, “The Media and Mindanao,” GMA News Online, 6 July 2012,
http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/264357/news/specialreports/amid-peacenegotiations-milf-to-stage-show-of-force-in-maguindanao [accessed 16 July 2012]).
2
The importance of involving different actors in peace processes was highlighted in a
recent peacebuilding conference, “Challenges to Catholic Peacebuilding” (29-30 May
2012), in Rome. As Scott Appleby puts it, “the Church is not the sole or often even
the primary actor in this drama unfolding; put positively, we have and must have
partners…” What the church does in its peacebuilding efforts is accompaniment, a
“walking in solidarity with people caught in the dehumanizing dynamics of deadly
conflict” (“Closing Statement: On the Need for Unlikely Partners,” http://cpn.nd.edu/
assets/70299/appleby_closing_talk_final.pdf, accessed 20 June 2012).
3
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For examples of this discourse, cf. Cesar Adib Majul, “The Muslims in the Philippines:
An Historical Perspective,” in The Muslim Filipinos, eds. Peter G. Gowing and Robert
D. McAmis (Manila: Solidaridad Publishing House, 1974), 1-12; and Samuel K. Tan,
Decolonization and Muslim Filipino Identity (Quezon City: Department of History, U.P.,
1989).
4
For example, Salah Jubair, A Nation Under Endless Tyranny, 2nd ed., http://www.
bangsamoro.org/ (accessed 18 September 2012); Nasser A. Marohomsalic, Aristocrats
of the Malay Race: A History of the Bangsa Moro in the Philippines (N.A. Marohomsalic,
2001); and Bobby M. Tuazon, The Moro Reader: History and Contemporary Struggles of
the Bangsamoro People (Quezon City: CenPEG Books, 2008). For a typical presentation
of this discourse in a blog, cf. Datuan Solaiman Panolimba, “Armed Struggle of
the Bangsamoro in the Philippines,” 25 June 2009, http://barangayrp.wordpress.
com/2009/06/25/armed-struggle-of-the-bangsamoro-muslims-in-the-philippines/
(accessed 18 September 2012).
5
Salah Jubair, The Long Road to Peace: Inside the GRP-MILF Peace Process (Cotabato
City: Institute of Bangsamoro Studies, 2007), 4.
6
In highlighting these three factors, I do not mean to be exhaustive of the different
elements that are at play in Christian-Muslim relationships nor do I intend to give a
comprehensive presentation of the history of this relationship. This complex issue
warrants more than what is intended in this paper. For a good historical overview
and more comprehensive discussion of Muslim-Christian relations in the Philippines,
cf. William LaRousse, “Muslim-Christian Relations in the Philippines: An Historical
Overview,” MST Review 6 (2004): 114-71. See also his excellent study, Walking Together
Seeking Peace: The Local Church of Mindanao-Sulu Journeying in Dialogue with the Muslim
Community (1965-2000) (Quezon City: Claretian Publications, 2001). For an insightful
presentation on the roots of the conflict in Mindanao, cf. Astrid Tuminez, “The Past Is
Always Present: The Moros of Mindanao and the Quest for Peace,” South East Asia
Research Centre of the City University of Hong Kong, Working Paper Series No.
99, May 2008, http://f1.grp.yahoofs.com/v1/YFT7T4Aly4Ecg4nnClaCikySAI9i3yR1s
jHd55HgobEYjJCy409-5fa-4RWXm5TY_iPX55qnQk6P5mGzJd4ZDAXlWZwkuzE/
Tuminez_Mindanao%20Conflict.pdf, accessed 10 July 2012).
7
For an account of the history of Muslims in the Philippines, cf. Cesar Adib Majul,
Muslims in the Philippines (Quezon City: University of the Philippines Press, 1999).
Majul notes that there was already a Muslim community in Sulu by the last quarter
of the 13th century if not earlier (cf. Majul, Muslims in the Philippines, 56-69).
8
On the connection of “the Philippines” within maritime Asia before Spanish
colonization, cf. Patricio N. Abinales and Donna J. Amoroso, State and Society in the
Philippines (Lanhan, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 2005), 35-39. The
earliest Chinese account on Chinese trade with Sulu dates back 1349 (cf. Majul,
Muslims in the Philippines, 411-17).
9
Cf. Majul, Muslims in the Philippines, 56-69. Majul makes the observation, related
and in contrast to the eventual colonization and Christianization of Luzon and the
Visayas, that the Muslim traders “did not found colonies for their mother countries
or as invaders with imperialistic designs.” It is because of this that “Islam came to be
10
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regarded not only as something less foreign than Christianity but also as an ideology
with pre-nationalistic overtones” (Majul, Muslims in the Philippines, 50). In light of the
Islamization of Southeast Asia in the 14th century, Abinales and Amoroso add the
observation that a “Muslim ruler found that Islam helped him build and centralize
political power, which rested on three bases: material reward, coercion, and spiritual
power” (State and Society, 43). Not surprisingly, in order to further their interests, the
rulers of Sulu converted to Islam, and so did their subjects although “localization”
occurred among the people—“Islam being incorporated gradually into existing
beliefs and practices, as it continues to be today” (Abinales and Amoroso, State and
Society, 45).
11
Cf. William Henry Scott, Barangay: Sixteenth Century Philippine Culture and Society
(Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University Press, 1994), 173-78; and on the sultanate
system, cf. Tan, Decolonization and Filipino Muslim, 13-31. For the tarsilas of the
sultanates of Mindanao, especially Maguindanao, cf. Najeeb M. Saleeby, Studies in
Moro History, Law and Religion (Manila: The Filipiniana Book Guild, 1976).
12
Cf. Majul, Muslims in the Philippines, 78-84; Horacio de la Costa, Readings in Philippine
History: Selected Historical Texts Presented with a Commentary (Manila: Bookman, 1965),
14-15, 19-20; John H. Schumacher, Readings in Philippine Church History (Quezon City:
Loyola School of Theology, Ateneo de Manila University, 1979), 16.
13
Salah Jubair, A Nation Under Endless Tyranny.
14
Schumacher, Readings in Philippine Church History, 2-4. On the “myths” about Inter
caetera, cf. William Henry Scott, Looking for the Prehispanic Filipino and Other Essays in
Philippine History (Quezon City: New Day Publishers, 1992), 15-23.
15
Schumacher, Readings in Philippine Church History, 17-18.
16
John N. Schumacher, Growth and Decline: Essays on Philippine Church History
(Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University Press, 2009), 23-29. From the first period
of evangelization (1570-1650), there were three areas that serve as evidence of the
maturing of the Filipino Christianity from 1650-1700. First, there were various efforts
to deepen the faith of Filipino Christians by explaining more thoroughly the catechism
that they memorized when they were baptized. Second, there were attempts on the
part of the missionaries to reach those people who had not been reached or reached
effectively in the second half of the 17th century. And third, lay people increasingly
participated in the work of the missionaries. The full blossoming of the church came
about from 1700-1768 with the emergence of religious life for women and men
(Schumacher, Growth and Decline, 22-54). Nevertheless, the Christianized natives
were not mere passive recipients of the Christian faith. As Karl Gaspar argues,
“While the Spanish friars Christianized the natives, the converts Filipinized the
faith of the missionaries. In the process some of the traditional beliefs, practices and
rituals either disappeared or evolved into new elaborate ones” (The Masses Are the
Messiah: Contemplating the Filipino Soul [Quezon City: Institute of Spirituality in Asia,
2010], 124).
Abinales and Amoroso, State and Society, 51. In an apparent contrast, Schumacher
presents a reading of the missionary endeavors that is sympathetic to the church,
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particularly as the missionaries raised their voices against the abuses committed
by the conquistadores, typically took great effort to instruct the converts about the
Christian faith, and responded to their needs (Readings in Philippine Church History,
22-55; Schumacher, Growth and Decline, 1-21). When Joerg Rieger claims that “[c]
olonial Christianity failed to question colonialism, mostly because it operated under
the tacit assumption that the colonial enterprise was the Christian enterprise” (Joerg
Rieger, “Theology and Mission between Neocolonialism and Postcolonialism,”
Mission Studies 21(2004): 210), this seems not to be the case of the church in the
Philippines. For instance, the Synod of Manila, held intermittently from 1582-1586,
rejected the so-called right of conquest of Spain, regarded Spanish sovereignty over
the Philippines as valid “to the extent that this was necessary for the preaching of
the Gospel” (Schumacher, Readings in Philippine Church History, 28), and affirmed
the fundamental equality of Spaniards and Filipinos, and the right of Filipinos to
own their own land and to rule themselves (Schumacher, Growth and Decline, 5-15).
Domingo de Salazar, the first bishop of Manila who assumed his office in 1581, was
more radical in his view than the Synod. He was of the position that “the king of
Spain could have no political rights over the Philippines except by just war or by free
choice of the Filipinos” and he even went back to Spain to argue his case before the
king (Schumacher, Growth and Decline, 7).
18
Abinales and Amoroso, State and Society, 52.
For a discussion of the “Moro Wars” (the Spanish expeditions to Muslim lands, the
slave raids by Muslims in the Visayas and Luzon, and the naval battles between the
Spaniards and the Muslims), cf. Majul, 121-297, 337-75. Cf. also Thomas McKenna,
Muslim Rulers and Rebels: Everyday Politics and Armed Separatism in Southern Philippines
(Berkeley: University of California Press, 1998), 76-80.
19
20
Majul, Muslims in the Philippines, 407.
Salah Jubair, A Nation Under Endless Tyranny, 2nd ed. http://www.maranao.com/
bangsamoro/0204-evolution_of_moro.htm (accessed 11 August 2012).
21
Perhaps, Jubair’s rhetoric expresses a prejudice born of the fact that the word for
slave among Muslims is bisaya, the same word that refers to the inhabitants of the
Visayan islands (cf. Patricio C. Abinales, Orthodoxy and History in the Muslim-Mindanao
Narrative [Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University Press, 2010], 40, footnote 9).
22
23
Abinales, Orthodoxy and History, 40.
On the annexation of the Philippines by the Americans, cf. Frank Hidman Golay,
Face of Empire: United States-Philippine Relations, 1898-1946 (Quezon City: Ateneo de
Manila University, 1997), 1-89.
24
25
Quoted in Peter Gordon Gowing, Mandate in Moroland: The American Government
of Muslim Filipinos 1899-1920 (Quezon City: Philippine Center for Advanced Studies,
University of the Philippines, 1977), 15-16.
26
Gowing, Mandate in Moroland, 257-314.
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27
Cf. Golay, Face of Empire.
Cf. e.g., Midori Kawashima, “Explanatory Notes on the Maranao Petitions: Letters
of Haji Bogabong, 1935,” The Journal of Sophia Asian Studies 21 (2003): 219-232. As
will be seen below, Patricio Abinales interprets these representations from a different
perspective.
28
29
Quoted in Gowing, Mandate in Moroland, 251-52.
Cf. Nathan Gilbert Quimpo, “Colonial Name, Colonial Mentality, and
Ethnocentrism,” KASAMA 18 (2004), Solidarity Philippines Australia Network, http://
cpcabrisbane.org/Kasama/2004/V18n1/ColonialName3.htm (accessed 15 July 2012).
See also Patricio C. Abinales, Making Mindanao: Cotabato and Davao in the Formation of
the Philippine Nation-State (Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University Press, 2000).
30
31
It seems to me that the Catholic Church is more culpable in this regard by virtue of
its long history and power in the Philippines.
32
For an authoritative study of this controverted axiom in the Roman Catholic
tradition, cf. Francis A. Sullivan, Salvation outside the Church: Tracing the History of the
Catholic Response (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock Publishers, 2002).
33
Cf. McKenna, Muslim Rulers and Rebels, 114-24.
34
For instance, cf. Faina C. Abaya-Ulindang, “Huks in the Land of Promise: The Rise
and Demise of Economic Development Corps,” Graduate Forum 8 (2010): 107-206. Cf.
McKenna, Muslim Rebels and Rulers, 114-19.
35
Tuminez contends, rightly I think, that just as the land is the root of the Bangsamoro
issue, it is also the potential means of resolving the problem, see Astrid S. Tuminez,
“This Land Is Our Land: Moro Ancestral Domain and Its Implications for Peace and
Development in Southern Philippines,” The SAIS Review of International Affairs 27(2)
(2007): 77-91. Cf. also Astrid S. Tuminez, “Rebellion, Terrorism, Peace: America’s
Unfinished Business with Muslims in the Philippines,” The Brown Journal of World
Affairs 15 (2008): 211-23. Gutierrez and Borras argue that, as a response to the armed
conflict in Muslim Mindanao, redistributive land reform be an integral part of the
solution (Eric Gutierrez and Saturnino Borras Jr., The Moro Conflict: Landlessness and
Misdirected State Policies [Washington, DC: East-West Center Washington, 2004]).
It is important to consider that colonial and postcolonial policies are only partly
to be blamed for the poverty of many Moros. The issue is more complicated than
what the space here allows. For instance, the poor governance exercised by many
Moro political leaders is part of the problem and has even exacerbated an already
less than ideal situation. Take a look for example at the former political leaders of the
Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao who displayed wealth disproportionate
to their positions as public officials while the ordinary Moro lives in abject poverty,
cf. the reports by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism, Carolyn O.
Arguillas, “Shamefully Rich, Clan Has 35 Houses and Fleet of Wheels,” http://pcij.
org/stories/featured-stories/shamefully-rich-clan-has-35-houses-fleet-of-wheels/
(accessed 10 July 2012); Soliman M. Santos, Jr., “The Maguindanao Massacre, the
36
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Bangsamoro Problem and the Peace Process, http://pcij.org/stories/the-maguindanaomassacre-the-bangsamoro-problem-and-the-peace-process/ (accessed 10 July 2012);
and Ed Lingao, “Putting Maguindanao in Context,” http://pcij.org/stories/puttingmaguindanao-in-context/ (accessed 10 July 2012). There appears to be no genuine
effort on the part of leaders such as them to empower the people and effect genuine
change. It even appears that they are using the people as milking cows for their own
ends and treat them as serfs in their perceived “feudal” lands.
See also Peter Kreuzer, “Political Clans and Violence in the Southern
Philippines,” Peace Research Institute Frankfurt Report No. 71 (2005), http://hsfk.de/
downloads/PRIF-71.pdf (accessed 1 July 2011). In this paper, Kreuzer highlights the
need to understand the role of feuding political clans either with one another and/
or with the armed Moro fronts in order to better understand the complexity of the
situation and respond accordingly to it: “Any strategy which aims at resolving the
political conflict between the MILF guerrillas and the Philippine state, must be aware
of the interdependencies between the various arenas of violence and players and
must therefore develop an integrated ‘recipe’ for civilising the violence” (Kreuzer,
“Political Clans and Violence,” iii).
For a fuller treatment of the historical roots and contemporary causes of the
Moro armed struggle, see Macapado Abaton Muslim, The Moro Armed Struggle in
the Philippines: The Non-Violent Autonomy Alternative (Marawi City: Office of the
President and College of Public Affairs, Mindanao State University, 1994), 52-133. See
also United Nations Development Programme, Philippine Human Development Report
2005: Peace, Human Security, and Human Development in the Philippines (n.p.: Human
Development Network, United Nations Development Programme and New Zealand
Agency for International Development, n.d.), 66, http://hdr.undp.org/docs/reports/
national/PHI_Philippines/Philippines_2005_en.pdf (accessed 30 June 2008).
37
38
Cf. McKenna, Muslim Rulers and Rebels, 80-85.
39
Cf. Abinales, Orthodoxy and History; Abinales, Making Mindanao.
40
McKenna, Muslim Rulers and Rebels, 81.
41
McKenna, Muslim Rulers and Rebels, 84. McKenna’s contention is supported by
Hayase who argues that while Islam served as the new principle of unity in the
development of the Maguindanao sultanate, it was the interests of the ruling class
that mattered when historical circumstances changed (Shinzo Hayase, Mindanao
Ethnohistory Beyond Nations: Maguindanao, Sangir, and Bagobo Societies in East Maritime
Southeast Asia [Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University, 2007], 39-79).
42
43
McKenna, Muslim Rulers and Rebels, 86-112.
44
McKenna, Muslim Rulers and Rebels, 104-106. Saleeby, who published the first
scholarly work on Muslim Filipinos in English and who was the first superintendent
of schools of the Moro Province, proposed that the traditional Muslim elites be used to
implement American colonial policy. Aware that the various Muslim ethnolinguistic
groups were not united, Saleeby also argued for “the formation of a new transcendent
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Philippine Muslim identity: through the development of Morohood” (McKenna,
Muslim Rulers and Rebels, 106), a unifying identity which would serve as a means of
preparing them for eventual integration into a postcolonial Philippine nation.
45
46
Abinales, Making Mindanao, 2-4.
47
Abinales, Orthodoxy and History, 37-39.
48
Cf. Abinales, Orthodoxy and History, 34-72; Abinales, Making Mindanao, 45-68.
49
50
Rizal G. Buendia, “The Politics of Ethnicity and Moro Secessionism in the
Philippines,” Working Paper No. 146, Asia Research Centre, Murdoch University,
November 2007, 17, http://wwwarc.murdoch.edu.au/publications/wp/wp146.pdf
(accessed 15 October 2012).
51
52
Joint GPH-MILF Draft, “Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro,” 2, emphasis
added, http://opapp.gov.ph/sites/default/files/GPH-MILF%20Framework%20Agree
ment.pdf (accessed 11 November 2012).
53
Vatican II, Nostra aetate, 2.
54
Vatican II, Gaudium et spes, 22.
The late John Paul II goes on to develop this pneumatological dimension of the
Catholic Church’s theology of religions in his writings, particularly in Dominum et
vivificantem and Redemptoris missio, cf. O’Collins, “John Paul II on Christ, the Holy
Spirit and World Religions.”
55
56
57
Cf. Second Formation Institute for Inter-Religious Affairs, 3.1, in FAPA III, 126.
Cf. BIRA IV/7, 12, in FAPA I, 310.
58
FABC I, 12 in FAPA I, 14.
59
FABC I, 14, in FAPA I, 14.
60
Second Bishops’ Institute for Interreligious Affairs, 12, in FAPA I, 115.
61
Felix Wilfred, “Becoming Christian Inter-religiously,” in Being Christian, ed. Silvia
Scatena, et al, Concilium (London: SCM Press and Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books,
2011), 62.
Cf. Michael L. Fitzgerald, “Christian-Muslim Dialogue in South-East Asia,”
Islamochristiana 2 (1976): 171-77; Peter G. Gowing, “Christian-Muslim Dialogue in
62
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the Philippines 1976-1981,” Islamochristiana 7 (1981): 211-25; Sebastiana D’Ambra,
“Christian-Muslim Relations in the Philippines,” Islamochristiana 20 (1994): 179-206.
63
Michael Amaladoss, “Dialogue at the Service of Life,” FABC Papers 72B (1995): 11.
Julkipli Wadi, “Braving Muslim-Christian Dialogue: A Muslim Perspective,” MST
Review 6 (2004): 32. Given the apparent incommensurability of the different religious
traditions, dialogue seems to be more promising when there is a focus on commonly
shared human values rather than on doctrinal issues.
64
The present-day attitudes of Filipino Christians toward the Moros are admittedly
not merely an issue of reception but also involves issues such as of history, culture,
memory, and power, all of which influence negatively or positively the reception of
church teachings.
65
United Nations Development Programme, Philippine Human Development Report
2005: Peace, Human Security, and Human Development in the Philippines (n.p.: Human
Development Network, United Nations Development Programme and New Zealand
Agency for International Development, n.d.), 58, emphasis in the original http://hdr.
undp.org/docs/reports/national/PHI_Philippines/Philippines_2005_en.pdf (accessed
30 June 2008).
66
Rudy Rodil, a Mindanao historian and peace advocate, underscores the importance
of dealing with emotions in addressing the armed conflict in Mindanao and in the
peace process (Rudy Buhay Rodil, “Notes on the Conflict with Mindanawons,”
Tambara 27 (2010), http://ejournals.ph/index.php?journal=TAMBARA&page=article&
op=view&path%5B%5D=1878).
67
This is taken from an email posted in an e-group that serves as a forum for the
discussion of Mindanao concerns and issues.
68
Ramon Tulfo, “The President Is a Weakling,” On Target, 25 October 2011, http://
newsinfo.inquirer.net/82391/the-president-is-a-weakling, (accessed 30 October 2011).
69
70
Ramon Farolan, “Remembering Al-Barka,” Reveille, 18 June 2012, http://opinion.
inquirer.net/30907/remembering-al-barka (accessed 18 June 2012).
It may be of interest to note that two of the top ten “spoilers” of the peace process
for the MILF are Roman Catholic bishops, cf. “MILF Lists Top 10 ‘Spoilers’ of Peace
Talks,” 31 August 2011, http://www.gmanews.tv/story/231026/nation/milf-lists-top10-spoilers-of-peace-talks (accessed 30 Oct 2011). While I present here stories of
the biases of many Filipino Christians against the Moros, of which there are many
others, I am not saying that they occur without any reason at all. On the contrary, it
is true that many of these Christians had negative personal experiences of the Moros,
stories which were shared and became part of the social consciousness of many
Christians communities. It is also true that on the side of the Moros, they have their
own prejudices against Filipino Christians which also are a part of their community’s
consciousness.
71
72
In a study of the Mindanao Bishops-Ulama Conference, it was reported that
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priests who participated in the Imam-Priests-Pastors Forum received “negative
feedback from parishioners, and… [were] ‘insulted, criticized, isolated and accused
of being pro-Muslim’” (Brenda Fitzpatrick, “The Philippines. The Mindanao BishopsUlama Conference,” in Pursuing Just Peace: An Overview and Case Studies for FaithBased Peacebuilding, ed. Mark M. Rogers, Tom Bamat and Julie Ideh, 127 (Baltimore:
Catholic Relief Services, 2008), http://www.crsprogramquality.org/storage/pubs/
peacebuilding/pursuing_just_peace.pdf (accessed 21 June 2012).
73
Since the time of this writing, the RH bill was passed by both the House of
Representatives and the Senate of the Republic of the Philippines after lengthy and
bitter debates. It was signed into law by President Benigno Aquino Jr., on 21 December
2012, as Republic Act No. 10354, the “Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive
Health Act of 2012”—much to the dismay of many leaders of the Catholic Church
and their supporters.
74
CBCP, “We Must Reject House Bill 4110,” 31 May 2003, http://cbcponline.net/
v2/?p=476 (accessed 12 July 2012). Three years before this, the CBCP issued a letter
in which it criticized four bills in Congress which it deemed problematic. The bills
it criticized involved the issues of divorce, the legalization of abortion, lesbian
and gay rights, and population program (“‘That They May Have Life and Have It
Abundantly’: Pastoral Statement on the Defense of Life and Family,” 26 January 2000,
http://cbcponline.net/v2/?p=449 [accessed 12 July 2012]).
Cf. CBCP, “Hold On to Your Precious Gift,” 18 February 2005, http://cbcponline.
net/v2/?p=505; “Standing Up for the Gospel of Life,” 14 November 2008, http://
cbcponline.net/v2/?p=558; “Reiterating CBCP Position on Family,” 16 September 2009,
http://cbcponline.net/v2/?p=574; “On the Government’s Revitalized Promotion of
Condoms,” 2 March 2010 http://cbcponline.net/v2/?p=580; and “Securing Our Moral
Heritage: Towards a Moral Society,” 24 July 2010, http://cbcponline.net/v2/?p=588;
(accessed 12 July 2012). The bishops also partly touched on the issues involved in the
bill in another letter, “Saving and Strengthening the Filipino Family: A CBCP Pastoral
Statement on the 20th Anniversary of Familiaris Consortio,” 2 December 2001, http://
cbcponline.net/v2/?p=465 (accessed 12 July 2012).
75
76
CBCP, “Choosing Life, Rejecting the RH Bill (A Pastoral Letter of the Catholic
Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines),” 30 January 2011, http://cbcponline.net/
v2/?p=1151 (accessed 24 June 2012).
77
Eric M. Genilo, “Crossing the Line: Church Use of Political Threats Against ProRH Bill Legislators,” Hapag: A Journal of Interdisciplinary Theological Research 7 (2010):
63-77.
For instance, Patricia Evangelista in her PDI column questions the pronouncements
of church leaders against the RH bill, particularly the church’s understanding of
“contraceptive mentality” and “artificial” in relation to contraceptives (Patricia
Evangelista, “Contraceptive Mentality,” Method in Madness, 24 June 2012, http://
opinion.inquirer.net/31291/contraceptive-morality, accessed 24 June 2012). For her
part, Mary Racelis calls on church leaders to learn to listen to women and seriously
consider the consequences of their decisions on them (“A Listening Church?,” http://
opinion.inquirer.net/31851/a-listening-church, accessed 12 July 2012).
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I am making the presupposition here that an integral part of the Catholic Church’s
mission in Mindanao is the task of peacebuilding. When confronted with a conflict
situation that has cost the lives of thousands and the destruction of property worth
millions, the church cannot but consider peacebuilding as an urgent task.
79
For examples of these efforts “from below,” cf. Karl M. Gaspar, Elpidio A. Lapad
and Ailynne J. Maravillas, Mapagpakamalinawon: A Reader for the Mindanawon Peace
Advocate (Davao: Alternate Forum for Research in Mindanao, Inc. and Catholic Relief
Services, 2002). Cf. also LaRousse, Walking Together Seeking Peace, 389-406.
80
Cf. CBCP, “Joint Pastoral Letter on the Church’s Mission of Peace,” http://
cbcponline.net/v2/?p=240, 1982 (accessed 12 July 2012); CBCP, “A Covenant Towards
Peace,” 21 November 1986, http://cbcponline.net/v2/?p=285 (accessed 12 July 2012);
and CBCP, “The Fruit of Justice Is Peace,” 26 January 1987, http://cbcponline.net/
v2/?p=292 (accessed 12 July 2012).
81
CBCP, “Seek Peace, Pursue It,” 31 January 1990, http://cbcponline.net/v2/?p=314
(accessed 12 July 2012). It must be pointed out that while the Bangsamoro issue is a
question of sovereignty for the government, it is a question of self-determination for
the Moros.
82
Cf. CBCP, “Pastoral Statement of the CBCP on Peace-Building,” 25 January 1993,
http://cbcponline.net/v2/?p=345 (accessed 12 July 2012); and “Peace in Our Times,” 12
July 1993, http://cbcponline.net/v2/?p=347 (accessed 12 July 2012).
83
CBCP, “An Urgent Appeal for Peace in Mindanao,” 6 July 2000, http://cbcponline.
net/v2/?p=459; (accessed 12 July 2012).
84
CBCP, “An Urgent Appeal for Peace in Mindanao.” In a previous letter, “Building
a Culture of Peace by Respecting Life and Human Rights,” the bishops underscored
the need to build a culture of life, a culture of human rights and a culture of peace.
The bishops referred to efforts being done to foster peace in Mindanao and stressed
the need for dialogue (http://cbcponline.net/v2/?p=444, 26 January 2000 [accessed 12
July 2012]).
85
CBCP, “An Urgent Appeal for Peace,” 10 March 2003, http://cbcponline.net/
v2/?p=489 (accessed 12 July 2012).
86
CBCP, “Toward Building a Just and Lasting Peace in Mindanao (A Statement of
Catholic Bishops in Mindanao on the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro),” 14
October 2012, http://www.cbcpnews.com/cbcpnews/?p=5759 (accessed 7 November
2012). While it is the people of Mindanao who will be directly affected by any peace
agreement, this statement will have more political weight if it was issued not only by
the Mindanao bishops but by the entire CBCP.
87
Mohagher Iqbal, “The Need for Urgency in Negotiation,” http://www.luwaran.
com/home/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1715:the-need-forurgency-in-negotiation&catid=58:speeches&Itemid=543 (accessed 30 June 2011).
These “decision-makers” that Iqbal refers to are mostly Christian politicians and
88
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business people and Muslim political leaders who have been co-opted by the
Philippine government.
89
Iqbal, “The Need for Urgency in Negotiation.”
Bong D. Fabe, “Mindanao Dioceses, Catholic Universities Urged to Help Push Peace
Process,” CBCP News, 14 June 2011, http://www.cbcpnews.com/?q=node/15830
(accessed 30 June 2011).
90
Admittedly, the church in Muslim Mindanao has other faces. For instance, during
the martial law years under President Ferdinand Marcos, many church people were
at the forefront of the battle for human rights. Unfortunately, this and similar faces of
the church have been marginalized with respect to the Moro issue.
91
92
Cf. John Paul Lederach, “Justpeace: The Challenge of the 21st Century,” in People
Building Peace: 35 Inspiring Stories from Around the World (Utrecht: European Center
for Conflict Prevention, 1999), 27-36.
93
Wilfred, Margins: Site of Asian Theologies, xi.
94
For a study that highlights the agency and the power of the bakwit in the face of
suffering, cf. Jose Jowel Canuday, Bakwit: Power of the Displaced (Quezon City: Ateneo
de Manila University, 2009).
95
Proactive measures on the part of the church would mean a more active involvement
on the part of its leaders in establishing harmonious relationships with leaders of
both the military and the Moros and in building Christian communities of healing
and reconciliation.
Orlando B. Quevedo, “Injustice: the Root of Conflict in Mindanao,” http://www.
bangsamoro.info/modules/wfsection/article.php?articleid=46 (accessed 30 June
2008). While Quevedo seems right in emphasizing injustice as the root of the conflict
in Mindanao, Patricio Diaz argues convincingly that the solution to the “Muslim
Problem” is the upliftment of the socio-economic life of the Muslim masses and not
just the appeasement of Muslim leaders, cf. Patricio P. Diaz, Understanding Mindanao
Conflict (Davao City: MindaNews Publication, 2003), 2-22.
96
97
See the groundbreaking work, Robert J. Schreiter, R. Scott Appleby, and Gerard F.
Powers, eds. Peacebuilding: Catholic Theology, Ethics, and Praxis (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis
Books, 2010).
98
Orlando B. Quevedo, “An Open Appeal for Peace and for Our Evacuees,” 23 July
2009.
99
On the ministry of reconciliation, cf. Robert J. Schreiter, The Ministry of Reconciliation:
Spirituality and Strategies (Maryknoll, N.Y, Orbis Books, 1998); Robert J. Schreiter,
“Reconciliation and Healing as a Paradigm for Mission,” International Review of
Mission 94 (2005): 74-83.
100
Appleby, “Closing Statement.”
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75
While pakikipagkapwa-tao appears to be a distinctive Tagalog value, it seems
that based on my informal conversations with persons of other ethnic groups
pakikipagkapwa-tao has a dynamic equivalence in their own languages. Yet, this
apparent similarity of values is not treated in this paper for reasons of brevity and
will be explored in another study.
101
Virgilio G. Enriquez, From Colonial to Liberation Psychology: The Philippine Experience
(Quezon City: University of the Philippines Press, 1992), 43. For Enriquez, kapwa is
a core Filipino concept that explains Filipino interpersonal behavior (From Colonial to
Liberation Psychology, 39-55).
102
Cf. Eduardo C. Vasquez, Jr., “A Glimpse on the Plight of the Internally Displaced
Persons of North Cotabato and Maguindanao,” 17 September 2009. Vasquez was
the head of the interreligious ministry of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate and
concurrently parish priest of Sta. Teresita Parish at the time of the war. His stories of
the experiences of several of the “bakwit” are heartrending and at times infuriating.
For instance, money is extorted from the “bakwit” by unscrupulous individuals in
order for the evacuees to receive the food tickets of the World Food Program (WFP).
They were made to pay 5 pesos for every name that was registered in the WFP master
list and when the food arrived, they were being charged 500 pesos when everything
was supposed to be free!
103
104
Appleby, “Closing Statement.”
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Toward a Pauline
Hermeneutic of Dialogue1
Dennis Solon
Heidelberg University
Nordrhein Westfalen, Germany
Paul’s letter to the Romans can serve as a methodological tool
for present-day Filipino Christians in engaging their Muslim
counterparts. In this letter, Paul encourages his readers to engage
each other in love and acceptance. Although the conflicting parties
described in this letter both belong to the same group of Jesus‘
followers, they can nevertheless be seen as representing differing
cultures and religious convictions. Hence, Filipino Christians can
draw lessons from this letter about some significant and positive
ways for dealing with peoples of other religious persuasions.
Keywords: Pauline hermeneutic, interreligious dialogue, sin,
salvation, reconciliation, hospitality, non-retaliation
T
Introduction
hough the causes and supporting rationales of the present
conflict in Mindanao2 are increasingly complex, such conflict
nevertheless follows the basic pattern of Muslim and Christian
religious strife common since the Spanish colonization of the country
during the 16th century.3 This essay focuses on this religious aspect,4
and proceeds from the assumption that the political and cultural
struggle has some religious factors. The fundamental importance of
the religious dimension(s) of the conflict in Mindanao manifests itself
in the developing trend toward interreligious dialogue.5
Finding new methods and paradigms for engaging with
peoples of other faiths, like Muslims, remains a constant challenge
for Filipinos. Basic here is the need to explore the theological and
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exegetical dimensions for such dialogues.6 In German context, Gerd
Theißen emphasizes the challenge of Biblical exegetes in bringing
their disciple forward in the direction of interreligious dialogue. He
writes:
Nun ist es eine angenehme Aufgabe, durch Auslegung der Bibel eine gemeinsame
Basis für die christlichen Konfessionen im ökumenischen Dialog zu schaffen. Vor uns
liegt aber eine weit schwierige Aufgabe, der interreligiöse Dialog.7
At present, achieving a common basis for the Christian confessions in ecumenical
dialogue through interpretation of the Bible is a convenient task. But a far difficult
task confronts us: interpreting the Bible for interreligios dialogue. (translation mine)
In response to the present need, this paper examines the potential
contribution of the Pauline writings, focusing specifically on the letter
to the Romans and on the general question of peacemaking through
interreligious dialogue. Many New Testament scholars have argued
that peacemaking is one of Paul’s major concerns in his apostolic
ministry, as can be gleaned from his letters. Conversely, the practice
of interreligious dialogue is seen nowadays as a way of making
peace. Since this paper is exegetical (pertaining to the methodological
process of discerning “what the text could have meant”) in nature,
it does not attempt a systematic treatment of Paul’s approach to
religious dialogue. It seeks, rather, to encourage the reading of Paul
as one engaged in a similar task. However, it hopes to offer some
hermeneutical (as concerned with discerning “what the text could
mean today”) impulses in today‘s interreligious context. This essay
proceeds with a brief description and background of the MuslimChristian religious issues, which provides the context of interpretation.
Then it moves to a basic exegetical analysis of Romans, after which
some hermeneutical points will be highlighted.
Religious Violence Between
Christians and Muslims in Mindanao
I identify this conflict as having religious dimensions due to an
understanding that political and cultural conflict in Mindanao is
rooted in a conflict of religious identities. One central factor here is
what may be termed “mutual prejudice.”8 The Muslims consider
Christians “land grabbers and oppressors who took away their lands
from them.”9 I grew up in a relatively Christian community in the
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TOWARDS A PAULINE HERMENEUTIC OF DIALOGUE
middle of the Philippines and it was only late in my teenage years that
I finally met some Muslims. Yet, during my childhood, the common
opinion was that Muslims were less “cultured”10 and even that they
were “murderers, thieves and dirty.”11 The media has reportedly
reinforced this prejudicial attitude toward the Muslims.12 Although
both sides suffer from this stereotyping, it is the Muslims who suffer
most, given that they are a religious minority. What caused all these
negative labelings? Let us quickly visit the history of the conflict in
Mindanao.
Historical Background of the Religious Conflict in Mindanao:
A (Very) Short Sketch
As Muslims comprise only about five percent of the total Philippine
population,13 they are numerically a small minority in the Philippines.14
They are, however, long established within Philippine society. There
exist documented accounts of Muslim settlement in Mindanao from
early as the middle of the 14th century. These migrants from the
Malay peninsula settled first in Borneo and then in the islands of Sulu.
Over a period of time, these Muslim communities expanded to the
southern coasts of Mindanao.15
The Spanish occupation and colonization of the Philippines, especially
beginning in 1571, disrupted the spread of Islam throughout the Philippine
Islands.16 The ugly story of Spain’s 300 year long unsuccessful yet bloody
attempts to subjugate the Muslim population left a monumental mark
on the Muslims in Mindanao, who sought to protect their cultural and
religious heritage at all costs. Gowing‘s comment that Muslims regarded
armed encounter between them and the Spaniards and Christian Filipinos
as a jihad (holy war)17 relates the “religious” character of the conflict. The
series of armed encounters left burned towns and villages, and death
of hundreds of men, women, and children behind them. Of course, the
conflict was not one-sided: both communities were victims of “cruelty
and butchery.”18
Military operations against the Muslim population characterized
also the start of the American occupation.19 This approach soon
changed, however, into “a policy of friendship, aid and toleration.”20
Quite the opposite of their predecessors, the Americans can generally
be viewed as tolerant towards the Muslim religion. According to
Mckenna, “American colonizers often exhibited a certain respect for
the ‘Mohammedanism’ they found in the Philippines and did not
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encourage Christian proselytization among the Philippine Muslims.”21
During this period, the main reason for the marginalization of the
Muslim population was the immigration of Christian Filipinos from the
northern part of the Philippines, a practice initiated by the Americans
and continued during the Philippine commonwealth beginning in
1935. After the devastation of World War II, Mindanao became viewed
as a land of opportunity. This led to another wave of immigration, the
peak of which occurred in the ‘60s and ‘70s. This drastically changed
the percentage of Muslim population in Mindanao. During this
period, many Muslims who had rightful claim to their land by virtue
of ancestral domain, lost that ownership because they did not follow
American legal procedures. The lack of access to national assistance
for development (e.g., education, infrastructure), coupled with the
perceived contempt toward Muslims, resulted in the development
of an independence movement among Muslims. This movement was
first known as the Muslim Independence Movement (MIM), formed
by Udtog Matalam on 1 May 1968.22 The Moro National Liberation
Front (MNLF) also began during this period “as an underground
movement in the youth section of the MIM” and continued after the
disbandment of MIM.23 In 1984 the Moro Islamic Liberation Front
was formed, which has an added goal of forming an Islamic state.24
Since breakup of talks between the Arroyo government and the
Muslim rebels in 2008, armed conflict in Mindanao has resulted in the
displacement of at least 750,000 Christians and Muslims and several
hundred of casualties.25 If one counts deaths and displacements of
persons from the Marcos regime (1965-1986) to 2008, this total would
increase to more than three million displaced persons and at least
120,000 deaths, according to the best estimates.26
The socio-political conflict in Mindanao is an intricate matter.
Alongside Mindanao’s general culture of violence, one finds the
cultural mandate of “retaliation” predominant among many tribal
groups in Mindanao.27 All of this is supported by the problems of
“starvation and poverty, environmental decay, militarism, inequality,
underdevelopment, sexism, ethnic and religious discrimination.”28
These are all important contributing factors, but are not my immediate
concern. My point is that the persistent conflict in Mindanao has
a religious root, and that this cannot be detached from the sociocultural and political problems of today. With this in mind, I turn to
Paul’s letter to the Romans as a way toward a Pauline hermeneutic of
religious dialogue.
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The Need to Contextualize Paul
The increasing interest in a contextual approach to the Christian
faith, in theology as well as in Biblical interpretation, is well known.
One major challenge in Biblical interpretation, especially in Asia, is
to read the Bible from “contextual, pluralist, and postcolonial and
religious perspectives.”29 This approach allows the text to speak to
the historical realities in Asia and to make better sense of the Bible’s
gospel proclamation. With a postcolonial reading, attention is given
to the voices of the “colonized and marginalized in the biblical text,”30
and the reader is instructed to maintain a hermeneutic of suspicion
with regard to “texts used to justify colonial powers.”31 This is where I
wish to begin. Reading Paul from a postcolonialist perspective allows
us to develop a Pauline “hermeneutic of dialogue.” What I mean here
by “postcolonialist” is avoiding an interpretation that would represent
political or cultural domination. In the following brief investigation of
Romans, using a hermeneutic of dialogue, I wish to demonstrate two
things. First, for Paul, the false appropriation of religion can cause
injustice and, as a worst case, bring destruction to the human race.
Second, Paul’s ethic of love and tolerance is necessary for today’s
Christian Filipinos in engaging with peoples of other religions.
A Hermeneutic of Dialogue
This study employs Martin Buber’s programmatic “dialogical
hermeneutic.” The basic method draws inspiration from Paul Knitter’s
emphasis on human relationship necessary to such dialogue.32 In Buber’s
dialogical hermeneutic greater emphasis falls on the text rather than on
its author. In effect there is an “I-Thou” relationship between the (actual)
reader and the (original) text as against between the reader and the author.
In other words, the (original) author becomes in principle detached from
this interpretive engagement as the text is seen in the present context of
interpretation. This entails the risk of misrepresenting the original author
or missing the author’s original intent. I take that risk in this essay of
possibly misreading or misrepresenting Paul.33
Such a kind of reading can result in a transformation of the
reader in the course of engaging with the text. In this hermeneutical
process the reader is aware that Biblical interpretation is not just an
individual enterprise but also a “public and communal matter.”34
Here, the immediate context of the interpreter(s), therefore, comes
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into play. Employing this hermeneutical method in the interreligious
context of the Philippines, the question becomes one of how a Filipino
can read the Bible as a “Thou” and think of one’s fellows as another
“Thou.” This calls for the laying aside of prejudice towards those of
other religions.35
By “hermeneutic” I am referring to the carrying out of a Biblical
text‘s meaning, i.e., an answer to “what the text meant?” to the present
(social, political, cultural) realities of the interpreter.36 Because I, as
an interpreter, am situated in an interreligious (and socio-political)
conflict, I have found the concept of “dialogue” useful as a model for
this task. Dialogue is widely accepted as an effective way of engaging
across interreligious boundaries. Volker Küster breaks this process
down into two ethical missional tasks: [1] understanding of the faith
of the dialogue partner; and [2] appropriation of one‘s faith in relation
to the dialogue partner.37 This paper focuses on the second aspect, in
that it underscores the ethical dimension(s) of religious dialogue.
I thus read the theological aspects of Romans with a mind to
constructing a positive account that will direct and support Christian
Filipinos in their engagement with Filipino Muslims. As will be shown
below, the theological concepts of salvation, sin, and reconciliation as
well as the ethical imperatives of hospitality and non-retaliation in
Romans are prominent themes for a Pauline hermeneutic of dialogue.
Based on Buber‘s “dialogical hermeneutic,” these concepts will be
interpreted in light of the situation of Mindanao.
Paul‘s Approach to Other Religious Traditions
and Its Reception
Judaism was itself characterized by a large measure of diversity, and
the “Jesus-Messianic” movement, whose message Paul preached
among the non-Jewish world, was part of that diversity. While Paul
had to deal with some social and cultural tensions within this larger
stream,38 the group encountered other religious beliefs among nonJewish peoples. Paul interpreted such encounters in light of his
Jewish “theo-political”39 roots. He himself confessed to being a Jew
(Phil 3:5; Rom 11:1). The book of Acts reports that Paul also bore a
Jewish name “Saul” (7:57; 8:1,3; 9:1,4).40 Paul’s own writings and
the narratives of Acts suggest Paul’s encounter with non-Jewish
religions within the Greco-Roman world. The author of Acts in
17:16-31 narrates Paul‘s activities in Athens and his speech before
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people of other religious convictions there. One can sense that what
took place in this very incident was a religious dialogue through a
question-answer narrative.41 First, Paul discusses with the people
there and proclaims Jesus and his resurrection (Vv. 17-18). Then the
Athenians ask Paul about his preaching: “May we know what this
new teaching is that you are presenting” (17:19)? Paul then responds
with a positive, appreciative remark of their religiousity: “Athenians, I
see how extremely religious you are in every way” (17:22).42 Owing to
his encounter with non-Jewish religions in the Greco-Roman world,
it is plausible that Paul may have been influenced by their beliefs and
thoughts.43 From Acts 17, one can conclude that Paul, as Luke reports,
was basically respectful, albeit critical, of other religions.44 This story
in Acts 17 is but only a report from an observer of Paul. Let us now
look at Paul through his letter to the Romans more closely in view of
our concern in formulating a hermeneutic of dialogue.
General Thoughts on Romans
It can, first of all, be argued that Paul’s letter to the Romans is universal
in scope.45 Some of the universal themes in Romans are as follows:
[1] Universality of salvation. In reference to the gospel, i.e. the Christ
event, Paul argues that “it is the power of God for salvation (soteria)
to everyone who has faith, to the Jews first and to the Greek” (Rom
1:16). The meaning of the Greek word soteria contains the senses of
deliverance, security, safety, bodily health, and well-being.46 The English
translation “salvation” may, therefore, encompass all these aspects.
With this, Paul may sound inclusivistic47 given that the salvation, which
resulted from the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ was now being
extended to non-Jews. Noteworthy is the manner in which Paul regards
the hope of deliverance from turmoil and oppression as available to all
people regardless of race and culture. In Paul’s understanding, such
salvation is closely related to God’s justice, as expressed in Rom 1:1718. Waetjen comments that “salvation and God’s justice are inextricably
linked together in the gospel that Paul evangelizes because salvation...
is a continuous interdependent collaboration between God and human
beings that is directed toward the realization of all that God‘s justice
designs to accomplish in the world.”48
[2] The general reference to peoples of various races. This can be illustrated
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by Paul’s use of the Greek ethnos (pl. ethne). In the Hellenistic-Jewish
literature, the word refers to nations and peoples in generic terms, and
can include Israel or be used in distinction to Israel.49 Paul employs this
terminology in a similar manner.50 The term occurs in Paul’s authentic
letters 45 times, and in Romans alone 29 times. The usual translation51
“Gentile(s),” which distinguishes itself from “Jew(s)” may not always
capture Paul’s idea of “ethnos/ethne” in Romans. In Rom 1:5, for example,
Paul talks about the received grace and apostleship “to bring about
obedience of faith among all the nations (ethne)…,” which includes his
readers/hearers in Rome (Rom 1:6).
[3] The universality of Sin. In Rom 3:9, Paul declares that all human
beings, whether Jew or Greek, share the same status, i.e. that all are
under sin (hamartia). Hamartia is “the power of the infection that
generates idolatry and injustice.”52 Quoting from the Scriptures, Paul
continues that “no one is righteous. There is no one who understands.
There is no one who seeks God…No one does what is right. Not even
one.” (3:10-11, 12b). Earlier Paul charged Jews and Gentiles alike with
godlessness and unrighteousness (asebeia kai adikia) in Rom 1:18-2:16.
Yet, observable in 3:9ff is Paul’s description of human aggressiveness
through words and deeds as a means to damage other individuals.
This, for Paul, is a sign of Sin’s reign over the speaker and the doer.53
Rom 3:13ff juxtaposes the malicious words and brutal acts that
destroy humankind in describing human sin. The verb dolioo (to
deceive) in v. 13, which appears here in imperfect active form, signifies
words spoken that bear no truth or are devoid of certainty.54 The text
in Psa 5:10, which Paul cites, describes how the evildoers desert truth.
As P. Craigie comments, “Their tongues articulate no truth, but only
the smooth words of flattery, which are lies designed cunningly to
enable the evil to achieve their ends.”55
The expression “their feet are swift to shed blood” in Rom 3:15
speaks of the sinful human’s delight hurting, harassing and finally
killing individuals. Isa 59:7-8, cited by Paul here, regards the blood
shed by these evil persons as innocent.56 In view of social injustice, T.
W. Jennings, Jr. rightly describes universal sin:
Universal “sin” is the characterization not of individuals as individuals but of social
totalities that are in basic ways ‘unjust.’ Individuals whether Greek or Judean seen
simply as persons may indeed, as Paul has said, do what is just and right. But when
viewed as participants in unjust social orders they are nonetheless judged as the
social order is judged.57
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[4] The universal dimension of reconciliation. In Paul’s Rom 9-11
discussion concerning the Jews not believing in or rejecting Jesus
Christ, he states, “For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the
world (katallage kosmou), what will their acceptance be but life from
the dead” (11:15)! In 11:12 he also declares: “Now if their stumbling
means riches for the world (ploutos kosmou), and if their defeat means
riches for (the) nations (ploutos ethnon), how much more will their
full inclusion mean?” Although Paul’s position may seem enigmatic,
one thing is clear: for Paul, the failure of the Jews to come to faith in
Jesus Christ paves the way for the salvation of all nations. The word
ploutos (riches) here may refer generally to the blessings brought by
the gospel to other nations.58 Rom 11:15 is an explicit expression of
Paul’s universalism, that is, the prospect of salvation for all based on
his understanding of Christ’s gospel.59 The expression katallage kosmou
may be read as a general reference to reconciliation between any
conflicting parties. The term katallage originally carries a diplomatic
concept in the Hellenistic world. It means the coming together of two
parties who have become enemies toward each other, and thereby
establish friendship.60 Paul picks up this Greek concept in oder
to make better sense of his message of reconciliation between God
and humankind through Jesus’ death (see Rom 5:1, 8-10).61 For Paul,
the possibility of human reconciliation rests on the truth of God’s
reconciliation to humankind through Jesus Christ.
In Paul’s context, on the micro level, he encountered the conflict
between the Christian Jews and Gentiles on the micro level. On
the macro level, there existed the conflict between the Christian
community and the Roman imperial order. Hermeneutically, katallage
kosmou could effectively address present day conflicts, including
those between religious groups (although this may not have been at
the forefront of Paul’s own thinking). Moreover, a focus of human
relationships is discernable in Paul’s overarching argument in Rom
11:32-15:13. Here, Paul pursues a theology of reconciliation that can
unite conflicting groups, not only among the churches in Rome, but
also within the increasingly divided global Messianic movement.
Some Implications of Romans for
the Conflict in Mindanao
To draw this into the context of Mindanao, it seems, first, clear that the
discussion of salvation is important. In Mindanao, salvation can mean
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deliverance from flying bullets, the safety of women and children,
and a basic level of human security. Countless families have been
displaced due to armed conflict. Many have left their farms, shifting
either to urban areas or migrating to other provinces and beginning
life anew without anything.62 These people have chosen to suffer
poverty and homelessness rather than to endure the mental and
psychological torture of war. As a result of war, and corrupt officials
Mindanao is underdeveloped. Most areas in southern Mindanao have
a low literacy rate. Foreign aid is scarce in these regions.
Second, Filipino Christian engagement with Muslims, drawing
on Paul’s discussion on the universality of sin, must include a mutual
acknowledgment of failures, not mutual blaming. The Muslim
minority has suffered the brunt of the blame. Here the media has an
important role in curbing the mindset among the majorities that the
Muslims are the “bad guys.” The desire and delight “to shed blood”
(Rom 3:15) has potentially greater consequences today given the
advanced technology of warfare whereby it is possible to kill tens or
hundreds in a single instant.
Third is the concept of reconciliation (katallage). Armed conflict
in Mindanao, since the advent of the MNLF, has been going on for
almost half a century. This armed conflict must one day come to an
end. This is where Paul’s idea of reconciliation can be instructive.
Reconciliation can mean not just the peaceful coming together
of conflicting individuals, but also of warring ethnic or religious
groups. Reconciliation, however, does not mean here eradication of
differences, rather the appreciation of co-existence without injuring
those who are different. Tensions arise when one imposes one’s
own persuasions on the other. In a context of differing cultures and
persuasions, Paul issues some ethical exhortations in Rom 12, which
could serve Filipino Christians as guiding ethical principles.
Romans 12 and the Christian Ethic of Dialogue
As mentioned earlier, our Pauline hermeneutic of dialogue seeks to
highlight the ethical aspect of it, that means the practice of our faith in
relation to other religious groups. The Pauline idea of peacemaking,
which is prominent in Romans 12, could be a pragmatic way of
appropriating such aspect. In Romans 12-15:13, Paul explains the
ethical consequences of receiving God’s grace through Jesus Christ
(see Rom 3:21-26; 5:1-11; 8:1ff). In chapter 12, Paul encourages his
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readers to offer their bodies to God as a reasonable worship (vv. 1-2),
to treat each other as equal members of the one body of Christ (vv.
3-8), and to maintain the character of Christian life both within and
without the Christian community (vv. 9-21). In reference to ChristianMuslim context in the Philippines, this section focuses on Rom 12:921.
Love as hospitality to strangers (vv. 9-13)
Verses 9-13 highlight the command of love. Paul calls for a truthful
(not hypocritical; Grk., anypokritos) manifestation of love. The
Christ-believers are supposed to reciprocate such love with one
another, excelling in showing honor, and finally, they should pursue
friendships with strangers (ten philoxenian diokontes; cf. Rom 15:7).
Existing translations of this last phrase in v. 13 connote the idea of
extending or showing hospitality (e.g., NRSV, ESV, Menge, Zürcher,
and Luther translations). Although these translations capture Paul’s
thought, they somehow minimize his emphasis on love for strangers
(or “friendship with strangers”), as characterized by the Greek word
philoxenia. This term means “to receive and show hospitality to a
stranger, that is, someone who is not regarded as a member of the
extended family or a close friend.”63
This Pauline teaching is significant for a Christian engagement
with Muslim counterparts. Muslims, due to their religious beliefs and
lifestyles, are often viewed precisely as strangers. The usual Christian
Filipino attitude is to shy away from them. Christian Filipinos
tend to do business but not make friends with them. The meaning
of philoxenia could also extend to accommodating those who are
different in terms of race, culture or religious persuasion.
Ethic of Non-retaliation (vv. 14-21)
The ethical exhortations of Paul in Rom 12:14-21, especially vv. 14,
17-21, may be read as an “ethic of non-retaliation.”64 This particular
exhortation is addressed to Christ-believers in Rome and regards
how they should relate to outsiders, most especially how to respond
to external hostilities.65
Bless66 those who attack67 (diokontas) [you],68 bless and do not curse (v. 14)…
Return no one evil for evil, but take foresight for good conduct in the sight of all.
If possible, so far as it concerns you, live peacably with all.
Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but leave room for wrath; for it is written,
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‘Vengeance is mine, I myself will repay, says the Lord.’
But, ‘if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him drink; for by doing
so you will heap coals of fire upon his head.’
Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good.
Supposing that the pronoun “you” in Rom 12:14 is likely not
Paul’s formulation, the expression “bless the attackers” may refer to
the command of blessing them, whether or not the Christ-believers
in Rome were being directly effected by the attacks.69 The participial
forms in v. 17 constitute a polite variation of the direct command of
parallel text found in Joseph and Aseneth 28:14.70 Significant here is
the presence of “all” (panton) in v. 17b, which further indicates that a
Christian’s relationship to the “attackers” is part of the good conduct71
to be carried out in sight of human beings.72 Thus v. 17 suggests a
particular way of responding to hospitality. In connection with v.
21, retaliation does not overcome evil. Overcoming evil occurs by
doing what is good. In v. 18, Paul reformulates this creative response
to hostility through the admonition to make peace (eireneuontes) with
all. Again, the presence of “all” implies that this task is not limited
to those within the Christ-believing community, but extends to
those outside, including the persecutors.73 Relating to the practice of
peacemaking, Paul discourages his Roman Christian readers from
revenge. God is to deal with the enemy’s offenses (v. 19), since God
alone is the final avenger.74 The readers are encouraged to respond
affirmatively by providing for the needs of their enemies as this might
in turn bring them to remorse and transformation.75
Conclusion
In this brief essay I have tried to demonstrate the usefulness of Paul‘s
letters in undertaking religious dialogues with Muslims, using his letter
to the Romans as an example. Central is the hermeneutical aspect, that
is, the importance Paul‘s ethic of non-retaliation as a basic Christian
characteristic. A Pauline hermeneutic of dialogue calls for Christian
sensitivity towards the needs of their Muslim brothers and sisters. It
challenges Christians to listen to their hopes, fears and concerns, and
to extend help without strings attached.76 Such a Pauline ethic of nonretaliation is perhaps the most challenging, but also most constructive
action, in view of the cultural-political conflicts in Mindanao. Unless
Christian Filipinos, holders of government positions or not, are
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willing to undertake such a pro-active non-retaliatory role in relating
to their Muslim counterparts, it is difficult to see a genuine peace
shining over the land of promise, the land of Mindanao. Owing to
the complexities of the grassroots situation in Mindanao, the present
paper does not offer how the ethical aspects of a Pauline hermenetic
of dialogue can be concretely applied in local contexts (among local
churches, for instance). This concern warrants consideration for
future study and reflection. Another thing that also needs attention in
the continuing task of formulating a Pauline hermeneutic of dialogue
is a closer analysis of Paul‘s use of justice terminologies in his letters,77
which appears to be a promising undertaking, especially in view of
the socio-cultual context of Mindanao.
NOTES
1
The author is grateful to Dr. John Flett and Dr. Gordon Zerbe for reading the draft.
Mindanao is the third major island group of the Philippines, located in the southern
part of the country.
2
The intricacies of the current conflict situation in Mindanao have been reported
by Johns Hopkins University’s School for Advanced International Studies after
a study trip in Mindanao conducted by some of its graduate students on Jan. 1522, 2011, in Hopmann and Zartman (eds.), “Mindanao: Understanding Conflict
2011,” http://www.sais-jhu.edu/academics/functional-studies/conflict-management/
pdf/Mindanao-Report_Complete_Report April 5.pdf (accessed July 20, 2012). See
also Mark Turner, Mindanao, Land of Unfulfilled Promise (Quezon City: New Day
Publishers, 1992).
3
The author is, however, aware that the religious is intrinsically related to the political
and cultural dimensions of the conflict. The use of “religious” here is not about to
“succumb to government and economic propaganda of the dominant economic and
political powers of the country,” as Bishop Erme Camba strikingly puts it in criticizing
the sole use of religious categories in dealing with Muslim-Christian relations in the
Philippines. The seemingly narrow understanding of “religion” outside the realm
of society and politics is perhaps a negative contribution of Christendom. It seems
to me that Islam encompasses the social, economic and political life of the Islamic
peoples, in the same way one can think of Judaism, which does not only refer to
Jewish religious beliefs but also the land and socio-political and cultural aspects
of the Jewish people (I borrowed this idea from Gordon Zerbe, based on a private
communication with him). See for example Daniel Boyarin, Border Lines: The Partition
of Judaeo-Christianity (Philadelphia Pa.: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2004). Lori
Peek, “Becoming Muslim: The Development of a Religious Identity,” Sociology of
Religion 66, no. 3 (2005): 215-42, highlights the importance of religious identity among
the Muslims as primary over other forms of social identity.
4
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5
Examples are: Silsilah, an interfaith dialogue movement founded by Fr. Sebastiano
D’Ambra on May 9, 1984; and the Bishop-Ulama Conference (BUC), a dialog
forum established in 1996 [see Brenda Fitzpatrick, “The Philippines: The Mindanao
Bishops-Ulama Conference,” in Pursuing Just Peace: An Overview and Case Studies for
Faith-Based Peacebuilders, ed. Mark Rogers (Baltimore: Catholic Relief Services, 2008)].
For the UCCP’s (United Church of Christ in the Philippines) active engagement in
this venture, see Erme Camba, “Muslim-Christian Relations in the Philippines,” a
paper presented at the Conference on “Postcolonial Christianity: Can Old Canadian
Wineskins Hold New Ethnic Wine” on March 11-14, 2002, at the Canadian Mennonite
University, Winnipeg, Canada. See also Cristina J. Montiel, et al., “The Moro Struggle
and the Challenge to Peace Building in Mindanao, Southern Philippines,” in Handbook
of Ethnic Conflict International Perspectives, ed. Dan Landis (Boston, MA: Springer,
2012), 80-82. It must be noted here that Silliman University’s newly established
Master in Peace Studies program is an evidence of the university‘s commitment to
promoting a culture of peace on the academic level.
6
Exegetical contributions supportive of religious dialogue in the Philippines are
relatively scarce. Mary Nebelsick, “Ishmael’s Forgiveness of Abraham in Genesis
25:8-9 as a Paradigm for Christian-Muslim Dialogue,” UCCP Church Workers Annual
Convocation (2007), appears to be the only exegetical contribution (from the Old
Testament) to this discussion in Philippine Context.
Gerd Theißen, “Von der Literatursoziologie zur Theorie der Urchristlichen Religion,”
in Neutestamentliche Wissenschaft: Autobiographische Essays aus der Evangelischen
Theologie, ed. Eve-Marie Becker (Tübingen and Basel: A. Francke Verlag, 2003), 176185, here 184. My own translation.
7
According to Laura Jennings, “Prejudice,” The concise encyclopedia of sociology
(2011): 470-71, 470, prejudice means “the judging of a person or idea, without prior
knowledge of the person or idea, on the basis of some perceived group membership.”
8
Manzano Nieva, “Christian-Muslim Relations in the Philippines,” http://cmglobal.
org/vincentiana/cgi-bin/library.cgi?e=q-00000-00---off-0vincenti--00-0----0-10-0---0--0direct-10---4-----dtx--0-1l--11-en-50---20-about-nieva+manzano--00-0-1-00-0-0-11-10utfZz-8-00&a=d&c=vincenti&srp=0&srn=0&cl=search&d=HASH0103db33264c7a7a
2be1510f (accessed May 14, 2013).
9
The underdevelopment of the southern regions in Mindanao in terms of economy
and education compared to those in central and northern areas of the Philippines
may reflect this kind of labelling. As Peter Gowing, Mosque and Moro: A Study of
Muslims in the Philippines (Manila: Philippine Federation of Christian Churches,
1964), 44, notes, “it is impossible not to note, as one travels through the Muslim areas
of the Philippines, the extraordinary backwardness of Muslim communities in every
area of life. The most elementary rules of sanitation and hygiene, long since adopted
by most Christian Filipinos, are unknown; medicines reside primarily in the hands
of Muslim faith healers or quack doctors; agricultural practices are highly traditional
and inefficient; the economy, in many areas, is not far removed from the barter
stage; and even minimum social overhead facilities such as access roads, deep wells,
etc., are in shorter supply than in other rural areas of the Philippines.” For a recent
10
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description of underdevelopment in Mindanao, cf. Miriam Coronel Ferrer, “From
Rebels to Governors: ‘Patronage Autonomy’ and Continuing Underdevelopment in
Muslim Mindanao,” in Regional Minorities and Development in Asia, ed. Huhua Cao,
and Elizabeth Morell (London; New York: Routledge, 2010).
Nieva, “Christian-Muslim Relations.” The “notorious” image of the Muslims is
sometimes used to admonish unruly children. In the neighborhood I used to hear
parents telling a child, “Watch out! if you continue misbehaving, a ‘Moro’ will soon
come with a sword to get you!”
11
Concerning this discussion, see Florangel Rosario-Braid, Tuazon, Ramon R.; Diola,
Faina L.; Lopez, Ann Lourdes C.; Gutoc-Tomawis, Samira, “Prejudice and Pride:
News Media’s Role in Promoting Tolerance,” http://www.muslimmindanao.ph/
mass_media/pride_prejudice.pdf (accessed May 14, 2013).
12
As of July 2011 the estimated philippine population is about 101.8 Millions. See
Thomas M. Mckenna, “Governing Muslims in the Philippines,” Harvard Asia Pacific
Review 9, 1 (2007): 3-9, 4. The article is accessible at http://www.indexmundi.com/
philippines/population.html.
13
For a discussion on the muslim minorities in the Philippines, see Abhoud Syed
M. Lingga, “Muslim Minority in the Philippines. A paper presented during the
Seacsn Conference 2004: “Issues and Challenges for Peace and Conflict Resolution in
Southeast Asia, Shangri-La Hotel, Penang, Malaysia, Jan. 12-15, 2004,” http://www.
muslimmindanao.ph/islam_phil/muslim minority.pdf (accessed April 24, 2013).
14
For the interest in space and time, I limit my discussion here and direct readers
for details about the history of the coming of Islam in the Philippines to Gowing,
Mosque and Moro, 16-36; F.V. Magdalena, “Intergroup Conflict in the Southern
Philippines: An Empirical Analysis,” Journal of Peace Research 14, no. 4 (1977): 299-313;
Thomas McKenna, Muslim Rulers and Rebels: Everyday Politics and Armed Separatism
in the Southern Philippines (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1998); William
Larousse, A Local Church Living for Dialogue: Muslim-Christian Relations in MindanaoSulu, Philippines, 1965-2000 (Roma: Pontificia università gregoriana, 2001), especially
the first three chapters.
15
16
Mckenna, “Governing Muslims in the Philippines”, 4.
Gowing, Mosque and Moro, 21. According to Nathan Gilbert Quimpo, “Options
in the the Puruis of a Just, Comprehensive, and Stable Peace in the Southern
Philippines,” Asian Survey 41, no. 2 (2001): 271-89, here 272, note 1, the MILF since its
founding “often referred to its struggle as a jihad.” It is noteworthy, that the jihad
does not generally refer to violent warfare, but to the (Muslim) struggle for obedience
to God‘s word and will on earth. See Irfan A. Omar, “Towards an Islamic Theology of
Nonviolence (Part 2): A Critical Appraisal of Maulana Wahiduddin Khan’s View of
Jihad,” Vidyajyoti Journal of Theological Reflection 72, no. 10 (2008): 751-58.
17
Gowing, Mosque and Moro, 22. The religious character of the Spanish offensives
against the Muslims can be discerned from the instructions of Governor-General des
Sande to a Captain Figueroa, who was in command of an expedition against the
18
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Muslims in 1578: “You shall order that there be not among them any more preaching
of the sect of Mohammed since it is evil and that of the Christian alone is good… And
because, for a short time since, the Lord of Mindanao has been deceived by preachers
of Burney [Borneo], and the people that our object is that they shall be converted to
Christianity, and that he must grant a safe place where the law of Christianity be
preached and the natives may hear the preaching an be converted without risk or
harm from the chiefs… And you shall try to ascertain who are the preachers of the
sect of Mohammed and to seize and bring them before me… And you shall burn or
tear down the house where the evil doctrine is preached. And you shall order that it
not be rebuilt.” Quoted by Gowing, Mosque and Moro, 20.
An example of this is Gen. Leonard Wood‘s assault of Bud Dahu in 1906, after the
Tausug (one of the various Muslim ethnic groups in the Philippines) leaders opposed
the American policies of occupying the Muslim soil. See Hannbal Bara, “The History
of the Muslim in the Philippines,” http://www.ncca.gov.ph/about-culture-and-arts/
articles-on-c-n-a/article.php?igm=4&i=232 (accessed Sept. 12, 2012).
19
20
Gowing, Mosque and Moro, 23.
21
McKenna, “Governing Muslims in the Philippines”, 4.
Cf. McKenna, Muslim Rulers and Rebels: Everyday Politics and Armed Separatism in the
Southern Philippines, 144; Lela Garner Noble, “The Moro National Liberation Front in
the Philippines,” Pacific Affairs 49, no. 3 (1976): 405-24, 408.
22
23
Noble, “The Moro National Liberation Front in the Philippines,” 409.
24
Ira Lapidus, A History of Islamic Societies, 2nd ed. ed. (Cambridge ;New York:
Cambridge University Press, 2002), 682.
25
Cf. Hopmann and Zartman, “Mindanao.”
Salvatore Schiavo-Ocampo, and Mary Judd, “The Mindanao Conflict in the
Philippines: Roots, Costs, and Potential Peace Dividend,” Social Development
Papers: Conflict Prevention & Reconstruction, http://internal-displacement.
org/8025708F004CE90B/(httpDocuments)/8A4B6AFE92D9BB82802570B700599DA1/
$file/WP24_Web.pdf (accessed May 14, 2013), 5.
26
For an overview on this topic, see Wilfredo III Torres, “Introduction,” in Rido : Clan
Feuding and Conflict Management in Mindanao, ed. idem (Makati City Philippines: Asia
Foundation, 2007).
27
28
Nieva, “Christian-Muslim Relations.”
Moonjang Lee, “Asian Biblical Interpretation,” in Dictionary for Theological
Interpretation of the Bible, ed. Kevin Vanhoozer (London; Grand Rapids, Mich.: SPCK;
Baker Academic, 2005), 68.
29
30
Lee, “Asian Biblical Interpretation,” 68-69.
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31
E.J. TOWARDS A PAULINE HERMENEUTIC OF DIALOGUE
Lee, “Asian Biblical Interpretation,” 69.
Paul Knitter, Ein Gott—Viele Religionen: Gegen den Absolutheitsanspruch des
Christentums, trans. Josef F. Wimmer (München: Kösel, 1988). In this book Knitter
describes dialogue at some point as hermeneutic.
32
33
Plato informs us of the drawbacks of writing. In Phaedrus 275, he recounts Socrates‘
critique of any written text by having the danger of being misinterpreted by its reader.
Donald J. Moore, “A Book Review on ‘The Text as Thou: Martin Buber’s Dialogical
Hermeneutics and Narrative Theology’,” Journal of the American Academy of Religion 63, 1
(1995): 159-61, here 160.
34
Hans-Georg Gadamer, Truth and Method, 2nd rev. ed. (London: Continuum, 2006),
304, fittingly puts it, when he discusses the idea of “transposing oneself”: For what
do we mean by ‘transposing ourselves’? Certainly not just disregarding ourselves.
This is necessary, of course, insofar as we must imagine the other situation. But into
this other situation we must bring, precisely, ourselves. Only this is the full meaning
of ‘transposing ourselves.’ If we put ourselves in someone else’s shoes, for example,
then we will understand him—i.e., become aware of the otherness, the indissoluble
individuality of the other person—by putting ourselves in his position.
35
Bernard C. Lategan, “Hermeneutics,” Anchor Bible Dictionary 3 (1992): 149-54, here
149, explains that in hermeneutics “a dialogue unfolds between present and past,
between text and interpreter, each with its own horizon.”
36
37
Volker Küster, “Art. Dialog Vii. Dialog Und Mission,” Religion in Geschichte
und Gegenwart (4th ed.) 2 (1999): 821, 821. Perhaps alongside this step would be
appropriating or integrating the values of other religious traditions into the Christian
ethical modes of communication of values, as suggested by Ariane Cisneros,
“Understanding Through Appropriation in Interreligious Dialogue on Ethics,”
Journal of Religious Ethics 39, no. 2 (2011).
38
Boyarin, Border Lines: The Partition of Judaeo-Christianity, 44, calls this larger stream
“Judeo-Christianity.” Sample passages in Romans are: 1:18-3:31 on the question
about who can be considered righteous; the question of Israel’s unbelief (chaps. 9-11);
and the cultural tensions in chap. 14.
This terminology is employed in order to avoid the anachronism of assuming that
“Christianity” and “Judaism” existed as separate sociological or theological entities
in the time of Paul. See William Cavanaugh, Theopolitical Imagination (London; New
York: T&T Clark, 2002). In addition, “Christianity” as a distinct religion was not yet
established in Paul‘s time. Cf. V Shillington, Jesus and Paul Before Christianity: Their
World and Work in Retrospect (Eugene Or.: Cascade Books, 2011); Gordon Mark Zerbe,
Citizenship: Paul on Peace and Politics (Winnipeg, Manitoba: CMU Press, 2012), 14-19.
39
40
Hans Dieter Betz, “Paul (Person),” Anchor Bible Dictionary 5 (1992): 186-200, 186.
A keyword is the verb διαλέγομαι (dialegomai; in ESV “to reason”) in V. 17, which
basically means “converse, discuss or argue.” See Frederick Danker, A Greek-English
41
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Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3d ed. (Chicago:
University of Chicago Press, 2000), διαλέγομαι, 232.
The historicity of this event may be in question, but the report shows how latter
generations of Christians may have remembered Paul. See Raymond Brown, An
Introduction to the New Testament (New York: Doubleday, 1997), 84.
42
43
Cf. Brown, Introduction, 84: “Non-Jewish influence on Paul is plausible...” Frederick
C. Grant, “St. Paul’s Mysticism,” The Biblical World 44, no. 6 (1914): 375-87, 378, notes
this possibility: “Although we can hardly look for any direct, conscious influence
of one or another of the religions and philosophies of the day upon young Saul in
Tarsus (his Jewish home and rearing being sufficient bulwark against these), yet we
can hardly fail to see the influence of the spirit of the times, the general atmosphere in
which men lived, to which all of these religions and philosophies contributed.” Paul’s
expressions in Phil 3:10f “to me to live is Christ, to die is gain” and “I live, yet not I,
but Christ lives in me” may also be derived from the thoughts of mystery-religions.
See Grant, “St. Paul’s Mysticism,” 382.
44
Cf. Robert Dunham, “Acts 17:16-34,” Interpretation 60, no. 2 (2006): 202-04.
Not that it is addressed generally to all people of different races and religions, since
its main addresses are the Christians in Rome sometime in year 56 C.E., during the
reign of the emperor Nero [cf. Udo Schnelle, “Einleitung in Das Neue Testament,”
(2005), 130]. But that it touches themes that are universal in nature.
45
Henry Liddell, A Greek-English Lexicon. With a Revised Supplement, 9 ed. (Oxford:
Clarendon Press, 1996), 1751.
46
S. Mark Heim, Salvations: Truth and Difference in Religion, 6 ed. (Maryknoll, N.Y.:
Orbis, 2003).
47
Herman Waetjen, The Letter to the Romans. Salvation as Justice and the Deconstruction
of Law (Sheffield UK: Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2011), 50-51.
48
See James Scott, Paul and the Nations: The Old Testament and Jewish Background of Paul’s
Mission to the Nations With Special Reference to the Destination of Galatians (Tübingen:
Mohr, 1995), 120. Cf. Liddell, Greek-English Lexicon, 480.
49
50
Scott, Paul and the Nations, 121-122.
51
E.g., NRSV, Luther Bible, NASB.
Waetjen, Romans, 104; cf. Rom 1:18, where God‘s wrath is revealed against human
idolatry and injustice.
52
“Their throats are opened graves; they deceived (edoliousan) with their tongues.
The venom of vipers is under their lips; their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.
Their feet are swift to shed blood; ruin and misery are in their paths, and the way of
peace they have not known; there is no fear of God before their eyes” (Rom 3:13-18).
53
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54
Waetjen, Romans, 49-50, underscores that the honor-shame culture within the
Roman empire, which “legitimates lying and deception,” “endorses the acquisition
of honor at the expense of others.”
Peter Craigie, Psalms 1-50, vol. 19, Word Biblical Commentary (Waco Texas: Word
Books, 1983), 88.
55
The text in Hebrew has the adjective naqi (innocent) for dam (blood). However, in
LXX this adjective is not present.
56
Theodore Jennings, Outlaw Justice the Messianic Politics of Paul (Palo Alto: Stanford
University Press, forthcoming), 42. (Jennings‘ book already came out of the press this
year, but the one available to me at the time of writing was the draft of his manuscript.)
57
58
James Dunn, Romans 9-16, vol. 38B, Word Biblical Commentary (Dallas: Word Books,
1988), 654.
59
Cf. Alain Badiou, Saint Paul. The Foundation of Universalism (Stanford Calif.: Stanford
University Press, 2003), 110: “The universal is not the negation of particularity. Every
particularitiy is a conformation, a conformism. It is a question of maintaining a
nonconformity, and only the universal, through an interrupted labor, an inventive
traversal, relieves it.” Cited by Waetjen, Romans, 267.
60
For a thorough discussion and analysis of the meaning of katallage as diplomacy,
see Stanley Porter, Katallasso in Ancient Greek Literature, With Reference to the Pauline
Writings (Cordoba: Ed. El Almendro, 1994).
61
See also Stanley E. Porter, “Art. Versöhnung. Neues Testament,” Religion in Geschichte
und Gegenwart (4th ed.) 8 (2005): 1054-59; P. Stuhlmacher, “Jesus Als Versöhner.
Überlegungen zum Problem der Darstellung Jesu im Rahmen einer Biblischen
Theologie des Neuen Testaments,” in Versöhnung, Gesetz und Gerechtigkeit, ed. Idem
(Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1981), 9-26; Cilliers Breytenbach, Versöhnung.
Eine Studie Zur Paulinischen Soteriologie (Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag,
1989).
See for instance J. Stark, “Muslims in the Philippines,” Journal of Muslim Minority
Affairs 23, no. 1 (2003): 195-209, 201: “Between January 1972 and the declaration of
martial law in September that year, there were continued atrocities on both sides
which saw the gradual depopulation of several towns in the Cotabato province.
Around 30,000 Muslims and Christians left their farms as a result of this violence.”
62
63
J. P. Louw, and Eugene Albert Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament:
Based on Semantic Domains, 2d ed., vol. I (New York: United Bible Societies, 1989),
455. Cf. Ceslas Spicq, Theological Lexicon of the New Testament, trans. James D. Ernest
(Hendrickson, 1995), 3:455.
G.M. Zerbe, Non-Retaliation in Early Jewish and New Testament Texts: Ethical Themes in
Social Contexts, vol. (13), Jsp Supplement (Sheffield Academic Pr, 1993), 212.
64
65
Cf. Robert Jewett, Romans, Hermeneia (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2007), 765: “The
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theme that links the material from vv. 14-20 together is the response to hostility,
which in the Roman situation has been experienced both inside and outside the
Christian community.”
That is, to speak of someone favorably (Grk. eulogeo). See Louw, and Nida, GreekEnglish Lexicon, 1:430.
66
Other possible translations are “harass, oppress.” See Louw, and Nida, GreekEnglish Lexicon, 1:499: “to systematically organize a program to oppress and harass
people“; In the Vulgate persequentibus.
67
68
This pronoun (Grk. humas), which is absent in some manuscripts, including
the Vulgate, is perhaps an attempt to clarify the “you (Christ-believers) and they
(outsiders)” relation, which is implicit in the text.
69
Cf. Jewett, Romans, 766.
70
“You must not repay evil for evil to your neighbor, for the Lord will avenge this
outrage.” See Walter Wilson, Love Without Pretense : Romans 12.9-21 and HellenisticJewish Wisdom Literature (Tübingen: Mohr, 1991), 771.
71
Cf. Jewett, Romans, 771.
72
See also 1 Thess 5:15.
Jewett, Romans, 772: “peace is to be sought with those outside as well as inside of
the Christian community.”
73
See Jewett, Romans, 775. Also on p. 776: “...divine wrath requires no human
vindictiveness, that it remains a divine prerogative, and thus that it belongs in that
area of unsearchable mystery celebrated at the end of Rom 11.”
74
The expression “to heap coals of fire upon one’s head” (cf. Prov. 25:21-22) evokes an
imagery of undeserved kindness that awakens remorse.
75
McKenna, “Governing Muslims in the Philippines”, 8, has articulated the idea of
helping the Muslim communities without strings attached in response, for example,
to the problem of Islamic education in Mindanao.
76
I have dealt with the term only very slightly in connection with the concept of
salvation.
77
References
Badiou, A.U. (2003). Saint Paul. The foundation of niversalism. Stanford, CA: Stanford
University Press.
Bara, H. (n.d.). The history of the Muslim in the Philippines. Retrieved from
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http://www.ncca.gov.ph/about-culture-and-arts/articles-on-c-n-a/article.
php?igm=4&i=232
Betz, H.D. (1992). Paul (Person). Anchor Bible Dictionary 5, 186-200.
Boyarin, D. (2004). Border lines: The partition of Judaeo-Christianity. Philadelphia PA:
University of Pennsylvania Press.
Breytenbach, C. (1989). Versöhnung. Eine Studie Zur Paulinischen Soteriologie.
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Local Government-Academe Partnership:
Touching and Inspiring Students
in Environmental Monitoring
Enrique G. Oracion
Director, Research and Development Center
Silliman University, Dumaguete City
In this paper, I describe the partnership between Bayawan City
and Silliman University in the Philippines in monitoring the potential
negative impact of the waste management center that the city has
built to a nearby community. The city government provided the
logistics while the Environmental Anthropology students did the
survey for free. During the reflection sessions and in their written
narratives, the students said that they were emotionally touched
by the helpless conditions of households they interviewed. These
households feared the potential negative effects of the said center,
had no safe source of drinking water, and lived in a community
with poor sanitation. This paper will show that service learning
as a pedagogy will not only reinforce what students learn in the
classroom but will also make them emphatic and inspired to use
their skills to address a problem.
Keywords: local government-academe partnership, servicelearning pedagogy, waste management center, household survey,
environmental monitoring, Bayawan City, Silliman University
S
Introduction
ervice-learning as pedagogy of teaching has been drawing interest
among higher education institutions in the Philippines, although
it is named by some educators as community involvement. It
may be called by different names, but the essence of exposing students
to the community to get involved or to serve in community affairs
that are relevant to classroom instruction is apparent. In summer of
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2011, a national workshop was held to introduce and institutionalize
the practice of service-learning in higher education institutions in the
Philippines that are members of private educational associations. The
workshop was facilitated by Silliman University and Trinity University
of Asia. These two institutions spearheaded the adoption of servicelearning in the country through the support of the International
Partnership for Service-Learning (IPSL) and the United Board for
Christian Higher Education in Asia (UBCHEA) (McCarthy, 2009).
Earlier, while I was also in Hong Kong for my UBCHEA Fellowship
prior to that national workshop on service-learning in the Philippines,
I had attended the conference of the Association of Commonwealth
Universities (ACU) where research partnerships among and between
academic institutions and the business community was discussed to
enhance quality learning and its impact to society. The relevance of
partnership is also true in service-learning.
Educational partnerships in service-learning program is needed
because the engagement of the academe in this area cannot be fully
realized without active collaboration among the community, nongovernment organizations and the local government units of places
where students will render community service (Oracion, 2010). But a
community does not always mean a geographic place but could be any
situation where there is certain group of people that needs help and can
be served. It could be a school, an association of farmers or mothers,
an orphanage or home for the elderly, a hospital, as homeowners
association and related others (e.g., Pushpalatha, Chithra, Jacqueline
& Sherina, 2009). The motivations or drivers for partnership are several
which reflect the needs of collaborating institutions or organizations.
In the partnership between or among educational institutions, it is
expected to be beyond resource borrowing to knowledge sharing
for mutual learning (Africa Unit, 2010). This can be similarly true or
feasible in the partnership of academic institutions with government
and non-government organizations.
In this paper, I will present the partnership between the city
government of Bayawan and Silliman University in Dumaguete
City in Negros Oriental, Philippines. Bayawan is a newly-created
city inaugurated on December 23, 2000 but is already committed
to maintaining a safe environment for its constituency before
urbanization takes over. The two partners are 100 kilometers away
from each other. I will discuss in the succeeding sections how the
partnership was forged and what the arrangements were as well
as how this has benefited or will benefit the students of Silliman
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local goverment-academe environmental partnership
University and the constituency of Bayawan City. The data used
here were taken from the sharing of experiences of students during
the reflection session within the service-learning period and in the
written narratives they wrote when they were no longer in my class.
This allowed me to check if what they expressed during the reflection
sessions were consistent with their written responses.
Local Government
Environment
and
Academe
Partnership
for
Safe
The local government units in the Philippines are required by law to
effectively address the problems of contamination of drinking water
reserves and the pollution of bodies of waters such as creeks, rivers and
seas due to indiscriminate dumping of domestic and industrial solid
and liquid wastes. These mandates are embedded in the Ecological
Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 (Republic Act 9003) and the
Clean Water Act of 2004 (Republic Act 9275). In response to this,
Bayawan City established its Waste Management and Ecology Center
(henceforth, waste management center) in an upland barangay about
10 kilometers from the city proper. The facilities within the center
include sanitary landfill, composting plant, material recovery facility,
septage treatment facility and wastewater treatment facility. The latter
is intended to treat the leachate from the landfill and supernatant
from the septage treatment (Boorsma, Bollos, Torres & Aguilar, 2009).
Its constructed wetland in a coastal barangay, which is duplicated in
the waste management center, was already found to be efficient as a
wastewater treatment tool (Guinoo, Aguilar & Oracion, 2009).
The composting plant produces organic fertilizer from
biodegradable solid waste for the agricultural projects of the city
government or for sale to local farmers, while the material recovery
facility segregates those recyclable wastes, thus reducing the amount
to be dumped into the landfill. The reduction of solid wastes by
segregation will increase the lifespan of the sanitary landfill which
is projected to be between 9 to 10 years (Boorsma et al., 2009). The
septage treatment facility, on the other hand, is for the sludge to
be collected from residential houses in order to enhance the liquid
waste management of the city. And the last of the facilities in the
center, which is the wastewater treatment facility, is connected to the
whole system that finally treats the leachate from the landfill and the
supernatant from the septage treatment before releasing this to the
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nearby creek (Figure 1a and 1b).
Figure 1a. Workers segregate plastic
waste for recycling
Figure 1b. The newly-opened sanitary
landfill
The waste management center started its operation in the early
part of 2010 and the concern of the city is how the leachate from the
wastewater treatment facility will be monitored given the limited
technical capacity of its personnel. The city government has no
registered chemist who can conduct water monitoring and testing
although it has available laboratory equipment for this purpose.
Nonetheless, the monitoring and testing points within and around the
waste management center as well as the areas where to collect water
samples were identified. The water testing was conducted before and
during the operation of the land fill to obtain baseline and annual data
for determining the changes in water quality in surrounding areas.
As already mentioned, the wastewater coming out from the waste
management center also has to be secured to prevent contamination
of the groundwater and other bodies of water surrounding the area,
thus preventing water-borne diseases in the nearby communities.
Silliman University which is a century-old university, committed
to the enhancement of the spiritual, social and environmental wellbeing of people in communities within its reach (Ligutom, 2009,
p. 159), had positively responded to the request of the mayor of
Bayawan City. The partnership was facilitated by the Research and
Development Center, which I head as Director. The nature of data to
be gathered for monitoring the potential negative impact of the waste
management center on the immediate environment and the nearby
community required the involvement of the Chemistry, Biology and
Sociology or Anthropology faculty and students. I was handling a
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course in Environmental Anthropology during the semester when
the agreement was finalized and I took advantage of this opportunity
of having a community where my students could engage in servicelearning. Two faculty members from the departments of Chemistry
and Biology likewise accepted the challenge when the idea was
presented to them.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed between
Bayawan City and Silliman University to formalize the agreement
which will be effective up to certain time that the two parties will find
it necessary. The city government of Bayawan provided the logistics
while Silliman University offered the free services of its faculty and
students who conducted water analysis, biological monitoring and
household survey (see Figure 2). The logistics included transportation
from Dumaguete City to Bayawan City and back, accommodation,
and meals during fieldwork on particular weekends. The chemicals
or reagents for water analysis as well as the laboratory facilities and
equipment were provided by the city government during fieldwork,
but some major water analyses were done at Silliman University due
to time constraints. The personnel from the City Environment and
Natural Resources Office-Urban Environment Management (CENROUEM) operating the waste management center likewise participated
or assisted during fieldwork. In effect, they were mentored and
hopefully become capacitated to continue the monitoring in the
future.
The field activities in Bayawan City of faculty and students were
part of the service-learning program of their respective departments.
These activities were integral to their classroom instructions and were
undertaken during certain periods of the semester. In the case of
Chemistry students, the conduct of the water quality monitoring and
analysis was under their course in Industrial Chemistry. For Biology
students, their participation was part of their supervised training
during summer while for my class, and as mentioned earlier, it was
part of a requirement in Environmental Anthropology. Fieldworks
enabled the students to apply the theories and skills they learned in
their respective classes. The experience was valued not only in terms
of the knowledge they gained but also in terms of their contribution
to the effort of the incumbent administration of Bayawan in making
the city environmentally secured.
My class in Environmental Anthropology composed of two
graduate and eight undergraduate students were directly interacting
with the local residents because they surveyed all the 53 households
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in the community. The graduate students also presented the results
of the household survey to community leaders and local government
officials. Since I was not personally involved in the fieldwork of
the Chemistry and Biology students, because we were in the field
during different months of the school year, only the experiences of
my students in Environmental Anthropology will be included in
this paper.1 With my direct involvement, the students completed
the whole process of surveying the households, processing the data,
and presenting the results to the concerned city officials of Bayawan
within a month. The actual direct engagement of students with the
community residents nearby waste management facility and the city
officials covered four days. I was with them to ensure their safety as
well as the quality of the data gathered.
Figure 2. Conceptual Model of the Partnership
But let me discuss first some theoretical considerations in
analyzing the impact of service-learning to the emotions and actions
or wishes of the students as results of their exposure to the realities of
the community they surveyed, although the engagement was only for
a short time. The point is that it is not the amount but rather the quality
of time the students have spent in fieldwork that is more important
to achieve in service-learning engagement if time is limited and is a
big constraint (cf. Bernacki & Jaeger, 2008). Other studies have shown
that scheduling and mobilization for community work are always
going to be problems for service-learning students and cause tensions
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(Shannon 2007). They also have other academic requirements that
they need to satisfactorily meet within the same semester.
Service-learning in Confronting and Appreciating Realities
Service-learning literature is replete with the notion that it provides
opportunities to students to confront various forms of realities which
some of them may consider strange or completely different from their
kind of reality (Colby, Bercaw, Clark & Galiardi, 2009; McCarthy,
2009; Oracion, 2010). In this paper, I define confronting as the act of
how the students tackle the tasks assigned to them under the servicelearning program and face up to the challenges of accomplishing
them for the benefit of the people they serve or work with. In this
case, the students are not simply viewed as recipients of instructions
but as creative individuals finding ways and navigating their courses
of actions in getting the tasks done according to defined expectations.
Meanwhile, appreciating, which is an act that corresponds to
confronting, describes the understanding and valuing of students of
their experiences in service-learning. Appreciation ranges from being
grateful for having been able to serve and share their knowledge and
skills to being frustrated for failing to meet their own or other peoples’
expectations of serving others.
So while there is a need to follow-up and determine the long term
effect of service-learning to students, in terms of how they confront
and appreciate the realities before them during service-learning,
which means exploring its effects on graduates (Sato, McCarthy,
Murakami & Yamamoto, 2009), it is still important to look into how
this emotionally affects and inspires college students to do better
and value what they currently have which they often overlook and
take for granted. It is only when these students are able to see how
others appear contented even if they have much less, that they start
to realize how much more they should appreciate what their parents
have provided them (Oracion, 2002, 2010). Although the impact of
service-learning on the personal and social traits and skills of students
(McCarthy, 2009) may be affected by the length of community
engagement they have, this can become more significant if there are
ready activities for them when they start community work which are
consistent with their skills (Colby et al., 2009; Oracion, 2009).
Although there are mixed methods and findings on the impact
of service-learning, the study of Bernacki and Jaeger (2008) at least
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showed that even if the students only had a semester of servicelearning exposure, they already manifested more compassion and
social sensitivity, improved understanding and ability to solve social
problems, and greater efficacy to make the world better. Generally,
students with service-learning experience were found to “perceive
more positive changes in themselves than did students in traditional
courses” (Bernacki & Jaeger, 2008, p. 7). However, service-learning
to some other students and teachers is filled with tensions because
of limited resources and conflicting expectations that often result
in negative experiences and frustrations. Shannon (2007) observed
among his service-learning students some signs of frustrations when
they did not sense the positive impact of the services they rendered
while others were not motivated or excited enough because they felt
being obligated to engage in community work as a course requirement.
These observations certainly imply the need for teachers to orient
and psychologically prepare their students before their community
engagement (McCarthy, 2009).
The areas of the experiences of students in service-learning
that may be examined as measures of its impact should be clearly
specified. These may include what knowledge and skills the students
were able to learn or enhance, how the realities they discovered in the
field affected them emotionally, what plans they have thought of in
response to these realities, and what they wished for the community
to have which it should acquire or which the government should
provide. In one of my previous works, I quantitatively measured
the multiple and related impacts of service-learning (Oracion, 2002).
Based on the self-rating of 92 students enrolled in different courses,
I found out statistically significant positive relationships in the
combination of the following variables: classroom knowledge and
skills, amount of service rendered, value of service rendered and
enhanced knowledge and skills.
The interactions of the above mentioned variables mean that
service-learners who have more knowledge and skills acquired
from classroom instruction have rated higher amount of services
they rendered to the community. Correspondingly, those who had
rendered more services had valued more or were satisfied with
the services they had rendered, and those who had served more
rated higher in terms of the additional knowledge and skills they
learned from the experience in the community service. In other
words, students who had less learning inside the classroom were
less effective in community service and found less meaning in what
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they were doing. In this present paper, I want to qualitatively pursue
how the realities observed by the students and what they heard from
household interviews had emotionally affected and inspired them
to develop certain plans of action and hopes for the community that
they had studied and known even for a limited time.
Environmental Anthropology and Fieldwork
Environmental Anthropology is not a general education course
and is offered only to students who are majoring in Sociology or
Anthropology. This course examines the relationships or the dynamic
interactions between human populations and environments in
order to address practical environmental questions, problems, and
concerns. It looks also into the ways by which environments have
restricted the ability of human populations to have a healthy life
as they use traditional strategies and explores alternative strategies
in response to a changing environment particularly amidst global
climate change. To enhance the analytical ability of students, they
are exposed to different conceptual approaches of studying humaninteraction interactions and case studies of such interactions in
different environmental conditions categorized into preliterate and
contemporary societies, rural and urban communities, coastal and
upland areas.
Field trips and exposures to communities are deemed important
for students to appreciate more the lessons provided in classroom
settings. The partnership of Silliman University with Bayawan City
helped a lot in this methodological necessity in teaching. So, with
the knowledge they already learned in social theory, research, and
social statistics, students were brought to the community to interview
households about their conditions relative to certain socioeconomic,
health and sanitation issues which may be affected by the presence
of the nearby waste management center. The fieldwork happened
only during the middle of the semester when they were already
theoretically and psychologically equipped to do the interviews and
understand the data they will gather. As expected, everyone was
excited to travel without cost and to be in another place which was
new to many of my students, particularly the foreigners and those not
from Negros Oriental.
The students went around the community in pairs and searched
for the households to interview which were scattered in the valley and
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hillsides nearby the waste management center. They used the survey
questionnaire, written in English but translated into the dialect, which
I prepared with the help of a Filipino graduate student. The night
after the first day of the survey, we had a reflection session about
the initial experiences of the students and discussed the problems
they had encountered in order to make the fieldwork the next day
easier. Although the students were tired of walking and climbing the
hills to locate the households to interview during the first day, they
expressed their satisfaction of the experience and eagerness to go on
during the sharing. The next day, the tasks were easier to accomplish
because the students had already strategized their movements based
on their first day encounter with the community.
All the households within the potential affected area of the waste
management center were surveyed and the data were analyzed in
the school. With my close guidance, the Filipino graduate student
assumed major role in data processing and in the analysis over the
implications of the results together with the other students involved
in the survey. The major problems perceived and experienced by
the community were identified and solutions were suggested by the
students. I prepared the technical report as senior author, because
of the authority it needs, with a Filipino graduate student as a coauthor (see Oracion & Gemina, 2010). He likewise orally presented
the data, along with the recommendations, to the concerned city
government officials of Bayawan. This report will serve as baseline for
monitoring the conditions of these households during the succeeding
years, but involving other sets of students. How the current students
were affected and inspired by their service-learning engagement in
Bayawan City will be discussed in the succeeding sections and will be
compared with future sets of students.
Knowledge and Skills Learned and Enhanced
During the validation, the Filipino graduate student of the research
report and the undergraduate students were able to prepare a summary
of what they considered as the major issues that are bothering the
households nearby the waste management center. The first two related
issues included the fact that the drinking water of the community
was not safe because of poorly developed sources and bad sanitation
practices (see Table 1). These were further threatened by potential
contamination from the waste management center. Moreover, the
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residents blamed the greater proliferation of flies observed during the
fieldwork as compared in the past to the waste being dumped at the
center that produced foul odor. The students likewise noted that the
community seemed to lack adequate knowledge on the purposes of
the waste management center and its operations to mitigate potential
negative effects. Through their actual experience, students, with
the facilitation of the graduate student, were able to carefully and
critically sum up the issues under consideration.
Table 1. Sources of Water for Drinking
Type of Information
Number
Percent
Sources of Water for Drinking
Open dug-well
Undeveloped spring
Shallow well (hand pumped)
Spring box
Communal faucet from spring
19
16
15
4
1
35.85
30.19
28.30
7.55
1.89
Ownership of Toilet
Without toilet
With own toilet
No answer
29
23
1
54.71
43.40
1.89
Source: Oracion & Gemina (2010)
Figure 3a. Open dug-well SILLIMAN JOURNAL
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Meanwhile, the knowledge and skills reported by students which
they got from the fieldwork were a combination of those related to
the discipline as well as those relevant to the development of personal
and social skills. One of the graduate students, who decided to pursue
teaching after earning his degree, remarked that “service-learning
program serves as an avenue to facilitate the initiation of interventions
that will enable the community to address their problems and issues
of concerns.” He added that it allowed the students to observe and
hear people in actual situations which help in appreciating the
usefulness of the knowledge and skills gained inside the classroom.
For the foreign student, it was hard for him to interview locals and he
found the importance of working with a Filipino student who spoke
the native tongue. It was totally a new experience for him working in
the community which he could never learn inside the classroom.
For the undergraduate students, it was a discovery and a realization
of the kind of work that they may go into after graduation especially
if they will be working with community projects. They became aware
that fieldwork is not that easy because one has to travel and move
around the community to meet people in order to understand the
social problem under investigation. One mentioned the needed
stamina for surviving a long hiking trip (Figure 4a). Moreover, they
realized that an ability to interact with a diversity of people was
important in order to generate quality data for a community program
(Figure 4b). This ability includes being like the community people
or appearing simple in the manner of dressing to avoid social gap
that may restrict the flow of information. My American student, who
took this principle seriously in fieldwork, went around interviewing
without shoes because he saw many barefooted residents. He also
Figure 4a. The group rests after a long Figure 4b. The graduate students review
walk in search for households to interview the data of the undergraduate students
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spoke in twisted dialect and many locals were amused with him.
These are skills which students cannot learn by simply reading but
by actually interviewing strangers and winning their trust to get the
needed information.
Time management was also mentioned as an important learning
during fieldwork which can be applied to the many other undertakings
of students. The undergraduate students also appreciated having
worked with professionals, and that included me and the city
government officials who joined us in fieldwork, and with the
graduate students. Moreover, some students were able to see how
plastic waste materials were segregated, so they can be recycled or
sold to buyers. And being there in the site of the waste management
center, the students appreciated how this can function in the disposal
of solid and liquid wastes. Hearing the stories of the nearby residents,
the students also recognized the potential threats the site can bring to
the potable water supply of the community which is situated downhill
and the foul odor it can produce because of the waste coming from
the public market.
Emotional Impact and Point of Realization
The students generally considered that interviewing and being there
in the community allowed them to learn the “other side of life” and
those of other people who were not as fortunate as they were. This
connects to what I said earlier that preparing the students before
fieldwork is a must. Pre-fieldwork preparation had helped a lot
because this gave them right focus and motivation despite the short
time that they engaged with the community. One female student
wrote that “I am very much affected by the interaction I had with the
people I interviewed,” which she could not have experienced when
just confined inside the classroom.
The meaningful experiences of students must be also basically
due to the gross differences between their social statuses and the
community residents who made a living basically by farming and by
working for other households. The students felt sorry to hear their
sad stories, and these households were more inspired to tell because
they needed someone to hear their situation. They told the students
that none from the city government had gone to interview them about
their sentiments toward the waste management center. There must
have been a breakdown of communication from the city government
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down to the community because the former would claim there was
consultation done with the community.
On the other side, the students noticed that despite their miserable
and difficult situations, the households they had interviewed were
very nice and hospitable to them (see Figure 5). They considered
them very helpful, honest and compassionate which the students
may perhaps have not expected from marginalized people who must
have considerable discontentment and angst against society and the
government. Given the available resources the community had, the
students felt the strong will of families to feed their children and
struggle for a better life, because despite the odds, they generally
appeared to be happy (which is, of course, a trait that describes the
adaptability and resiliency of Filipinos). One student commented
that she “felt more blessed that I have all the things I need” because
of what she saw in the community. She was disturbed that school
age children had to stop or did not attend school because they had to
assist their parents in the farm. Such emotional impact resulting from
this exposure to social disparity is not only true to my students now
because I heard this several times from my previous service-learning
involvement (Oracion, 2002, 2009, 2010; see also Ligutom, 2009).
Figure 5. A farmer offers boiled young corn during the interview.
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Meanwhile, my graduate student from Tibet, who was present
during the presentation of the results of the survey to the concerned city
government officials, was impressed by the democratic atmosphere of
the process. He appreciated the freedom given to those present to ask
questions, make comments and give suggestions to the city mayor
who was presiding the meeting. He was also introduced to everyone
before the meeting started which made him more appreciative because
his presence was valued. The Filipino graduate student whom I asked
to lead in the processing and presentation of the data was thankful
for the opportunity. He said that it “motivated me to commit my
time and knowledge in the succeeding activities that may follow after
the fieldwork.” What he meant was the other opportunities that he
may be involved in Bayawan City considering that its partnership
with Silliman University is a continuing engagement. Like any other
student, he was also emotionally affected by the conditions of the
households he interviewed and there was that burning desire to
continue working for them.
Inspired Planned Actions
After the students discussed the processed data, they agreed that
the community needed to be more aware and informed of the basic
functions, purpose and benefits that the waste management center will
generate as well as to have safe sources of potable water. In line with
this, they suggested that the waste management center must adopt
progressive preventive measures and minimize the presence of flies
within and outside the center. When these matters were presented to
the concerned city government officials, the mayor realized the need
to send health personnel to check the status of the health and potable
water supply of the community. Whether or not this was actually
done was already within the powers of the local executive which
oftentimes depend on the availability of resources to mobilize and
on the sense of urgency of doing it. This is something which can be
monitored in the succeeding fieldwork.
At a personal level, there were students who desired to continue
doing volunteer work when there are opportunities available and
this manifested how their service-learning engagement had inspired
them. One wrote that she wanted “to serve and maybe help other
people even if it’s just (in a) small (way).” Another student desired
to go back and pay a visit to the woman who helped her when she
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almost fainted after that cruel climb over the mountain to reach the
waste management center. I was with her at that time and I almost
fainted myself because of the mid-day heat and fatigue. My student
added that she was always reminded of the woman’s kindness and
helpfulness even if she was not a relative—a hospitality which is very
common in rural communities. In fact, doing household survey in
rural Philippines is easier compared to doing it with households in
cities. The latter are always suspicious of strangers and one have to
be experts in handling the hostility or indifference of prospective
respondents for interviews.
The exposure of students to the difficult life in the community also
served as inspiration for them to become better persons and not to
take for granted the luxuries and opportunities they currently enjoy.
One student who became conscious perhaps of wasteful spending
said that, she will try her best to manage her resources well and to
always thank the Lord for all the blessings she received and will be
receiving. Another student became conscious of finishing a degree
and promised to study hard, to find a good job, to have a family,
and to have children with a good life and education. All these are
obviously expressions of the desire to get away from a miserable life,
particularly that there is still time for planning and preparing, and the
realization that life is not all about enjoying it but also about working
hard. The lesson learned is that a person is always responsible for his
or her own future.
For the Filipino graduate student, the whole experience had
affirmed his plan to work at Silliman University after getting his degree
and to participate in research projects that can help bring about better
understanding of social realities and development in communities
among students. He realized that there is a great opportunity within
the university, in general, and in its research unit, in particular, to
initiate projects that may be implemented in coordination with any
stakeholders willing to be involved in community development
work. Notably, for this particular student, the practice of integrating
service-learning in his future teaching career, either at Silliman
University or outside of it, is likely. This implies the relevance of
involving graduate students in service-learning rather than focusing
only with the undergraduate students. The graduate students
can assume leadership role in implementing a community project
because they are more mature and have greater experience compared
to undergraduate students.
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Quality of Life for the Community
The students wrote what they considered the community residents
should acquire to have quality life, and their responses included
foremost stable sources of income and quality education for their
children. It is interesting to note that these are reflections of the
importance students have put on education for job security and as
investment for higher productivity either in farming or off-farm
employment. They also equally gave value to quality health care and
services which the government has to provide, they added, through
a well-equipped and functional health center nearby the community.
This also goes without saying the need to secure the community’s
sources of potable water and to inform them how to improve their
sanitation practices because these all connect to quality health.
One student felt that the households she interviewed must have a
permanent place to live because they were tenants and under the
mercy of the landowners. Another student recognized the importance
of having fewer children which they can afford to raise.
In the future, if given the opportunity to pursue service-learning
in Bayawan City, the Filipino graduate student who wished to pursue
teaching described how he would work with the community. He
believed that improving the quality of life in the community demands
active involvement of the residents since it is not something that will
simply be provided to them. The community has to be assisted and
empowered through a participatory action research process wherein
they could systematically organize their experiences and build up a
solid case that they could use to lobby before the local government
leaders for support and attention to what they need. They have to be
taught to gain active representation in the different local special bodies
of the city government which decide on appropriate and relevant
programs that truly respond to their pressing needs and concerns.
He finally noted that sustaining a working relationship with Silliman
University, especially with its Service-Learning Program, can be of
great help.
Facilitating and Retarding Factors
In the course of the fieldwork of my students, they were exposed
to the social, economic, environmental and political realities of the
community which they may have less understood and appreciated if
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they only remained inside the four walls of the classroom (Oracion,
2006). To hear these realities directly from the mouths of their
respondents and to see them around the community, added value
and meaning to what they read in journal articles and books and from
classroom lectures. But whatever they heard or saw around could still
be less understood and appreciated if they were not provided with the
critical lens to analyze and interpret them. Thus, classroom instruction
is always an integral part of service-learning engagement of students
and the latter is not just a reason for students to escape classroom
lectures and assignments. Service-learning, which brings students
to reality, is not an end by itself, but a tool to validate what they
learned from the classroom. Taken together, they learned concepts,
acquired skills and underwent affective or emotional changes which
are personally and socially relevant and enriching.
Since service-learning engagement requires a host or recipient
community and resources for the mobility of students, the partnership
forged between an academe and a government unit or non-government
organization is always vital for maximizing the use of resources and
available opportunities (Figure 6). The environmental commitment of
Bayawan City and the trust of its officials to the capacity of Silliman
University faculty and students to undertake the monitoring of its
waste management center became a facilitating factor for bringing our
students for their service-learning engagement. The only retarding
factor that I experienced, not only for this class but in my previous
Figure 6. A graduate student presents the survey results to city government officials
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service-learning activities, is the time needed for serious community
work and the requirements of other courses (see also Ligutom, 2009).
The students have other courses to mind that are equally important
in order that they can graduate from college. Doing service-learning
every weekend, which is the only possible option during a semester,
is also draining to students and this explains why prolonged
engagement of students with a community is always impossible.
A possible strategy is to have three complementary subjects, which
is the maximum number that a student can enroll during summer,
either under one teacher or two teachers who agree to employ servicelearning as a teaching strategy. This could take the form of a summer
field school under the close supervision of the teachers concerned.
The students have to live in a community where an existing project of
the school is being implemented. For example, courses in sociology
(current social issues), history (Philippine history) and political
science (Philippine Constitution) may be combined when students
shall have service-learning engagement. All students must enroll in
the three courses. They have to complete the required 54 hours to earn
credit for each course. Introductory sessions of these courses have to
be conducted in the campus where the students would be oriented
about service-learning principles, learning expectations of every
course, concepts and theories, and activities in community work.
The 40 students, which is the minimum class size, can be assigned
to live with certain households in the community or a dormitory
which may be provided by the local government or non-government
organization. Considering the large number of students involved,
two communities may be covered and the teachers can only agree on
how they will distribute the tasks of supervising the students. This
also means that a partnership has to be forged by the academe in
conducting service-learning, not only for placement of students but
also for logistics. But, this partnership must be sustainable and not
only short-term in order to appreciate the accumulated impact of the
services by batches of students to the community over the years. It is
also preferred that this partnership can be attached to the Extension
Program of the university. The students can work with and be
supervised by professional extension workers, thus, providing work
force to an extension project and supplementing the supervisory
function of the teacher.
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Conclusion
The service-learning engagement of students under Environmental
Anthropology discussed in this paper may be brief, but is concise and
specific to a particular purpose, i.e., to conduct household survey of
the social, economic and health conditions of households nearby the
waste management center. The goal was to establish baseline data for
purposes of monitoring the potential negative impact of the center
to the health of these households. The health data will be correlated
with the chemical and biological data gathered by the chemistry and
biology students, whenever there will be observed contamination in
nearby water sources of the said community.
The students of Environmental Anthropology both served as
channels of the community in relaying their situation and sentiments
to the city government and as providers of information to the latter for
mitigating whatever unintended consequences the waste management
center may bring to the said community. The partnership between
Silliman University and the city government of Bayawan offered the
students the needed logistics to be in the community to render service
and to hone their research skills and environmental knowledge.
The experiences of my students as expressed during our reflection
sessions in the field and in school after fieldwork, as well as in their
written narratives after a semester have validated the findings of other
studies on the positive impact of service-learning (Shannon, 2007;
Bernacki & Jaeger, 2008; Oracion, 2009, 2010). Specifically, these findings
refer to how the service-learning engagement of students improve their
understanding of social problems, enhance their compassion for others
in need, and stimulate their sensibility to appreciate and value what
they have and what the community should have based on what they
heard from interviews and observed in the community. The desire to
engage in volunteer works in the future and to employ service-learning
pedagogy when given the opportunity to teach was noted from both
the undergraduate and graduate students, respectively. Indeed, servicelearning makes teaching more effective and grounded with reality if time
and resources of both teachers and students will only allow.
NOTE
The group was actually composed of two graduate students in anthropology (one
was Tibetan) and eight undergraduate students majoring in anthropology and
1
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sociology (one was American). Five of the undergraduate students just sat on the class
for a period because the service-learning activity we planned the previous semester
in our Social Statistics class was not realized due to problem in time and logistics.
Acknowledgement
I wish to express my heartfelt gratitude to the officials of Bayawan City for the
opportunity to work with them for a better environment, to the community
residents who shared their time for the interviews, to my students in Environmental
Anthropology who painstakingly pursued the task of drawing out the sentiments of
the community so they can be relayed to the city government, and to the United Board
for Christian Higher Education in Asia (UBCHEA) for supporting my attendance to
the Third Asia-Pacific Regional Conference on Service-Learning in Hong Kong at
Lingnan University on June 7-11, 2011 where I originally presented this paper.
References
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Bernacki, M.L. & Jaeger, E. (2008). Exploring the impact of SL on moral development
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Boorsma, J. K., I. T. Bollos, E. O. Torres & A. S. Aguilar, Jr. (2009). Establishment
of Bayawan City's waste management and ecology center: An environmental
milestone. Retrieved from http://www.bayawancity.gov.-ph/press.php
Colby, S., Bercaw, L., Clark, A.M. & Galiardi (2009). From community service to
service-learning leadership: A program perspective. New Horizon in Education,
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Guinoo, R. S. II, Aguilar Jr., A.S. & Oracion, E.G. (2009). The efficiency and social
acceptability of the constructed wetland of Bayawan City, Negros Oriental.
Silliman University Research and Development Center, Dumaguete City and
City Environment and Natural Resources Office, Bayawan City, Negros Oriental.
Ligutom, E.M. (2009). Service-Learning in Silliman University: Perspectives of
Administrators, Teachers and Students. Lessons from Service-Learning in
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McCarthy, F.E. (2009). Where we are now: A review of service-learning among SLAN
colleges and universities in Asia. New Horizon in Education, 57(3), 8-19.
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Oracion, E.G. (2002).Quantitative evaluation of the participating students and
cooperating residents of the service-learning program. Silliman Journal, 43, 143164.
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relevant education. Powerpoint Presentation. Silliman University, Dumaguete
City, Philippines.
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Oracion, E. G. (2010). Intercultural service-learning and multicultural symbiosis. In J.
Xing & C. Ma (Eds.), Service-Learning in Asia: Curricular models and practices (pp.
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VOL. 53 NO. 2
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Adolescents’ Emotional Awareness,
Regulation, and Transformation:
Emotion-Focused Therapy
as Anger Management
Nelly Zosa Limbadan
Margaret Helen F. Udarbe
Silliman University
Aimed at addressing increased violence and aggression in the
school setting, this study evaluated the use of Emotion-Focused
Therapy (EFT) in managing anger level and intensity of selected
adolescents. These adolescents were 16 high school students
on Strict Disciplinary Probation status whose level of anger was
determined using the Adolescent Anger Rating Scale. The twophase study first consisted of developing a tool to measure the
effectiveness of EFT—a tool referred to as the Emotional Awareness,
Regulation and Transformation Scale (EARTS). The second phase
involved the conduct of the therapy as a psychotherapeutic
intervention intended to help selected adolescents deal with anger.
A significant improvement was observed from pretest-posttest data
on EARTS at the conclusion of the 12-session EFT.
Keywords: anger, instrumental anger, reactive anger,
anger control, anger management, emotion-focused therapy,
adolescence
A
INTRODUCTION
dolescence is unquestionably a developmental stage that
is both exciting and challenging. As a transition period
from childhood to adulthood, the earliest influential
conceptualization of this age group led to the storm-and-stress view
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of Stanley Hall in the early 1900s. Part of this adolescent perspective
describes a turbulent time charged with conflict and mood swings,
stress and unhappiness. Although it is not a universal and global
adolescent experience to have major difficulties, Steinberg (2002)
postulated that some adolescents encounter serious psychological
and behavior problems that disrupt not only their lives but also the
lives of their significant others. These problems vary from substance
abuse and depression and suicide to crime and delinquency during
adolescence, affecting a worrisome number of teenagers.
Smith and Furlong, in their study on anger and aggression among
Filipino students, disclosed that anger is an important correlate of
student aggression, and that there is a clear link between high levels
of anger and problem behavior in school, poor academic performance,
peer rejection, and psychosomatic complaints (cited in Campano &
Munakata, 2004). Moreover, uncontrolled anger is cited as one of the
factors linked to serious school violence. One interesting yet very
disturbing observation was that students in private schools reported
high mean scores in physical aggression, verbal aggression, anger,
school hostility, and destructive expression compared to public
school students.
Balana (2010) reported that most high school students suffer
from violence. This was from a study “Towards a Child-Friendly
Environment—Baseline Study on Violence Against Children,” a
collaborative survey by Plan International, United Nations Children’s
Fund (UNICEF), the Australian Government Overseas Aid Program
(AusAid), Council for the Welfare of Children (CWC), and Philippine
Women’s University. According to the study, verbal abuse is the
most prevalent form of violence at all school levels, including being
shouted at, cursed, ridiculed, teased or humiliated. Physical violence
included pinching, throwing things at a child, spanking, making a
child stand under the sun, locking a child in a room or enclosed space,
and sexual assault. What is more disturbing is that the acts of violence
increase in frequency as the child moves up to higher grade levels.
Anger is inarguably a universal truth in the field of human
behavior. It is one of the basic emotions alongside happiness, sadness,
fear and disgust. Anger is pervasive and powerful. It is also widely
misunderstood and ignored (Mental Health Foundation, 2008).
Regardless of age, sex, culture, socio-economic status, educational
attainment and other social categorizations, anger has been experienced
by almost everybody. Simon (2005), however, observed that anger is
not a popular topic of study—angry people are not fun to be around
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adolescent anger management
and are difficult to treat. DiGiussepe and Tafrate (cited in Feindler,
2006), stated that anger studies may be unpopular because “no one
likes to hug a porcupine.” One can expand a porcupine to a snake or
a skunk. Like these animals, when angry people are threatened, they
can become verbally argumentative, volatile and at times, menacing.
A thorough review of the psychological disorders listed in the latest
edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) (APA, 2000)
shows at least five disorders that included anger as either necessary
or sufficient to reach a diagnosis. These disorders are oppositional
defiant disorder, conduct disorder, borderline personality disorder,
intermittent explosive disorder, and bipolar depression (DiGiusseppe,
2001).
Studies reveal that during adolescence, there is clearly an increase
in behavior that can be considered “problematic” or “at risk,” such
as drug use, truancy, school suspensions, vandalism, stealing, and
precocious and unprotected sex. Many of these problematic behaviors
are symptoms of conduct disorder—one of the most common reasons
for referral of a child or adolescent for psychological or psychiatric
treatment. The DSM clearly stipulates that evidence of conduct
disorder is one of the criteria for the diagnosis of antisocial personality
disorder (APD) in adulthood. In 2001, a Canadian-based Children’s
Mental Health publication disclosed that the prevalence of conduct
disorder is estimated at between 1.5% and 3.4% of the general child
and adolescent population. The onset of conduct disorder tends to
peak in late childhood and early adolescence. About 40% of children
and adolescents with conduct disorder eventually develop APD.
In nondiagnostic terms, this type of behavior has been termed
psychopathy, sociopathy, or dissocial personality disorder (Nelson,
Finch & Hart, 2006).
Deffenbacher, Oetting and DiGiuseppe (2002) emphasized that
psychologists need to be informed about anger because they often
work with anger-involved people. To work with angry individuals
necessitates tailor-fit programs that are carefully designed to answer
their varying needs. This paper attempted to explore emotion-focused
therapy (EFT) as an approach to managing anger in adolescents. Anger,
as a powerful emotion, is dealt with via an approach drawing out
emotions in an individual. EFT was developed by Leslie Greenberg, a
Canadian psychologist who, in 1979, started employing this therapy
with couples, publishing Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy in 1988
and Facilitating Emotional Change in Individual Therapy in 1993. EFT is
essentially a therapy that focuses on working with “lived emotion”
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in the session. Whereas both psychodynamic and cognitive therapies
tend to work more with conscious cognition, the focus in EFT is on
how to work with people's actual feelings and changing emotions
in the session, so that the real emphasis is on trying to understand
emotional processes and how emotions change (http://www.
mentalhelp.net/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=36618). EFT is an
integrative approach, combining client-centered, gestalt, and cognitive
principles. It also includes interactional systemic perspectives that
elucidate humanistic insights with an empirical approach.
Like other humanistic approaches, EFT adheres to the notion that
what best explains human behavior is the subjective experience of
reality. To further evaluate the effectiveness of EFT on adolescents
with anger problems, the tool Emotional Awareness, Regulation and
Transformation Scale (EARTS) was developed.
Review of Related Literature
The common English language definition of “anger” is that it is a
strong passion or emotion of displeasure or antagonism, excited by
a real or supposed injury or insult to one’s self or others, or by the
intent to do such injury (www.webster-disctionary.net). Feindler
(2006) recorded five varied definitions and descriptions of anger
(citing Kennedy, 1992, Novaco, 1998, and Spielberger, 1999). Kennedy
wrote that anger was an affective state experienced as a motivation to
act in ways that warn, intimidate or attack those who are perceived as
challenging or threatening. Anger is coupled with and is inseparable
from sensitivity to the perception of challenges or a heightened
awareness of threats or irritability. It can be inferred that Kennedy’s
analysis emphasized anger as a passion and motivational state that
promote approach and even aggressive actions.
Novaco defined anger as a negatively toned emotion subjectively
experienced as an aroused state of antagonism towards someone or
something perceived to be the source of aversive event. This definition
focused on the interpersonal nature of anger and the fact that there
is usually a perceived stimulus thought to be aversive. Spielberger’s
exposition of anger was a more fundamental concept than either
hostility or aggression as found in his anger, hostility and aggression
(AHA) syndrome. Anger refers to a psychobiological emotional state
or condition that consists of feelings that vary in intensity from mild
irritation or annoyance to intense fury and rage, accompanied by
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activation of neuroendocrine processes and arousal of the autonomic
nervous system.
In addition, Mills (2005) described anger as a natural and mostly
automatic response to pain of one form or another (physical or
emotional). Anger can occur when people do not feel well, feel
rejected, feel threatened, or experience some loss. The type of pain
does not matter; the important thing is that the pain experienced
is unpleasant. Because anger never occurs in isolation but rather is
necessarily preceded by pain feelings, it is often characterized as a
'secondhand' emotion. Also, anger is an experiential state consisting
of emotional, cognitive and physiological components that co-occur,
rapidly interacting with and influencing each other in such a way that
they tend to be experienced as a feeling state (Deffenbacher, 1999).
In 1995, Kemp and Strongman conducted an historical analysis
of anger theory and management, reviewing how social scientists
understood the emotional state called anger. First was a standard,
uncomplicated analysis of anger made by Izard (1991), who listed the
following causes of anger: restraint, the blocking or interrupting of
goal-directed activity, aversive stimulation, being misled or unjustly
hurt, and moral indignation. He viewed it as an emotion that interacts
with disgust and contempt, and as adaptive. Anger mobilizes energy
and can be justified as an appropriate defense against assertiveness.
Furthermore, anger is often undesirable and typically avoided in so
far as possible. He also suggested that not expressing anger could
result in health problems. Although, in Izard's view, anger is not the
only cause of aggression, appropriate expression of justified anger
may even strengthen the relationship between the angry person and
the person who is the target of the anger.
From the same 1995 review, the following antecedents of anger
were identified: the failure of friends, the failure of strangers,
inappropriate rewards, the failure of relatives, inconvenience,
and the failure to reach goals. In the particular context of personal
relationships, they pointed to unjust treatment, the violation of norms,
and damage to property.
It is noteworthy that the fullest and most far-reaching
consideration of anger (and aggression) by a psychologist in recent
decades has been made by Averill (1982) who took a firm social
constructionist standpoint. His simple starting point is that anger is
antisocial, unpleasant, negative, and very common. Taking up the
point that anger is very common, Averill further pointed out that its
main target is a loved one, a friend, or an acquaintance. Its aim is
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often to change whatever conditions have brought it about. Always,
there is a perceived wrong, something that was done either purposely
or through negligence. In other words, the cause of anger is either
an unjustified act or an avoidable accident. Averill also characterized
many ways to express anger, but argued that people tend to dwell
on the more dramatic of these, mainly involving physical aggression.
More often than not, in Western society, anger is dealt with by talking
things over or seeing the conflict as a series of problems that can be
solved. Many episodes of anger are seen by people as having beneficial
outcomes, even though the experience of anger might have been
unpleasant. More recently, Kalat (2011) described anger as associated
with a desire to harm people or drive them away.
Bernstein (2003) stated that anger, unlike other mental disorders,
is highly contagious, and one of its most salient symptoms is not
realizing that people have it. In another distinct way of looking at
anger, Averill illustrated that “anger can be thought of as an architect’s
blueprint. The availability of the blueprint does not cause a building
to be constructed, but it does make the construction easier. In fact,
without the blueprint, there might not be any construction at all.”
Deffenbacher (cited in Wilde, 2002) has proposed that angry
individuals tend to possess numerous cognitive processing patterns
that lead to increased levels of anger. He enumerated seven types
of cognitive errors often committed by anger-prone individuals, the
first being poor estimation of probabilities. Second, thinking pattern
concerns their attributional errors. The third cognitive error involves
overgeneralization—using overly broad terms when describing
time like excessive use of “always” and “never” and using global
descriptions for people like stupid, lazy, and so on. The fourth pattern
is dichotomous thinking (employing black-and-white thinking).
The fifth is inflammatory labelling. The sixth error deals with
demandingness, as anger-prone individuals believe others should
not act in certain ways or that they must not behave as they have, in
fact, behaved. The last cognitive error of an angry individual involves
catastrophic thinking.
Anger Management Studies
Considering the possible effect and magnitude of what an angry
person is capable of doing, anger management programs have
been created to address issues of controlling or regulating but not
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eliminating emotions because anger, as one of the basic emotions,
also serves a favorable purpose. Anger activates behaviors and has
strong reinforcing qualities.
In the mid-1970s, the topic of anger control seemed to have
arisen from a flurry of books and papers by Novaco (cited by Kemp
& Strongman, 1995), who viewed anger as an emotional response to
provocation, a response that occurs in three modalities—cognitive,
somatic-affective, and behavioral. Thus, there are appraisals, tension
and agitations, and withdrawal and antagonism. Management of
anger is then based on group discussion of the problems involved
in the anger. Encouraged is a self-exploration of the situations that
lead to anger, followed by an imagery-based reliving of recent
angry experiences. Therapists suggest that the angry feelings clients
experience are influenced by their own thoughts and offer clients an
account of the functions of anger.
This was followed by so-called stress inoculation where clients
are taught relaxation skills to control their arousal and various
cognitive controls to exercise on their attention, thoughts, images, and
feelings. They are taught to see the provocation and the anger itself
as occurring in a series of stages, each of which can be dealt with.
Programs dealing with managing anger come in a form of techniques
as a specialized form of interventions or as incorporated in several
therapeutic approaches.
Meta analyses suggest that psychosocial interventions reduce
anger. Effect sizes vary from study to study, but overall effect sizes
tend to be moderate to large and to suggest fairly reliable, consistent
treatment effects of anger reduction interventions. It is also notable
that studies with short-term (e.g. 1-month) and long-term (12-15th
month) follow ups reveal maintenance of effects. What are generally
accepted to be effective are the cognitive behavioral interventions, as
well as group anger management interventions rather than individual
treatment.
A major premise of Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT) is that
emotion is foundational in the construction of the self and is the key
determinant of self-organization. At the most basic level of functioning,
emotions are an adaptive form of information-processing and action
readiness that orients people to their environment and promotes
their well-being (Greenberg, 2004). Therapists who practice EFT use
specific tasks to work with clients’ emotional processing to facilitate
changes in clients’ emotions schemes, how they treat themselves, and
how they interact with others (Watson, Goldman, & Greenberg, 2007).
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EFT relies on three major empirically-supported principles for
enhancing emotion-processing. The first and most general goal in
EFT is the promotion of emotional awareness. Increased emotional
awareness is therapeutic in a variety of ways. Becoming aware of
and symbolizing core emotional experience in words provides access
both to the adaptive information and action. Awareness also helps
people make sense of their experience and promotes assimilation of it
into their ongoing self-narratives. One very important thing to note in
emotional awareness is not thinking about feelings; it involves feeling
the feeling in awareness. Acceptance of emotional experience as
opposed to its avoidance is the first step in awareness work. Having
accepted the emotion rather than avoided it, the therapist then helps
the client in the utilization of emotion.
The second principle of emotional processing involves the
regulation of emotion. Emotions that require regulation generally
are either secondary emotions such as despair and hopelessness, or
primary maladaptive emotions such as the shame of being worthless,
the anxiety of basic insecurity and/or panic. Linehan (cited in
Greenberg, 2004) stated that clients with under regulated affect have
been shown to benefit from validation and the learning of emotion
and distress tolerance skills. Emotion regulation skills involve such
things as identifying and labelling emotions, allowing and tolerating
emotions, establishing a working distance, increasing positive
emotions, reducing vulnerability to negative emotions, self-soothing,
breathing and distraction.
The third and probably most fundamental principle of emotional
processing involves the transformation of one emotion into another.
Although the more traditional ways of transforming emotion either
through their experience, expression and completion or through
reflection on them to gain new understanding does occur, EFT
found another process to be more important—a process of changing
emotion with emotion. This novel principle suggests that a maladaptive
emotional state can be transformed best by undoing it with another
more adaptive emotion. In time the coactivation of the more adaptive
emotion along with or in response to the maladaptive emotion helps
transform the maladaptive emotion. The philosopher Spinoza was
the first to note that emotion is needed to change emotion, pointing
out that “an emotion cannot be restrained nor removed unless by an
opposed and stringer emotion. Reason clearly is seldom sufficient to
change automatic emergency-based emotional responses.
In this study, the EFT was conducted in a group setting. In
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determining the group size, several experts stated almost similar
figures ranging from 4 to 12. Corey and colleagues (2010) said that
the desirable size for group process depends on several factors,
namely age of clients, experience of the leader, type of group, and
problems to be explored.
Theoretical Framework
This study was anchored on Lazarus’ (1991) theory of cognitive
appraisal of emotion (Figure 1). This is expressed in terms of his
cognitive-motivational-relational view of emotion and coping
processes. He characterized anger, like other negative emotions, as
resulting from harm, loss, or threat, but with any blame for these
being attributed to someone. For the angry person, the implication
is that whoever caused the harm, loss, or threat could have exercised
control and not done it, if he or she had so wished. More particularly,
Lazarus argued that a matter of general importance to people is the
preservation of their ego identity. Any assault on this will prompt
anger, a reaction which is to an extent dependent on personality and
on one's recent history of being demeaned. In Lazarus’s terms, adult
human anger is spurred by “a demeaning offence against me and
mine” and in this context, even a simple frustration can imply being
demeaned. However, anger “can be transformed readily by cognitive
(or emotion-focused) coping processes.”
PersonEnvironment
Relationship
[1]
Cognitive
Appraisal
Emotional
Responses:
[2] Subjective
Experience
[3] ThoughtAction
Tendencies
[4] Internal
Bodily
Changes
[5] Facial
expression
[5]
Responses to
Emotion
Figure 1. Lazarus’ theory of cognitive appraisal of emotion.
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At the heart of Lazarus’s theory of emotion is the process of
appraisal—i.e., cognition is a necessary part of emotion—always
characterized as being both primary and secondary. With respect to
the primary appraisal of anger, there must be a relevant goal at stake,
an incongruence involved with respect to reaching that goal and
concern with the preservation of self-esteem against assault. If these
conditions are met and the primary appraisal that leads to anger is
made then, according to Lazarus (1982), secondary appraisals follow.
Blame, for example, is apportioned: if to an external agent, then anger
will result; if it is self-directed, anger also results. As Izard (1991)
suggested, Lazarus argued that for anger to occur, one must believe
that whoever is blameworthy was capable of control (i.e., of not doing
whatever was done) but chose not to exercise it. Further, anger also
involves the appraisal that the best way of dealing with the offense
is to attack. Moreover, if one has the expectation that there is a good
possibility that attack will provide a successful way of coping, then
anger is more likely to result.
Lazarus also had some interesting comments about the
implications of anger and its control: [1] anger is often inhibited,
particularly if it seems that its expression might produce a strong
retaliation; [2] expressed anger can be both useful and dangerous, but
uncontrolled anger may be both counterproductive and physically
unhealthy; and, [3] there are many types of extreme, lasting, or
recurrent anger, or the inability to express anger at all, any of which
may be pathological. Of course, whether or not these manifestations
are regarded as pathological will depend on time, place, and culture
(Kemp & Strongman, 1995).
Conceptual Framework
Using Thompson’s input-throughput-output model (1967), the
primary conceptual framework of this study (Figure 2) shows that
assessment of the participants’ anger level served as the input,
wherein pretesting was conducted. Applying Lazarus’ construct of
the psychology of anger, this study recognized the importance of
assessing the anger level of the individual. The assessment covered
instrumental anger, reactive anger, anger control and the total anger.
Instrumental anger refers to a negative emotion that is considered
as a triggering factor that leads a person to retaliate. Reactive anger
is the immediate angry response, while anger control refers to the
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ASSESSING THE
ANGER LEVEL OF
PARTICIPANTS AS
AN INDICATOR OF
THE SYMPTOMS
OF EMOTIONAL
PROBLEMS
HIGH
• Instrumental
Anger
• Reactive Anger
• Anger Control
• Total Anger
LOW
1. DESIGN OF
INTERVENTION AS
ADAPTED FROM
THE EMOTIONFOCUSED
THERAPY
2. TEST
DEVELOPMENT:
Emotional
awareness,
REGULATION, AND
TRANSFORMATION
SCALE (EARTS)
ANALYSIS OF OUTCOMES
132
Figure 2. Conceptual Model of the Study.
proactive behavioural-cognitive method a person uses to deal with
his or her anger. These appear in the input box.
The next box is labelled “High” as this indicates possible
symptoms of emotional problems leading to anger from those who
are pretested. Those who scored in the lower range were not included
in the intervention. Then, using Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT), an
intervention was designed and implemented in 12 sessions, thrice a
week. An instrument was also developed to measure the effectiveness
of the modules designed. This tool, Emotional Awareness, Regulation
and Transformation Scale (EARTS) underwent the process of test
development, validation and internal consistency check. Analysis of
the outcomes was done as part of the output box.
Statement of the Problem
The primary objective of this study was to determine the effectiveness
of emotion-focused therapy (EFT) as an approach in anger
management among adolescents at a private high school in Davao
City. Specifically, it sought to answer the following questions:
1. What is the profile of the participants’ anger response patterns
according to Instrumental Anger, Reactive Anger, Anger Control,
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and Total Anger?
2. What is the psychological profile of the experimental group
participants?
3. What is the level of pretest and posttest scores of the experimental
and control groups in emotion-focused therapy principles in terms
of emotional awareness, emotional regulation, and emotional
transformation?
4. Is there a significant difference in the level of pretest scores of the
experimental and control groups before the implementation of
emotion-focused therapy (EFT)?
5. Is there a significant difference in the level of post test scores of
the experimental and control groups after the implementation of
EFT?
Method
In order to evaluate the effectiveness of Emotion-Focused Therapy
among adolescents identified with anger, a true experimental design,
specifically the Randomized Pretest-Posttest Control group design
was utilized. Participants were randomly assigned to experimental
and control groups. All participants were pretested on the dependent
variable, the experimental group was administered the treatment,
and both groups were then posttested on the dependent variable.
The participants of this study were high school students of a private
university in Davao City, Philippines selected from the 200 students
who were under the student disciplinary program (i.e., included in
the program due to violations of school rules and regulations stated
in the student handbook). By definition, suspension is a serious
disciplinary status imposed on a student for violating school policies
and regulations. It also refers to the imposition of community service
due to accumulation of jugs/posts and/or outright violation of any
instance stipulated under the provisions for suspension or the act of
preventing the student from attending classes.
The instruments administered were the Adolescent Anger Rating
Scale (AARS) (Burney, 2001) and the research-constructed Emotional
Awareness, Regulation, and Transformation Scale (EARTS)1. The
Emotion-Focused Therapy Module, developed based on the principles
of emotional awareness, emotional regulation and emotional
transformation, was used as an intervention for 12 sessions.
From the list of 200 students placed in the disciplinary probation
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program, 64 were due for suspension and were administered the
Adolescent Anger Rating Scale. Sixteen obtained a high score on one
or more AARS subscales. A T-score of 60 was used as a determining
factor for inclusion. Applying the true-experimental design, a
randomized selection was done through fish bowl technique. The first
eight names picked were assigned to the experimental group and the
other half comprised the control group.
After the pretest administration, implementation of the
intervention took place. Two Modules in the EFT were carefully
designed to address the needs of the participants as revealed in their
response patterns. Effectiveness of the modules implemented through
the EFT was measured using the EARTS as a posttest.
After the 12th session, post test was conducted, followed
by statistical treatment. Debriefing of the participants (both the
experimental and control groups) was done immediately after the last
session.
Results and Discussion
Anger Response Patterns
Administration of the Adolescent Anger Rating Scale (AARS) resulted
in anger response patterns of participants according to instrumental
anger, reactive anger, anger control, and total anger (Table 1). For
the instrumental anger subscale, the scores of the participants are
distributed from average to very high level. In the average level,
six (37.5%) of them reveal that when in a state of anger, they do not
typically resort to retaliation and getting back to the source of anger.
But the moderately high to very high instrumental anger level has
four and six participants, respectively. This means that four of them
have thoughts of retaliating and have actually planned revenge, while
six participants display a critical anger level that will likely result in
retribution or striking back.
Such outcome supports what Geldard (2004) stated that there
are inevitable challenges that adolescents face, one of them being
emotional reactivity. What a person feels is real and a product of
internal processing of an external stimulus, provoking further anxiety
when anger expression is thwarted. It is noticeable, however, that
for a number of the participants, they had ideation of revenge to get
even or use other mechanisms to defend themselves, e.g., through
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denial, projection and regression. It must also be emphasized that
inappropriate behavior may often be a consequence of these internal
ego-defending mechanisms.
Table 1.
Respondents’ anger response patterns, n=16.
Anger Level
T-Scores
INSTRUMENTAL
ANGER
REACTIVE
ANGER
ANGER TOTAL
CONTROL ANGER
f
%
ƒ
%
f
%
f
%
Very High
( >70)
6
37.5
2
12.5
0
4
25
Moderately
High
(60-69)
4
25
8
50
1
6.25 4
25
Average
(41-59)
6
37.5
3
18.75
14
87.5 8 50
Moderately
Low
(31-49)
0
0
3
18.75
1
6.25 0
0
Very Low
( < 30)
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Meantime, two participants scored very high while eight of the
participants obtained a moderately high T score on reactive anger. A
high reactive anger score indicates impulsive and hyperactive response
styles. This supports Mills (2005) who described anger as a natural
and mostly automatic response to a threatening situation. It does not
even have to be on a higher scale. As revealed by the adolescents in
the research, this threat can be a pain that is quite unpleasant. For
anyone who may feel threatened, the natural tendency is to defend
oneself. In this study, the adolescents defended themselves by acting
out very impulsively.
Seen in a larger scale, reactive anger is defensive by nature and
potentially damaging to one’s self-esteem. It also harms relationships
because an angry person thinks in a black and white manner or what
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Deffenbacher (1993) calls dichotomous thinking. For someone who is
threatened whose feelings will escalate to anger, there are only two
things: the person is hurt and then naturally reacts and responds out
of those hurt and angry feelings inside.
For the anger control subscale (Table 1), 87.5% are in the average
level, meaning that the majority do not have any proactive cognitivecontrol method used in resolving instrumental anger and/or responses
to anger. More specifically, they do not possess the ability to control
anger outbursts.
Two points are discussion-worthy from this result: [1] anger
control or management approaches, and [2] the seemingly nonchalant
attitude of adolescents towards their own anger. First, it is widely
accepted that anger is normal, thus it becomes a question now about
the need to attend or participate in anger management activities.
This further implies a need for continuous concrete efforts to teach
handling emotions so further negative effects can be avoided. Second,
Martinez et al. (2008) disclosed that much of the learning of how
to express or inhibit anger can be explained from a developmental
perspective. Snyer and colleagues maintain that socializing agents,
especially parents, play an important role in influencing children’s
learning of emotion regulation. So when children or adolescents have
healthy emotional expressions even in their younger years, there may
be lesser incidence of misbehaviours that are partly related to violence
and aggression (cited in Martinez et al., 2008).
Finally, the total anger subscale reveals a 50% split between
average levels and moderately high to high levels. This subscale is
an index of scores obtained in instrumental anger, reactive anger and
anger control, thus a general indicator of the anger response patterns
of the participants. In combining the anger behaviors and reactions
with what is consciously done to handle or manage adverse reactions,
this profile justifies the need for an intervention because many are
aware that they may resort to vengeance and become impulsive and
hyperactive in their response styles, but do not have skills to manage
anger.
The Experimental Group’s Profile
Looking closely at the experimental group’s profile, based on results
of the Kiersey Temperament Sorter, drawing tests, and EARTS, the
researchers found a number of common themes that emerged in
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relation to the family context, distinct personality characteristics,
and an observed adaptability to changes. The lack of warmth at
home was observed in majority of the respondents. Although this
paper does not highlight the culpability of parental and family
concerns, the observation is a reality that is not negligible. Some
distinct personality characteristics are also apparent among the eight
participants, including being isolated and withdrawn. When traced from
a mesosystemic viewpoint, this preference to be alone and staying
away from the group, can be seen as a by-product of a lack of warmth
or affection at home. This is highly toxic because isolation and
withdrawal are features of adolescents who have frequent suicide
ideations. On a positive note, these young people are open to changes
and are highly adaptive to adjustment and transformative programs.
This is promising for program development in assisting adolescents
in maladjustment.
Emotional Awareness, Regulation and Transformation Scale
(EARTS) Pre- and Post-Test (Pre- and Post-Emotion-Focused
Therapy)
Results on the Emotional Awareness, Regulation and Transformation
Scale (EARTS) before and after Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT)
intervention are revealing (Table 2). For both the experimental and
control groups, the respondents obtained a mean ranging from 3.01
to 3.46 (average), meaning that they generally perceived themselves
to be emotionally aware and able to regulate and transform emotions
from unpleasant to pleasant.
Emotional awareness does not only refer to what one thinks about
feelings, but Greenberg (2004) said that it is the involvement of feeling
the feeling in awareness. This means that the adolescents tested with
the EARTS already possessed that ability to be emotionally aware even
if it is only in the average level. Similar contention can be taken from
the average result for emotional regulation. EFT highlights the ability
of the individual to monitor and evaluate one’s emotional reactions.
Pretest data suggest that, for about half the time, the adolescents
may have monitored their own emotions. In terms of transforming
emotions, the score ranged from average to high average, meaning
that there is already an effort and attempt from both experimental
and control group adolescents to modify reactions that might
increase their anger tendencies, thus leading them to misbehave and
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Table 2.
Pretest and Post-test Results of the Experimental and Control Groups on the
Emotional Awareness, Regulation and Transformation Scale (EARTS).
EFT Principles
EXPERIMENTAL
Pretest
Posttest
CONTROL
Pretest
Posttest
MEAN DESC MEAN DESC MEAN DESCMEANDESC
Emotional
Awareness
3.16
A
3.78
HA
3.27
A
3.39
A
Emotional
Regulation
3.01
A
3.69
HA
3.16
A
3.08
A
Emotional
Transformation 3.46
HA 4.11
HA
3.29
A
3.36
A
Total
A
3.86
HA
3.24
A
3.28
A
3.21
eventually misbehave at home and in school.
However, posttest data (Table 2) show an overall mean of 3.86
against the 3.21 in the pretest, showing an increase in the mean
gain score after EFT was implemented as an intervention. Looking
closely at the posttest result of the experimental group, the principles
of emotional awareness and emotional regulation both leaped from
average to high average after EFT, indicating a higher and increased
level in emotional awareness, regulation and transformation. Further,
the higher overall posttest mean of 3.86 suggests effectiveness of the
therapy. The control group on the other hand, showed a similar
description of average (3.24 in both the pretest and the posttest).
Using the Mann-Whitney u Test, there was no significant difference
between the experimental group and the control group in their pretest
scores (Table 3), but there were significant differences between the
experimental group and the control group in their posttest scores.
This means that EFT as an intervention for anger management among
adolescents was effective.
The favourable outcome of the intervention is supported by
Greenberg (2008) who said that when emotions are focused on,
accepted, and worked with directly in therapy, this can encourage
and support emotional change. Considering the emotional state
of the adolescents, stronger emotional outbursts are felt at an
increased intensity because of the lack of self-control, judgment and
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Table 3.
Mann-Whitney u Test for the Significance of Difference in the Pretest and Posttest Scores of the Experimental and Control Groups.
Between the Pretest Scores Between Post-test Scores
of Experimental and Control of Experimental and Control
GroupsGroups
Mann-Whitney U
29.00
5.00
Exact Sig.
[2*(1-tailed Sig)]
.798 (a)
.003 (a)
emotional regulation. However, when guided and allowed to explore
the dynamics of their angry and possibly disruptive behaviors,
adolescents can modify behavioral reactions and further monitor and
evaluate their emotional reactions.
Moreover, psychologists are optimistic about emotional
transformation in adolescents because neuropsychologists recently
found that the brain is still developing in the teen years. This further
means that the teens may actually be able to control how their own
brains are wired and sculpted. Children who “exercise” their brains
by learning to order their thoughts, understand abstract concepts,
and control their impulses are laying the neural foundations that will
serve them for the rest of their lives. Thus, when emotional exercises,
such as those conducted during EFT, are regularly provided by
helping professionals, emotional development in adolescents is
highly possible.
Conclusions
and Recommendations
In sum, the anger profile of the participants revealed a homogeneous
distribution in terms of instrumental and reactive anger. As scores
in these subscales increased, anger control followed a downward
pattern. Also, both experimental and control groups were similarly on
the average in emotional awareness, regulation and transformation
before EFT, but posttest scores registered a difference of .86, lending
support that the EFT sessions helped the adolescents manage their
anger by looking into their own emotions (awareness), monitoring
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and evaluating emotional reactions (regulation) and modifying one’s
emotion to construct a new meaning (transformation).
Destructive behaviors of adolescents can certainly be lessened
or avoided when there are programs initiated by the institutions
surrounding them. It is apparent that in the locale of the study, there is
an absence of a therapeutic environment that despite sanctions of each
and every violation, adolescents continue to defy them. While it may
not only be because of anger and aggressive tendencies of the youth,
interventions that allow young people to be emotionally literate should
be in place. Emotion-Focused Therapy to address anger problems can
be integrated in school programs. School counsellors can be given
training and workshop on facilitating emotional development among
children and adolescents and especially addressing suicidal ideation,
depression, and other psychopathology. No therapy is effective when
the therapist is unfit to carry out any helping relationship. This is not
an issue on competence but a helper’s genuineness of character in
helping clients deal with emotional outbursts. It may be helpful then
to assess therapists in terms of their own anger expression, regulation
and transformation.
The use of Adolescent Anger Rating Scale in the institution is
advantageous for early detection of anger problems resulting in
possible conduct disorders and misbehaviors. The use of EFT may
also be expanded to other clinical concerns, not just anger. EFT started
out as an approach for helping couples but through exploration and
with empirical evidence, EFT is now being used for anger-related
disorders. Finally, for those interested in test development, the
Emotional Awareness, Regulation and Transformation Scale can be
improved to aid in the proper assessment of anger-related problems.
More importantly, further validation and reliability testing of EARTS
will tackle cultural considerations as this is a Filipino-made test,
sensitive to the experience of Filipino adolescents. Once validated and
tested with a more representative sample, norms may be established.
Acknowledgments
The authors wish to thank colleagues at Ateneo de Davao University and Silliman
University for their support and encouragement and psychology practitioners Dr. J.
Enrique Saplala, Dr. Ma. Caridad Tarroja, and Dr. Gail Tan-Ilagan for their needed
input and suggestions for the improvement of this paper.
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Endnotes
To ensure that proper instrumentation procedures were observed and EARTS
become a psychometrically sound tool, two steps were undertaken. First, experts in
the field of psychological assessment and educational measurement and evaluation
were requested to validate the items included in the EARTS. Areas covered included
clarity of the language, presentation and organization of concepts, suitability of
items, adequateness of purpose, attainment of purpose, and respondent-friendliness.
Second, reliability coefficient was determined by computing the alpha coefficient
(frequently called Cronbach’s alpha) to check on the internal consistency of the
instrument after some time had elapsed. The EARTS was pilot-tested at a sectarian
high school in the city with 30 students. Comments and feedback were taken into
account before the actual conduct of the EARTS as pretest to the research participants.
1
Intervention through EFT was held three times a week (Monday, Thursday and
Saturday) and ran for 12 sessions. Fridays were reserved for reflections and bringhome therapeutic activities. Interactive group processes were utilized and techniques
and skills in EFT were included in the intervention. These activities were geared
towards reducing and managing the kind of anger the adolescents were currently
experiencing. As the group therapy progressed, individual therapy was concurrently
conducted towards the sixth to seventh sessions to gain a particular insight and
derive a personal experience from each participant. Individual sessions depended
upon the need for special follow-up, but it was made certain that each one of them
were individually attended to and given at least an hour for personal disclosure
that they would rather articulate in a one-on-one session. This process allowed the
researcher/therapist and the participant to engage into a deeper understanding of the
anatomy and dynamics of anger.
2
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VOL. 53 NO. 2
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Community Awareness and Perception
of the Implementation of the
in Bolinao, Pangasinan, Philippines
Annie Rose D. Teñoso
Pangasinan State University,
Binmaley, Pangasinan, Philippines
Annie Melinda Paz-Alberto
Environmental Management Department
Institute of Graduate Studies and Institute
for Climate Change and Environmental Management
Central Luzon State University
Muñoz, Nueva Ecija, Philippines
Community knowledge, involvement, and support are all essential
in the implementation of coastal resource management programs
for sustainable resource use and economic development. This
study aimed to identify the coastal resource management (CRM)
programs implemented in Balingasay, Arnedo, Victory and
Binabalian in Bolinao, Pangasinan, Philippines, CRM related
issues and problems, and the recommended solutions for better
management strategies of coastal resources and to determine
the extent of community awareness and involvement and
perceived government and non-government interventions in the
implementation of these programs in these barangays. Marine
protected areas and community based mangrove conservation
projects were observed to be protected and managed by the local
government units and non-governmental organizations.
The respondents had moderate awareness and moderate
perceived level of implementation on information, communication
and education programs for CRM programs, fisheries and
CRM legislation. Similarly, the local communities had moderate
awareness and moderate perceived level of implementation of the
CRM programs. The perceived level of community participation and
involvement in CRM and perceived level of government intervention
were found to be occasional. Moreover, the perceived level of
interventions of the NGO, academic and research institutions in
CRM of Bolinao, Pangasinan were seldom.
Low catch by the fisher folk, poverty, overfishing, illegal fishing,
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A.R.D. TEÑOSO & A.M. PAZ-ALBERTO
145
pollution, squatting, waste disposal and climate change were the
major problems identified. These were caused by different human
activities in the coastal area. Provision of alternative livelihood and
effective enforcement of fishery laws and ordinances are suggested
in order to solve these problems.
Keywords: coastal areas, coastal resource management,
awareness, implementation, perception, poverty
C
Introduction
ommunity Based Coastal Resource Management (CBCRM) is
rooted in the belief that community knowledge, involvement,
and support are all essential in the creation of sustainable
resource use and economic development. Views of the conditions
of resources and program implementation shape the community’s
response to conservation attempts, as do their views of their own
situation, and their relationship to resources and to other resource
users. The need to understand these perceptions is especially strong in
the case of community level coastal resource management programs
that seek not only to protect the environment, but also to improve
the lives of the coastal community that depend on it. Perceptions of
resource conditions and trends reveal needs of the community, and the
perception of a crisis is a key predictor of community participation in
management efforts (Baticados, 2004; Pollnac, Crawford, & Gorospe,
2001a). Their understanding of the problems may reveal points of
disagreement with the diagnoses of the experts. But, perceptions of
management efforts are similarly important, especially concerning
program objectives relating to human wellbeing, which is often
subjective and difficult to measure (Pomeroy et al., 1997). As with
resource conditions, positive program evaluations can be seen as a
measure of program success (Pollnac et al., 2001; Pomeroy et al.,1997;
Webb, Maliar, & Siar, 2004).
Community views are also key predictors of program support,
compliance and sustainability. With Marine Protected Areas (MPAs),
McClanahan (2005) suggested that positive perceptions may be
impacted by the type of management restrictions, the degree of
degradation, the failure of management to live up to promises and
ineffective or preferential enforcement. Therefore, it is imperative to
understand perceptions of communities in the implementation level
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146
community awareness on CRM programs in bolinao
of coastal resource management programs to determine management
efforts as well as attitudes within a program area. Objectives and
quantitative measures are undoubtedly relevant as well as essential
for evaluation of impacts. Nonetheless, they are proxies for more
contextual, subjective, experience ideas such as quality of life and
marginalization, which may be better measured through perceptions
(Pomeroy et al., 1997).
Bolinao is one of the coastal municipalities of Pangasinan that has
experienced the challenges of degrading resources in its coastal areas.
To maintain these valuable resources, the local people in Bolinao
have taken the initiative to conserve their resources through coastal
resource management programs like the establishment of marine fish
sanctuary and mangrove management areas. This kind of intervention
started in 1998 and has been adopted by some of the coastal barangays
of the municipality. Through the years, they have managed to slowly
deal with the problems on the degradation of their coastal resources
in hopes of reviving and saving resources and biodiversity.
The coastal resource management plans and their implementation
in this municipality have gone through many challenges such as
acceptance and cooperation of the people on the conservation practices
of their coastal resources as well as intervention from government
and non-government institutions. As such, believing that exploring
perceptions may reveal subtle, more abstract impacts of the coastal
resource management (CRM) programs that are difficult to measure,
but nonetheless important, this study was conceptualized to enhance
the effectiveness of the implementation of CRM in coastal areas. This
study documented the awareness of the community on the present
CRM programs and their perception on the implementation level
in selected barangays: Balingasay, Arnedo, Victory, and Binabalian
in Bolinao, Pangasinan. Specifically, the aim was to identify CRM
related issues and problems and the recommended solutions for
better management strategies of coastal resources and to determine
the extent of community awareness and perceived government
and non-government interventions in the implementation of CRM
programs in these barangays.
MethodS
The four coastal barangays of Bolinao, Pangasinan—Arnedo,
Balingasay, Binabalian, and Victory—have had an active coastal
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
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147
resource management program for the past few years; marine
protected areas have been established and mangrove ecosystems are
managed.
The respondents were the residents of the four coastal barangays,
the municipal and barangay officials, and cooperators of the coastal
resource management programs (or the implementing organizations
of the program). The sample size was determined using the formulas
in Cochran (1977):
[a] no = tα2 pq/d2
where no = initial estimate of the sample size
tα = Students’ t-distribution with a level of significance of α
p = probability or proportion of “successes”
q = probability or proportion of “failures”
d = desired degree of precision
[b] n = no/[1 + (no – 1)/N]
where n = final estimate of the sample size
no = initial estimate of the sample size
N = total population size
With a total sample size of 351, the respondents per coastal
barangay were selected through random sampling with sample size
proportional to the population size of the coastal barangay (Table 1).
Table 1.
Barangay Population Size and Respondent Sample Size.
Coastal Barangay
Population Size
Sample Size
1. Balingasay
2. Binabalian
3. Arnedo
4. Victory
976
655
928
292
120
81
114
36
Total
2851
351
Interviews and questionnaires, in English and the vernacular,
were used to gather data on the socio-economic status of the residents
of these areas, their awareness and perceived implementation levels of
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CRM programs, the problems/issues encountered, and their proposed
solutions. Supplementary information was gathered through probing
questions. Informal interviews were also done through focused group
discussions using guide questions. The data gathered were tallied,
analyzed, and interpreted. Frequency counts, percentages, weighted
mean and ranking were used for the descriptive analysis.
Results
Socio-economic Profile of the Respondents
Majority of the respondents from the four barangays were male and
married. The average age was 38 in Arnedo, 40 in Balingasay and
Binabalian and 39 in Victory. In terms of educational attainment,
less than half in Arnedo (45.61%), Balingasay (43.33%), Binabalian
(40.74%) and in Victory (27%) have their elementary education. Only
21.05 percent in Arnedo, 21.67 percent in Balingasay, 20.99 percent
in Binabalian and 11.11 percent in Victory have completed their
secondary education. Very few have reached the college level. In all
the four barangays, the respondents depend on fishing as their major
source of living. Their average number of children was four or they
have six household members on the average. The mean monthly
income of the respondents in Arnedo was only PhP 3,245.61, while
PhP 2,995.61 was in Balingasay, PhP 1,859.65 in Binabalian and only
PhP 1,241.23 in Victory. These results indicate that the respondents
from the coastal areas live below the poverty line and have very low
educational attainment. This result conformed with findings of an
earlier study by Hilomen and Jimenez (2001) in the Lingayen gulf,
which revealed that the low educational attainment of the fishermen
was a factor that caused the meager average income of PhP 3,000.00
per month.
For fishing facilities, the results show that there were 13 types of
fishing gears operated by the respondents in their coastal areas (Table
2). Of these fishing gears, hook and line topped the list (45.61%) in
Arnedo, 23.33% in Balingasay, and 72.22% in Victory. Spear gun
topped the gears (25.93%) in Binabalian. Multiple handline, spear
gun, compressor with net, drift gill net, fish net, trawl, petromax,
bottom set gill net, tuna drift gill net, beach seine net, ring net and
sky lab were also used by the respondents in fishing. Skylab were
the least used. The motorized boat was the next popular fishing
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Boat
Motorized
Non-motorized
None
103
2
9
4
7
2
90.35
1.75
7.89
3.51
3.51
1.75
33.33
9.65
45.61
2.63
5.26
2.63
2.63
7.89
7.02
6.14
Arnedo
ƒ
%
Petromax (light fishing)
Trawl
Sky lab
38
11
52
3
6
3
3
9
8
7
Fishing Gears*
Multiple handline
Drift Gill Net
Hook and line
Tuna Drift Gill Net
Bottom set gill net
Beach Seine net
Ring Net
Compressor with net
Fish net
Spear gun
Household
Gears
68
42
10
7
3
1
19
4
28
1
2
1
1
11
5
24
56.67
35.00
8.33
5.83
2.50
0.83
14.17
3.33
23.33
0.83
1.67
0.83
0.83
9.17
4.17
20.00
Balingasay
ƒ
%
34
42
6
6
2
1
7
1
11
0
0
0
0
5
3
21
41.98
51.85
7.41
7.41
2.47
1.23
8.64
1.23
13.58
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
6.17
3.70
25.93
Binabalian
ƒ
%
Fishing facilities of respondents in the four barangays of Bolinao, Pangasinan.
Table 2.
34
0
2
0
2
0
12
6
26
2
4
2
2
0
3
2
ƒ
94.44
0.00
5.56
0.00
5.56
0.00
33.33
16.67
72.22
5.56
11.11
5.56
5.56
0.00
8.33
5.56
Victory
%
149
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150
transport. Table 2 shows that among the respondents, 90.35% in
Arnedo, 56.67% in Balingasay, 41.98% in Binabalian and 94.44% of
the respondents in Victory were operating motorized boats and 1.75%
in Arnedo, 35% in Balingasay and 51.85% in Binabalian used nonmotorized boats. These findings indicate that most fishermen used
passive type of gears rather than active gears. The higher number of
hook and line operators may be attributed to the lower cost and easy
operation. Silvestre and Hilomen (2004) noted that hook and line was
the second commonly used gear in the Lingayen Gulf, accounting to
12.21%.The use of motorized banca in the coastal area is an advantage
to fishermen to have higher catch. The higher number of motorized
banca may be linked to the fisherman’s priorities. Since fishing is the
major source of living, the purchase of motor engine is one of the
top priorities aside from the gear. This is similar to the findings of
Mcglone and Villanoy (2001) where there was a higher number of
motorized banca operating in the Lingayen Gulf rather than nonmotorized ones.
The municipality of Bolinao established several programs and projects
in order to manage its coastal resources. Some of these are found in
Barangay Arnedo, Balingasay, Binabalian, and Victory where marine
areas are protected and mangroves are managed by the LGU and
NGOs or people’s organizations (Table 3).
Barangay Balingasay has 14.77 hectares of marine protected area
(launched in 1998); Victory has 4.8 hectares (since 2002) while Arnedo
has 19.47 hectares (since 2004). The newest of the four study areas is
the 10.8 hectares in Binabalian which started in 2006 (Figure 1).
Community-based mangrove conservation projects were also
observed in the four barangays. The mangrove management area in
Arnedo with 8.65 hectares started in 2004 whereas the 8.8 hectares in
Binabalian commenced in 2004. The widest mangrove management area
is 15 hectares located in Victory (started in 1999). Meanwhile, mangrove
conservation also naturally occurs along Balingasay River (Figure 1).
Marine protected areas and mangrove management areas in these
barangays are part of the coastal resource management programs
implemented by the local government units. These were established
to bring back the integrity of the coastal resources that were degraded
since the Lingayen Gulf was declared an environmentally critical
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151
area. The marine protected areas were established as “no take”
zone—fishing and other activities are prohibited to ensure species
replenishment in the area.
Table 3.
Coastal Resource Management Programs in Arnedo, Balingasay, Binabalian,
and Victory Bolinao, Pangasinan.
Programs
Activities
In-Charge of Management
Mangrove Planting and Management
- Mangrove planting
- Coastal clean-up
- Nursery development and management
- Replenishment and planting - Monitoring and
evaluation
- Patrolling and
protection
LGU
KAISAKA Federation
SAPA
SAMMABAL
SAMMABI
SMMV
Marine Protected Areas
- Planning workshops
and consultations
- Guarding and patrolling in cooperation with the community
- Deputized
“bantaydagat”
- Regular monitoring
LGU
KAISAKA Federation
SAPA
SAMMABAL
SAMMABI
SMMV
Figure 1. Marine protected areas and
mangrove management areas in Bolinao,
Pangasinan.
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152
Information campaigns and consultation with the community are
regularly done to ensure the progress of the program. Guarding and
patrolling in the form of deputizing “bantaydagat” are included in
the activities in the area.
In the mangrove management areas, additional activities included
nursery development, replenishment and planting of mangroves,
coastal clean-up, monitoring and evaluation as well as patrolling and
protection. These activities were supported by the local government
units through the leadership of the municipal mayor and its staff incharge in cooperation with the people’s organization. The allotted
budget for all the coastal resource management programs for the
coastal areas of Bolinao was PhP 1,105,000 in 2009 and PhP 500,000
in 2010.
All of these programs were launched and managed by the
local government units (LGUs) in partnership with the people’s
organization (PO), the Kaisahan ng mga Samahan Alay sa
Kalikasan, Inc. (KAISAKA) Federation. Management of these
projects was specifically given to the member organizations of the
KAISAKA in every barangay. These members are the “Samahang
Pangkalikasang Arnedo” (SAPA) in Barangay Arnedo, “Samahan ng
mga Mangingisda at Mamamayan ng Balingasay” (SAMMABAL) in
Barangay Balingasay, “Samahan ng Mangingisda at Mamamayan ng
Binabalian” (SAMMABI) in Barangay Binabalian and “Samahan ng
Maliliit na Mangingisdang Victory” (SMMV) in Barangay Victory.
Issues and Problems in Coastal Areas
The eight issues and problems along the coastal areas of Bolinao,
Pangasinan (Table 4) were ranked by the respondents from 1 to 7 as to
its seriousness where 1—in this case, low catch—is considered to be
the most serious issue/problem while No. 7 was considered the least
serious. Bolinao, being regarded as an environmentally critical area,
suffers from the degradation of fish catch. With the establishment of
the “no take zone,” the area for fishing was reduced, thereby limiting
the catch for the fisherfolk.
Causes of the Identified Issues and Problems in Coastal Areas
The low catch (Table 5) was caused by overfishing in the municipal
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Table 4.
Issues and Problems of the Respondents in the Coastal Areas of Bolinao,
Pangasinan.
Issues and Problems
Rank
Low Catch
Poverty
Overfishing
Illegal Fishing
Pollution
Squatting
Waste Disposal/Climate Change
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
waters (82.34%), illegal fishing (52.71%), influx of transient fisherfolk
(38.46%), and increasing number of fisherfolk (34.47%). The continuous
illegal fishing within the municipal waters of Bolinao, Pangasinan
resulted in the rapid depletion of fish stock and the destruction of the
coastal and marine resources. These caused the low catch and poverty
in the area. This was also the problem of the whole Lingayen Gulf
as stated by White and Cruz-Trinidad (2000) and Domingo (2001).
As to the poverty problem, four causes were identified: low income
(86.89%), low educational attainment (75.50%), lack of employment
opportunities (47.01%), and high population growth rate (37.61%).
Poverty is a major problem particularly in the coastal areas of Bolinao.
This was also found by Domingo (2001), who claimed that residents
in fishing villages had an average monthly income of PhP 2,658.00,
way below the poverty threshold of PhP 6,195.00 for a family of five
to survive (NSCB, 2007). The residents as well as the labor force could
not be gainfully employed due to low educational attainment. On the
other hand, overfishing was mainly caused by poverty (81.2%). This
was followed by high dependence on fishing as primary source of
income (47.86%), continuous increase of fishing efforts (38.46%) and
weak fishery law enforcement (15.95%).
People continue to resort to overfishing because they have no
other source of income. Whatever law is enforced, implementation
is always difficult if the stomach is empty. Moreover, illegal fishing
is mainly caused by poverty (92.59%). Other causes were limited
number of “bantay dagat” law enforcers/volunteers (85.47%) and
lack of alternative livelihood (81.20%). One reason for the use of
fishing methods destructive to fish populations and habitats is the
“cost efficiency” of these methods. Dynamite fishers are known to
VOL. 53 NO. 2
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154
Table 5.
Causes of Identified Issues and Problems in the Coastal Areas of Bolinao,
Pangasinan.
Isssues and Problems
Identified Causes
ƒ
%
Low catch
1. Overfishing in the municipal
waters
2. Illegal fishing
3. Influx of transient fishermen
4. Increasing number of fishermen
289
185
135
121
82.34
52.71
38.46
34.47
Poverty
1. Low income
2. Low educational attainment
3. Lack of employment
opportunities
4. High population growth rate
305
265
86.89
75.50
165
132
47.01
37.61
Overfishing
1. Poverty
2. High dependence on fishing
as primary source of income
3. Continuous increase of fishing
efforts
4. Weak fishery law enforcement
285
81.20
168
47.86
135
56
38.46
15.95
Illegal fishing
1. Poverty
325
2. Limited number of Bantay
Dagat law enforcers/volunteers 300
3. Lack of alternative livelihood
285
92.59
Pollution
1. Excess feeding and fecal matters
from mariculture operation
175
2. Improper disposal of industrial
and domestic wastes
155
Squatting
1. No housing facilities
2. Increasing number of coastal
immigrants 3. Population growth
Waste Disposal
1. Lack of discipline among the
residents in disposing wastes
2. Lack of information on solid
waste management
implemented by the LGU
Climate Change
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
85.47
81.20
49.86
44.16
254
72.36
135
125
38.46
35.61
256
72.93
138
39.32
1. Lack of discipline among the
residents in waste management 155
2. Continuous burning of wastes 135
44.16
38.46
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155
spend shorter working hours with a maximum of eight hours at sea
compared to bottom sea gill net and dredge net fishers who work
12 hours or more. Thus, short term financial profitability and labor
productivity are relatively higher for dynamite fishers.
On the pollution problem, excessive feeding and fecal matter from
mariculture operation could cause pollution (49.86%). Also, improper
disposal of industrial and domestic waste was pinpointed by 44.16%
of the respondents as cause of pollution. All development activities
contribute to coastal marine pollution. People all over the world have
long thought of the ocean as vast and limitless. As a result, the ocean
has been used as a dumping ground for all kinds of waste-hazardous
waste, sewage, and solid waste. Uncontrolled population growth and
increasing urbanization and industrialization have overwhelmed
the capacity of the ocean and coastal waters to dilute and disperse
this growing volume of wastes. Furthermore, urban and industrial
pollutants such as heavy metals, petrochemicals, sediments, sewage
and solid waste have degraded the country’s coastal waters, impacting
the health of coral reefs, fisheries and the communities that depend on
them (DENR et al., 2001).Squatting along the coastal areas is caused
by absence of housing facilities (72.36%), increasing number of coastal
immigrants (38.46%), and population growth (35.61%).
On waste disposal, the main causes identified were lack of
discipline among the residents in disposing wastes (72.93%) and
lack of information on solid waste management implemented by the
LGU (39.32%). Solid waste, though managed by the local government
units, still contributes to the problems in the coastal areas.
Solutions to the Identified Issues and Problems in Coastal Areas
Solutions recommended by the respondents to the issues and problems
in Bolinao coastal areas (Table 6) are resource rehabilitation program
(85.75%) and controlled fishing (92.59%). Poverty could be solved if
there are employment (84.05%) opportunities for all and livelihood
(72.93%) programs. To avoid overfishing, effective enforcement of
fishery laws (16.52%) and alternative livelihood (69.80%) were also
recommended. On the other hand, squatting could be resolved if
housing programs (56.41%) are offered to the residents and the
development of the coastal area as eco-tourism zone (16.24%) is done.
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Table 6.
Recommended Solutions to the Issues and Problems in Bolinao Coastal Areas.
Isssues and Problems
Identified Causes
ƒ
%
Low Catch
1. Resource rehabilitation programs 301
2. Controlled fishing
325
85.75
92.59
Poverty
1. Employment
2. Livelihood programs
295
256
84.05
72.93
Overfishing
1. Effective enforcement of
fishery laws
2. Alternative livelihood
58
245
16.52
69.80
Illegal Fishing
1. Strict enforcement of fishery laws 167
2. IEC campaign
120
47.58
34.19
Pollution
1. Cleaning of coastal area
190
2. Regulation of mariculture operations 135
54.13
38.46
Squatting
1. Housing programs for squatters 198
2. Development of coastal areas for
eco-tourism
57
56.41
Waste Disposal
1. Implementation of Solid Waste
Management program
2. Solid waste management to
lessen climate change impacts
3. IEC campaign
16.24
143
40.74
132
123
37.61
35.04
Meanwhile, waste disposal could be minimized if the solid
waste management programs are implemented (40.74%); the same
program can also help lessen the impact of climate change (37.61%).
Proper knowledge through IEC (35.04%) campaign on solid waste
management could minimize problems on waste disposal in the
coastal areas.
Awareness Levels of Respondents and Their Perceived
Implementation Levels of CRM Related Activities and Projects.
A study of the awareness of respondents and their perceived
implementation levels on the information, education and
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157
communication program for CRM programs in Bolinao (Table 7)
showed that respondents are moderately aware of the implementation
of this program. This awareness was due in part to the distribution
of pamphlets like the “Gabay hinggil sa pagpapatupad ng batas
ng sanktuwaryo” (2.72) and pamphlets for ecologically friendly
aquaculture (1.88) and RA 8550 (1.82). The respondents were aware
of the posters posted on fish sanctuary (2.7) and on human activities
that affect the coastal zone. In trainings and seminars, respondents
claimed to be moderately aware of the training programs on
mangrove plantations and nursery project (1.92) and trainings on the
fish sanctuary establishment and management (1.99). According to
the perceptions of respondents: these were moderately implemented
(2.09 and 2.19), respectively. For the training programs on solid waste
management (1.84) and environmental governance (1.79), majority
were not aware but were perceived to be moderately implemented
(2.10 and 2.13), respectively.
Also, respondents were aware of the public hearings on the
establishment of sanctuary and management (2.94) and the consultation
and planning for mangrove reforestation (2.72). These were rated 2.83
and 2.86, respectively in their perceptions on implementation level.
However, on the conduct of school orientation programs on CRM,
respondents claimed to be moderately aware (2.26) of the program.
Thus, this was rated also to be moderately implemented (2.45).
Overall, the rating for the awareness of the respondents on the
information, communication and education programs for CRM in
Bolinao was 2.26—moderate in awareness—while in the perceived
level of implementation of the programs it was rated to be moderately
implemented (2.25).
The awareness levels of respondents and their perceived
implementation levels of the CRM programs in Bolinao (Table 8)
shows that the respondents were aware of the coastal resource
management programs in Bolinao, Pangasinan. In terms of
resource rehabilitation, protection and enhancement, respondents
were aware of the establishment of mangrove reforestation (2.78)
and its implementation (3.17) while mangrove nursery (3.43) was
perceived to be moderately implemented (2.53). Also, respondents
were aware of the establishment of the marine fish sanctuary and
rated it as well implemented (3.45). They were moderately aware of
the establishment of mangrove reserve and deployment of artificial
reef. Overall the conduct of resource monitoring and evaluation
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- Not Implemented (NI)
- Moderately Implemented (MI)
- Implemented (I)
- Well Implemented (WI)
- Fully Implemented (FI)
2.26
Overall Rating
1.00-1.80
1.81-2.60
2.61-3.40
3.41-4.20
4.21-5.00
A
A
MA
2.94
2.72
2.12
- Not Aware (NA)
- Moderately Aware (MA)
- Aware (A)
- Much Aware (McA)
- Very Much Aware (VMA)
MA
MA
MA
NA
1.92
1.99
1.84
1.79
Legend:
1.00-1.80
1.81-2.60
2.61-3.40
3.41-4.20
4.21-5.00
A
A
2.70
2.68
MA
A
MA
MA
2.72
1.88
1.82
A. Distribution of pamphlets
1. Pamphlets on ecologically-friendly aquaculture practices
2. Pamphets on R.A. 8550 or the Philippine Fisheries Code
3. “Gabay Hinggil sa Pagpapatupad ng mga Batas ng Sanktwaryo sa
Bolinao, Pangasinan”
B. Posters, slogan, streamers
1. Posters on fish sanctuary
2. Posters on man’s activities that affect the coastal zone
C. Trainings and seminars
1. Trainings and seminars on mangrove plantation and nursery project
2. Trainings and seminars about fish sanctuary establishment and management
3. Trainings and seminars on solid waste management
4. Trainings and seminars on environmental governance
D. Conduct of dialogues
1. Public hearing on fish sanctuary establishment and management
2. Consultation and planning on mangrove reforestation projects
E. Conduct of school orientation programs
2.25
2.83
2.86
1.91
2.09
2.29
2.09
2.13
2.91
2.91
2.73
2.24
2.39
MI
I
I
MI
MI
MI
MI
MI
I
I
I
MI
MI
Information, Education, and Awareness
Implementation
Communication Programs
Mean Descriptive
Mean Descriptive
Rating
RatingRating
Rating
Awareness Levels of Respondents and Their Perceived Implementation Levels on the Information, Education, and Communication
Program for CRM Programs in Bolinao.
Table 7.
158
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1.00-1.80
1.81-2.60
2.61-3.40
3.41-4.20
4.21-5.00
- Not Implemented (NI)
- Implemented (I)
2.66
Overall Rating
- Not Aware
- Aware (A)
- Much Aware (McA)
A
A
3.18
3.11
Legend:
1.00-1.80
1.81-2.60
2.61-3.40
3.41-4.20
4.21-5.00
MA
MA
MA
2.30
2.16
2.12
A
A
A
MA
A
MA
2.78
3.43
2.05
3.01
2.48
A. Resource rehabilitation, protection, and enhancement
1. Establishment of mangrove reforestation 2. Establishment of mangrove nursery
3. Establishment of mangrove reserve
4. Establishment of fish sanctuary
5. Deployment/installation of artificial reefs
B. Conduct of resource monitoring and evaluation
1. Conduct of participatory coastal resource assessment
2. Conduct of rapid resource appraisal
3. Conduct of resource ecological assessment
C. Implementation of waste management
1. Conduct of barangay coastal clean-up
2. Implementation of solid waste management plan
2.66
3.24
2.84
2.14
2.09
2.08
3.17
2.53
2.53
3.45
2.38
I
I
I
MI
MI
MI
I
MI
I
WI
MI
Awareness
Implementation
Mean Descriptive
Mean Descriptive
Rating
RatingRating
Rating
Awareness Levels of Respondents and Their Perceived Implementation Levels of Implementation on the CRM Programs in
Bolinao
Table 8.
159
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160
obtained moderate awareness from the respondents while the
perceived implementation levels on the conduct of participatory
coastal resource assessment (2.14), rapid resource appraisal (2.09)
and resource ecological assessment (2.08) got ratings of moderate
implementation.
In the implementation of waste management, the respondents
were aware of the conduct of coastal clean-up (3.18) and solid waste
management plan (3.11) while they rated these as 3.24 and 2.84,
respectively in terms of perceived level of implementation, meaning
that waste management programs were being implemented in
Bolinao. Overall, the awareness of the respondents on the coastal
resource management programs was 2.66 (aware) and their rate of
implementation was 2.66 (implemented).
The awareness of respondents and rate of implementation
on the fisheries and coastal resource management legislations
and regulations (Table 9) seems to show plain recognition of the
existence of these laws. Legislations, laws or rules on CRM showed
little effect on the awareness of the respondents as most of them
were moderately aware of the R.A. 8550, Ecological Solid Waste
Management Act (R.A. 9003), (1.94), Clean Water Act (R.A. 9275),
(1.89) and Code of Practice for Aquaculture (FAO 214) (1.86). All
these were rated to have moderate implementation. Seemingly the
respondents did not feel the impacts of these laws in their life. This
could be the reason for its low rating of implementation. As for the
regulations (Table 9), respondents were aware of the registration
of municipal fisher folk (2.63) and inventory and monitoring of
fishing structure and fishponds (2.82). On fisheries licensing, the
respondents claimed to be well aware (3.18). All of these were rated
as moderately implemented.
In terms of law enforcement, respondents were aware of the
conduct of seaborne patrol operations (2.69), establishment of
community-based enforcement (2.66), conduct of surveillance
and operation and coming–up with master list of suspected
illegal fishers (2.90), presence of bantay dagat volunteers and
fish warden (2.95), provision of incentives to active law enforcers
(2.68) and strengthening of Barangay Fisheries and Aquatic
Resource Management Council (BFARMC) (2.73). All of these rules,
regulations and law enforcement activities were rated as moderately
implemented by the local government units.
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2.55
Overall Rating - Not Implemented (NI)
- Implemented (I)
A
2.73
1.00-1.80
1.81-2.60
2.61-3.40
3.41-4.20
4.21-5.00
A
A
A
2.90
2.95
2.68
- Not Aware
- Aware (A)
- Much Aware (McA)
A
A
2.69
2.66
Legend:
1.00-1.80
1.81-2.60
2.61-3.40
3.41-4.20
4.21-5.00
A
A
MA
2.63
2.82
3.18
MA
MA
MA
MA
MA
1.91
1.91
2.06
2.13
A. Legislations/laws/rules
1. R.A. 8550
2. Ecological Solid Waste Management Act (R.A. 9003)
3. Clean Water Act (R.A. 9275)
4. Code of Practice for Aquaculture (FAO 214)
B. Regulation
1. Registration of municipal fisherfolks
2. Inventory and monitoring of fishing structure and fishponds
3. Fisheries licensing
C. Law enforcement
1. Conduct of seaborne patrol operations
2. Establishment of community-based enforcement
3. Conduct of surveillance and operation and coming up with masterlist
suspected illegal fishers
4. Presence of Bantay Dagat volunteers and fish warden
5. Provision of incentives to active law enforcers
6. Strengthening of Barangay Fisheries and Aquatic Resource
Management Council (BFARMC)
Awareness
Fisheries and Coastal Resource Management Legislations and Regulations
Mean Descriptive
RatingRating
2.3
2.32
2.39
2.40
2.29
2.47
2.46
2.60
2.23
2.61
1.94
1.89
1.88
1.86
MI
MI
MI
MI
MI
MI
MI
MI
MI
I
MI
MI
MI
MI
Implementation
Mean Descriptive
RatingRating
Awareness Levels of Respondents and Their Perceived Implementation Levels on the Fisheries and Coastal Resource
Management Legislations and Regulations in Bolinao
Table 9.
161
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2.65
Overall Rating - Never (N)
- Seldom (S)
- Occasional (OC)
- Always (A)
- Often (O)
S
OC
OC
2.56
2.62
2.72
Legend:
1.00-1.80
1.81-2.60
2.61-3.40
3.41-4.20
4.21-5.00
OC
S
OC
S
S
2.78
2.53
2.64
2.40
2.48
OC
OC
OC
2.88
2.87
1. The community members organize themselves into an organization as partner in coastal resource
management
2. The community assists in the planning of training and plans to protect the coastal resources
3. The organizations in the community actively participate in the protection and conservation of their
coastal resources
4. The community members assist in the formulation of coastal resource management ordinances
5. The community members strictly follow the fishery laws, rules and regulations enforced by the LGU
6. The youth and women in the community participate in the management of coastal resources
7. Community members assist in the mobilization of workgroups to implement the plans and programs in CRM
8. The fisher folks and community members assist in the sourcing of local and external financial and
technical assistance to be used in the management of coastal resources
9. The community members willingly report to the concerned authorities illegal fishing activities in their area
10. The community members assist in the monitoring of fishing related activities in the area
VariablesMean
Descriptive
Rating
Rating
Perceived Level of Community Involvement in the Implementation of the CRM Programs.
Table 10.
162
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163
Perceived Level of Community Involvement in the Coastal
Resource Management Program Implementation
The overall rating of the respondents’ perception on the community
involvement in the implementation of the coastal resource
management programs in Bolinao, Pangasinan (Table 10) showed that
the members of the community occasionally participate and involve
themselves in organizing themselves as partners in coastal resource
management. Plans for training and to protect the coastal resources
(2.87), protection and conservation of their coastal resources (2.78)
and monitoring of fishing related activities in the area (2.72) were also
rated as occasional.
Their involvement and participation on the formulation of
coastal resource management ordinances (2.53) was seldom.
Similarly, participation of youth and women in the community
in the management of coastal resources (2.40), assistance in the
mobilization of workgroups to implement the plans and programs
in CRM (2.48), sourcing of local and external financial and technical
assistance to be used in the management of coastal resources (2.56)
were also seldom. As such, the overall community participation
and involvement in coastal resource management were occasional
(2.65).Occasional participation of the people in coastal resource
management contributed to the low effectiveness of the program.
Since, the program requires people’s cooperation towards its success,
the program must get the people’ support; otherwise it will likely fail.
Therefore, the government should cater to the needs of the people,
particularly in the augmentation of their livelihood, for them to
participate in the CRM programs of the government.
Perceived Government Intervention
The government intervention in the implementation of coastal
resource management (Table 11) was also occasional. Government
interventions were also rated as occasional participation. These were
in the preparation and approval of barangay ordinances on CRM
(2.72), preparation and approval of the Local Government Unit (LGU)
municipal ordinances in CRM (2.82), extension of necessary assistance
from the national government agencies for necessary technical and
financial assistance to the LGU’s in CRM project implementation
(2.69), and strict enforcement of the fishery and CRM laws, rules, and
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Legend:
1.00-1.80
1.81-2.60
2.61-3.40
3.41-4.20
4.21-5.0
- Never (N)
- Seldom (S)
- Occasional (OC)
- Always (A)
- Often (O)
2.67
OC
OC
2.69
2.88
Overall Rating
S
2.31
2.59
OC
OC
2.72
2.82
1. The barangay council prepared and approved barangay ordinances on CRM
2. The Local Government Unit (LGU) prepared and approved municipal ordinances in CRM
3. The provincial government actively involved in the preparation of CRM plans and implementation in
the province 4. The National Government agencies have extended the necessary technical and financial assistance
to the LGU’s in CRM project implementation
5. The LGU strictly enforce the fishery and CRM laws, rules, and regulations in the coastal area
6. The government reviewed and updated plans and programs to further improve the management of
coastal resources
OC
S
VariablesMean
Descriptive
RatingRating
Perceived Government Intervention in Coastal Resource Management.
Table 11.
164
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165
regulations in the coastal area (2.88).
According to the respondents, the government seldom reviewed
and updated plans and programs to further improve the management
of coastal resources (2.59); active involvement of the provincial
government in the preparation of CRM plans and implementation
(2.31) were also seldom. Overall, the rating on the government
interventions for the coastal resource management in Bolinao was 2.67
(described as occasional). According to the respondents, government
interventions were occasional, meaning that the people did feel the
presence of the government in the implementation of the programs.
This can be attributed to their lack of awareness as well as their
occasional participation in government programs. This implies that
cooperation between the government and the people is a requisite for
a program to succeed.
Perceived Intervention of the NGO, Academic and Research
Institutions in Coastal Resource Management of Bolinao,
Pangasinan
The intervention of the NGO, academic and research institutions in
coastal resource management of Bolinao, Pangasinan was rated as
seldom (Table 12). The respondents stated that there was seldom
intervention in all the categories assessed. Empowerment of NGOs/
SUCs to the community members through training and capability
building was rated 1.99, assistance of the community members
to organize themselves into associations was 1.98, information,
education and communication (IEC) materials from NGOs and SUCs
for advocacy and networking for coastal community organizations
was rated 2.03.The conduct of research and development programs
relevant to the present needs of the coastal communities was rated
2.00. The close working relationship of the NGOs/SUCs with the
LGUs in implementing CRM activities was rated 1.99; the assistance
of the NGOs/SUCs to the coastal communities in finding viable
alternative livelihood projects, and so on was given a rating of 2.00
and the NGOs as a go-between or as a chaperon to community
leaders also obtained a rating of 2.00.
The local governments of Bolinao have established partnership
with supporting agencies and organizations in order to implement
the CRM programs. These include the Kaisahan ng mga Samahan
Alay sa Kalikasan Inc. (KAISAKA, Inc), Bolinao Marine Ecological
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Fund Foundation Inc. (BOMEFFI), UP-Marine Science Institute
and MERF, HARIBON Foundation, UP College of Social Work and
Community Development, Foundation for Philippine Environment,
United Nations Development Program, Royal Netherlands Embassy,
United Nations Environment Programme-Global Environment
Facility, Philippine Tropical Forest Conservation Foundation Inc.,
Asian Social Institute, Glaxo-Smith and Kline, Pangasinan State
University-Institute of Environmental Governance, DA-BFAR,
DENR, DILG, DOST, OPAg ,PNP, PCG and other line agencies.
However, even with the presence of these partner agencies, people
still rated their intervention in the CRM programs as seldom. This
could be attributed maybe to the non-participation of people in the
implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the projects; hence,
people did not understand the purpose, outputs, and benefits of the
projects.
Discussion
Marine protected areas and mangrove management areas in the
four coastal barangays are part of the coastal resource management
programs implemented by the local government units. These were
established to bring back the integrity of the coastal resources
that were degraded since the Lingayen gulf was declared to be an
environmentally critical area. The marine protected areas were
established to be a “no take” zone where fishing and other activities
are prohibited to ensure the freedom of the species to replenish in
the area. Regular consultation with the community and information
campaigns are being done to ensure the progress of the program.
Guarding and patrolling have been included in the activities in the
areas in the form of deputizing “bantay dagat.”
Ranking first in the problems of the respondents was low
catch, followed by poverty, overfishing, illegal fishing, pollution,
squatting, waste disposal and climate change. Bolinao, regarded as
an environmentally critical area, suffers from the degradation of
fish catch. With the establishment of the “no take zone,” the area
for fishing was reduced thereby limiting the catch for the fisherfolk.
Although the goal of the “ no take zone” is to increase the fish species
in the future and provide a breeding ground expected to spill over
to the fishing areas and increasing their catch, this goal has not been
realized up to this date because the effectiveness of MPAs is still in
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S
S
S
S
1.99
1.99
2.00
2.00
Overall Rating
- Never (N)
- Seldom (S)
- Occasional (OC)
- Always (A)
- Often (O)
S
2.03
S
1.99
Legend:
1.00-1.80
1.81-2.60
2.61-3.40
3.41-4.20
4.21-5.0
S
1.98
S
S
S
1.99
1. The NGOs/SUCs empowered the community members through Training and capability building1.98
2. The NGOs assisted the community members to organize themselves into associations
3. The NGOs and SUCs provides Information, Education and Communication (IEC) materials, advocacy
and networking for coastal community organizations
4. The NGOs/SUCs conducted research and development programs relevant to the present needs of the
coastal communities 5. The NGOs/SUCs work closely with the LGUs in implementing CRM activities
2.00
6. The NGOs/SUCs assisted the coastal communities in finding viable alternative livelihood projects
7. The NGOs acted as the unifying agent and facilitated the consolidation of the community as manager of
their coastal resources
8. The NGOs acted as a go-between or play the part of chaperon to community leaders
9. The NGOs/SUCs served as consultant of LGUs in CRM
VariablesMean
Descriptive
Rating
Rating
Perceived Intervention of the NGO, Academic, and Research Institutions in Coastal Resource Management of Bolinao,
Pangasinan.
Table 12.
167
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168
question. Aside from this, poverty still remains together with the
increasing population that needs to eat and survive. Therefore, the
MPAs are difficult to manage and protect because people would still
continue to find a way to live today and disregard the future.
This is true in the whole Lingayen Gulf. According to Domingo
(2001), illegal fishing, overfishing and pollution are the three major
problems of the fishery resources of the Lingayen Gulf, and there
are several socio-economic and institutional-related causes that are
attributed to these problems. The continuous illegal fishing within
the municipal waters of Bolinao, Pangasinan has resulted in the rapid
depletion of fish stocks and the destruction of the coastal and marine
resources. These caused the low catch and poverty in the area. This was
also the problem of the whole Lingayen Gulf as stated by White and
Cruz-Trinidad (2000) and Domingo (2001). People would continue to
resort to overfishing because they have no other source of income.
Whatever law is enforced, implementation would always be difficult
if the stomach is empty. One reason for the use of fishing methods
destructive to fish populations and habitats is the “cost efficiency”
of these methods. Dynamite fishers are known to spend shorter
working hours with a maximum of eight hours at sea compared to
bottom sea gill net and dredge net fishers who work 12 hours or more.
Thus, short term financial profitability and labor productivity are
relatively higher for dynamite fishers. Low catch and poverty are the
main reasons why people continue to overfish and neglect any coastal
resource management. Implementation of any CRM program would
be very difficult if people continue to live without subsistence. No one
would want to cooperate and they would still prioritize how to live
and survive at whatever cost.
All development activities contribute to coastal marine pollution.
People all over the world have long thought of the ocean as vast and
limitless. As a result, the ocean has been used as a dumping ground
for all kinds of waste—hazardous waste, sewage and solid waste.
Uncontrolled population growth and increasing urbanization and
industrialization have overwhelmed the capacity of the ocean and
coastal waters to dilute and disperse this growing volume of wastes.
Furthermore, urban and industrial pollutants such as heavy metals,
petrochemicals, sediments, sewage and solid waste have degraded
the country’s coastal waters, impacting the health of coral reefs
and fisheries and the communities that depend on them (DENR et
al., 2001). The respondents recommended resource rehabilitation
program (85.75%) and controlled fishing (92.59%) as a solution to the
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169
low catch. Poverty can be solved if there are employment (84.05%)
opportunities for all and livelihood (72.93%) programs. To avoid
overfishing, effective enforcement of fishery laws (16.52%) and
alternative livelihood (69.80%) were also recommended.
Rehabilitation of degraded habitats to improve fish stocks and
fisheries yields is a priority. Philippine fisheries are now being fished
to their limit, yet there are sufficient laws that provide a policy and
regulatory framework for use, access, and allocation of resources.
However, law enforcement has been ineffective and this should
be taken into account. Therefore, improving local livelihoods for
communities in coastal areas is closely linked to building a base for
a more sustainable management of coastal and marine resources.
A stimulation of small-scale enterprises in communities could
be accompanied by qualified technical assistance and financing
opportunities to reduce the pressure in the coastal resources.
Another important factor is giving people information about
coastal and marine ecosystems and the effects of their deeds. It is,
therefore, a priority to ensure that information is better distributed
to both LGUs and coastal communities because increased awareness
and access to information will improve participation in coastal
resources management, and encourage local communities, barangay
groups, and local managers to become effective coastal managers. If
the reefs of Bolinao were to provide greater sustained production,
new management measures must be adopted to reduce the fishing
pressure. This requires the successful introduction of alternative
livelihoods, both marine and land-based.
According to the CRM staff, with the implementation of the CBCRM Program that began in 1993, presentations on the need for
coastal management have been made to the municipal government
and to the various village councils. Relationships, however, were
informal and non-official. Forming an official working group
between the municipality and the project will have scientific inputs
channeled through public education and passage of municipal
resolutions for specific management interventions, and will serve as
recommendations for land and coastal use planning.
According to the president of the KAISAKA Federation,
the people’s organization in every barangay takes charge in the
management of the marine sanctuaries and mangrove areas. However,
the activities are monitored by the federation and the CRM staff of the
local government unit. But, because of poverty where people need to
work and survive, the organization has not been very active. Some
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leaders have to go to other towns to earn a living and others get sick
and could not participate effectively.
In Bolinao, the lack of political will is linked to the low level
of environmental awareness. In both scales, overfishing is linked
with the lack of alternative livelihoods that can lead to the overall
problem of poverty in the coastal areas. Thus, the coastal resources
management strategies being developed in Bolinao should address
a combination of social, political, and economic issues as well as
ecological/environmental concerns.
Overall, the respondents were moderately aware of the fisheries
and coastal resource management legislations and regulations.
The national policy and legal framework for coastal resource
management consist of national laws, administrative issuances
and International treaties and agreements that define and guide
management responsibilities for the use of coastal resources.
However, the implementation of these policies and laws remain weak
due to a variety of factors, among them the legal and jurisdictional
conflicts that arise from the plethora of legislation and administrative
issuances affecting different types of economic activities in the coastal
area. Conflicting interpretations of these laws and poor dissemination
of information have contributed to the difficulties in implementation
(DENR et al., 2001). The people are the key towards the success and
management of a development program. According to Alcala and
Vande Vusse (1994), the current degraded condition of many coastal
areas, low level of public awareness and the socio-economic situation
in coastal communities present challenges to successful coastal
resource management. But then, the sustainable management of the
coastal area can only be correctly addressed with efficient information
management of the environmental and socio-economic conditions
that affect the coast (SIDS, 2004).
As to the perceptions of the community members, the coastal
resource management programs were moderately implemented.
According to the CRM staff of Bolinao, after the implementation of the
CB-CRM Programs that began in 1993, presentations on the need for
coastal management have been made to the municipal government
and to the various village councils. Relationships, however, were
informal and non-official. According to the president of the KAISAKA
Federation, the people’s organization in every barangay takes charge
in the management of the marine sanctuaries and mangrove areas,
monitored by the federation and the CRM staff of the local government
unit. However, because of poverty and the need of people to work
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
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and survive, members of the organization have not been very active.
Some leaders have to go to other towns to earn a living and others
get sick and could not participate effectively. Other members of the
community would not want to get involved because they had no time
for it unless given financial incentives. This resulted to their perception
that the programs/ level of implementation was moderate. Many
coastal management programs in the developing world, including
that of ISO, aimed to help fishermen because they were seen to be the
“poorest of the poor ” (Pollnac et al.,2001). Furthermore, within these
communities, the “burdens” and benefits of conservation are rarely—
if ever—equally distributed. If programs are to benefit the “poorest of
the poor,” it is vital to explore the ways in which benefits and costs
are distributed within and between communities (Eder, 2005).
Intervention of government and non-government institutions
were perceived by the people to be occasional or seldom. Since,
people could not feel the benefits of the program, while experiencing
poverty. The coastal resource management office, on the other hand,
does its work in the monitoring of the programs within the 23 coastal
barangays. However, the three CRM staff cannot do much without
the support of the people’s organization considering the area to
cover. Budget also is limited considering that only a million peso is
the budget for the 23 coastal barangays.
Thus, the coastal resource management strategies being developed
in Bolinao addresses to a combination of social, political and economic
issues as well as ecological/environmental concerns. In Bolinao, the
degree of concern for the environment among the ordinary citizens
and local officials is variable. While one environmental problem may
be perceived as important, another may be ignored even if the two
are intrinsically of equal value. This is not to say that there are no
informed individuals. Indeed, a number of residents, including some
professionals, have demonstrated an appreciation for environmental
issues. Unfortunately, they are in the minority. Yet full appreciation of
environmental issues is central to any meaningful progress towards
sustainable development.
Conclusion
The municipality of Bolinao had established several programs and
projects in order to manage its coastal resources. In Barangays
Arnedo, Balingasay, Binabalian, and Victory, marine protected areas
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and mangrove management areas were established. These coastal
areas are protected and managed by the LGUs and NGOs or people’s
organizations.
Low catch by the fisher folks, poverty, overfishing, illegal fishing,
pollution, squatting, waste disposal and climate change were the major
problems identified. These were caused by different human activities
in the coastal area. As such, provision of alternative livelihood and
effective enforcement of fishery laws and ordinances were suggested
in order to solve these problems.
The respondents had moderate awareness and moderate
perceived level of implementation on information, communication
and education programs for Coastal Resource Management(CRM)
programs, fisheries and coastal resource management legislations
and regulations in Bolinao. Similarly, the local communities had
moderate awareness and moderate perceived level of implementation
of the CRM programs in Bolinao. The perceived level of community
participation and involvement in CRM and perceived level of
government intervention were found to be occasional. Moreover, the
perceived level of interventions of the NGO, academic and research
institutions in CRM of Bolinao, Pangasinan was seldom. The success
of the Bolinao coastal resource management programs, thus, hinges
on three crucial players: local government, national government, and
strong community involvement.
Thus, the coastal resource management strategies being developed
in Bolinao should address a combination of social, political and
economic issues as well as ecological/environmental concerns.
Recommendations
• Information, communication and education on the management
of marine protected areas and mangrove management areas
should be strengthened by the local government particularly the
CRM department and the people’s organization to heighten public
awareness and obtain community involvement and participation
in the management of marine protected areas.
• The municipal council should continue to strongly support the
marine protected areas and mangrove management areas to
ensure success in the coastal resource management.
• Livelihood programs started by the LGU and other agency linkages
should be supported and continued towards the attainment of
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173
economic sustainability.
• The LGU and the barangay council should join and participate
in the training on environmental governance and awareness
conducted by the Pangasinan Institute of Environmental
Governance to equip them with the knowledge on implementation
of environmental laws and legislations.
• Other trainings on environmental awareness should be organized
and joined by the community members.
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VOL. 53 NO. 2
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Length-Weight and Length-Length
Relationships and Fulton Condition
Factor of Philippine Mullets
(Family Mugilidae: Teleostei)
Robert S. Guino-o II
Center for Tropical Conservation Studies
Department of Biology, Silliman University
The present study describes the length-weight (LW), length-length
(LL) relationships and Fulton condition factor (K) for 10 mullets
collected from 14 sampling sites in the Philippines. Comparisons of
LW, LL, and K are confined to five mullet species with sample size
between 11 and 438. The other five mullet species are excluded
in the comparison due to the limited sample size (n = 3 - 6).
Among these mullets Liza sp. from Ilocos Sur is the longest at 21
cm and the heaviest at 89 g. It is followed by the bluespot mullet
Crenimugil seheli with a mean total length of 18 cm and a mean
weight of 72 g. The greenback mullet Chelon subviridis (Negros
Oriental) ranked third in mean total length at 17 cm and a mean
weight of 62 g. The shortest (12 cm) and lightest (19 g) is the dwarf
mullet Osteomugil engeli. The relationships between total length
(TL) and weight (W) for the 10 mullets show high coefficients of
determination (r2 = 0.88 - 0.98). All mullet species show negative
allometric growth as indicated by the regression coefficient b <
3. The relationships among TL, FL, and SL for Philippine mullets
are all linear (r2 > 0.96). The average Fulton condition factor is
highest for the longfinned mullet Osteomugil perusii (2.12) and
lowest for the dwarf mullet Osteomugil engeli (1.71). The results
of this study are important for the management and conservation
of mullet species in the Philippines.
Keywords: Philippine mullets, length-weight and length-length
relationships, Fulton Condition Factor (K)
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177
INTRODUCTION
he establishments of length-weight and length-length
relationships are important tools in fisheries biology because
they provide information on the external morphology, growth
pattern and general condition of the fish that can be used in population
structures analysis (Le Cren, 1951; Strauss & Bond, 1990). Most noted
studies on length-weight and length-length relationships among the
Philippine fishes include milkfish, grouper, silver perch and wetland
fishes (Grover & Juliano, 1976; Gonzales et al., 2000; Quilang et al.,
2007; Garcia 2010). There are no extensive data, to the best of one’s
knowledge, on length-weight and length-length relationships on any
of the Philippine mullet species.
Previous studies on the length-weight relationships of mullets
were often based from singular collection of fish species from
commercial and artisanal fisheries. Of the 80 mullet species, 12 species
have been studied for length-weight relationships which included
Chelon labrosus, Liza aurata, Liza ramado, Liza saliens, Liza falcipinnis,
Liza grandisquamis, Liza carinata, Liza subviridis, Liza melinoptera, Liza
parsia, Mugil cephalus, and Valamugil cunnesius (Borges et al., 2003,
Ecoutin et al., 2005; Verdiell-Cubedo et al., 2005; Andrea-Soler et al.,
2006; Garcia, 2010; Hussain et al., 2010). The sample sizes of these
studies ranged from less than 10 to more than 1,000 individuals.
In the Philippines, there are 20 recorded mullet species (Froese
& Pauly, 2011) but only one study on length-weight relationships
was conducted on the greenback mullet Chelon subviridis collected
from Candaba wetland on the island of Luzon. However, the
linear regression parameters of this study were derived from three
individuals (Garcia, 2010).
This study aims to determine the length-weight and lengthlength relationships and condition factor for 10 mullet species in the
Philippines. These species are economically important food fish all
over the country and are caught throughout the year regardless of
their sizes. This paper reports for the first time the occurrence of the
longfinned mullet Osteomugil perusii and the dwarf mullet Osteomugil
engeli in Philippine waters.
Materials and Methods
The collection sites and their geographic coordinates are the following:
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fulton condition factor of philippine mullets
Figure 1. Collection sites of mullets in the Philippines are shown in the dots.
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Baler in Aurora (15o44’51”N, 121o34’41”), Binmaley in Pangasinan
(16o03’55”N, 120o19’42”), Vigan in Ilocos Sur (17o33’38”N, 120o29’54”),
Laoag in Ilocos Norte (18o27’11”N, 120o47’45”), Camalaniugan in
Cagayan Valley (18o17’38”N, 121o40’59”), Pagatban River in Negros
Oriental (9o21’52” N, 122o48’3” E), Talisay in Cebu (10o15’38”N,
123o56’26”), Panglao in Bohol (9o36’46”N, 123o51’01”), Ormoc City
in Leyte (10o58’54” N,124o34’51”E), Cagayan de Oro City in Misamis
Oriental (8o29’15”N, 124o41’46”E), Davao City in Davao del Norte
(7o03’47”N, 125o37’57”E), Malita in Davao del Sur (6o24’58”N,
125o35’48”E), Dipolog City in Zamboanga del Norte (8o33’24”N,
123o20’52”E), and Tandag in Surigao del Sur (9o07’15”N, 126o11’43”E).
Monthly sampling was done in Pagatban River in Negros Oriental
from January 2011 to December 2011. Mullet samplings outside Negros
Oriental were conducted on the following months: December 2011
(Cagayan Valley), February 2012 (Baler in Aurora), May 2012 (Ilocos
Sur, Ilocos Norte, Leyte, Davao, Cagayan de Oro and Zamboanga)
and June to August 2012 (Bohol, Pangasinan and Surigao).
Monthly fish samples were collected in Pagatban River on
Negros Island, Central Philippines using a non-selective seine net
(mesh size = 1 cm2). The salinity of the river where the fish were
collected ranged from 0–0.2 ppt. The river depth was between 1.5
and 2.5 m and a width between 110 and 120 m. The monthly sample
size consisted of more than 30 fishes per species which were sorted,
labeled and examined in the laboratory. Other mullet species outside
Negros Island were collected by small-scale fishermen within three
to five days during the author’s site visit to the designated sampling
sites.
At least twenty (20) fish specimens per mullet species were
used for taxonomic identification based on the following diagnostic
features: shape of teeth and tails, pattern of the hind margin of scales,
shape of premaxilla, position of the maxilla when the mouth is closed,
color of the pectoral fin, length of the pectoral fin in relation to the
origin of the first dorsal fin and standard morphometric and meristic
counts (Strauss & Bond, 1990). These data were compared to the mullet
taxonomic guides by Thompson (1997), Harrison and Senou (1999)
and Durand et al., (2012). Fish were measured for total length (TL),
fork length (FL), standard length (SL), body depth (BD), body depth/
standard length percentage ratio (BDSLR), head length (HL) and eye
diameter (ED) to the nearest 0.01 mm (Quilang et al., 2007). Each
fish specimen was photographed before proceeding to standard fish
measurements and meristic counts using ImageJ software program
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180
which enlarges the image to a desired size and converts standard
length measurements into their equivalent pixels. Furthermore, the
use of ImageJ software enables the fish specimens to be preserved
longer because of the shorter exposure time of the latter to ambient
temperature, thus giving more time to examine the specimens closely
without the irritating smell of the fixative solution. Each specimen
was weighed to the nearest 0.01 gram using a digital weighing scale
and later fixed in 10% formalin solution and stored in 70% ethanol
solution for long-term preservation.
The length-weight relationship was determined using the
regression equation W = a×Lb where L is the total length in cm, W is
the weight in g, a is the regression intercept, and b is the regression
coefficient or slope. The b value was used to determine the type of
somatic growth of a fish either isometric or allometric (Zhu et al.,
2008). Isometric growth as indicated by b = 3 means that the fish has
an “unchanging body shape” regardless of its size while allometric
type (b is < 3 or > 3) indicates that the fish has a “changing body
shape” in relation to its size. Length-length relationships of SL against
TL, SL against FL, and FL against TL were determined using linear
regression equation SL = a + b×TL. The Fulton’s condition factor (K)
indicates a measure of the well-being of a fish or determined using
the equation K = (W/SL3) × 100 where L is the standard length in cm
and W is the weight in g. A I value of > 1 indicates good condition
while K < 1 indicates poor condition (Hall & Van Avylle, 1986); in
general the higher the K value, the better is the physical condition of
the fish (Froese, 2006).
Statistics such as mean, minimum and maximum were used to
describe lengths and weights of the specimens. Statistical differences
of the lengths, weights and condition factors (K) of the mullet species
were tested using Kruskal-Wallis as the data did not conform to the
normality test.
Results
Ten mullet species with a total of 753 individuals were collected from
14 sampling sites all over the Philippines. Total length and body
weight of the fish are shown in Table 1.
Of the total 438 greenback mullet Chelon subviridis fish samples
measured in this study, 344 or 78% were within the mean total length
(TL) range between 9 cm and 19 cm, 90 or 21% were between 20 and 29
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181
cm and four or 1% between 30 and 36 cm. The mean total length was
17 cm (SD + 4). Whereas 374 or 85% of C. subviridis samples weighed
between 6 g and 99 g, 52 or 12% between 100 g and 199 g and 12 or
3% between 200 g and 392 g. The mean weight was 62 g (SD + 51.1).
Meanwhile, of the190 longfinned mullet Osteomugil perusii samples,
121 or 64% had total lengths (TL) between 9 cm and 14 cm, 66 or
34.7% between 14 cm and 20 cm and 3 or 1.6% between 21 cm and
23 cm. The mean length of O. perusii was 15 cm (SD + 2.7). In terms
of weight, 123 or 64.7% weighed between 11 g and 39 g, 53 or 27.9%
between 40 g and 79 g and 14 or 7.3% between 80 g and 130 g. The
mean weight of Osteomugil perusii was 40 g (SD + 23). Of the eleven
Liza sp. samples, two or 18.2% had total lengths (TL) between 18 cm
and 19 cm, 8 or 72.7% between 20 cm and 22 cm, and one or 9% at
23 cm. The mean length of Liza sp. was 21 cm (SD+1.58). In terms of
weight, two or 18.2% had weights between 63 g and 79 g, 7 or 63.6%
between 80 g and 99 g, and two or 18.2% between 100 g and 122 g. Of
the 59 bluespot mullet Crenimugil seheli, 11 or 18.6% had total lengths
(TL) between 12 cm and 16 cm, 47 or 80 % between 17 cm, and 21 cm
and one (1.7%) at 24 cm. Its mean length was 18 cm (SD+2.2). In terms
of weight, two or 3.4% had weights between 19 g and 24 g, 16 or 27.1%
between 25 g and 64 g, and 41 or 69.5% between 65g and 102 g. The
mean weight of C. seheli was 72 g (SD+20.91). Of the 59 dwarf mullet
Osteomugil engeli, 15 or 42.8% had total lengths (TL) between nine cm
and 11 cm, 16 or 45.7% between 12 cm and 13 cm, and four or 11.4%
between 14 cm and 15 cm. The mean length of O. engeli was 12.10 cm
(SD +1.71). In terms of weight, two or 8.3% had weights between 7 g
and 8 g, 9 or 37.5% between 8 g and 15 g, and 13 or 54.2% between 16
g and 29 g. The mean weight of O. engeli was 19 g (SD+6.9).
The regression parameters and the coefficient of determination
for the length-weight relationships (LWR) of the 10 Philippine mullets
are shown in Table 1. The sample sizes ranged from three to 498. The
regression coefficient (b) ranged from 1.74 - 2.9. Nine out 10 of the b
values were below 3; only the squaretail mullet Ellochelon vaigiensis
had a slope value (b) of above 3. The regression intercept (a) ranged
from 0.004 - 0.407 while the coefficient of determination (r2) ranged
from 0.88 - 1.0.
The regression parameters and coefficients of determination of
the length-length relationships (TL, SL, and FL) of the 10 mullets are
estimated in Table 2. The coefficient of determinations (r2) for all the
length-length relationships for the 10 species ranged from 0.80 to 1.
The range of r2 for FL vs. TL was 0.92 to1.00; the range of r2 for FL vs.
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438
11
35
190
59
3
5
Ellochelon vaigiensis
Chelon subviridis
Liza sp.
Osteomugil engeli
Osteomugil perusii
Crenimugil seheli
Mugil cephalus
Plicomugil labiosus
19.1 - 20.5
14.4 - 15.6
18.0 - 24.5
12.0 - 23.5
9.2 - 23.1
9.0 - 14.2
17.8 - 23.8
9.1 - 35.5
16.0 - 21.4
19.3 - 20.3
Range
TL (cm)
20.0 (1.1)
15.1 (0.5)
21.5 (3.3)
18.0 (2.8)
18.1 (1.3)
13.2 (1.2)
20.6 (1.5)
16.6 (3.3) 19.1 (2.8)
15.7 (1.5)
Mean ± SD
6
5
3
59
190
35
11
438
3
3
n
19.2 – 128.3
34.3 – 43.5
59.7 – 99.2
19.2 - 128.3
57.7 - 97.5
14.6 - 32.0
63.2 - 122.0 12.6 - 115.9
50.0 - 130.2
40.6 - 61.7
Range
W (g)
68.4 (27.5) 39.6 (3.5) 84.9 (21.9) 68.4 (27.5) 75.0 (10.7)
24.3 (4.6) 86.7 (16.0)
50.1 (26.0)
96.1(41.4)
53.7 (11.4) Mean ± SD
0.054
0.028
0.407
0.021
0.014
0.013
0.055
0.014
0.004
0.081
a
2.43 2.67 1.74 2.79 2.92 2.88 2.43 2.90 3.36 2.36 b
W=aTLb
0.89
0.93
0.92
0.88
0.97
0.98
0.94
0.95
0.99
1.00
r2
n is sample size, SD is standard deviation, and r2 is coefficient of determination, a is the regression intercept, b is the regression coefficient, and r2 is the
coefficient of determination.
6
3
Chelon macrolepis
Valamugil sp.
n
Species
Total Length (TL), Body Weight (W), and Length-Weight Relationship (W=aTLb) for Ten Philippine Mullets.
Table 1.
182
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3
35
190
5
6
Liza sp. (Ilocos Sur)
Mugil cephalus
Osteomugil engeli
Osteomugil perusii
Plicomugil labiosus
Valamugil sp. (Ilocos Norte)
r2
1.00
SL= -3.28 + 0.96TL 0.96
SL= -1.81 + 0.96TL 0.80
SL= -0.42 + 0.85TL 0.99
SL= -0.19 + 0.85TL 0.98
SL= 2.47 + 0.725TL 1.00
SL= -0.08 + 0.81TL 0.98
SL= 0.57 + 0.80TL
SL= -0.07 + 0.84TL 0.96
SL= -0.09 + 0.83TL 0.99
SL= -0.91 + 0.89TL 0.99
SL = a + bTL
r2
0.98
0.99
1.00
0.96
FL= -1.44 + 1.05TL 0.92
FL= -1.45 + 1.05TL 0.92
FL= -0.18 + 0.95TL 0.99
FL= -0.23 + 0.97TL 1.00
FL= 3.02 + 0.80TL
FL= 0.02 + 0.93TL
N.A.
FL= 0.16 + 0.93TL
FL= 0.08 + 0.93TL
FL= -0.48 + 0.94TL 0.99
FL = a + bTL
0.99
1.00
0.98
0.99
0.99
0.99
r2
FL= 1.78 + 1.00SL
FL= 1.78 + 1.00SL
0.96
0.96
FL= -0.21 + 0.90SL 0.99
FL= 0.14 + 1.12SL
FL= 0.33 + 1.10SL
FL= 0.22 + 1.13SL
N.A.
FL= 0.42 + 1.09SL
FL= 0.32 + 1.11SL
FL= 1.02 + 1.05SL
FL = a + bSL
n is the sample size; SL is the standard length in cm; FL is fork length in cm; TL is total length in cm; a is the regression intercept; b is the regression
coefficient; and r2 is the coefficient of determination; N.A. for not applicable.
3
438
Chelon subviridis 59
3
Chelon macrolepis
Crenimugil seheli
n
Species
Length-length relationships involving total length (TL), standard length (SL) and fork length (FL) for 10 Philippine mullets.
Table 2.
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TL was 0.96 to 1.00 while that of SL vs. TL was 0.80 to 1.00.
The Fulton condition factor (K) value for the 10 Philippine mullet
species are found in Table 3. The average K for these mullets ranged
from 1.44 to 2.40. Among the mullets with sample greater than 10,
Chelon subviridis (Negros Oriental) has the highest average K value
(2.34). When all sample sizes were included, the largescale mullet
Chelon macrolepis shows the highest K value (2.40) while the flathead
grey mullet Mugil cephalus has the lowest average K value (1.44).
Table 3.
Fulton Condition Factor (K) for Ten Philippine Mullets.
Species
K
min
max
Chelon macrolepis
Chelon subviridis (Negros isolate)
Crenimugil seheli
Liza sp. (Ilocos Sur isolate)
Mugil cephalus
Osteomugil engeli
Osteomugil perusii
Plicomugil labiosus
Valamugil sp. (Ilocos Norte isolate)
2.40
1.93
2.03
2.34
1.85
1.44
1.71
2.12
1.95
1.90
2.21
1.05
1.24
2.13
1.65
1.20
1.50
1.46
1.77
1.67
2.63
2.88
2.72
2.50
2.03
1.60
1.93
2.87
2.07
2.10
K is the average Fulton condition factor; min and max are minimum and maximum.
Discussion
The length frequency distributions for Chelon subviridis, Liza sp.,
Osteomugil engeli, Osteomugil perusii, and Crenimugil seheli did not
follow the bell-shaped configuration. Kruskal-Wallis test showed
significant differences in length (P<0.01) and weight (P<0.01) among
these mullet species where Liza sp. was the longest (20.8 cm) and
heaviest (89.1 g) species while O. engeli was the shortest (12.1 cm) and
lightest (18.6 g). The mean weights of the other three species ranged
from 40 g to 72 g and mean total lengths ranged from 15 cm to 18
cm. The species Chelon macrolepis, Ellochelon vaigiensis, Mugil cephalus,
Plicomugil labiosus, and Valamugil sp. were not included in the lengthweight comparisons due to low sample size (n=3-6).
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
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The length-weigh relationship equations for the 10 mullets
generally indicated a negative allometric growth except for the species
Ellochelon vaigiensis which showed positive allometric growth. By
negative allometry (b < 3), the fish is said to be “lighter for its length”
while positive allometry (b > 3), is when the fish is “heavier for its
length” as it grows (Froese, 2006). Isometric growth (b = 3) is indicated
by equal increment in terms of weight and length. Allometry values
of the same species have been noted to vary in relation to place and
time. Borges et al. (2003) reported that Liza aurata in Algarve, South
of Portugal exhibited positive allometry with the parameter b = 3.154
(n=23) however, Andrea-Soler et al. (2006) reported isometric growth
for the same species collected from Segura River, Southeastern Spain
(b = 3.006, n=20). Similarly, the flathead mullet, Mugil cephalus in
Spain showed positive allometric growth (b = 3.357, n=80) as reported
by Verdiel-Cubedo et al. (2005), but the study of Andrea-Soler et al.
(2006) showed negative allometric growth for M. cephalus in Portugal
(b = 2.96, n=38). Variations in b in this study are attributed to sample
size differences as there are species that are more commonly caught
than others. Environmental parameters such as temperature, trophic
level and food availability among others in the sampling sites vary as
well which influence over-all fish growth. Regardless of the variation
in b values, the significance of length and weight relationships is its
usefulness in fish stock assessment where it is easier, faster, and more
accurate to measure fish length than weighing it.
The high coefficient of determinations (r2) for all of the 10 mullet
species indicate that length-length relationships are highly correlated
with each other. The total lengths (TL) of the mullets in this study
were notably different from the recorded TL of the same species in the
mullet species guide by FAO (1984; 1974). For instance, the average
TL of Chelon subviridis in this study was 17 cm but the mean TL for
this species was 25 cm. Similarly, the mean TL of Crenimugil seheli in
this study was 18 cm while the standard mean TL for this species was
20 cm according to Rau and Rau (1980) who studied the economically
important fishes in Central Visayas of the Philippines 33 years ago.
Of the 10 mullets, only two species Mugil cephalus and Osteomugil
perusii had average total length (TL) that were within the commonly
reported TL, but M. cephalus sample size was small (n = 3) due to its
seasonal rarity during the sampling period. Other mullets in this
study whose average TL were below the commonly reported TL
were: Chelon macrolepis, Ellochelon. vaigiensis, Osteomugil engeli, and
Plicomugil labiosus. The species Chelon subviridis which was sampled
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on a monthly basis for an entire one year period was observed to
have a wider distribution that includes the upper midstream section
of the river whereas Osteomugil perusii and Crenimugil seheli were
exclusively found in the downstream part of the estuary. For this
reason, C. subviridis may find itself an easy target for overexploitation
by human residents in the upstream portion of the river and the
downstream estuary who depend on fish as their source of protein.
Fishing pressure may play an important role for the observed TL
disparities between the caught mullets and the commonly reported
TL.
The Fulton Condition Factor (K) values for the 10 mullet species
significantly vary from each other (p=<0.01). These values generally
indicate that the fish species were in the “slimmer” side of the
condition factor scale. The differences in K values could be attributed to
differences in habitats, food availability, gonad development, gender
of the fish (Quilang et al., 2007; Zhu et al, 2008; Hussain et al, 2010;
Ndome & Eteng, 2010). The same factors are attributed to the variations
in the regression coefficient (b) which indicates growth type of fish.
Other factors that influence the condition factor of a fish include the
number of specimens examined, season and area, spawning, degree of
stomach fullness, healthy or diseased condition, differences of fishing
gear and/or mesh size sizes, preservation techniques employed, and
differences in the observed length ranges of the specimens (Borges
et al., 2003; Andreu-Soler et al., 2006; Verdiell-Cubedo et al., 2006).
Previous studies on the water quality of the Pagatban River in Negros
Oriental where Chelon subviridis, Crenimugil seheli, and Osteomugil
perusii thrive indicated environmental perturbations brought by
mining activities 25 years ago (Rosario, 1999; Guino-o et al., 2011).
In summary, this study shows that Liza sp. was the longest (21 cm)
and the heaviest (89 g) among the Philippine mullets. The bluespot
mullet Crenimugil seheli ranked second in terms of length (18 cm) and
weight (72 g). The species greenback mullet Chelon subviridis ranked
third in total length (17 cm) and weight (62 g). The shortest (12 cm)
and lightest (19 g) was the dwarf mullet Osteomugil engeli. All mullet
species showed negative allometry while the Fulton Condition Factor
was highest for Osteomugil perusii (2.12) and lowest in Osteomugil
engeli (1.71). The parameters of the length-length relationships were
highly correlated with each other (r2 = 0.96 to1.0).
All mullet species in this study are commercially exploited by
coastal residents. A regulatory framework is necessary to regulate their
fishing activities to promote conservation and sustainable utilization
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187
of these species. A fishery regulation that limits fishing activity to
the minimum legal total length will help these species from being
overexploited as this will give them a chance to grow to maturity.
Fish below and beyond the minimum legal total length should be
returned to its habitat. A healthy mullet fishery can be expected in
the estuaries when fishery regulations are coupled with a fishing
ban during their reproductive season. Lastly, validating the levels of
heavy metals in the tissues of the fishes collected at estuaries with
history of mining and pollution is suggested in order to safeguard the
health of the consumers.
Acknowledgements
This study forms the third chapter of a five-chapter dissertation study and was
funded by the Philippine Council of Marine and Aquatic Research and Development
of the Department of Science and Technology. Special thanks to Dr. Danilo T. Dy of
the University of San Carlos, Cebu City, Philippines for the initial comments of the
manuscript. The comments from two anonymous reviewers have greatly improved
the paper and are gratefully acknowledged by the author.
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VOL. 53 NO. 2
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
Physico-chemical and Bacteriological
Characteristics of Señora River,
Siquijor Island, Central Philippines
Hermilita L. Paculba
Rosalina E. Catid
Ronald Alexis L. Tan
Glory J. Barrera
Septima C. Aque
Diogenes M. Barrera
Siquijor State College
Larena, Siquijor, Philippines
The water quality of Señora River in Lazi, Siquijor, Philippines was
assessed in terms of its physico-chemical and bacteriological
(Escherichia coli) characteristics. The study aimed to establish
baseline data on its water quality for future studies. It also
determined the spatial and seasonal variation of the parameters
used. Sampling was done in the upstream, midstream, and
downstream sections of the river from February to July 2011.
Major findings are as follows: [1] all values of the parameters
monitored are within the permissible limits (based on the standards
set by the DENR, except for E. coli; [2] there is no significant
difference in the spatial variation (among the three stations) of
dissolved oxygen (DO), salinity, water sub-surface temperature,
water surface temperature, nitrates-N, phosphates-P, and E. coli
contents [however, levels of total dissolved solids (TDS), pH, and
conductivity of the river are significantly higher in the downstream
station]; [3] there is no significant difference in the seasonal (wet
and dry months) variation of all the parameters; and [4] Based on E.
coli content of the water, Señora River failed to meet standards set
by the Philippine National Standard for Drinking Water (PNSDW).
The middle and downstream part of the river can be classified as
Class B and C intended for primary contact recreation such as
bathing and swimming only.
Keywords: physico-chemical and bacteriological characteristics
of rivers, Señora River
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h.l. paculba, r.e. catid, et al
A
191
INTRODUCTION
griculture is among the greatest water users as well as the
largest contributor to water pollution (Enger, 2000) as a result
of an expanding global population growth (Cunningham &
Cunningham, 2008). Siquijor Island, being one of the smallest provinces
in the Philippines with only one river existing is not an exception.
The island province of Siquijor in Region 7 is bounded in the north
by the islands of Cebu, Bohol in the northwest, mainland Mindanao
in the south, Camiguin in the east, and Negros Island in the west,
and is geographically located at 9o05.76’00” and 9o18.19’00” N and
123o26.51’00” and 123o42.02”E (Bendijo et al., 2004). The island is hilly
and mountainous, made up mostly of limestone rocks. The climate
of Siquijor is characterized by the dry season from January to May,
and the wet season from June to December. Rainfall is minimal in this
province than it is in the rest of Region 7. Typhoons usually affect
only the southern part of the Island—in the towns of Lazi and San
Juan (Bendijo et al., 2004).
Señora River in Lazi, is the major river in the province of
Siquijor. It traverses the barangays of Capalasanan, the CangclaranTagmanocan border, Nagerong, and the Simacolong-Tigbawan
Figure 1. Map of the Lazi municipality showing the location of the sampling
stations in Señora River. Modified from Geographic Atlas of Siquijor (1999).
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physico-chemical characteristics of the seÑora river
border. The tributaries in the upper reaches of the river irrigated the
rice paddies which in turn contribute agricultural runoff to the river.
In the middle segment of the river is the Cambugahay Falls which is
frequently visited by both domestic and foreign tourists. It receives
one of the tributaries from the barangays of Canggomantong and
Po-o. The downstream portion of the river, Barangay Tigbawan, is
densely populated. Residential wastewaters are directly discharged
into the river without any treatment.
Table 1.
Geographic Coordinates of the Sampling Sites.
StationSite Coordinates StationSite Coordinates StationSite
Coordinates
1
9°10’37.6” N
1
123°36’55.3” E
9°10’21.4” N
1
123°37’02.8” E
9°10’06.1” N
123°37’07.7” E
1
2
9°08’48.3” N
2
2
123°37’24.4” E
9°08’39.6” N
3
2
123°37’27.2” E
9°08’27.8” N
123°37’35.2” E
3
9°07’50.8” N
3
123°38’15.7” E
9°07’45.7” N
3
123°38’17.4” E
9°07’35.5” N
123°38’24.1” E
Many river studies have been conducted across the Philippine
archipelago. The much known Pasig River in Metro Manila was
declared virtually dead in 1990 by DENR (Cruz, 1997) during dry
summer months since the dissolved oxygen content dropped below
standard that can support aquatic life. It was revealed that the water
quality had deteriorated which were attributed to the indiscriminate
discharging of waste into the river by manufacturing industries and
from the households as a result of urbanization. Pampanga River, being
the fourth largest basin in the Philippines, is susceptible to ecological
imbalance due to pollution and natural changes (Angeles, 2008).
Borlongan (2010) reported the alarming deterioration in the physicochemical quality and rise in the nutrient levels of Jalaur River in Iloilo.
Cagayan de Oro River in Cagayan de Oro City is contaminated with
fecal coliform which was due to improper disposal of human and
animal wastes into the river due to unavailability of toilet facilities
(Lubos, 2008). The quality of water in Naboc River in Mindanao was
assessed by Mines and Geo-sciences Bureau (MGB) XI in 2009. It was
reported that Naboc River is heavily burdened by poisonous deposits
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193
from mining tailings of Mt. Diwalwal gold panning operations. Aside
from mercury and cyanide, it is ailing with other heavy metals such
as copper (Cu) and lead (Pb) and suspended solids of clay and soils,
turning its once clear waters into murky. It is also heavily silted as
revealed by the presence of suspended solids.
It is in view of these revelations that the researchers were
interested to dwell on this area, thus this study was conceived. The
results will help find mitigating endeavors of all of the stakeholders
of the river. This study was conducted particularly to establish
baseline information of the water quality of the river. The different
water quality parameters monitored were dissolved oxygen (DO),
total dissolved solids (TDS), pH, conductivity, salinity, water surface
and water subsurface temperatures, nitrates-N, phosphates-P, and
biological parameter using E. coli. The seasonal (wet and dry months)
and spatial variations and correlations between parameters were also
determined. The quality of the water is compared with the standards
set by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources
(DENR), and USEPA, while the classification of the river is based on
DENR standards.
Materials and Methods
Sampling Stations
Three sampling stations with three sampling sites each, approximately
at five hundred-meter distance in between sites, were strategically
established to determine the physico-chemical and coliform (E. coli)
content of the water. Station 1 is located upstream (Capalasanan),
Station 2 is in the middle segment (Cambugahay Falls), and Station 3
in the downstream or estuarine portion of the river (Tigbawan). There
were three samples per sampling sites with three replicates for each
water quality conducted during the entire duration of the study.
Sample Collection and Frequency
Water quality parameters such as dissolved oxygen (DO), total
dissolved solids (TDS), pH, conductivity, salinity, water and ambient
temperatures were monitored in situ each month, using portable
meters, from February to July 2011. Samples of about 500 mL of river
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water were obtained using sterilized polymeric bottles and brought
to Chemistry and Biology laboratories of Silliman University,
Dumaguete City for analysis of nitrates-N, and phosphates-P, and E.
coli.
Statistical Analysis
The laboratory results obtained each month were subjected to
descriptive statistics. Mean + standard deviation were used and oneway ANOVA (with 95% level of significance and 5% margin of error)
was utilized to determine the significant difference of the parameters
between stations and between dry and rainy months.
This study provides baseline information about the water quality of
the three sampling stations in Señora River, including variations in
the parameters during wet and dry months. The monthly average
values of the different parameters are presented in Appendix B. Mean
and standard deviation of the parameters are presented in Table 1.
Comparisons of the river quality vs. water quality standards set by
the DENR are also presented (Tables 2 and 3).
a. Dissolved Oxygen (DO)
Dissolved Oxygen is an important parameter which determines the
quality and suitability of water to support aquatic life. The dissolved
oxygen (DO) level of the water in Señora River ranged from 5.91– 9.77
ppm. This range is higher than the acceptable limit (more than 5 ppm)
for fishes and other aquatic organisms to survive (Mapa & Trinidad,
2001). The higher DO values indicate unpolluted water (Varunprasath
& Nicholas, 2010; Moniruzzaman et al., 2009). Station 3 has the lowest
DO value of 6.81 + 0.567 mg/L, which might be attributed to several
factors, including direct dumping of organic wastes from neighboring
households.
Organic waste demands oxygen for decomposition (http://www.
dnr.mo.gov/env/esp/ water quality-parameters). This is in agreement
of the results of other studies conducted elsewhere (Hart & Zabby
2005; Davies et al. 2008; Abowei 2010). In this study, a slight decrease
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
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of DO values was observed during dry months, probably due to
increased water temperature (Miller, 1998; Abowei, 2010).
b. Total Dissolved Solids
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) is a measure of the amount of material
dissolved in water such as carbonates, bicarbonates, chlorides,
sulfates, phosphates, nitrates, calcium, magnesium, sodium, organic
ions, and other ions. Sources of TDS include fertilizer in agricultural
runoff, salinity from tidal mixing, minerals, returned irrigation water,
and acidic rainfall.
The total dissolved solids (TDS) content of the water was lowest
in Station 1 (216+ 34.205 148 mg/L) during the wet months (February,
April, and June) and highest in Station 3 (1045.56+1016.425 mg/L)
during the dry months (March, May, and July). A slight increase in
the TDS values during dry months in the three stations was observed.
However, this increase is not statistically significant.
c. pH
pH is a measure of the acidity or alkalinity of substance. Acidic surface
waters (pH < 7) decrease the survivability of animal life in lakes and
streams. In more severe instances, acidity eliminates some or all types
of fish and other aquatic organisms. Healthy rivers have pH values of
6.5 or slightly above (Eubanks et al., 2006).
The pH of water in Señora River ranged from 6.7–8.1, which
is slightly acidic to slightly basic. The lowest pH of the water (6.7–
slightly acidic) was observed in Station 1 in February, 2011. Station
2 has the highest mean pH value of 7.93 ±0.166 (S.D.) during the dry
months. The alkalinity of water in this Station might be attributed to
the run-off coming from rice paddies and other domestic discharges.
The difference of the pH of the water did not vary significantly
between wet and dry months.
d. Conductivity (µS)
The conductivity of the water in Señora River ranged from 310–4600
µS. Station 1 has a mean value of 456.22 µS and standard deviation of
73.641 µS during wet months and Station 3 with 1784.44 ± 1584.775 S.D.
µS during dry months. Station 3 has significantly higher conductivity
values relative to other stations since it is the downstream of the river
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where fresh and seawater mixed. Sea water has higher conductivity than
freshwater because of dissolved salts or electrolytes. The high standard
deviation value in this station can be accounted by the lowest value of 547
µS registered in the month of July since sampling was done during a low
tide (High Tide at 10:36 AM with 1.9 m and Low Tide at 6:11 PM with
-0.2 m). While it is possible that the conductivity of the water in Station
3 might be affected by the discharges coming from Tagmanocan and
Nagerong (residential and agricultural) and Tigbawan (commercial and
residential) areas, statistical tests revealed negative.
e. Salinity (‰)
The salinity of the water in Señora River ranged from 0.1-1.0‰ in the
upstream stations and 0.2-5.4‰ in the downstream station. The increase
in salinity in the downstream station is due to the influx of seawater (which
has salinity of about 35‰) during high tide (Castro & Huber, 2005).
f. Water Surface Temperature (oC)
Temperature affects the concentration of dissolved oxygen in a water
body. The oxygen content of river water is inversely correlated with
temperature. Oxygen supplies are generally richest in cold thoroughly
mixed headwater streams and lower in the warm downstream
sections of the rivers (Molles, 2005).
In this study, the water temperature of Señora River ranged from
25oC – 29.6oC which is within the normal limits. Results showed that
there is a slight increase in the water temperature during dry months
for the upstream and midstream of the river but not true for Station
3. This is justifiable since most sampling was done from upstream
in the morning to downstream in late afternoon. The slight increase
in temperature of the river during dry months was found to be
insignificant. This result means that there is no thermal pollution of
the water that can cause changes in the chemical kinetics of the water,
considering that no industries are discharging high temperature
water into the river.
g. Water Subsurface Temperature (oC)
It is disclosed that Station 1 has water subsurface temperature value
ranging from 25.8 – 30.2oC; Station 2 with 25–28.9oC; and Station 3 with
25–30.2oC. The registered maximum water subsurface temperature of
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river was 30.2oC during the month of April (the driest month with a
least amount of rainfall as recorded by PAG-ASA Lazi Bay Station)
and the lowest temperature of 25oC in the month of March (a wet
month based on PAG-ASA data).
There was no significant difference between the average values
of water subsurface temperature within stations and the difference
in water subsurface temperature between wet and dry months is
insignificant.
h. Nitrates – N (mg/L)
Nitrates can cause excessive growth of algae and other aquatic plants,
which then die and decay, depleting dissolved oxygen in water and
killing fish. Drinking water with excessive levels of nitrates lowers the
oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood. This can kill unborn children
and infants, especially those under one year old (Miller, 1998).
Station 1 has the nitrates-N content ranging from of 0.34-1.28
mg/L; Station 2, has 0.25-1.48 mg/L; and Station 3 with 0.068-1.17
mg/L. The registered maximum nitrates-N content of river water was
1.48 mg/L at site 3 of Station 2 during the month of February and
the lowest value of 0.068 mg/L at site 3 of Station 3 in the month of
March. The higher nitrates-N content of the water might be attributed
to the runoff from the rice paddies discharged directly to the river.
Nitrate enters streams from natural sources like decomposing plants
and animal waste as well as human sources like sewage or fertilizer
(Behar, 1997).
The natural nitrate level is usually less than 1 mg/L. Concentrations
over 10 mg/L may have an effect on the freshwater aquatic environment
(Behar, 1997). In this study, the nitrate content of the water in the
river is within the normal acceptable range. No significant difference
was observed between the average nitrates contents of the water per
station and during wet and dry months.
i. Phosphates – P (mg/L)
Together with nitrates, phosphates are another inorganic plant
nutrient which is considered as water pollutant (Miller, 1998).
Across stations, the month of February has higher value of
phosphate contents than the rest of the months. Phosphate source
might be the minerals from surrounding areas, animal waste,
detergent, and fertilizer. The lowest value of 0.007 mg/L was observed
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198
at Station 1 in the month of May and the highest reading of 0.054
mg/L at Station 1 February.
The range of the phosphates-P content of the water is 0.007-0.054
mg/L which is within the normal limits. Phosphates do not pose a
human or health risk except in very high concentrations. Larger
streams may react to phosphate only at levels approaching 0.1 mg/L,
while small streams may react to levels of PO4-3 at levels of 0.01 mg/L
or less. In general, concentrations over 0.05 will likely have an impact
while concentrations greater than 0.1 mg/L will certainly have impact
on a river (Behar, 1997). No significant difference was observed
between the average nitrates contents of the water per station and
during wet and dry months.
j. Escherichia coli
Certain strains of E. coli, a fecal bacterium, can cause diarrhea, nausea
and even death, if not treated (Todar, 2008; Lubos, 2008). According
to Money et al. (2008), E. coli is a widely used indicator of fecal
contamination in water bodies.
In this study, E. coli contents of the river water, in terms of Colony
Forming Unit (CFU) per 100 mL (CFU/100 mL) was observed highest
in Station 3 (103,333 CFU/100 mL), in March followed by Station 1
in the same month. The E. coli content in all stations exceeded the
standards set by DENR and USEPA of 1000 CFU/100 ml, which is an
indication of human and animal waste discharged into the river.
As shown in Table 4 some barangays (Gabayan at Station 3 with
48.8% of the households; Cangomantong at Station 2 with 33.1%;
and Tagmanocan at Station 3 with 29.4%) near the river lack toilets.
Pigpens near the river were also documented during an ocular visit
in the different stations. This result supported the findings of other
studies (e.g. Lubos, 2008). The presence of this bacteria means that the
water in Señora River is not ideal for swimming.
Siquijor Province is not yet urbanized and industrialized. There
are no manufacturing companies and industries that will alter the
quality of the water as evidenced by the parameters chosen in the
study being still within the permissible limits (based on the standards
set by the DENR, except for E. coli.
There is no significant seasonal (wet and dry months) variation
of all the parameters and no significant spatial variation (among the
three stations) of dissolved oxygen (DO), salinity, water sub-surface
temperature, water surface temperature, nitrates-N, phosphates-P,
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199
and E. coli contents. However, levels of total dissolved solids (TDS),
pH, and conductivity of the river are significantly higher in the
downstream station. TDS is usually associated with conductivity
of the water and Dissolved Oxygen with water temperature. The
solubility of gases decreases with an increase in temperature.
Conclusion
Based on the findings of this study, the values of the different physicochemical characteristics of Señora River in Lazi, Siquijor are still within
the permissible limits which make the river unique relative to other
rivers found in literatures except for the bacteriological parameter, E.
coli, the values of which exceeded the standards, in all stations.
The water quality is threatened to be impacted by human
activities, specifically the downstream of the river, as indicated by
the significant increase in certain parameters. The whole stretch of
the river can support aquatic life and can be used for agricultural and
other industrial purposes.
Recommendations
Based on the significant findings of the study, it is recommended
that the Local Government Unit of Lazi, Siquijor and other concerned
government and private agencies conserve Señora River. Specific
recommendations are as follows:
1. Information, education, and awareness campaign be conducted
with emphasis on the importance of Señora River with the
stakeholders.
2. Environment-friendly farming practices shall be planned,
developed, and implemented in order to minimize agricultural
wastewater problems.
3. Planning and implementation programs for the residents along the
river banks pertaining to clean and healthy environment shall be
made a priority in order to correct the problems created by residential
and other domestic wastewater discharged into the river.
4. Monitoring of physico-chemical (including pesticide and heavy
metal contents) and bacteriological parameters of the river water
be conducted.
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456.22+ 73.641
0.19+ 0.033
26.86+ 1.114
26.89+ 1.114
0.57+ 0.206
0.02 +0.010
Conductivity (µS)
Salinity (‰ )
Water Temperature (oC)
Subsurface Temperature (oC)
Nitrates-N (mg/L)
Phosphates-P (mg/L)
38900.00 ± 249156.38
7.56+ 0.208
pH
E. coli (CFU/mL)
216 + 34.205
7.96+ 1.010
Dissolved Oxygen (mg/L)
Total Dissolved Solids (mg/L)
Wet Months
9274.00±10772.384
0.03+0.017
0.65+0.298
27.77+1.839
27.64 +1.394
0.21+0.033
458.56+69.820
7.32+0.471
219.78+30.728
7.15 +0.787
Dry Months
14085.11±13413.401
0.02+0.007
0.72+0.262
27.71+1.036
26.99+0.984
0.20+0.000
473.67+35.507
7.84+0.058
225+14.816
8.01+ 0.578
16677.67±10797.312
0.03+0.018
0.62+0.376
26.86+1.396
27.50+0.400
0.47+0.400
493.89+14.278
7.93+0.166
233.78+15.123
8.01+0.639
Dry Months
54822.11 ±21738.479
0.02+0.005
0.59+0.287
28.10+1.823
28.17 +1.447
0.71 +1.131
940.67 + 928.072
7.62+0.083
501.78 +549.175
7.85+0.840
23344.33 ±19991.609
0.02+ 0.008
0.63+ 0.297
28.14+ 2.000
26.10 +1.093
1.30 +1.729
1784.44 + 1584.775
7.63 + 0.122
1045.56 + 1016.425
6.81 +0.567
Dry Months
Station 3
(Bukana/Estuary)
Wet Months
Station 2
(Cambugahay Falls)
Wet Months
Station 1
(Capalasan)
Parameters Mean ± SD of Physico-chemical Parameters of Señora River During Wet and Dry Months.
Table 1.
200
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** USEPA
AA
A
B
C
D
*based on DENR Administrative Order 2008-XX
DO (mg/L)*
5
5
5
5
2
pH*
6.5 – 8.5 6.5 – 8.5 6.5 – 8.5 6.5 – 9.0 6.0 – 9.0
Conductivity (μS)
—
—
—
—
—
Salinity (‰ )
—
—
—
—
—
Water Temperature
—
—
—
—
—
o
Subsurface temperature, C*
26-30
26-30
26-30
25-31
25-32
Nitrates-N (mg/L)
7
7
7
7
15
Phosphates-N (mg/L)
<0.003
0.5
0.5
0.5
5
E. coli** (CFU/100mL)
0
0
Parameters
Señora River Water Quality and Water Quality Guidelines and Water Classification.
Table 3.
* OERCD
7.63
390.82
7.65
767.91
0.51
27.21
27.58
0.63
0.023
37,673 DO (mg/L)
pH
Conductivity (μS)
Salinity (‰ )
Water Temperature (oC)*
Water Subsurface temperature (oC)
Nitrates-N (mg/L)
Phosphates-P (mg/L)
E. coli (CFU/100mL)
Standard
> 5
500
6.5 to 8.5
1000**
0-5
Not more than 5o rise in natural temp
—
10
0.2
1000
Señora River Parameters
7.63
390.82
7.65
767.91
0.51
27.21
27.58
0.63
0.023
37,673
Señora River
Comparison Between Señora River Water Quality and Surface Water Quality Standards Based on DENR and USEPA.
Table 2.
201
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1785
1245
815
1787
817
1756
Gabayan
Nagerong
Poo
Simacolong
Tagmanocan
Tigbawan
293
136
298
136
208
297
209
283
96
273
124
162
152
178
121
* Taken from the Rural Health Unit report of the Municipality of Lazi
1252
Capalasanan
181
Cangomantong 1083
96.6
70.6
91.6
91.2
77.9
51.2
85.2
66.9
85.1
74
87
Cangclaran
520
With Toilets No.
%
Barangays
Population
No. of Households
10
40
25
12
46
145
31
60
13
3.4
29.4
8.4
8.8
22.1
48.8
14.8
33.1
14.9
3
3
3
2
3
3
1
2
2
Without Toilets Near Station
No.
%
Status of Sanitary Facility of the Barangays Along the Vicinity of Señora River in Lazi, Siquijor (2010)*
Table 4.
202
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203
Appendix A
Monthly Variations in the Physico-chemical Parameters in the Three Sampling
Stations of Señora River (February-July, 2011).
1. Monthly mean dissolved oxygen of the river water
2. Monthly mean Total Dissolved Solids
3. Monthly mean pH values
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204
4. Monthly mean conductivity
5. Monthly mean salinity
6. Monthly mean subsurface temperature
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205
7. Monthly mean water temperature
8. Monthly mean NO3-N concentration of the water
9. Monthly mean PO4-P of water per station
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10. Monthly mean E. coli concentration (in CFU)
Appendix B
Monthly variations in hydrological parameters of Señora River (February to
July 2011).
1.
Monthly variation in river width of Señora River.
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2. Monthly variation in river depth of Señora River.
3. Monthly variation in water velocity of Señora River.
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4. Monthly variation in water discharge of Señora River.
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Cultural Practices in Relation
to the Utilization and Conservation
of the Señora River and Other
Community Practices
Josel B. Mansueto
Expedita O. Duran
Ricky C. Jumawan
Siquijor State College
Larena, Siquijor, Philippines
This research investigated people’s cultural practices related to
the river. Data were gathered using a Focused Group Discussion
to supplement the responses to the questionnaires and actual site
observations including interviews and visits. It was found out that
both religious (mainly Roman Catholicism) and cultural beliefs are
practiced interchangeably by the local people. Local culture and
practices have contributed to the respect and realization of the
limitations of the natural resources. People used indigenous ways
of healing practices using plants from the riparian area of the river.
Keywords: cultural practices, river conservation and utilization,
animism, folk healing, community practices
S
INTRODUCTION
iquijor Island is well-known for its mysticism, religious rituals,
folk healing and other cultural practices (Pontenila & Reynolds,
1971; Dumont, 1992; Mascuñana, Pioquinto, & Schales 1999;
Seki, 1994; Mascuñana & Mascuñana, 2008).
The local people of Siquijor (Siquijodnon) believe on supernatural
beings (Mascuñana et al. 1999; Mascuñana & Mascuñana, 2008) or
local deities residing in the so-called “sacred places.” Such belief has
been regarded as contributory towards the preservation of natural
resources and reduced exploitation (Acheson, Wilson, & Steneck,
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214
CULTURAL PRACTICE AND the seÑora river
1998; Agrawal, 1995; Alcorn, 1993; Altieri, 1994; Berkes, 1989; 1998;
1999; Berkes, Colding, & Folke, 2000; Berkes & Folke, 1998; Berkes,
Folke, & Gadgil, 1995; Berkes, Kislalioglu, Folk, & Gadgil, 1998;
Brookfield & Padoch, 1994; Callicott, 1994; Chapman, 1985; Child &
Child, 1993; Colding, 1998; Colding & Folke, 1997; Dei,1993; Denevan
et al., 1984; Dwyer, 1994). This in turn will result to improved resilience
of the ecosystem (Holling, 1973; Alcorn & Toledo, 1998; Begossi, 1998;
Berkes et al., 1995). According to Berkes (1999), resilience is high in
ecosystems believed by the locals as “sacred places.” Berkes (2002)
also argued that cultural or “traditional ecological knowledge” plays
an important role in conserving natural resources.
Previous anthropological studies done in Siquijor (e.g. Mascuñana
et al. 1999) described folk healing that utilizes certain plants in the
preparation of decoction both for healing and sorcery (Mascuñana
& Mascuñana, 2008), and most of them emphasized the mysticism
and religious aspects only. However, this present study presents the
beliefs and practices of the local people which may unconsciously
help protect the natural ecosystems such as the Señora River in Lazi,
Siquijor.
Methods
This study interviewed 249 respondents (all household heads) in the
eight barangays along the Señora River. Methods included focused
group discussions (FGDs), a questionnaire, and a structured interview
guide. Prior to the interview, request letters or permit to conduct
research (PCR) documents explaining the intent of the research were
disseminated to the respective executive heads (e.g., mayor and
barangay captains).
Ranking and frequency of the responses on their cultural beliefs
and practices were obtained from the questionnaire. Content analysis
of the responses on the open-ended sections of the questionnaire was
also done. The answers were supplemented by data from the FGDs.
More than a dozen cultural practices were identified during the
conduct of the study. However, only those perceived as directly
related to the utilization of the river ended up in the present report.
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j.b. mansueto, e.o. duran, & r.c. jumawan
215
(A separate paper describing the other cultural practices is being
prepared for publication elsewhere.)
Out of the 249 respondents, majority (about 90%) considered the
river a “sacred place” and they refrained from overexploiting the
river using destructive methods as a way of respecting the “unseen
inhabitants of the river.” Likewise, 77 (30.92%) avoided using the
river during Tuesdays and Fridays while 95(38.15%) avoided the river
during Holy Week. Over 100 respondents (n=102) said that women
refrained from using the river during menstruation
The locals’ belief in the existence of the supernatural beings is
superceded by their religion for they feel secure in using the river
when they pray (18.16%) or make the sign of the cross (supposedly
asking for protection) which is a Roman Catholic practice (22.16%).
After the prayer, they recognize the presence of other entities by
asking permission from the spirits to allow them to use the river
(18.02%). These practices revealed how animism and Catholicism
are incorporated into local culture. However, given the minimal
percentage distribution of the cultural practices, this diminishing
practice poses additional threat to the exploitation of natural resources.
As is the case elsewhere, such belief has been regarded as
contributory towards the preservation of natural resources due to
reduced exploitation (Acheson et al., 1998; Agrawal, 1995; Alcorn,
1993; Altieri, 1994; Berkes, 1989; 1998; 1999; Berkes et al., 2000; Berkes
& Folke, 1998; Berkes et al., 1995, 1998; Brookfield & Padoch, 1994;
Callicott, 1994; Chapman, 1985; Child & Child, 1993; Colding, 1998;
Colding & Folke, 1997; Dei,1993; Denevan et al., 1984; Dwyer, 1994),
which in turn will result in improved resilience of the ecosystem
(Holling, 1973; Alcorn & Toledo, 1998; Begossi, 1998; Berkes et al.,
1995).
Berkes (1999) underscores enhanced ecosystem resilience in areas
believed by the locals to be “scared places.” In this study, it is the semisubterranean stream in the upstream station that has been considered
bintan (synonymous with “sacred” in other cultures) by the locals. It
is noteworthy to mention that the surrounding vegetation appears
intact. The freshwater shrimps (Macrobrachium australe) and the
freshwater cyprinid Spotted Barb (Puntius binotatus) were of relatively
larger size as compared to heavily exploited areas.
In one interview, a folkhealer revealed that herbs were gathered
weeks before the Holy Week (Personal communication, Pedro Anoos). The mixture of oil and herbs were used in healing sick people,
as well as in making business and personal potions. Some of the
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plants used for this concoction were derived from the riparian area
of Señora River such as are pangagos, hambalante, and bangkunayongkumalom (tree). Based on the folkhealer’s description of these plants,
these belong to at least two families, including the Family Moraceae.
Conclusion
and Recommendations
The cultural practices suggest the interdependence of local
communities and the river. Beliefs on supernatural beings may have
contributed to the preservation of certain areas of the river and adjacent
forested areas. It is recommended that the present investigation be
further pursued. There is also a need to document and verify some of
the cultural practices, particularly folk healing.
Acknowledgments
The authors wish to thank CHED-ZRC, Siquijor State College in Larena, Siquijor and
Silliman University and St. Paul University in Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental.
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sustainable forestry. Singapore Journal of Tropical Geography, 14, 28-41.
Denevan, W.M., Treacy, J.M., Alcorn, J.B., Padoch, C., Denslow, J. & Paitan, S.F. (1984).
Indigenous agroforestry in the Peruvian Amazon: Bora Indian management of
swidden fallows. Interciencia, 9, 346-357.
Dumont, J.P. (1992). Visayan vignettes: Ethnographic traces of a Philippine Island. Chicago,
IL: University of Chicago Press.
Dwyer, P.D. (1994). Modern conservation and indigenous peoples: In search of
wisdom. Pacific Conservation Biology, 1, 91-97.
Holling, C.S. (1973). Resilience and stability of ecological systems. Annual Review of
Ecology and Systematics, 4, 1-23.
Mascuñana, R.V., Pioquinto, C.E., & Schales, C.K. (1999). The holy week rites of the
mananambal of Siquijor. Silliman Journal, 40(1), 13-47.
Mascuñana, R.V., & Mascuñana, E.F. (2008). The folk healers: Sorcerers of Siquijor.
Quezon City: Rex Book Store.
Pontenila, M., & Reynolds, H. (1971). Sorcery in the framework of folk medicine on
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Seki, K. (1994). Healers in Siquijor. Yakara Studies in Ethnology, 24(10), 21-22.
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
VOL. 53 NO. 2
The Philippine-American War in Verse
Myrna Peña-Reyes
W
ith our interest in the Philippine-American War reawakened by the recent release of John Sayles’ film Amigo
(filmed in Bohol) and the publication of his book, Moment
in the Sun (McSweeney’s, 2011), I am brought in mind of the “Yankee
Rudyard Kiplings,” those American poet-soldiers and the war
correspondents who recorded in verse America’s colonial adventure
in the Philippines. Like the British in their Asian colonies, the U.S.
Army also had
Blood lust [is] in their faces, for the work they’re destined for
Is the grim and lurid battles of a bloody eastern war;
The martyrs are among them to the “White Man’s Burden” creed;
The servants are among them of a nation’s greatest need;
(from Your Own, A.L. Price, 1908)
The United States of America would join for the first time the
privileged company of world imperialist powers.
Of the naval battle that mustered out the Spaniards and ushered
in American rule over our islands, one sailor-soldier, celebrating the
victor’s “dominant blood,” records in
A Ballad of Manila Bay
So through the dark we stole our way
Past the grim waders and into the bay,
Past Kalibuyo, and past Salinas—
And came at the break of day
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Where strong Cavite stood to oppose—
Where, from a sheen of silver and rose,
A thronging of masts, a soaring of towers,
The beautiful city arose.
How fine and fair! But the shining air
With a thousand shattered thunders there
Flopped and reeled. For the fighting foe—
We had caught him in his lair…
A description of the one-sided battle follows, ending with Dewey’s
victory:
Manila Bay! Manila Bay!
How proud the song on our lips today!
A brave old song of the true and strong,
And the will that has its way…
The dominant blood that daunts the foe,
That laughs at odds, and leaps to the blow—
It is Dewey’s glory today, as Nelson’s
A hundred years ago!
(Charles George Douglas Roberts, 1908)
Tributes and exhortations to Admiral George Dewey, the new
U.S. national hero, were many, including this one in mock illiterate
Negro speech:
Hol’ Dem Philuppines
Mistah Dewey, yo’s all right,
Hol’ dem Philuppines!
Made yo’ point an’ won yo’ fight,
If dem natives get too gay
Make dem walk the Spanish way;
Show dem dat yo’s come to say,
Doctah Dewey, doan’ yo’ care,
Let dat German ge’man swear,
Reckon dat yo’ saw dem first,
Just yo’ say to wienerwurst:
“Come en take dem, if yo’ durst,
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M. PEÑA-REYES
Fesser Dewey, yo’ is wa’am,
Reckon yo’ can ride de storm,
Tell him dat yo’ will not grieve
If ol’ Diederichs should leave—
Keep dat razar up your sleeve,
A’m’al Dewey, watch yo’ kyards,
Folks all sen’ yo’ best regyards,
Make dem fo’iners lay low,
If dey ‘sist to pester so,
Make dem take dah clothes and go,
Hol’dem Philuppines!
(George V. Hobart, 1899)
When the Philippines became the enemy, the Americans record
their skirmishes with the Filipino “insurrectos”:
Ballad of Paco Town
The bullets a vicious music made,
Like the whistle and whine of the midnight blast
On the weltering wastes of the ocean when
The breast of the deep is scourged and flayed…
The verse continues by glorifying the heroic act of one signalman who quickly repairs the telegraph wire severed by the bullet of
a Filipino soldier:
Out of his saddle he sprang as gay
As a schoolboy taking a holiday,
Wire in hand up the pole he went
With never a glance at the tower, intent
Only on that which he saw appear
As the line of his duty plain and clear.
To the very crest he climbed, and there,
While the bullets buzzed in the scorching air,
Chipped his clothing, and scored and stung
The slender pole-top to which he clung,
Made the wire that was severed sound,
Slipped in his careless way to the ground,
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Sprang to the back of his horse, and then
Was off, this bravest of signal-men.
(Clinton Scollard, 1908)
And what good would the coming of America do for the
Philippines?
Uncle Sam the Tutor
When your Uncle came out east
There was nothing here; at least,
Not much.
But he turned things upside down
And he waked the sleepy town
With his clutch.
In the carromata trails
He has laid the shining rails
For the cars;
He has brought electric light
Where once reigned the queen of night
And the stars;
He has bidden strife to cease,
Brought about a reign of peace
In the isles;
He has opened up the farms
Where the sun the dark soil warms
With his smiles;
He established public schools,
Progress uses them as tools
In its works;
He has made men stand in awe
Of the lightning that in law
Ever lurks;
He has lifted up a race,
Wiped its weeping, childish face
With his hand;
Washed its soiled clothes, made them neat,
Set the child on tottering feet,
Bade it stand;
(A.L. Price, 1908)
One isn’t really sure if the invaders could appreciate the tropics.
Is this tongue-in-cheek?
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Ain’t It Fine?
Tropic skies and tropic days,
Tropic gleams on tropic bays,
Tropic waters softly flow,
Tropic phosphorescents glow,
Tropic woods on rocky hill,
Tropic vales a-slumber still,
Lordy, ain’t it fine!
Tropic seas just wallerin’ round
Tropic emptiness of ground,
Tropic morning, night and noon,
Tropic stars and tropic moon,
Tropic paling dusk and dawn,
Tropic life so fleetly gone—
Lordy, ain’t it fine!
(A.L. Price, 1908)
For their own dead, they romanticize, with a proper nod to
religion, as in:
Our Dead in Pasay
They died, and dying, turned their eyes
To homeland flag and strangeland skies—
The flag for which men well might give
Their lives; the skies inviting men to live—
And threading through their purpose good
Ran love of men and brotherhood.
And here they lie in slumber sweet,
This tropic land their winding sheet,
While o’er them float the winged hours,
Above them grow the fairest flowers,
And in their spirit’s tingling veins
The pride of unseen victory reigns.
Then o’er them coldly resting there,
Be speeches made, let solemn prayer
And martial music sweetly blend
O’er those who sleep till time shall end—
Till Resurrection’s Angels spread
Their snowy pinions o’er our dead.
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(A.L. Price, 1908)
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One wonders where their “love of men and brotherhood” went
when they fought the Filipinos.
They sprang to the defense of a fellow soldier who was punished,
perhaps, for doing his job too well:
The Army’s Martyr
Grafton
A soldier’s duty is not to know
The face of friend or the face of foe;
A soldier’s duty is not to feel
But change the nerves of his heart to steel:
A soldier’s orders are, “Kill or die
With never asking the question, why.”
Know you that Grafton, obeying, won
The satisfaction of duty done,
And know that he feels, in his prison cell,
That sacred oaths may be kept too well,
A soldier’s oath is a sacred thing,
About it the good in a man will cling...
But how can men who have never felt
The leaden weight of a cartridge belt,
Nor drank from springs where the army drinks,
Nor thought the thoughts that the army thinks,
Be judge of men who have lived it through—
Have lived, have loved, and have blessed it, too?
By Grafton’s kind, was Mount Dajo won,
By Grafton’s kind have great deeds been done,
For Grafton’s kind form the rank and file
That faces death with a cheerful smile.
God help the land that, at any time,
Pronounces duty well done a crime.
(A.L. Price, 1908)
The Moro Wars which challenged the Spanish before them proved
an insurmountable barrier to U.S. hopes of complete dominion over
the Philippines. The following verse, an exception to the mostly
narrative doggerel-type verse being written then, shows a more
competent lyric evoking the mood and drama of a fight with an
economy of words:
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In Mindanao
A dark one hid in a jungle,
A tramping of booted feet,
A grown hand clasping a bolo,
A rush from a safe retreat.
A quick down-stroke at a sentry,
A strangled moan in the night,
A pool of blood in the forest,
To tell the tale of the fight.
A comrade found in the blackness,
Beside him a severed head,
The forest keepeth its secrets
As well as it keeps its dead.
(A.L. Price, 1908)
A more detailed description of battle is also an occasion for a poetobserver, who knows the real situation in the Philippines, to air his
cynical view of the propaganda coming out of Washington:
The Peaceful Philippines
Have you heard the rustle in the cogon by the way?
Have you glimpsed a black clad bolo-man soft creeping on his prey?
Have you heard the jungles barking with a voice of rifle shot?
Have you seen a comrade reeling as a bullet reached the spot?
Have you heard the sharp spears hurtling past and buzzing as they fly?
Have you seen the dead men’s faces grinning grimly at the sky?
Have you heard the ring of campilan, the clash of deadly kris?
But at Washington they tell us that the Philippines have peace.
Have you seen a Moro fighting with his body full of lead?
Have you clubbed your gun and brained him so you’d know the tao was dead?
Have you charged upon a cotta where the women fought like men
And the men all fought like devils in hell’s deepest dismal den?
Have you heard them pray while dying for the strength to lift a knife
So that hell might grin with pleasure for another Christian life?
Have you seen the red blood flowing in the pathway of the kris?
Yet at Washington they tell us that the Philippines have peace...
(A.L. Price, 1908)
Although, as expected, the Army and their Government leaders
believed in the rightness of the U.S. cause, some anti-war voices were
raised then, as they are raised today:
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An Arraignment
In the name of young manhood degraded and lost,
In the name of the shame and the manhood you’ve cost,
In the name of your tyranny blacker than crime,
In the name of the hearts you have smirched with your slime,
I arraign you, Army!
In the name of the idleness fostered by you,
In the name of your ease where the worthlessness grew,
In the name of the land you have pillaged of men,
The lads you have sunk to your hell’s deepest den,
In the name of your blight to an epoch of peace,
In the name of your crime-mill that never can cease,
In the name of the cities, the name of the land
That is filled with the tramps who are bearing your brand,
(A.L. Price, 1908)
As with most men away from home, the Americans suffered
homesickness too:
Homesick?
Oh, I’m having lots of pleasure,
And I find that life is sweet,
But I’d like to see the shimmer
Of the breeze upon the wheat.
Hereupon me life is smiling
And the softest zephyrs blow,
But I’d like to see men plodding
Up and down a cotton row.
Yes, I’m making stacks of money,
And I’m working, night and morn,
But I’d like to smell the fragrance
Of the blossom on the corn.
No, I do not think I’m homesick,
Very little, any way,
But I’d like to hear a mower
Rattle through a field of hay.
(A.L. Price, 1908)
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Sarcastic humor is used in voicing their doubts that the Filipinos can
ever be trusted with “the right to tote a gun” (read “independence”):
Song for the Assembly
They’ll foregather in Manila—every tribe from every sea—
From the gee-string to the silk hat every kind of dress there’ll be;
And the mixing of the dialects will drown all sign of sense,
And the interest in bearing arms will reach a state intense.
They can’t call each other liars; they’re not civilized that far;
They will not learn the meaning of the word from those who are.
When Santos’s good steel bolo rings on Gomez’s sharpened kris,
How’d you like to be the sergeant who will have to keep the peace?
How’d you like to have the place?
How’d you like to bear the mace?
How’d you like to dodge about between the bolo and the kris?
How’d you like to see them gloat
As they cut each other’s throat?
(Chorus)
How’d you like to have the place?
How’d you like to bear the mace?
How’d you like to dodge about between the bolo and the kris?
How’d you like to see them gloat
When they cut each other’s throat?
Taft will meet them in Manila and he’ll look into their eyes
With a fatherly expression and remark they’re getting wise;
Then they’ll hand him their petition for the right to tote a gun
For the bolo isn’t swift enough to give them any fun;
And I’d like to see the Taft smile that the papers talk about!
When they find they cannot have the guns, ‘twill sadly put them out.
When the secretary leaves the hall the row will not decrease!
(A.L. Price, 1908)
Little did they know that the U.S. had become “the policeman of
the world,” a role they continue to play today, albeit, perhaps, more
and more with regret and resentment.
In narrative, ballads, and doggerel rhymes depicting the popular
literary style of their time, these American poet-soldiers and war
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correspondents have left a record of their nation’s first assay into
colonial adventurism. While their superior attitude is expected, the
reader may be surprised by the range of concerns that the verses
cover, integrated within, or against, patriotic pronouncements. The
effects of America’s grand adventure at the turn of the 20th c. on the
lives and fortunes of Filipinos have been long and lasting, for better
or for worse.
REFERENCES
Price, A.L. (1908). In white and khaki: Selected rhymes. Manila: Kemlein & Johnson.
Scollard, C. (Ed.). (1908). Ballads of American bravery: The silver series of English and
American classics. New York: Silver, Burdett & Co.
Stickney, J.L. (1899). Admiral Dewey at Manila: The complete story of the Philippines:
Life and glorious deeds of Admiral George Dewey, including a thrilling account of our
conflicts with the Spaniards and Filipinos in the Orient. Chicago: Imperial Publishing
Company.
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
VOL. 53 NO. 2
REVIEW
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
VOL. 53 NO. 2
Tawny Ryan Nelb
Mission Accomplished:
Robert and Metta
Silliman’s Missionary
Work in the Philippines,
1924-1966
Midland, Michigan: Memorial
Presbyterian Church, 2012),
84 pages
Reconnecting with the Sillimans
Review by Lorna Peña-Reyes Makil
D
umaguete residents and students of Silliman University before
and immediately after World War II in the Philippines were
used to the ubiquitous presence of American missionaries in
their midst. Among these missionaries were Robert (Bob) and Metta
Silliman who, like most of the American missionaries working in the
University, did not actively preach their faith but were witnesses to it
through their lives and multiple functions in teaching, committee work,
prayer and Bible study groups, advising organizations, administration,
and various social contacts with students and the community.
The Sillimans worked and lived in Dumaguete for over 40 years
and were known to students, faculty and the community who were
around before the mid-1960s. Their legacy as missionaries is known
to this older generation of Filipinos who interacted with them, many
of whom, like Bob and Metta, are no longer with us.
For those of us who are still around, we welcome a new monograph
on the Sillimans by American archivist and historian, Tawny Ryan Nelb.
The impetus for its publication is the interest maintained by the Berta
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REVIEW OF MISSION ACCOMPLISHED
E.R. Strosacker Memorial Presbyterian Church (Memorial Presbyterian
Church of Midland, Michigan) in having promoted missionary work
for over 100 years.
The book introduces us to one of Midland Church’s long-time
members, Grace Anna Bell Dow, great granddaughter of one of its
founders and wife of Herbert Dow of the famous Dow Chemical
Company. They were generous supporters of the church and its
programs.
In 1925, Midland Church was approached by Dr. David Hibbard,
president of then Silliman Institute, for help in the work of the small
college in Dumaguete. Grace Dow quickly responded and gave the first
of many donations she was to make to support part of a missionary’s
salary in the Philippines.
The missionary was Metta Jacobs Archer, a young widow with
a Master’s degree in education (Illinois University) who had been
teaching English for a year at Silliman Institute. Grace Dow’s donation
enabled Metta to extend her stay and continue with her teaching duties.
Bob Silliman (distantly related to Horace Brinsmade Silliman who
had given the money to start Silliman Institute) arrived in Dumaguete
in 1925 and taught with the Silliman history department, having earned
an undergraduate degree from the University of Chicago. The book
tells us that he and Metta married the following year in nearby Cebu.
He would earn his Master’s degree in history from Lafayette College,
Pennsylvania in 1937 during one of their furloughs.
Grace Dow extended her donation to include part of Bob’s salary.
By then, a close personal friendship was developing between her and
the missionary couple. When Metta’s younger sister, Abby Jacobs,
arrived as a new missionary in 1931, part of her salary was also covered
by Grace Dow’s patronage.
It was this unusually warm and personal friendship between
patron/benefactor and missionaries in the field that, especially for us
readers who knew the Sillimans, carries great interest, showing how
such a relationship was nurtured by almost weekly letters from them
to Grace Dow, supplemented by photos and postcards which conveyed
to her the rich details of their lives and the people they worked with,
of their physical environment and their cultural surroundings. Their
exchange of letters through the years forms part of the archival source
of Nelb’s book. In a world when modern communication technology
was unknown, they succeeded in maintaining a firm friendship through
regular personal letters. As Bob described it, he “wrote to Grace just
as often and just like I write my mother” (p. 47).
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What had started as a formal donation by Grace Dow to Silliman
Institute in 1925 was sustained through time by her personal friendship
with the Sillimans and her active interest in mission work. She was
typical of the church women of her time: member of several women’s
groups which included foreign and local missionary societies. These
societies formed the core of the church’s participation in missionary
work through their direct financial support and a lively curiosity about
foreign religions and cultures. (Note: In a similar vein, it is said that
the wife of Horace B. Silliman belonged to such a women’s missionary
society. It was she who first suggested to her husband that he give
money to America’s newest colony at the turn of the century.)
The book also describes Grace Dow as being active in groups outside
the church. She offered personal assistance to those who needed it,
“…but above all, she was known for her quiet acts of charity and deep
faith. With no fanfare, she would tend to the needs of others…” (p.
13). As a good Presbyterian, she believed that “man’s responsibility
of ministry to others cannot be left to the clergy alone.”
This, and the amazing friendship that Grace Dow had with the
Sillimans, whet the reader’s curiosity about her. It is good to know
about her altruistic character and deep faith which inspired her life
(Nelb is a good archivist and historian who makes excellent use of
her sources). But perhaps because many readers of this book knew
the Sillimans personally and interacted with them as fellow human
beings, there is also a wish to know what Grace Dow was really like as
a person. What other interests, if any, did she share with the Sillimans
(e.g., did she enjoy literature and music as Metta did?) that kept their
friendship alive? This book does not tell us this or other details that
would round out Grace Dow as a person. But perhaps this is not part
of the job of an archivist’s account?
Grace Dow was widowed some five years after her friendship with
the Sillimans began. Nelb posits the idea that the Sillimans “gave her a
substitute family to care for and to worry about” (p. 47). Her children
were all grownup by then. And indeed, the Sillimans were like family
to Grace, and she to them. Her support went beyond their salaries.
Her monetary gifts enabled them to travel and visit other missions,
and see more of the country this way. She helped provide them “with
creature comforts that helped offset the distance from home and the
hardships of the tropics” (p. 18).
Except for the years spent later in the mountains hiding from
the Japanese (1942-1944), it may not be quite accurate to describe
missionaries at Silliman University, like Bob and Metta, as living
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the “hardships of the tropics.” Midland Church and Grace Dow
were influenced more by stereotype ideas of mission life than facts.
Dumaguete was a provincial capital where the living was relatively
easy and gracious, a safe and secure town outside the usual path of
seasonal typhoons, with the basic amenities (water and electricity, etc.)
and a semblance of modern living that was truer to the picture than life
in the forsaken boondocks. American missionary families on campus
enjoyed high respect and adulation, had two or more Filipino servants
and lived in comfortable screened houses that protected them from
mosquitoes and other tropical pests (while Filipino homes on campus
had to wait longer for the same privileges).
The vacation home in the mountains—Fern Rest—that the
Sillimans maintained “to escape the heat in the lowlands” placed them
a little above some of their missionary counterparts and most of the
Filipino families with whom they worked and lived. Although no
one begrudges them this house at Camp Lookout, it should be noted
that Fern Rest offered a luxury similar to that provided by the Baguio
vacation homes of Governor-General Howard Taft and other early
American colonial leaders and wealthy landed Filipino families. At
the same time, however, Fern Rest also afforded Bob and Metta easier
access to the residents of the small mountain community who were
also recipients of their missionary services.
When the Presbyterian Board imposed cuts on the salaries of the
missionaries during the world wide Depression of the 1930s, Bob
and Metta received monthly and quarterly checks from Grace Dow
to augment their support and to enable them to extend assistance to
students and others in the University.
World War II brought deprivations suffered by the Sillimans
with other missionaries and Filipino families in the mountains. But
this was also the time when Bob’s administrative skills were widely
recognized and appreciated. His appointment as Deputy Governor
for Southern Negros Oriental called for his help in reorganizing the
local governments and securing food for the guerillas and civilians.
In 1944, the Sillimans, along with other missionaries in Negros
Oriental, were rescued by an American submarine and carried to safety
to Australia where they were personally welcomed by General Douglas
MacArthur. (Much of the drama of this thrilling event is lost in the
author’s straightforward and factual retelling of the main action.) From
there, they were taken to the American mainland where they rested
and recuperated from their ordeal of almost two years. Nelb writes
that the time spent by the Sillimans with Grace Dow at her Midland
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home was a period of grace that further cemented their special ties. It
was during this time that Grace Dow informed them of her decision to
provide for their support after her death with gifts of stocks and cash.
(She passed away in 1953.)
With the help of Midland Church and other friends, the Sillimans
made preparations to return to Dumaguete after the war, gathering
hundreds of books to restock the University library collection that had
been destroyed during the Japanese occupation. They were the second
American couple to arrive, one year after the University had re-opened.
The task of rebuilding and rehabilitating Silliman University kept them
busy. While Metta resumed her teaching, Bob served as College Dean,
then as Vice President, and finally in 1961-62, as Acting President.
While Nelb mentions these crucial roles that Bob held in the
University, her monograph does not include an interesting fact about
Bob’s public persona as it was known in the community. She could not
have possibly known about it. But for readers who were around then,
Bob was perceived to be “different from the other missionaries” who
were seen to be more friendly and approachable. He had an unsmiling,
serious demeanor and was feared for his stern and formal ways of
dealing with the faculty and students. (The 1956 University yearbook,
Portal, has a picture showing faculty members enjoying a good laugh at
a gathering, with Bob sitting in their midst wearing his trademark poker
face. The picture has this caption: “$64,000 to the funny-man who can
make him smile.”) Filipinos, in general, are known for their easy smiles.
Bob’s warmer nature, which was more like his real self, was known only
to his immediate household, intimate friends, and those with whom
he worked closely. As a young applicant for missionary service for the
first time, he was described to the Presbyterian Board by one of his
college teachers thus: “…his interest in others, his kindness of nature,
and his tactfulness will actuate him in whatever service he enters…”
(quoted in Arthur L. Carson, Silliman University 1901-1959, pp. 353-354).
So why did he choose to be distant and formal, uncharacteristically
blunt as a missionary with the university community in general? It
is possible that he assumed a public image that, as a practical man,
he knew would facilitate the observance of impersonal, efficient and
institutional procedures contributing to a successful administration of
the University. The fear and respect that he inspired in others made
his job as administrator easier.
Readers who lived in Dumaguete during the time of Bob and Metta
will be delighted to meet again in the pages of Nelb’s book their foster
children who people warmly called “adopted ni Silliman”: Emma ColeVOL. 53 NO. 2
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Teves, Eleanor Funda-Sardual, and Fred Dael. Their lives turned out
well in the service of others—as nurse, as college professor of English
and literature and tireless church worker, and as a corporate manager,
respectively.
Nelb concludes her narrative of Bob and Metta’s ministry with a
description of the warm send-off that they received from the University
and Dumaguete leaders when they retired in September 1966. They had
given the best years of their lives to Silliman University and Dumaguete,
and for this, they were adopted as son and daughter of the city, with
all the rights and privileges of citizenship bestowed on them.
Not many of the friends and acquaintances whom they left behind
were aware that they lived out their final years at Westminster Gardens,
a community for Presbyterian retirees in Duarte, California. Retirement
was difficult for them because of Metta’s poor health and dementia
from Parkinson’s disease. She died at 97 in 1988, followed by Bob at
88 in 1990. Nelb also mentions that Metta’s sister, Abby Jacobs, retired
in the same place and passed away before them in 1983.
Nelb ends her monograph with this accurate conclusion: “The
collaboration of the Church, the missionaries, the patron and the
University allowed tremendous contributions to each of their
communities that were impossible in isolation. What a wonderful
legacy of service for them all” (p. 57).
This book is recommended to those who are interested in the
American colonial period in Philippine history. For the general
public, the book will add to their knowledge and understanding
of the American missionary contributions to Philippine education.
And for old timers who are still around, the monograph will serve to
reconnect them to a nostalgic past when the quality of University life
was enriched by the presence of American missionaries like Robert
and Metta Silliman.
The book contains pictures that add interest to its informative
data—pictures of the young Robert and Metta when they first worked
in the Philippines, and many years later when they retired; old pictures
of students and University buildings; some pictures of the war; the
“adopted ni Silliman”; a picture of the well-kept grounds of Bob and
Metta’s retirement home; and pictures of Grace Dow (but strangely
enough, there is no picture of these three good friends together).
Two errors of fact are noted: [1] When David Hibbard visited
Dumaguete and chose it as the future site for Silliman Institute, he
met the governor of Negros Oriental, Governor Demetrio Larena
(not Meliton Larena who was the town mayor, p.9); and [2] Silliman
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
VOL. 53 NO. 2
L.P.R. MAKIL
237
University in August 2008 honored Robert and Metta Silliman by
naming the Main Library (not a new multimedia center) after them
(p.77, footnote 167).
ABOUT THE REVIEWER
Lorna Peña-Reyes Makil was briefly associated with the Institute of Philippine
Culture in Ateneo de Manila University before she worked with the Philippine Social
Science Council for twelve years. She returned to Dumaguete in 2002, keeping busy
with research, writing, volunteer work, and other activities in a community which
she finds “kind to retirees.”
VOL. 53 NO. 2
SILLIMAN JOURNAL
Silliman Journal
Volume 53 Number 2 2012

Silliman University

Transcription

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