The Crusades in the Philippines
The fortress of Fray Bermejo in Bolhoon used to fight off
the Moros
By Antonio Rubi
Written for the feast of Saint James the Great
Everyone, especially traditionalists know the Crusades, about knights in shining armor fighting the Mohammedans in the Holy Land. From Pope Urban II, Godfrey of Bouillon, Richard the Lionheart, Saladin, and King St. Louis IX. For every parent especially in the United States or in the West, this article is for you.
But what is less known is that there were also crusades in my country, the Philippines during the Spanish era, notably as an offshoot of the Spanish Reconquista which ended in 1492.
The Philippines was conquered by Conquistador Legazpi in 1565, and conquered Manila in 1571, where the Spanish fought the Mohammedan Rajah Suleiman. There is also the 1578 Brunei war between the Spanish and the Sultanate of Brunei also known as the Castilian War.
One of the crusaders I admire is Father Agustin de San Pedro (1599 - 1653/1660) who was a Portuguese Augustinian Recollect priest who served in Cagayan de Oro. He teamed up with the Christian Datu Salangsang against the forces of Sultan Muhammad Kudarat in the 1630s. He fought on horseback with a musket in hand against the Mohammedans, and served as a chaplain in 1639 in an expedition in Lanao. He is known for building fortresses especially in Romblon where a statue of him now stands.
Several priests like Father Juan de San Severo, OAR (1697) of Palawan and the Jesuit Father Jose Ducos, SJ (1754) of Misamis continued the legacy of Father Agustin.
In regions like in the Visayas, Moro pirates raided Christian towns and many Filipinos rose up to defend the faith. If the Crusaders were knights in shining armor armed with swords and shields, our crusaders wore tricorn hats, colorful uniforms, and armed with swords, bolos, muskets, bayonets, cannons and even bow and arrows and brought religious flags to the front, unlike other European armies who fought for geopolitics. My story, Alejandro and Catalina talks about this. Set in 1670 in Cebu, it follows the story of Alejandro and Catalina who fight against the Moro pirates with the blessing of the church.
I have been busy commissioning art depicting the Spanish Moro conflict especially set in the 18th century, because this is a lost and controversial history. One of the art works that I commissioned is that of a soldier in 18th century uniform about to light a cannon holding a rosary. Another depicts a romanticized scene between a young Christian girl and a Christian soldier in western 18th century uniform. It depicts the girl curtsying or presenting a rosary or an estampita (holy card) of a saint to the soldier before he fights the Moros. This was inspired by paintings depicting a woman saying goodbye to a knight before fighting in battle and also that of a famous 1940 Greek photo showing a mother presenting an icon of St. George to a soldier before he fights.
Perhaps my number 1 favorite crusader is Fray Julian Bermejo, OSA (1777 - 1851) of Southern Cebu.
Fray Julian Bermejo
Father Julian Bermejo was an Augustinian priest who was assigned in Southern Cebu, notably Carcar, Argao, Dalaguete, Bolhoon and Oslob. He rebuilt the Bolhoon church, destroyed in a 1782 Moro raid, and in 1808, built a fortress to fight against the invading Moros. In 1813, he alongside the heroes Captain Gregorio, Pedro Kabanlit and Feliciano Mendez defeated the Moro Goranding at the naval Battle of Sumilon, ending Moro invasions once and for all, although some naval skirmishes continued in the 1830s.
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Governor General Narciso Claveria
Another crusader, this time a layman was Governor General Narciso Claveria who defeated the Moros at Balanguigui in 1848. I can compare him with Simon de Anda against the British or Douglas MacArthur against the Japanese. He brought steamships to the Philippine seas, thus ending raids once and for all. He met Fray Julian Bermejo in 1848 after his glorious victory in Balanguigui.
After Claveria, the Moro wars were only focused in Mindanao. One of the Moro heroes against the Spanish is Amai Pakpak who was killed in 1895 by the Spanish. The Americans took over the Philippines and installed anti-Catholic sentiment in our country, and of course, fought the Moros in 1902 - 1913. The Moros also fought the Japanese and against fellow Filipinos from at least 1960s to 2019.
Conclusion:
This article is not meant to hate anyone. I do not show contempt for Muslims. I even talked about the crusades with local Muslims. In fact, I am using the legacy of our Christian forefathers as an inspiration to defend Christian values against Western modernity, which even the Muslims despise. Furthermore, there were even Catholic crusades against non-Muslim invaders in the Philippines like the Battles of La Naval against the Dutch which is credited as miraculous, the war against the Protestant British in 1762 can also be called a crusade, the Philippine American War of 1899 is also a crusade between Filipino Catholics vs. Protestant Americans and Filipino Catholics framed the WW2 fight against the Japanese as a crusade between righteous Filipino Catholics vs pagan Shinto Japanese.
May the Immaculate Heart of Mary Triumph!
Viva Cristo Rey!
Santiago Y Cierra, Filipinas!
Deus Vult!
