Faith, history meet in Magallanes

HOLY SITE Residents, guests and the clergy gather in Magallanes, Sorsogon, on Oct. 17 to commemorate the historic Mass celebrated in the village of Siuton that marked the beginning of the spread of Catholicism on Luzon Island 455 years ago. —Photos by Mark Alvic Esplana

MAGALLANES, SORSOGON, Philippines — For Shaira Carvajal, 24, a history teacher, attending the 455th commemoration of the first Catholic Mass held in Luzon was more than just a work obligation but a deep commitment to history.

Carvajal joined her townmates and visitors on Thursday at Sitio Gibalon in Barangay Siuton in celebrating what is believed to be the foundation of Catholicism in the province of Sorsogon and the entire island of Luzon. Carvajal and other teachers from Caditaan National High School made sure they were present to attend a 6 a.m. Mass organized by the local government and the Diocese of Sorsogon.

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Even as she honors the religious and historical significance of the event, Carvajal is aware that there is still what she calls a “knowledge gap” among a number of students who, although they are natives of Magallanes, are not steeped into local history.

“Based on my observation, there are really students who are less aware about this part of history,” she told the Inquirer.

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Carvajal believes there is a need for younger generations to invest time in knowing the history and discovering the town’s wonders.

“It’s very essential for them to know what occurred here [more than 400 years ago] because history shapes both the present and future,” she said.

Liezel Buenaflor, a Grade 9 student and resident of Barangay Siuton, says she knows of the first Mass held in their town but does not exactly comprehend its significance.

Sorsogon Bishop Jose Alan Dialogo led the solemn religious event at the Gibalon Shrine.

‘Child of Magallanes’

But Buenaflor is willing to know more about the history of her hometown because “it is an important part of her identity as a child of Magallanes.”

Alfred Dedase, a member of the local culture and arts council, said the commemoration of the first Mass in this village was just a simple occasion for most people.

“People only recall it [every] Oct. 17 because there is a celebration and they know it’s a holiday. The holiday is more important for them rather than the meaning of what Oct. 17 really is,” said Dedase in a separate interview with Inquirer.

Sorsogon Bishop Jose Alan Dialogo said the younger generations could learn of past events through a symbolic representation in the form of Gibalon Shrine, a tourism landmark in Siuton village that is shaped like a galleon or a giant ship which was unveiled in 2019.

The Museo Sorsogon is also making an effort to bring culture and history closer to remote communities through their mobile museum boxes.

“One of the challenges we’ve observed is that students from far-flung areas struggle to access museums, so what we will do is to localize the content of our traveling museum wherein the culture and history of a particular town will be prioritized,” Jerome Dio, museum technician of Museo Sorsogon, said in an interview.

In his homily, Dialogo stressed the significant contributions of Augustinian missionaries Fray Alonzo Jimenez and Fray Juan de Albay who officiated the first mass on Luzon island in 1569.

“Their presence brought the holy gospel to those who come before us. They gave us the foundation of our faith that prospered not only here in Sorsogon but on the entire island of Luzon,” he said.

Gibalon Shrine

Disputed claims

According to works written by the late Rogerio Escobar, a local historian who was born in Magallanes, the Augustinian priests went on an expedition with Spanish captain Luiz Enriquez de Guzman to evangelize and spread the Catholic teachings in Luzon, as ordered by Miguel Lopez de Legazpi.

“On the shore of Ibalon, at the mouth of Ginanga river, Captain De Guzman and Jimenez built a small chapel made of bamboo and nipa. There, Fray Jimenez held the first Mass in Luzon in 1569. The natives were baptized, thus making Ibalon the first Christian settlement in Luzon,” Escobar wrote.

But Sorsogon’s claim as the first base of Christian settlement had long been the topic of debate with Bolinao town in Pangasinan and Bulan, also in Sorsogon, laying claim on having had the first Catholic Mass in Luzon.

“Although it is yet to be officially declared that the [site of the] first Mass [here in Luzon] is originally ours, we have bigger claims when it comes to that historical event,” said Dio.

He added that local historians and members of the National Historical Commission of the Philippines, “are giving us assurance that Sorsogon has the bigger claim, as compared to the two other claimants.”

Simple, solemn

This year’s commemoration lacked the usual reenactment of the story of the Mass at Gibalon Shrine that had been showcased every year.

Dio said this was to give way for some major activities of Sorsogon’s Kasanggayahan Festival coinciding with the commemoration. He also said it was requested by the Diocese of Sorsogon that the event be kept simple and solemn.

Instead of a number of local officials delivering speeches, only Magallanes Mayor Maria Elena Ramona Ragrario spoke to express gratitude to the attendees and organizers after the Mass.

The number of attendees also declined from over 3,000 pilgrims in the previous year to just hundreds, according to the Magallanes police.