Ecclesiastical System in the Philippines

[Buzeta and Bravo (Diccionario, i, pp. 542–545; ii, pp. 271–275, 363–367) thus describe the ecclesiastical estate of the Philippines:]

Archbishopric of Manila

Manila is in this regard, as in all other departments, the metropolitan city of the Spanish countries in the Orient. Its see is archiepiscopal, and has as suffragans the bishoprics of Nueva Cáceres, Nueva Segovia, and Cebú, descriptions of which can be found in their respective articles. The territory over which it presides, as proper to itself, includes the ten civil provinces nearest to Manila—namely, Tondo, Bulacan, Pampanga, Nueva-Ecija, Batangas, Laguna, Cavite, Bataan, Zambales, and Mindoro—in addition to the small island of Corregidor, which is found outside the said province, and which forms a military police commandancy. It is not so extensive, with these provinces, as are its suffragan sees; but it is the one that unites the greatest number of souls.

The territory included in it extends about 100 leguas north and south and 29 more in breadth toward the west, the villages most distant from its capital being some 40 leguas to the north, and about 60 to the south. It is bounded on the north by the diocese of Nueva Segovia, and on the south by that of Cebú. Its western boundaries are maritime. The number of parishes of this diocese, the secular and regular curas who have charge of them, and the number of villages that they contain, will be seen in chart number 8.[1]

For the more efficient ecclesiastical administration of the territory included in this archbishopric, the parish curas of certain villages also extend their jurisdiction to eighteen vicariates or outside districts, namely: in the province of Tondo, that of Mariquina; in the province of Bataan, that of Balanga; in the province of Cavite, that of Bacor; in the province of Mindoro, those of Calayan and Santa Cruz; in the province of Batangas, those of Taal, San Pablo, and Rosario; in the province of Laguna, those of Limban, Calauan, and Cabuyas; in the province of Bulacan, those of Quingua and Marilao; in the province of Zambales, that of Iba; in the province of Pampanga, those of San Fernando and Candaba; in the province of Nueva-Ecija, those of Puncan and Baler. The curas of the above-mentioned villages are the outside vicars of their respective districts. They receive orders and instructions indiscriminately from the vicar-general and from the diocesan, from each one in accordance with the attributes of his office. It must be noted that this division into districts is subject to continual variations at the will of the bishop who wears the miter—now in relation to the number, and again with respect to the village. When it is said that the outside vicars depend immediately on the vicars-general or provisors, one must not, under any consideration, understand that the latter constitute an authority or jurisdiction intermediate between the outside vicar and the archbishop; but that they are the means by which communication with the said archbishop ought to be held. The present prelate of this metropolitan church is his Excellency the most illustrious and reverend Don Fray José Aranguren, member of his Majesty’s Council, knight of the grand cross of Isabel the Catholic, senator of the kingdom, and deputy vicar-general of the royal land and naval armies of all our eastern possessions. He was consecrated on January 31, 1847. The cabildo of this holy and metropolitan church, the only such church in Filipinas, is composed of five dignitaries, three canons, two racioneros, two medio-racioneros, and the suitable number of ministers, whose salaries may be seen in the following chart.

Chart of the revenues of the clergy of the cathedral of Manila

Personal Pesos fuertes Reals of silver
The archbishop, 5,000
The dean, 2,000
4 dignitaries, at 1,450 pesos each, 5,800
3 canons, at 1,250 pesos each, 2,690 [sic]
2 racioneros, at 1,100 pesos each, 2,200
2 medio-racioneros, at 915 pesos each, 1,830
1 master of ceremonies, 400
2 cura-rectors, at 500 pesos each, 1,000
1 sacristan, 250
Another sacristan, 150
1 verger, 190
Material
For the archbishop’s mail, 14 6
To the cabildo, for the music, church repair, wine, wax, and oil, 2,860
To the cura of the cathedral for oil and wine, 26
Total, 25,410[sic]6

The ecclesiastical court is composed of the most excellent and illustrious archbishop, the provisor and vicar-general, the ecclesiastical fiscal, a recording secretary, a vice-secretary, an archivist, and two notarial treasurers of the secular class. The provisorial court is formed by the provisor, who is at the same time vicar-general and judge of the chaplains. He is charged with the performance of judicial acts in ecclesiastical matters, and is accompanied by notaries. This unctionary did not formerly have the investiture as licentiate of laws, and was assisted by a matriculated lawyer of the royal Audiencia. The creation of the ecclesiastical fiscal was posterior to that of the ecclesiastical courts; and his institution is due to the authority of the pontiffs, who have especially charged said functionaries with the defense of the integrity of marriages, and other duties peculiar to their employments. The charge of provisor was at first exercised constantly by the Augustinian fathers, by virtue of the amnimodo authority granted by the popes; later, their attributes passed to the Franciscan fathers, by agreement with them. But the archbishop of Méjico, considering himself empowered to appoint ecclesiastical judges (who were to be the vicars and provisors of these dominions), sent two clerics with authorization to exercise the said offices. The governor,[2] however, with his rank as royal vice-patron, protected the regulars in their privileges, and ordered Father Alfaro to exercise the said office alone. Afterward, when the suffragan bishoprics were created, and that of Manila was erected to the dignity of a metropolitan, with the archiepiscopal hierarchy, the appointment of provisors was regulated.