ALCANTARA, Eduardo L.

Holy Trinity University – College of Nursing

and Health Sciences
BSN 4th Year – N1 of St. Dominic 19th day of July, 2010

THEOLOGY 8

A. Founder
B. Where it started
C. Brief History

CHRISTIAN CHURCHES IN THE PHILIPPINES

1. PROTESTANISM

Protestanism is one of the major branches of Christendom, the others being the Eastern
Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church. Its origins are usually dated from October 31,
1517, when the Augustinian monk Martin Luther nailed his famous Ninety-five Theses to the door
of the castle church in Witteberg, Germany. Luther was accused of heresy, excommunicated by
the Pope, and tried at the Diet of Worms (an assemble of the Holy Roman Empire). Then he
remained firm, while some German princes and electors resisted the Diet’s sentence placing
Luther under the ban of the Empire. As Luther left Worms, friends conducted him to the safety of
the Castle of the Wartburg in Thuringia. There he began his translation of the Bible into German,
completing it ten years later.

2. METHODISTS/METHODISM

A religious movement which was originated in 1739 by John Wesley in the Anglican
Church, and subsequently gave rise to numerous separate denominations.

The fact that John Wesley and Methodism considered religion primarily as practical, not
dogmatic, probably accounts for the absence of any formal Methodist creed. The "General
Rules", issued by John and Charles Wesley on 1 May, 1743, stated the conditions of admission
into the societies organized by them and known as the "United Societies". They bear an almost
exclusively practical character, and require no doctrinal test of the candidates. Methodism,
however, developed its own theological system as expressed in two principal standards of
orthodoxy.

3. LUTHERANS
The religious belief held by the oldest and in Europe the most numerous of the Protestant
sects, founded by the Wittenberg reformer, Martin Luther. The term Lutheran was first used by
his opponents during the Leipzig Disputation in 1519, and afterwards became universally
prevalent. Luther preferred the designation "Evangelical", and today the usual title of the sect is
"Evangelical Lutheran Church". In Germany, where the Lutherans and the Reformed have united
(since 1817), the name Lutheran has been abandoned, and the state Church is styled the
Evangelical or the Evangelical United.

Lutheranism dates from 31 October, 1517, when Luther affixed his theses to the church
door of the castle of Wittenberg. Although he did not break with the Catholic Church until three
years later, he had already come substantially to his later views on the plan of salvation. The
new teachings, however underwent a great change after Luther's return from Wartburg (1521).
Before he died (18 Feb., 1546), his teachings had been propagated in many states of Germany in
Poland, in the Baltic Provinces, in Hungary, Transylvania, the Netherlands, Denmark and
Scandinavia. From these European countries Lutheranism has been carried by emigration to the
New World, and in the United States it ranks among the leading Protestant denominations.
4. ANGLICANS
A term used to denote the religious belief and position of members of the established
Church of England, and of the communicating churches in the British possessions, and
elsewhere. It includes those who have accepted the work of the English Reformation as
embodied in the Church of England or in the offshoot Churches which in other countries have
adhered, at least substantially, to its doctrines, its organization, and its liturgy. Apart from minor
or missionary settlements, the area in which Anglicanism is to be found corresponds roughly with
those portions of the globe which are, or were formally, under the British flag.

Anglicanism is the historic branch of the one, holy, Catholic, and apostolic Christian Church
in the English-speaking world. Christianity was first brought to the island of Britain in the first
century. It flourished (athough it was not the dominant religion) among both the native Celtic
population and the Roman colonists. Christian missionaries, including the British-born Patrick,
also carried Christianity to Ireland and Scotland. When the Roman Empire withdrew from Britain
in the fifth century, the island was invaded by pagan German tribes (including the Angles, Jutes,
and Saxons), who conquered the southern part of the island and drove the Celtic Britons into
Wales and Cornwall. Although Christianity presevered in these Celtic strongholds, most of what
is now England was under pagan control.

At the end of the sixth century, two missions began to evangelize the Anglo-Saxons: a
mission of Benedictine monks was sent from Rome under Bishop Augustine (who established his
base at Canterbury in Kent) and a mission of Irish monks was sent from Iona under Bishop Aidan
(who established his base in northern England). Working separately, the two missions eventually
converted most of the Anglo-Saxon population to Christianity; but there was a serious rivalry
between the Roman and Irish missions. Finally, in the late seventh century, Bishop Theodore (a
Greek from Tarsus in Asia Minor) brought the two missions together, along with the surviving
Welsh Church, into a unified Church of England.

In the mid sixteenth century, a confluence of religious and political events brought about
the separation of the the Catholic Church of England from the Church on the European continent,
which was itself divided into Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and protestant (Lutheran and
Calvinist) factions. The services of the Church were translated from Latin to English and
compiled as the Book of Common Prayer in 1549. The separation became permanent during
the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, and remains in effect to this date. The Church of England,
together with the national and regional churches of the English speaking world and the British
Commonwealth became the Anglican Communion.

Christianity came to what is now the United States of America with the earliest settlers at
Roanoke and Jamestown. The Anglican Church eventually flourished even in the northern
colonies, which had originally been founded by religious dissenters. In 1776, the separation of
the American States from the British Empire also resulted in the jurisdictional separation of the
American Church from the Church of England. At the end of the Revolutionary War, Anglicans in
the new United States organized themselves as the "Episcopal Church in the United States of
America." American bishops were consecrated by the Anglican bishops of Scotland and England,
and an American Book of Common Prayer was compiled (based on the English book, but
adopting the Communion office of the Scottish Episcopal Church).

In the second half of the twentieth century, American Anglicanism suffered a series of
shocks. In the 1960s, when Bishop James A. Pike of California publicly denied the basic tenants
of Christianity, a committee of his fellow bishops decided that he could not be charged with
heresy because the Episcopal Church had no recognized theological standards. Then, in the
1970s, the national synod (called "General Convention") of the Episcopal Church decided that it
was free to depart from more than nineteen centuries of Christian history by admitting women to
Holy Orders; at about the same time, General Convention abandoned the traditional Book of
Common Prayer and substituted a new liturgical standard of its own devising. General
Convention also turned its back on scriptural morality, approving abortion, euthanasia, and
homosexuality as acceptable moral choices.

Following the meeting of General Convention in 1976, a number of parishes (including

Saint Mary's, Denver, and Saint Mary of the Angels', Los Angeles) withdrew from the Episcopal
Church. Later that year, at a meeting in Los Angeles, they joined together as the Diocese of the
Holy Trinity, and elected the rector of Saint Mary's, Denver, James O. Mote, to be their bishop. In
1977, a great congress of orthodox Anglicans from the United States and Canada was held at St.
Louis, Missouri; the Congress adopted the Affirmation of St. Louis as its manifesto and called for
a Continuing Anglican presence in North America outside of the Episcopal Church.

In January1978, at Denver, four bishops---including Bishop Mote---were consecrated in the

Apostolic succession to be the chief pastors of the Anglican Church in North America; the chief
consecrator was the Right Reverend Albert A. Chambers, retired bishop of Springfield, Illinois.
Two years later, a constitutional synod, at which dioceses from throughout the United States
were represented, adopted the name "Anglican Catholic Church." Over the following quarter
century, the original province of the ACC expanded to include eight dioceses in the United
States, with additional missionary jurisdictions in the Carribean, Latin America, Australia, New
Zealand, South Africa, and even the United Kingdom. The separate Church of India (Anglican),
the remnant that survived the pan-protestant amagamation in that country, joined the ACC as its
second province.

Since 2001, the Most Reverend John-Charles Vockler, FODC, has been the Archbishop-
Metropolitan of the Original Province of the Anglican Catholic Church. Born in Australia, Brother
John Charles was originally consecrated as a bishop in that country; he was later the Bishop of
Polynesia, in the Anglican Province of New Zealand. A Franciscan friar, he has lived in recent
years in England and the United States, and has conducted preaching and teaching missions
throughout the world.

The Anglican Catholic Church continues to worship God using the Book of Common
Prayer; the 1928 American book is used in the United States, while the 1549 English, 1954
South African, 1962 Canadian, and 1963 Indian books are used elsewhere. The Anglican Catholic
Church accepts the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments as the Word of God and as
containing all things necessary to salvation; it believes and transmits the historic teaching of the
Church contained in the Nicene Creed and the doctrinal decrees of the seven Ecumenical
Councils; it preserves the apostolic ministry of bishops, priests, and deacons, as that ministry has
been known since the earliest days of the Church; it administers the Sacraments, both the two
"dominical" sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion and the five "commonly called"
sacraments (Confirmation, Reconciliation of Penitents, Anointing of the Sick, Matrimony, and Holy
Orders), as the Church has always done.

The Anglican Catholic Church is not a museum of relgious antiquities, but a living
community of the Christian faithful, contending earnestly for the faith once delivered to the
Saints.

5. AGLIPAYANS

The Philippine Independent Church, (officially the Spanish: Iglesia Filipina Independiente or
the IFI, also known as the Philippine Independent Catholic Church or the Ilocano: Siwayawaya a
Simbaan nga ti Filipinas (sometimes also known as Tagalog: Malayang Simbahan ng Pilipinas), is
a Christian denomination of the Catholic tradition in the form of a national church. The church
was founded by the members of the first federation of labor unions in the country, the Union
Obrera Democratica (UOD) in 1902. Isabelo de los Reyes was one of the founders of the church
and suggested that Gregorio Aglipay[1][2] be the head of the church. It is also known as the
Aglipayan Church after its first obispo maximo, Gregorio Aglipay.
 Unsurprisingly, all the founding members of the church were excommunicated by the
Catholic Church during its establishment in 1902.

Since 1960 it has been in full communion with the Episcopal Church in the United States of
America (and through it with the entire Anglican Communion) and, since 1965, with the Old
Catholic Union of Utrecht Association of Churches. Today the Philippine Independent Church or
Aglipayan Church is the second largest Christian denomination in the Philippines after the Roman
Catholic Church. The bulk of the Aglipayans come from the northern part of the island of Luzon,
especially in the Ilocandia region, home of the first supreme bishop. Now the church is divided
into 10 dioceses including the Diocese of the United States and Canada. However, due to a lack
of priests, many parishes in the USA are priestless.

The current Obispo Maximo is the Most Reverend Godofredo J. David, (112th bishop) who
has his central office in the capital of the country, Manila, at the (National Cathedral of the Holy
Child in Taft Ave, Manila). His line of episcopal succession goes back from the first Obispo
Maximo Gregorio Aglipay.

The Philippine Independent Church is considered the most tangible product of the 1898
Revolution against Spain.

MAJOR RELIGIONS

1. ISLAM

The word Islam means "submission to God". The Holy Quran describes Islam as an Arabic
word Deen (way of life). The followers of Islam are called Muslims. The literal meaning of Muslim
is "one who surrenders" or "submits" to the will of God. In order to understand Islam, the basic
portrayal of belief in Quran must be considered. According to Quran, those who submit to one
God are Muslims. Aisha Y. Musa writes in his article, Jews in the Quran: An Introduction that,
"Islam is the religion of all the prophets from Adam to Noah to Abraham to Moses, Jesus and
Mohammad. (10:71-72, 84; 2:128-133; 5:110-112)." Quran also declares that all the prophets
who came before Mohammad and their followers were all Muslims.

The origin of Islam dates back to the creation of the world. All the prophets who came to
this world preached the same message of believing in one God and to accept them as His
messenger. The prophets were also blessed with a manifestation of divine will or truth. Likewise,
Prophet Mohammad was also a messenger of God. He revealed the truth and the way of life
through the Holy Quran.

Before the birth of Prophet Mohammad (Peace Be Upon Him), the Arab society believed in
multiple Gods. Although the Arabs believed in the unity of God, but they also claimed that God
has entrusted His duties to various gods, goddesses and idols. For this purpose, they had more
than 360 idols. They considered angels as the daughters of God. They were ignorant of social
values. They were nomadic people who were dependent on cattle for their living. There was no
government or law. All power existed with the rich. The society was full of barbarity and brutality.
Tribes fought with each other over trivial matters for centuries. A slight argument over horses or
water could lead to the slaughtering of thousands of innocent people.

It was the birth of Prophet Mohammad in 570 A.D in the city of Makkah which brought a
revolution to the entire fate of the nomadic Arabs. He became famous among the people of
Makkah at a very early age because of his allegiance and reliability. He was widely known as Al-
Ameen (honest, trustworthy.)
 At the age of 40, when Mohammad was meditating at Mt. Hera, he received a revelations
from God. The angel Gabriel said to him, "Iqra" which means "to read". Mohammad replied "I
cannot read". Gabriel embraced and released him. Then the first five verses of God was revealed
to him which said, "Recite in the name of your Lord who created! He created man, out of a
(mere) cloth of congealed blood. Recite; and thy Lord is most bountiful. He who had taught by
the pen, taught man what he knew not." (96:1-5)

Mohammad started proclaiming the message of believing in one God. The people who
once called him "Trustworthy" and "Honest" boycotted and plotted to kill him. In 622 A.D., due to
worsening living conditions and social isolation, Prophet Mohammad migrated to Medina along
with his followers. This flight was known as Hijrah and marks the beginning of the Muslims
calendar. Mohammad's message spread rapidly and the number of followers increased in
Medina. During the next few years, a series of battles were fought between various tribes of
Makkah and the Muslims of Medina. In 628 A.D, the Treaty of Hudaibiyah was signed between
the two parties. Truce was declared for 10 years. The treaty was broken in 629 A.D by the non-
Muslims of the Makkans. Mohammad moved towards Makkah with 10,000 men and the battle
was won without a single bloodshed. Mohmmad died in 632 A.D , at the age of 63 in the city of
Medina. Mohammad's death brought a huge catastrophe among Muslims. People could not
believe that Mohammad had left them forever. Many of the followers were perplexed and
distraught, and claimed him to be still living. At that time Mohammad funeral, Abu Bakr, who
was the most respected of all the followers affirmed that, "O people, those of you who
worshipped Mohammad, Mohammad has died. And those of you who worshipped God, God is still
living."

Abu Bakr was chosen as the first Caliph (leader). Before his death in 634 A.D., Umar ibn ul
Khattab was appointed as his successor. During the ten years of his rule, Muslims conquered 22
hundreds thousands miles of area. Mesopotamia and parts of Persia were taken from the
Sassanids Empire (Iranian Dynasty), and Egypt, Palestine, Syria, North Africa and Armenia from
the Byzantine Empire. He was devoted and committed to his people and established an empire
of peace, justice and dignity. The teachings of Islam started to spread through love. The principle
of equality among all the people irrespective of race, color, caste, and creed won the hearts of
the people. Within a few years, a lot of people accepted the message of Islam. By the tenth
century, Islam dominated the half of the world known at that time.

Mohammad Ali writes in his article, "The condition of Arabs before the advent of the Holy
Prophet and the Transformation He Wrought in Them," says that "From such debasing idolatry,
the holy Prophet uplift the whole of Arabia in a brief span of twenty years . . . is not this the
mightiest miracle that the world has ever witnessed ? . . . It was this fallen humanity whom the
Holy prophet raised to the highest level of moral rectitude."

Mahatma Gandhi, in his unique style, says "Some one has said that Europeans in South
Africa dread the advent Islam - Islam that civilized Spain, Islam that took the torch light to
Morocco and preached to the world the Gospel of brotherhood. The Europeans of South Africa
dread the Advent of Islam. They may claim equality with the white races. They may well dread it,
if brotherhood is a sin. If it is equality of colored races then their dread is well founded."

Sarojini Naidu explains his point in Ideals of Islam by saying that "It was the first religion
that preached and practiced democracy; for, in the mosque, when the call for prayer is sounded
and worshippers are gathered together, the democracy of Islam is embodied five times a day
when the peasant and king kneel side by side and proclaim: 'God Alone is Great'... I have been
struck over and over again by this indivisible unity of Islam that makes man instinctively a
brother."

Professor Hurgronje writes "the fact is that no nation of the world can show a parallel to
what Islam has done towards the realization of the idea of the League of Nations ".
2. BUDDHISM

Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and

practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the
Buddha (Pāli/Sanskrit "the awakened one"). The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern
Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th centuries BCE. [2] He is recognized by
adherents as an awakened teacher who shared his insights to help sentient beings end suffering
(or dukkha), achieve nirvana, and escape what is seen as a cycle of suffering and rebirth.

Two major branches of Buddhism are recognized: Theravada ("The School of the Elders")
and Mahayana ("The Great Vehicle"). Theravada—the oldest surviving branch—has a widespread
following in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, and Mahayana is found throughout East Asia and
includes the traditions of Pure Land, Zen, Nichiren Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism, Shingon, Tendai
and Shinnyo-en. In some classifications Vajrayana, a subcategory of Mahayana, is recognized as
a third branch. While Buddhism remains most popular within Asia, both branches are now found
throughout the world. Various sources put the number of Buddhists in the world at between 230
million and 500 million,[3] making it the world's fourth-largest religion.

Buddhist schools vary significantly on the exact nature of the path to liberation, the
importance and canonicity of various teachings and scriptures, and especially their respective
practices.[4] The foundations of Buddhist tradition and practice are the Three Jewels: the Buddha,
the Dharma (the teachings), and the Sangha (the community).[5][6] Taking "refuge in the triple
gem" has traditionally been a declaration and commitment to being on the Buddhist path and in
general distinguishes a Buddhist from a non-Buddhist.[7] Other practices may include following
ethical precepts, support of the monastic community, renouncing conventional living and
becoming a monastic, meditation (this category includes mindfulness), cultivation of higher
wisdom and discernment, study of scriptures, devotional practices, ceremonies, and in the
Mahayana tradition, invocation of buddhas and bodhisattvas.

3. TAOISM

Taoism (or Daoism) refers to a variety of related philosophical and religious traditions
that have influenced Eastern Asia for more than two millennia,[1] and have had a notable
influence on the western world particularly since the 19th century. The word 道 , Tao (or Dao,
depending on the romanization scheme), roughly translates as, "path" or "way" (of life), although
in Chinese folk religion and philosophy it carries more abstract meanings. Taoist propriety and
ethics emphasize the Three Jewels of the Tao: compassion, moderation, and humility, while
Taoist thought generally focuses on nature, the relationship between humanity and the cosmos
( 天 人 相 应 ), health and longevity, and wu wei (action through inaction), which is thought to
produce harmony with the Universe.

Reverence for ancestor spirits and immortals is also common in popular Taoism.
Organized Taoism distinguishes its ritual activity from that of the folk religion, which some
professional Taoists (Daoshi) view as debased. Chinese alchemy (including Neidan), astrology,
cuisine, Zen Buddhism,[4] several Chinese martial arts, Chinese traditional medicine, feng shui,
immortality, and many styles of qigong breath training disciplines have been intertwined with
Taoism throughout history.

4. CONFUCIANISM

Confucianism is a Chinese ethical and philosophical system developed from the

teachings of the Chinese philosopher Confucius (Kǒng Fūzǐ, or K'ung-fu-tzu, lit. "Master Kong",
551–478 BC). It is a complex system of moral, social, political, philosophical, and quasi-religious
thought that has had tremendous influence on the culture and history of East Asia. It might be
considered a state religion of some East Asian countries, because of governmental promotion of
Confucian philosophies.

Cultures and countries strongly influenced by Confucianism include mainland China,

Taiwan, Korea, and Vietnam, as well as various territories settled predominantly by Chinese
people, such as Singapore. Japan was influenced by Confucianism in a different way.

In Confucianism, human beings are teachable, improvable and perfectible through personal and
communal endeavour especially including self-cultivation and self-creation. A main idea of
Confucianism is the cultivation of virtue and the development of moral perfection. Confucianism
holds that one should give up one's life, if necessary, either passively or actively, for the sake of
upholding the cardinal moral values of ren and yi.[1]

Resources:
Catholic Encylopedica
Wikipedia
Religion in the United States by Benson Y. Landis (A Concise Intoduction to 53
Denominations and Groups: Historical Backgrounds, Beliefs, Forms of Worship, Position on Public
Issues, and Current Activities)