Papers by Melanie J . Magpantay
Scientia - The International Journal on the Liberal Arts, 2023
Rufino J. Santos was labeled as a conservative who resisted change, especially during the last ha... more Rufino J. Santos was labeled as a conservative who resisted change, especially during the last half of his stewardship as archbishop of the Archdiocese of Manila. In an era when the Catholic world was beset by the liturgical revival movement and other social movements of the 1960s, Santos strived to preserve his role as a Church militant while the Philippine ecclesiastical hierarchy veered towards making the Catholic Church
responsive to the contemporary social ills. The present study uses the historical method framed by Arnold Toynbee’s Challenge and Response theory to discuss, narrate, and analyze how the first Filipino Cardinal preserved the unity and tradition of pre-Vatican II ideals while ironically, being an active participant in the four Vatican II Council Sessions. This study contextualizes how Santos’ adherence to unity and uniformity was driven by his intent to avoid confusion among the priests and the laity and how this intent steered him to spearhead the introduction of the Misa ng Bayan, the first Tagalog translation of the Holy Mass in 1966, as he defied his critics, and ultimately brought the Philippines into the threshold of change that Vatican II envisioned.
Journal of Philippine Local History & Heritage, 2022
The 1887 Madrid Exposition displayed the natural, social, cultural, and economic aspects of the P... more The 1887 Madrid Exposition displayed the natural, social, cultural, and economic aspects of the Philippines under Spain in the late 19th century. Among the participants for this exposition were Philippine residents and government, religious, and private institutions that submitted objects reflecting the natural, social, manufacturing, and industrial products of the Philippines under Spain. The Catálogo de la Exposicion General de las Islas Filipinas lists the entries in this exhibition-competition. By searching and analyzing the entries with the word doña prefixed to the names of participants, the Catálogo reveals that 207 Philippine women from 20 provinces participated in this event. The objects they submitted reflected their social roles in the Philippines during the late 19th century. Although educated for their future roles as home managers, Philippine women were able to participate in a growing industrializing economy by doing what they did best: weave, embroider, paint and draw. The Catálogo highlights these women’s active participation in culture, trade, and commerce while subtly exposing their passive participation in the natural sciences, industry, and agriculture. A product of several screenings by numerous male-dominated sub-comites, the Catálogo unintentionally illustrates a Philippine society that begins to open up to the idea of women taking roles in an industrializing world.
PHILIPPINIANA SACRA, 2022
This research will discuss, narrate, and analyze the factors that led to the appointment of the f... more This research will discuss, narrate, and analyze the factors that led to the appointment of the first native Archbishop of Manila and how he responded to the challenges of making the faith timely for the laity during his three-year stewardship guided by Arnold Toynbee's Challenge and Response theory applied on the micro level. The seat of the Archbishopric of the Archdiocese of Manila was regarded as the premier office to be occupied by any clergy in the Philippines. For almost four centuries, this prime seat was given to foreigners, dominated by the Spaniards. Political and religious factors determined the archbishop-to-be: the patronato real during the Spanish era and the preference of the American officials during the American period. The choice for the episcopal seat took a paradigm shift after the codification of the Canon Law in 1917 when the appointment for the episcopacy rested solely on the Pope's decision based on the candidate's credentials. The same Canon Law was in effect on 1949 when the Archdiocese of Manila had its first native Coadjutor-Archbishop. The native clergy who was the designated successor of the ailing Archbishop Michael O'Doherty was Gabriel M. Reyes, an Aklanon, formerly of the Archdiocese of Cebu.
Philippine Social Science Journal, 2020
This study discusses, narrates, and analyzes how Archbishop Rufino Santos continued the work star... more This study discusses, narrates, and analyzes how Archbishop Rufino Santos continued the work started by the country's first native Archbishop of Manila, Gabriel M. Reyes, in steering the archbishopric to attain its full spiritual maturity. The research used the historical method guided by Arnold Toynbee’s Challenge and Response Theory identifying the Archbishop of Manila as the “creative personality” whose responses to the challenges of the post-war Archdiocese of Manila formed a “creative minority” who helped him respond to the challenges during his stewardship. As the "creative personality," Archbishop Santos led a series of responses that began to stir the social awakening of the Catholic Church in the Philippines to make it responsive to the social issues affecting the Filipinos. These responses allowed Archbishop Santos to elevate the Catholic Action movement to include socio-political concerns, thereby awakening the laity's socio-political consciousness and linking this to their Filipino Catholic identity.
It is generally assumed that the Spanish colonization of the Philippines was economic and politic... more It is generally assumed that the Spanish colonization of the Philippines was economic and political in nature. There are sufficient evidences that suggest this as a fact but there is a notable absence of the discussion on the religious aspect of the Spanish conquest. This paper highlights this motive and how it served as the foundation of the colonization of the Philippine Islands.
Book Reviews by Melanie J . Magpantay
TALA: An Online Journal of History, 2018
Book review of Teodoro A. Agoncillo's Fateful Years Japan's Adventure in the Philippines, 1941-1945
Conference Presentations by Melanie J . Magpantay
This study focused on analyzing the social role of church bells in the contemporary urban setting... more This study focused on analyzing the social role of church bells in the contemporary urban setting. Using recorded music of the sound of the bells and field work guided by the Anthony Giddens' Structuration theory (1984), the data showed how the physical structures and the sounds of the machines muted the sound of the church bells in Espiritu Santo Parish in Sta. Cruz, Manila. With the lack of an acoustic marker to tell the time in a shared acoustic space, the parishioners turned to using digital or mechanical clocks in telling the time, in turn, telling them of their individual activities and the location for those activities. That is, instead of the parishioners decoding the message of church bells on their specific religious activities, they used the clock to figure out the religious practice that should be done to uphold Roman Catholicism. What was once a tool for mass media became obsolete as the sonic organization of people became impossible in an area filled with the noises of the industrial age.
Teaching Documents by Melanie J . Magpantay
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Papers by Melanie J . Magpantay
responsive to the contemporary social ills. The present study uses the historical method framed by Arnold Toynbee’s Challenge and Response theory to discuss, narrate, and analyze how the first Filipino Cardinal preserved the unity and tradition of pre-Vatican II ideals while ironically, being an active participant in the four Vatican II Council Sessions. This study contextualizes how Santos’ adherence to unity and uniformity was driven by his intent to avoid confusion among the priests and the laity and how this intent steered him to spearhead the introduction of the Misa ng Bayan, the first Tagalog translation of the Holy Mass in 1966, as he defied his critics, and ultimately brought the Philippines into the threshold of change that Vatican II envisioned.
Book Reviews by Melanie J . Magpantay
Conference Presentations by Melanie J . Magpantay
Teaching Documents by Melanie J . Magpantay
responsive to the contemporary social ills. The present study uses the historical method framed by Arnold Toynbee’s Challenge and Response theory to discuss, narrate, and analyze how the first Filipino Cardinal preserved the unity and tradition of pre-Vatican II ideals while ironically, being an active participant in the four Vatican II Council Sessions. This study contextualizes how Santos’ adherence to unity and uniformity was driven by his intent to avoid confusion among the priests and the laity and how this intent steered him to spearhead the introduction of the Misa ng Bayan, the first Tagalog translation of the Holy Mass in 1966, as he defied his critics, and ultimately brought the Philippines into the threshold of change that Vatican II envisioned.