Out of a population of 118.3 million, at least 85 million people in the Philippines claim to be Christians. As we consider the Church today, we can gain insight by looking back in history to see how and when the gospel was first brought to the Filipinos. So, how did the Philippines get to this point?
Who Brought the Gospel to the Philippines?
During the 16th century, the King of Spain commissioned Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan to bring Catholicism to the Philippines. As Magellan and his crew traveled around the country, they conducted Mass for the Filipinos to encounter Catholicism for the first time.
Some of the participating Filipinos were rulers of different areas of the country. Within the next 25 years, nearly half of the Philippines converted to Catholicism under Spanish colonial rule. Prior to the introduction of Catholicism, Islam was brought to the Philippines by merchants from Indonesia, Malaysia and the Middle East during the late 14th century.
Then, from 1898 to 1946, the United States of America acquired the Philippines, and introduced Protestantism. American military chaplains were among the first to share Protestantism with Filippinos. Soon after, American, Protestant missionaries came to the Philippines. In order to avoid denomination conflicts, missionaries from each Protestant denomination were assigned a different region of the Philippines.. The denominations included Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, United Brethren, and Missionary Alliance.
What Does the Church Look Like Today?
Today, the Philippines is known as a majority Christian nation, with 80% of the population identifying as Catholic, and 3% as evangelical. In fact, it is the only country in Asia that has Christianity as the national religion.
While some Filipinos turned to Protestantism when the United States gained influence in the country, Protestantism today is often more commonly associated with medical facilities and schools that were established by American Protestants in the Philippines rather than with churches. But while the Protestant population may be smaller in the Philippines, it’s steadily growing.
How Can You Pray for the Church in the Philippines?
Just because there is a large Christian population does not mean that all believers are grounded in biblical truth. Pray for sound teaching to be shared, for biblical resources to be provided, and that the Word of God would be studied, so that more Filipinos may know and be rooted in the truth of the gospel. Also, with a history of churches shaped by colonization, pray that the Church in the Philippines would be shaped by God.
Also pray that local churches and followers of Christ in the Philippines would be united together, holding fast to the faith and encouraging one another. Lastly, pray that church leaders and members may have patience as they seek to spread the gospel throughout their country and make and disciple more followers of Christ.
Selah Lipsey is a Content Writer at Radical. She is a graduate of Samford University where she studied Journalism and Spanish. Selah and her husband Jeremy are members of Redeemer Community Church.
