Philippines Solidarity Trip – Church OF the Poor

The Philippines is a deeply religious country. About 80% of the population identifies as Catholic, and the Catholic Church is very influential in all sectors of society. Upon first hearing these facts, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect. I’ve always found the separation of Church and State to be a really important factor in determining government policy and respecting diversity within a country’s population. But in the Philippines, the Church has intentionally taken on a very different identity than that of my typical notions of Church in the Global North.

On our first day, we visited with one of our Manila-based partners – the Urban Poor Associates (UPA). UPA works to organize and empower the poor in urban centres to fight for their land rights, to secure affordable housing and disaster relief support, and to build and strengthen community. Our first introduction to their work was a talk from Denis Murphy, one of the staff at UPA. While the context of the urban poor and the work of UPA were central to his introductory remarks, the role and inclination of the Church was explained first.

What does the Church look like in the Philippines? In 1991, the Church of the Philippines held a council in which it was decided that the Church would strive to become a Church OF the poor. The Council saw poverty and its elimination as central to its work in Philippine society and re-visioned itself as an institution that would seek to serve, fight for, and live among the poor.

Since the council was held 19 years ago, the Church has been one of the poor’s foremost advocates. They’ve issued pastoral letters condemning mining abuses and calling on politicians to deliver on land rights and services for the poor. They’ve supported and led social movements calling for gender justice, sustainable agriculture, child and youth development, and skills training. The Church in the Philippines is truly one of the poor’s closest allies. While they still have a long way to go before achieving the goal of truly becoming the Church OF the poor, most would agree that they’ve made substantial progress.

We witnessed a really stunning example of liberational church in action when we visited the community of St. Bernardine, a rural parish in the Diocese of Libmanan, supported by one of D&P’s partners – NASSA, or Caritas Philippines. In the past couple of years, it has held consultations and discussions with its parishioners, as well as outside clergy and church officials, to develop a model for the intentional development of a liberational church.

It sees the traditional model of church, where the relationship between self and God is central to spiritual life – as an insufficient model for a faith community committed to gospel-inspired justice and service. Through capacity building, child and youth development, community organizing,  and institutional shifts, it is working towards becoming a church where God is served in relationship with one another; where sacraments, prayer groups, and other exercises in personal spiritual reflection complement, rather than overshadow, justice work and community development. The model is still under construction, but it seems very much like something that could be replicated in parishes all over the world.

Witnessing the meaning of Church in the Philippines has truly renewed my faith in the institutional Church in Canada and around the world. As Catholics, we are called to be liberators and revolutionaries as Christ was. The Church in the Philippines takes that call to action seriously. That the Global South is leading this revolution in Church life is an exciting and hopeful prospect, and I am so grateful for this opportunity for renewal and spiritual replenishment.

Kaitlyn Duthie-Kannikkat