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Paper short abstract:

Christianity was brought to the Philippines as a result of Spanish colonization in the sixteenth century. The study will compare three Philippine rituals situated on mountainous terrain with varying levels of Christian assimilation, a response to both colonial rule and human agency.

Paper long abstract:

The Philippines has gone through more than three centuries of colonial rule under Spain, followed by a much briefer rule under the United States and Japan. Colonization, regardless who is ruling, is an an imposition of the colonizers cultural values, religions, and laws, make policies that are often detrimental to the local populace. Land is seized and access to resources and trade is controlled, making the colonized people become dependent on colonizers. It is in this context that Filipinos were Christianized under Spanish rule.

Having celebrated in 2021 five hundred years of Christianity, the Philippine archipelago is likewise reputed to have the most number of Catholics in Asia. Christianity in the Philippines though is much more complex than it meets the eye, showing different levels of assimilation in varying geographical contexts.

The study will compare the practice, content, and form of Christian rituals in three mountainous areas in the Philippines - Antipolo, Banahaw, and Sibulan - where the seed of Christianity has taken root, albeit in different levels of assimilation: a more orthodox form of Catholicism is reflected in the faith of the laity in Antipolo although with a distinct local flavor, folk Christianity is practiced in Banahaw, while the Tagabawa Bagobos in Sibulan show indigenous animistic beliefs sprinkled with the language of their Christian neighbors (Achanzar, 2007).