Pedro Calungsod | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Calungsod on a stained-glass window inCubao Cathedral | |
| Martyr | |
| Born | July 21, 1654[1][2] Ginatilan,Cebu,Captaincy General of the Philippines,Spanish East Indies |
| Died | April 2, 1672(1672-04-02) (aged 17)[3] Tumon,Guam,Captaincy General of the Philippines,Spanish East Indies |
| Venerated in | Catholic Church |
| Beatified | March 5, 2000,St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican City byPope John Paul II |
| Canonized | October 21, 2012,St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican City byPope Benedict XVI |
| Majorshrine | Cebu Archdiocesan Shrine of Saint Pedro Calungsod, Archbishop's Residence Compound, 234 D. Jakosalem Street,Cebu City 6000 PH |
| Feast | October 21 April 2 (before 2025) |
| Attributes | Martyr's palm,Spear,Bolo,Doctrina Christiana book,Rosary,Christogram,Crucifix |
| Patronage | Filipinoyouth,Catechumens,Altar servers, thePhilippines,Overseas Filipino Workers,Cebuanos,Visayans,Archdiocese of Cebu,Pury, San Antonio, Quezon Province |
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Pedro Calungsod (Spanish:Pedro Calúñgsod or archaicallyPedro Calonsor; July 21, 1654[1][4] – April 2, 1672), also known asPeter Calungsod andPedro Calonsor, was aCatholicFilipino-Visayan migrant,sacristan andmissionarycatechist who, along with the SpanishJesuit missionaryDiego Luis de San Vitores, proselytized and forcefully converted the indigenous people ofGuam, in many cases without consent,[5][6][7][8] which led to them beingmartyred in 1672.[9][10]
While in Guam, Calungsod preached Christianity to theChamorros throughcatechesis, while baptizing infants, children, and adults throughcolonization. Through Calungsod and San Vitores's missionary efforts, many native Chamorros were forced toconvert toCatholicism.[5][6][7][8] He remains a contentious figure in Chamorro history and scholarly research for his involvement in theSpanish–Chamorro Wars, where the indigenous Chamorro peoples were brutally decimated through colonization andgenocide.[11][12]
Calungsod wasbeatified on March 5, 2000, byPope John Paul II, and canonized byPope Benedict XVI atSaint Peter's Basilica in Vatican City on October 21, 2012,[13] alongside six others, includingKateri Tekakwitha,Giovanni Battista Piamarta, andMarianne of Molokaʻi[14]
Few details of the early life of Calungsod (spelledCalonsor in Spanish records) are known. Historical records do not mention his exact birthplace or birth date and merely identified him as "Pedro Calonsor,el Visayo". Historical research identifiesGinatilan inCebu,Hinunangan andHinundayan inSouthern Leyte,Baybay inLeyte,[1] and theMolo district ofIloilo City[10] as possible places of origin;Loboc,Bohol also makes a claim.[15] Of these claims, the one from Ginatilan, Cebu, is considered the strongest. Nonetheless, all four locations were within theDiocese of Cebu at the time of Calungsod's martyrdom.
Proponents of anIlonggo origin argue that in the early Spanish period, the term "Visayan" exclusively referred to people from the island ofPanay and the nearby islands ofNegros andRomblon. In contrast, people from Cebu, Bohol, andLeyte were called "Pintados".[16] Thus, had he been born in Cebu, he would have been referred to as "Calonsor El Pintado" instead of "Calonsor El Visayo"; the term "Visayan" receiving its present scope (i.e., including inhabitants of Cebu, Bohol, and Leyte) sometime the 1700s. However, American historian and scholarJohn N. Schumacher disputes theBisaya/Pintados dichotomy claim as at that time the Pintados were also referred to as Visayans regardless of location and said Calungsod "was a Visayan" and may have been but doubtfully "from the island of Cebu" or "could have come any other Visayas islands".[17]
The Cebu camp reasoned that Ginatilan contains a high density of people surnamed Calungsod and that during the beatification process, they were the initial claimants to having been Calungsod's birthplace. The Calungsods of Iloilo also claim to be the oldest branch, based on baptismal records containing the surname "Calungsod" dating to circa 1748, compared to branches in Cebu and Leyte, which possess baptismal records dating only to 1828 and 1903, respectively.[18]
In Cebu, Calungsod received primary education at a Jesuit boarding school, mastering theCatechism and learning to communicate inSpanish. He also likely honed his drawing, painting, singing, acting, and carpentry skills, as these were necessary for missionary work.
In 1668, Calungsod, then around 14, was amongst the young catechists chosen to accompany Spanish Jesuit missionaries to theIslas de Los Ladrones ("Isles of Thieves"), which had been renamed theMariana Islands the year before to honor both theVirgin Mary and the mission's benefactress, María Ana of Austria, Queen Regent of Spain. Calungsod accompanied the priest Diego San Vitores toGuam tocatechize the nativeChamorros.[19] Missionary life on the island was difficult as provisions did not arrive regularly, the jungles and terrain were difficult to traverse, and the Marianas were frequently devastated by typhoons.[20] Through colonization, the conversion mission resulted to a significant number of locals being baptized, many were converted without their consent.[20][5] After a series of force-conversions,Diego Luis de San Vitores and Pedro Calungsod continued and forcefully converted the small daughter of ChiefMatå'pang, the leader of the indigenousChamorro people, without the consent of the child or the child's father. This colonial disrespect caused Chief Matå'pang to defend his community from the colonizers, ending with the death of Calungsod and Vitores in 1672, similar to howLapulapu defended his people against the colonizerMagellan in thePhilippines.[5][6][7][8]
A month after the martyrdom of San Vitores and Calungsod, a process for beatification was initiated but only for San Vitores. Political and religious turmoil, however, delayed and halted the process for centuries. In 1981, asHagåtña was preparing for its 20th anniversary as adiocese, the 1673 beatification cause of San Vitores was rediscovered in old manuscripts and revived until he was finally beatified on October 6, 1985. This also gave recognition to Calungsod, paving the way for his beatification.[21]
In 1980, CardinalRicardo Vidal, then-Archbishop of Cebu, asked permission from the Vatican to initiate Calungsod's beatification and canonization cause. In March 1997, theSacred Congregation for the Causes of Saints approved theacta of the diocesan beatification process. That same year, Vidal appointed Ildebrando Leyson as vice-postulator for the cause, tasked with compiling aPositio Super Martyrio ("position regarding the martyrdom") to be scrutinized by the Congregation. Thepositio, which relied heavily on San Vitores's beatification documentation, was completed in 1999.[22]
Wanting to include young Asian laypersons in his first beatification for theGreat Jubilee in 2000,Pope John Paul II paid particular attention to the cause of Calungsod. In January 2000, he approved the decreesuper martyrio ("concerning the martyrdom") of Calungsod, scheduling his beatification for March 5 of that year atSaint Peter's Square in Rome.
Regarding Calungsod's charitable works and virtuous deeds, John Paul II declared:[23]
...From his childhood, Pedro Calungsod declared himself unwaveringly for Christ and responded generously to his call. Young people today can draw encouragement and strength from the example of Pedro, whose love of Jesus inspired him to devote his teenage years to teaching the faith as a lay catechist. Leaving family and friends behind, Pedro willingly accepted the challenge put to him by Fr. Diego de San Vitores to join him on the Mission to the Chamorros.In a spirit of faith, marked by strong Eucharistic and Marian devotion, Pedro undertook the demanding work asked of him and bravely faced the many obstacles and difficulties he met. In the face of imminent danger, Pedro would not forsake Fr. Diego, but as a "good soldier of Christ", preferred to die at the missionary's side.
On December 19, 2011, theHoly See officially approved themiracle qualifying Calungsod forsainthood by the Roman Catholic Church.[24] The recognized miracle dates from March 26, 2003, when a woman fromLeyte, pronouncedclinically dead two hours after a heart attack, was revived when an attending physician invoked Calungsod's intercession.[25][26][27]
CardinalAngelo Amato presided over the declaration ceremony on behalf of theCongregation for the Causes of Saints. He later revealed that Pope Benedict XVI had approved and signed the official promulgation decrees recognizing the miracles as authentic and worthy of belief. The College of Cardinals was then sent a dossier on the new saints, and they were asked to indicate their approval. On February 18, 2012, after the Consistory for the Creation of Cardinals, Amato formally petitioned the pope to announce the new saints' canonization.[28] On October 21, 2012, Pope Benedict XVI canonized Calungsod in Saint Peter's Square.[29] The pope wore papal vestments used only on special occasions. CardinalRicardo Jamin Vidal, theArchbishop Emeritus of Cebu, concelebrated at the canonization Mass.
At his canonization Mass, Calungsod was the only saint without afirst class relic exposed for veneration, as his body had been thrown into the sea and lost. Thecutlass used to hack Calungsod's head and neck was retrieved from Guam by Vidal and is now venerated as asecond-class relic. During thehomily, Benedict XVI said that Calungsod received theSacrament of Absolution from San Vitores before his death.
AfterLorenzo Ruiz of Manila, Calungsod is the second Filipino to be declared a saint by the Roman Catholic Church. His initialfeast day was celebrated on April 2, hisdies natalis (heavenly birthdate).[30] In September 2024, his feast was transferred to October 21, the anniversary of hiscanonization. This is to avoid its occurrence inHoly Week orEastertide, and the new date will be kept beginning in 2025.[31]
Saturday is the designated weekday for devotions andnovenas in his honor, as he was killed on aFirst Saturday.[32]
Various areas in theVisayan islands claim that Pedro Calungsod was born and raised there. Extensive research provided by the census research ofGinatilan, Cebu provided a longstanding record ofCalonsor andCalungsod natives from their area, from which a strong claim had the most Calungsod natives originating since Filipino-Spanish era since the late 1700s[citation needed]. According to the Parish Pastoral Council William Pancho of Ginatilan, Cebu, there is a strong claim that in the mid-1600s, there were three Calungsod brothers:[citation needed]
In a public televised interview withABS-CBN chief correspondent and newscasterKorina Sanchez, CardinalRicardo Jamin Vidal expressed his dismay that when the original beatification process of Pedro Calungsod began in the 1980s, no city except for Ginatilan, Cebu, was willing to come forward and claim credit for being Pedro's birthplace.[33] Not surprisingly, however, when Pedro's canonization became official, Catholic bishops from the nearby provinces of Cebu, Bohol, Leyte,Samar,Iloilo and variousMindanao provinces suddenly came out of the woodwork, all laying claim to be the "official birthplace" of the newly minted saint.
As a result, Vidal ruled that he will not establish a definitive judgment on his birthplace since Spanish records only indicate the words "Pedro Calonsor, El Visayo" as his native description. Furthermore, he stated that all Visayan provinces were under the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Cebu during the Filipino-Spanish era.[33]
It is not known what Calungsod looked like, as no contemporary depictions survive. The writer Alcina, who was a contemporary of Calungsod, described male Visayanindios of his time as usually more corpulent, better built, and somewhat taller than theTagalogs inLuzon; that their skin was light brown; that their faces were usually round and of fine proportions; that their noses were flat; that their eyes and hair were black; that they – especially the youth – wore their hair a little bit longer; and that they already started to wearcamisas (shirts) andcalzones (knee-breeches). Pedro Chirino, S.J., who also worked in the Visayas in the 1590s, similarly described the Visayans as well-built, of pleasing countenance, and light-skinned.[34]
Calungsod is often depicted as a teenaged young man wearing acamisa de chino that is sometimes bloodied and usually dark, loose trousers. His most famous attributes are themartyr's palm pressed to his chest and a catechism book, which artists often show as theDoctrina Christiana. He is depicted in mid-stride, occasionally also bearing arosary or crucifix to indicate his missionary status. In some early statues, Calungsod is shown with a spear andcatana (cutlass), the instruments of his death.
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The first portrayals stated to be of Pedro Calungsod were drawings made byEduardo Castrillo[35] in 1994 for theHeritage of Cebu Monument inParián. A bronze statue representing Calungsod was made and forms part of the monument. Sculptors Francisco dela Victoria and Vicente Gulane of Cebu and Justino Cagayat, Jr., ofPaete, Laguna, created statues representing Calungsod in 1997 and 1999, respectively.[36]
When theArchdiocese of Manila in 1998 published the pamphletPedro Calungsod: Young Visayan "Proto-Martyr" by theologian Catalino Arevalo,SJ, the 17-year-oldRonald Tubid ofOton, Iloilo, then a student-athlete at theUniversity of the East, was chosen to model for a portrait representing Calungsod. This was said to be the basis for Rafael del Casal's painting in 1999, which was chosen as the official portrait for Calungsod.[37] This claim was denied by clergyman and book author Ildebrado Leyson, who asserted del Casal did not use an actual person as basis for the portrait.[38] The del Casal image is the first to feature aChristogram, the Seal of the Society of Jesus, with which Calungsod was affiliated. The original painting is now enshrined at the Archdiocesan Shrine of Saint Pedro Calungsod in Cebu City.
Several statues representing Calungsod were also commissioned for the beatification, with one brought to Rome and personally blessed by Pope John Paul II. This became the "Pilgrim Image", now enshrined at the Archdiocesan Shrine of theBlack Nazarene of the Society of the Angel of Peace in Cansojong,Talisay, Cebu. Another image was enshrined at the Archdiocesan Shrine of Saint Pedro Calungsod in Cebu City. Both images depict Calungsod wearing a whitecamisa (shirt) and trousers, with the martyr's palm, a rosary, and a crucifix pressed to his breast. During thenovena before his feast day, a replica of thecatana used to kill him is set into the arm of the statue.
For the canonization celebrations, the chosen sculpture by Justino Cagayat, Jr., represented Calungsod in mid-stride and carrying theDoctrina Christiana and the martyr's palm pressed to his chest. This image was brought to Rome for the canonization festivities. Upon its return to the Philippines, the image toured the country. When not on tour, the image is enshrined at the Cebu Archdiocesan Shrine of Saint Pedro Calungsod in the archbishop's palace.
Pedro Calungsod: Batang Martir is a Filipino film withRocco Nacino in the title role released on December 25, 2013, as an official entry to the2013 Metro Manila Film Festival. It was written and directed by Francis O. Villacorta and produced by HPI Synergy Group and Wings Entertainment.
While Calungsod remains venerated by many, he is also a figure criticised in indigenousChamorro scholarly research, literature, and art. The controversy over his legacy in theMariana Islands remains strong due to his major involvement in thecolonization,forced conversions, andgenocide of the islands’ indigenousChamorro people and other related indigenous peoples.[11][12][5][6][7][8]
Vince Diaz focuses on San Vitores and his team, which includes Calungsod, and their legacy of alleged "mass destruction" among the Marianas' indigenous peoples in his book,Repositioning the Missionary.
Cynthia Ross Wiecko describes the missionaries as "agents ofempire":
"Using the lens of ecological change brings Jesuits into a different perspective, one where it is difficult to see them as heroes. Although the socially disruptive effects of militarization and forced catholicization were immediately visible, the two forces also worked hand in hand to destroy ancient Chamorro settlements and profoundly disrupt land use patterns."[39]
Wiecko also states:
"Population estimates ranged from 35,000 to 60,000, with an estimated total Chamorro population throughout the Marianas between 40,000 and 100,000. Introduced diseases—especially smallpox, influenza, and tuberculosis—contributed to most of the decline after 1668, but deaths from the Spanish-Chamorro Wars certainly played a role in the indigenous population's decline as well. Reflecting the devastating blows to Guam's native population, the first official Spanish census in 1710 indicated the Chamorro population to be 3,197. At that time, twenty percent of the population lived in and around Agaña, with the remaining population spread among the other reducción villages. By 1760, the total population numbered just 1,654 and later fell to only 1,318 in 1786. This was just a shadow of the once-thriving Chamorro society Europeans first encountered... The evidence here indicates that imperial dominance and catholicization shared similar roots of brutality, directly affecting changes in the landscape, settlement patterns, and land use. The combined effects of both fundamentally altered the island's people and environmental history."[39]
Robert Haddock writes inA History of Health on Guam: ". . . as the Spanish eventually quelled the Chamorro rebellion, "peace" was established at the price of the extinction of a race."
Francis X. Hezel writes:
“ What began as a religious mission to proclaim the gospel of peace soon degenerated into an out-and-out war of military conquest which, as the histories have it, killed off vast numbers of native Chamorros before the missionaries were finally able to make believers out of the few survivors.” ("From Conversion to Conquest: The Early Spanish Mission in the Marianas",Journal of Pacific History, pp 115-137, 1982.)
Nicholas Goetzfridt states:
"A good non-action example would be the Spanish non-response to massive Chamorro depopulation. The first census of 1710 revealed that—although published interpretative variations eventually find middle ground in the 3,500 range—3,539 Chamorros (the most commonly cited number) remained out of early or pre-San Vitores ‘contact’ estimates ranging from as high as 100,000 to as low as 35,000 Chamorros living in the Mariana Islands. Regardless of the unrecoverable correct number, this figure represents a massive decline in the Chamorro population that went even further after the forced centralization of Chamorros onto Guam (with the exception of a few hundred “refugees” on Rota—Underwood 1973) and into the established, church-centered enclaves of Pago, Inapsan, Inarahan (Inarajan/Inalåhan), Merizo (Malesso’), Umatac (Humåtac), and Agat (Hågat) enforced by Joseph de Quiroga y Losada following his administrative destruction of many Chamorro villages after his 1680 arrival on Guam. By the 1758 full census, only 1,711 “native Indians” remained, along with 170 soldiers and 830 “Spanish & Filipinos.” This Spanish non-action is evident in the paucity of details concerning any Spanish effort to, if not stem the tide of this decline (often linked to an impending or even realized “extinction” of Chamorros), then render some form of medical response, particularly to the several epidemics and disease outbreaks that pepper the Spanish record. To find any reference to a Spanish effort on this front is to hold a wilting moment of history that cannot be extended into the context of Spain's centuries-long colonization of the Mariana Islands. And yet as scholarship has concerned itself with the chronological and interpretative “facts” of Guam's history, such a blatant gap in the telling of the Spanish colonial era—extending, of course, to the Northern Mariana Islands—has gone unaccounted for and has yet to materialize simply because it is not part of this regurgitated record."
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