LAWRENCE JOHN T.
LOPEZ SOCSCI 2120
BASS 2-1
Module 5 Paper/Exercise
Please answer the following questions. No word limit, but conciseness is appreciated.
You shall be scored more on the depth of content.
1. Think of a topic (or area/element) that you find interesting about Philippine political
culture.
TOPIC: The influence of Church on policy-making and the outcome of elections in the
Philippines. If this would be a research proposal and if I were to choose a title, I
would consider this: “Faith and Power: The Political Influence of Religion in the
Philippines”.
2. Why do you think this topic is interesting or why do you think this topic is worthy of
research in understanding Philippine political culture? Provide a short rationale for
your topic of interest. You may use other references to support your discussions. (25
points)
Since time immemorial, the relationship between the State and the Church is
unbreakable, intertwined, and ancient. They are characterized as two of the most
powerful and longest-lasting of human institutions (Monsma and Soper, 1997).
Given that the area has two topics, I will first tackle the influence of the Church
in the outcomes of elections in the country. In the Philippines, Christianity has been a
major influence on state formation and politics (Choo, Tan, and Go, 2020). With more
than 79.5 percent of the population is Roman Catholic and 9 percent belongs to
various nationalized Christian denomination (PSA, 2015), candidates will literally
move heaven and earth to get the nod of voters. For some of them, the fastest route
may be through organized churches. Organized churches have been involved in
electoral politics in the Philippines, including in the selection of candidates to run in
elections themselves. In dispensing endorsements, churches cultivate patronage
relations with politicians. As politicians could potentially gain a large support base,
they court churches for favors, especially during elections.
For instance, the Iglesia ni Cristo (Church of Christ), with a tradition of bloc
voting required from its 1 million voting members, has supported presidential
candidates up to the lowest of elected positions throughout history. The Catholic
Church, though not endorsing political candidates, exhorts the voters to vote
“according to one’s conscience (Buenaobra, 2016). In light of this, I wanted to delve
deeper into religious support in elections and whether it does influence the results of
the voting. It is one of the most important political cultures in the Philippines and I
want to understand its origins and why after so long it still perpetuates in our
consciousness and existence as a nation.
Moreover, the second topic I wish to address is how does the Church influence
policy-making in our country. The Church has played a key role in Western civil
society since the beginning of history. Its ministers and clerics not only served as
religious pastors but also as king’s counsels, de facto rulers, power brokers, and
shepherds of men (Dagdagan 1998). In this topic, I wanted to focus on the Catholic
Church alone because they are the most critical of the government since the
establishment of the Republic. The Catholic Church is a very formidable organization.
According to Dagdagan (1998), it can rival, if not overwhelm, the government in terms
of reach, influence, and even resources.
There have been times in Philippine history when the Catholic hierarchy flexed
its political muscles. The most extreme of them is when they call on the Filipino
people in 1986 to ouster the Dictator Ferdinand Marcos. While Marcos falls, the
Catholic Church remains as a powerful opposing force in the Philippine political
arena, especially on legislations contrary to Churches teaching. The most notorious
of them is the passing of the RH law in 2013.
About ten weeks before the 2013 elections, a banner appeared on the facade
of San Sebastian Cathedral, the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bacolod. On
this banner were two lists. One, labeled Team Buhay (Team Life), named six
senatorial candidates and two party-list groups opposed to the Reproductive Health
(RH) Law. The other, labeled Team Patay (Team Death), named seven senatorial
candidates and four party-list groups supporting the law (Reuters, 2013). The banner
was an unmistakable suggestion to the Catholic electorate of Bacolod to vote for
Team Buhay and not for Team Patay. It was a case of clerical partisanship that
violates the principle of separation of the Church and State.
With the above-mentioned facts, I wanted to understand the extent of the
influence and power of the Church specifically the Catholic Church over the State and
how does it affect the function of the State.
3. If you are going to do a research about it, what research questions do you have
about this topic? (15 points)
In order to understand wholly the influence of the Church in Philippine politics, the
following questions were raised?
a) What is the relationship between Church and State in the Philippines?
b) What are the roles of the Church in Philippine politics?
c) Why does the Church support politicians in elections?
d) Is there any partisanship among the Church in Philippine politics?
e) How does the Church influence the outcome of elections?
f) How does the Church influence policies in the Philippines?
g) How do State policies get affected by the influence of the Church?
h) Does the Church meddles with the affairs of the State?
i) Does the Church violate the principle of separation enshrined in the
Constitution?
4. Which of the three approaches to political culture can be best used to understand
or explain your topic? Why? (10 points)
The Conservative Approach will be utilized to better understand the topics at
hand. Religion values tradition and morality. They always called for it to be
strengthened and defended, believing that they are the key to social cohesion and
political stability. The Philippines is a Christian country, the only one in Asia, and
Filipinos adhere to the teachings of the Church in their everyday living so it is only fit
to use the conservative approach by Oakeshott to understand the reasons why the
Church is still an influential force on the lives and political cultures of the Filipino
people.
References:
Buenaobra, Maria Isabel T. (2016). The Politics of Religion in the Philippines.
[Link]
Choo, J., Tan, E. and Goh, D. (2020). Christian Megachurches and Politics in the
Philippines. YUSOF ISHAK INSTITUTE ANALYSE CURRENT EVENTS.
ISSUE: 2020. No. 62. ISSN 2335-6677
Dagdagan, Edgardo (1998). The Politicization of the Philippine Catholic Church.
Monsma, S. and Soper, C. J. (1997). The Challenge of Pluralism. Church and State in
Five Democracies. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers Inc.
PSA (2015). Highlights on the 2015 Census. [Link]
household-population-number-households-and-average-household-size-
philippines
Reuters (2013). "Bacolod Clergy Jeer Team Patay', Test Catholic Voting Power."
News, GMANews, February 22, 2013. Retrieved February 10, 2014 (http://
[Link]/news/story/29622 1 8/news/nation/-bacolod-clergy-
jeer-team-patay-test-catholic-voting-power)
