The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898; Volume 50 / Explorations by early navigators, descriptions of the islands and their peoples, their history and records of the catholic missions, as related in contemporaneous books and manuscripts, showing the political, economic, commercial and religious conditions of those islands from their earliest relations with European nations to the close of the nineteenth century

by Unknown

FOURTH ABUSE

It is an abuse that amid the many and heavy fees which the regulars charge the Indians they exact fees for confession, and, in the [very] act of making the confession, one and one-half reals in order to comply with the precept, under the pretext of the three feasts, namely, Corpus Christi, the titular saint, and Holy Thursday; for even if that is not simony, at least est res pesimi exempli.[12] It is certain that the Indian believes that he pays for confession, and it is also a fact that if he does not pay he is not confessed.

As soon as the English took possession of Manila, they learned of such a custom, and thereupon cast great contempt on our religion, and persuaded the Indians to follow them, for among them there was no such practice, nor could there be—which was an error and a manifest deceit.[13]

From this custom, abuse, or offering, two hundred pesos are obtained in some villages, and in others three hundred, four hundred, and even more, according to the population.

The abovesaid feasts result so cheaply to the father that with twenty pesos he pays the expenses of all three of them; for the adornment of the church and of the line of march is made by the Indians; wax is no expense to the father, or very cheap; he or his associate preaches the sermon; and, let him preach what he will, he never gets beyond a discourse spoken in a language which either the preacher does not understand, or, if he does understand it, he does so very poorly and with great errors.[14]

Remedy for this evil

To decree that this abuse cease entirely; for it is less inconvenient that there should not be such feasts than that, under the pretext of those feasts, occasion be given for so serious a scandal; a thousand expedients that are proper will be found without using this one, which touches a most sensitive point in religion.