METHODS ADOPTED BY THE MISSIONARIES IN THE CHRISTIANIZATION OF THE MANÓBOS
The methods adopted by the missionaries in the conversion of the pagans in Mindanáo are made clear in a report by Father Juan Ricart, S. J., to the Governor General of the Philippine Islands.39 The following extracts are pertinent:
39Ibid., 11, appendix.
The first thing that the missionaries seek to attain before penetrating the territory occupied by these pagans is a knowledge of the various races or tribes dwelling therein, of their customs and superstitions, of their feuds and wars, who are their enemies and their allies, respectively, the names of the principal chiefs, their traits of character, and finally their particular dialect as far as it may be possible to acquire it. Then they dispatch selected and trustworthy emissaries, preferably inhabitants of the Christian towns who have commercial dealings with the pagans, bidding them announce the intended visit of the missionary. On the appointed day, the missionary, armed with meekness and condescension, presents himself, speaking to them with dignity and authority. He tells them that he is their friend, that he wishes them well, that he has known of such-and-such misfortunes that have befallen them, and that in pity he comes to succor them. He invokes the name of the king and of the governor of the district, whose power they had learned to fear and respect through their dealings with the Christians. He reminds them of some wrong that either they or their neighbors had committed on the Christians, for it is seldom that they are not guilty of some fault or other, and intimates to them that it is the intention of the governor to send soldiers to punish them for their conduct. He (the missionary), however, has interceded with the governor on their behalf and has received a promise from him that he will not only pardon their fault but that he will take them under his protection and defend them against their enemies. He (the missionary) goes on to explain the advantages of civilized life, and the mildness of Spanish rule, as far as their limited understanding can grasp. He undoes their suspicions, forestalls their misgivings, and overcomes their fears; and by means of presents and kind words, especially to the little ones, he strives to soften their hearts. These interviews and lengthy discussions are repeated as often as it is opportune or necessary, every effort being made in the meanwhile to convince and gain over the chiefs and elders, a result that will be attained all the more quickly if he succeeds in settling their differences, in bringing about peace with some more redoubtable enemy, or in helping them in the attainment of any proper object that they may have in view. All this does not take place without great long-suffering and bitterness on the part of the missionary. Having decided on a site that is to their own liking and even according to their superstitions, though sometimes it be not best adapted for the purpose, a day is selected for the clearing, a plaza40 and streets are plotted out, and then the erection of the tribunal and of the private dwellings begins.
It is at this period that the constancy and firmness of the missionary is taxed, for he has to overcome the unspeakable sluggishness of the uncivilized people, and to defeat the futile and continuous pretexts that they invent for the purpose of desisting from the work and of returning to the obscurity of the forest. It is helpful to be able to provide sufficient alimentation for them for a few days at least, so that it will not be necessary for them to return to the mountains in search of food. At the same time it is expedient to give them little rewards to induce them to begin their plantations near the new town by planting camotes and other crops which yield quickly.
The appointment of officers for the government of the settlement is the next step and must be conducted in a most solemn manner, it being sometimes necessary to increase the number of jobs in order to satisfy the ambition of the chiefs and of the elders. The chosen ones are presented with the official staff of command in the name of the governor, and with the traditional jacket. Thus the new town is established. It is placed under the rule and guardianship of the Gobernadorcillo41 of the nearest Christian town, for the purpose of bringing about compliance with the orders that emanate from the chief of the province.
The missionary maintains his power and influence through an inspector, who is usually a person of trust and worth among the older Christians, and through two teachers, preferably a married couple selected from among the best families. These then take up their residence in the new town and begin their teaching.
As soon as the new settlement gives evidence of stability and perseverance, an effort is made to have the governor of the district visit it in order that the newly converted Christians may lay aside their fear, gain new courage, and learn to become devoted to the government.
The presence of an armed force upon suitable occasions is also calculated to have some effect at this early period, as it serves to keep quiet the dissatisfied and grumbling ones, of whom there are always some, as well as to infuse a feeling of fear into outside enemies who might be inclined to trouble the settlement, either because they do not regard it in an auspicious light or because they wish to satisfy a desire for revenge which they have harbored for a long time. Up to this time these unhappy people (the pagans) have had no other law than the caprice of their chiefs, nor other justice than oppression by the strong, nor other customs than an amorphous mass of practices that are at once repulsive and opposed to the natural law. Their guides and their teachers have been augurs or visionary women who, in connivance with the chief, sometimes make them abandon the territory in which they live for fear of some invisible deity, sometimes make them launch themselves on neighboring peolpe[sic] in order to avenge some supposed grievance, or sometimes induce them to sacrifice a slave to appease the anger of their gods. While such influences are paramount, there can be no firmness nor possible security for the new settlement; on the day least expected it will be found deserted and even burned. On the other hand, it becomes necessary to give these people, recently denizens of the forest, a simple code that contains the principal duties of man, that sets forth the relation of one to another, that teaches subjects to obey their superiors, the strong to protect the weak, and parents to teach their children, and that enjoins upon all work and mutual respect.
It is also necessary to satisfy the innate desire, if we may so speak, for a cult, that natural feeling for a religion which these people, like all others, have. It is necessary to substitute for their barbarous and inhuman practices others that may lift them up and revive their drooping and pusillanimous spirits. It is necessary that in the town there should be something to attract and to hold them with irresistible charm. In a word, the faith must be preached to them and they must be baptized; a religion and a church are necessary. Until a great part of the inhabitants of a new settlement have been baptized, until the feast of the patron saint and other religious ceremonies have been solemnly celebrated, it is useless to hope for the stability of the new town. The Catholic religion is a simple and powerful means for transforming those savages into good Spanish subjects; it is the mold wherein they leave their barbarous practices and shape themselves perfectly unto ours.
The missionaries do not speak of baptism nor of religion till they have gained the good will of the pagans, until they realize that they are being listened to willingly and that they (the pagans) put trust in their words. When they begin to like the Spaniards, and to hold in esteem their customs and ideas, then the missionaries gently insinuate themselves and begin to teach them the truths of our holy faith and to show them the observances and rites of our religion. At the beginning some sick person or other is baptized: afterwards, when there is some prospect of stability, the children, and finally the adults, provided that they have been instructed as much as their capacity and the circumstances permit. With this prudent procedure the missionary encounters no serious obstacle. His evangelic[sic] eloquence easily convinces those simple people of truths so much in harmony with human nature and of practices so much in accord with the good inclinations of mankind. The tendency that they still retain to maintain their ancient superstitions vanishes before the sway exerted by that superior man from whom they have received so many favors. The greatest difficulty for them consists in leaving the free life of the forest and in bringing themselves to live in a settlement with its attendant restrictions; this is especially true in the case of the chiefs and of such others as previously had exercised any authority. But having once adopted Christianity, baptism costs them nothing. Here and there one finds a chief who is opposed at the beginning to being baptized because he has several wives, but this condition, though it is not approved, is tolerated, provided he does not trouble the others nor disturb the settlement. But as a rule all become ashamed and repent, and end by yielding and by following the example of the rest. The grace of God is of transcendent power in these transformations. The savage, as long as he continues pagan, is governed in all his acts by ancient observances inspired by superstition and fanaticism. It is only when he has been baptized that he understands the necessity of a change of life and customs. Then he ceases to be Manóbo or Mandáya, in order to be a Christian; he relinquishes his pagan name and in the course of time can hardly be distinguished from the inhabitants of the ancient Christian towns. Even the Mamánuas, a group of Negritos usually considered to be recalcitrant, now live submissively and joyfully in their settlements.
40A public square.
41This means in Spanish "little governor," and was the name given to the chief executive of a municipality in Spanish days. It corresponds to "mayor" at the present time.
THE SECRET OF MISSIONARY SUCCESS
I endeavored during my tours in the interior of eastern Mindanáo to ascertain definitely the secret of the success of the Spanish missionaries in inducing forest-loving people to leave their ancient homes and ways and adopt a life of dependence, political, economic, and religious, and I have arrived at the following conclusions, based on the information furnished me by the conquistas, both those who are still living under the effective control of the Government and those who have returned to their primitive haunts.
(1) In a great many regions the first factor of success is the personal equation. Some of the missionaries, notably Urios and Pastells, must have been men of wonderfully winning ways and of deep tact, if I am to believe my informants. In districts such as the upper Sálug, where many of the Christianized Debabáons had retired for many years, I was told stories of the wonderful condescension of Urios, and of his understanding of Debabáon ways and customs. The pagans present on one occasion assured me that if Urios were to visit them, they would all be baptized. In other districts I heard other missionaries spoken of whose names were so garbled that I have been unable to identify them. In most of the districts there were kind inquiries for one or another of the missionaries and expressions of regret that they could not see them again.
(2) In other regions (upper Umaíam, upper Argáwan, and others) the chief means used were threats of extermination, and, in cases, armed expeditions were actually sent out to overcome opposition to the adoption of Christianity. I base this statement on the testimony of conquistas who asserted that they were acquainted with the facts, and who went into such minute details as to lead me to believe that they were telling the truth. How far such action is due to irresponsible and overzealous officers leading these expeditions I am unable to say, but the impression given me by my informants invariably was that such expeditions were planned by the missionaries for the purpose of forcing Christianity upon the pagans. Bisáyas were frequently in charge of native soldiers and for commercial reasons were interested in the conversion of the mountain people to Christianity, so that it would not be surprising if they took unauthorized measures to effect the Christianization of the pagans.
(3) The third factor of success was the distribution of presents and alms by the missionaries. Frequent mention is made of this throughout the Jesuit letters. It undoubtedly did a great deal toward attracting the pagan people and convincing them of the friendship, from their point of view, of the missionaries toward them. It has been my experience that with a people of this stamp one present has more persuasive force than ten thousand arguments. It opens the way to conviction more readily than kind words and condescending manner, as it puts the tribesmen under a feeling of obligation.
(4) The fourth factor was the general policy adopted by the missionaries of posing as mediators between the Government and the pagans. This, coupled with a previous general knowledge of the conditions of the country, and of the customs and language of the people, and accompanied by a dignified but condescending and genial manner, enabled the missionaries to ingratiate themselves at once into the favor of the people they were visiting.
(5) The next and last factor in the conversion of the pagan peoples was the religious character of the men who undertook it. Religion appeals strongly to all primitive people and especially to the peoples of eastern Mindanáo, in which, as will be seen in the fourth part of this monograph, there seems to occur periodically a religious movement that for the time being subverts the ancient religious beliefs. It is natural then, that the pomp and glitter of Catholic ceremonial appealed strongly to the Manóbo. I can not say, from my observation, that he became a very devout worshiper in his new faith. In fact, I know that the average Christianized Manóbo understands little, and practices less, of the Catholic doctrines. In so far, however, as the imposition of the doctrine was a means to an end, namely, to radicate[sic] him in selected centers where he fell within social and governmental control, it can not be criticized. On the other hand, the effect of the change was, I am inclined strongly to believe for the worse, for he lost that spirit of manliness and independence that is a characteristic of the pagan, and he became a prey to the more Christianized people within whose sphere of influence and exploitation he fell. I have always been struck by the differences, moral, economic, and even physical, between the debt-ridden, cringing conquistas, and his manly, free, independent, vigorous pagan compeer. One-half of the conquista's time is consumed in contracting debts to the Bisáya trader, and the other half in paying them. His rice is sold before it is harvested. His abaká patch often is mortgaged before the planting is completed. He is an economic serf to an inconsiderate taskmaster.42