https://en.wikipedia.

org/wiki/Mindanao#Spanish_Colonization_and_Christianity
Mindanao (/mɪndəˈnaʊ/ ( listen)), also commonly known
as Southern Philippines, is the second-largest island in
the Philippines. Mindanao and the smaller islands surrounding it
make up the island group of the same name. Located in the
southern region of the archipelago, as of the 2010 census, the
main island was inhabited by 20,281,545 people, while the entire
Mindanao island group had an estimated population of
25,537,691 (2018).
Spanish Colonization and Christianity[edit]

Two Spanish missionaries baptizing a Moro convert to Roman Catholicism,

circa 1890.
In 1521 Antonio Pigafetta wrote an account of reaching
'Maingdano.' He was with Magellan on the first circumnavigation
of the globe and sailing for the king of Spain.[15]
On 2 February 1543, Ruy López de Villalobos was the first
Spaniard to reach Mindanao.[16] He called the island "Caesarea
Caroli" after Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire (and I of
Spain). Shortly after Spain's colonization of Cebu, it moved on to
colonize Butuan and the surrounding Caraga region in northeast
Mindanao and discovered significant Muslim presence on the
island. Over time a number of tribes in Mindanao converted to
Roman Catholicism and built settlements and forts throughout the
coastal regions. These settlements endured despite attacks from
neighboring Muslim Sultanates. The most heavily fortified of them,
apart from a short period in 1662 when Spain sent soldiers from
the city to Manila after a threat of invasion from the Chinese
general Koxinga, was Zamboanga City.[17]
By the late 18th century Spain had geographic dominance over
the island, having established settlements and forts in most of
Mindanao, including Zamboanga City (which was then settled by
Peruvian soldiers)[18] and Misamis Occidental to the
northwest, Iligan City, Misamis Oriental, Bukidnon, and Camiguin
Island to the north, Butuan and the Caraga region to the east,
and Davao in the island's gulf coast. Spain continued to engage in
battles with Muslim Sultanates until the end of the 19th century.[17]

Christianity is the dominant religious affiliation in Mindanao with

65.9% of the household population, majority of which are
adherents of Roman Catholicism, Islam comprised 23.39%,[39] and
other religions were Evangelical (5.34%), Aglipayan (2.16%), and
Iglesia ni Cristo (2.66%).[4]

https://www.britannica.com/place/Mindanao

Mindanao, island, the second largest (after Luzon) in

the Philippines, in the southern part of the archipelago, surrounded by
the Bohol, Philippine, Celebes, and Sulu seas. Irregularly shaped, it
measures 293 miles (471 km) north to south and 324 miles (521 km)
east to west. The island is marked by peninsulas and is heavily
indented by the Davao and Moro gulfs in the south and by Iligan Bay
in the north. The long, semicircular Zamboanga Peninsula (west)
extends southwesterly toward the Sulu Archipelago and Borneo, and
the Cotabato and Surigao peninsulas extend south and north,
respectively.

https://www.c-r.org/accord/philippines%E2%80%93mindanao/mindanao-land-promise-1999

Mindanao Land of Promise

Mindanao is the second largest island and is seen by many
Filipinos as a frontier — a dangerous place but also a land of
promise. It evokes contrasting images of bounty and want, of
war and peace, of rapid development amid the increasing
impoverishment of its people.

Colonial rule started a process that was to alter Mindanao’s

demographic composition. It deprived the indigenous
inhabitants of their land and spawned deep-seated prejudices
among the different ethnolinguistic groups. It also marginalised
an Islamised people with their own distinct history. In the early
1970s the Bangsamoro people (see box below) united in a
struggle for self-determination which has invariably, although
erroneously, been referred to as a ‘Muslim-Christian’ conflict.

Spain and the sultanates

From the mid-16th to the end of the 19th century Spain
subjected most of the archipelago to colonial rule. Arab traders
had visited between the 10th and 12th centuries bringing Islam
to the islands.

The Spaniards took possession of most of Luzon and the

Visayas, converting the lowland population to Christianity. But
although Spain eventually established footholds in northern and
eastern Mindanao and the Zamboanga peninsula, its armies
failed to colonise the rest of Mindanao. This area was
populated by Islamised peoples (‘Moros’ to the Spaniards) and
many non-Muslim indigenous groups now known as Lumads
(see box, below).

Religions in Mindanao Religions in Mindanao

Reference Number: 
2017-010
Release Date: 
Friday, November 10, 2017

 
As diverse as the Mindanao Island Group can be, the same is true for the
religions embraced by its populace. The island registered a total population
of 24,135,775 as of the 2015 Census of Population.
 
Roman Catholic and Islam are the two religions most widely spread across
Mindanao. These two denominations together cover the religious affiliation
of more than half of the islands’ population.

Reference Number: 
2017-010
Release Date: 
Friday, November 10, 2017
 
As diverse as the Mindanao Island Group can be, the same is true for the
religions embraced by its populace. The island registered a total population
of 24,135,775 as of the 2015 Census of Population.
 
Roman Catholic and Islam are the two religions most widely spread across
Mindanao. These two denominations together cover the religious affiliation
of more than half of the islands’ population.
Among the six regions in Mindanao, Roman Catholic is the dominant belief
except in ARMM. Davao Region has the highest proportion of Roman
Catholics (26.50%), followed by Northern Mindanao (24.71%), Zamboanga
Peninsula (17.10%), SOCCSKSARGEN (16.86%), and Caraga (13.39%).