BIRTH OF

DIVORCE IN THE
PHILIPPINES
Nica Jane D. Mercado
4C-PH
 Divorce, by definition is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. It is

different from annulment in such a way that they're still recognized as having been married

previously. An annulment, on the other hand, treats the marriage as though it never existed . In

the world, Philippines is the only country aside from the Vatican City where divorce is not legal,

mostly due to religion. Factors such as education, childhood place of residence and religion lead

the majority of Filipinos from terminating unsatisfactory marriages. This paper aims to know

why there is rise in union dissolution in the Philippines and investigate what impedes them to

terminate unsatisfactory marriage.

The study correlates factors such as: education, childhood place of residence and religion

with the increasing rates of Divorce. It is said that Filipino women raised in urban areas are more

likely to have their unions dissolved than their rural counterparts. While higher education gives

Filipino women the necessary economic resources to leave a bad marriage. In fact, frequently the

deciding factor among Filipino women when leaving their spouses is their ability to handle the

financial consequences. Lastly, religion plays a big role in considering divorce, which is

transparent between Muslim and Catholic women .Since it is legal under Muslim law , they tend

to have higher divorce rates compared to Catholic women. In addition, the strong opposition of

the Catholic hierarchy to divorce and separation may also have discouraged Catholic Filipino

women from dissolving their unions. This means that the church’s opinion matters a lot to the

people, and the church firmly says no.

Marriage is one of the Seven Sacraments and it is not only giving oneself totally to

another person but also to making vows with God. An interview with Archbishop Socrates

Villegas, the president of the Catholic Bishop’s Conference of the Philippines revealed the
church’s opinion on the issue, saying that if divorce is allowed, the sanctity of marriage will be

lost .They fear that even the simplest problems will have the power to break marriages apart

because couples would see divorce as an option, instead of working through the problem as a

team.It is included in their vows the phrases ”til death do as part” and that “ love is patient”,

“love is kind”, it is” not self-seeking” ,“keeps no record of wrongs” and love never fails.

However, love becomes weak and everything changes that people started to live misery. Reality

demands it where violence, infidelity, and abandonment is present on a family

nowadays.Divorce gives an option for a fresh start and better living. It is also said on the journal

that it leads to cohabitation of most couples who were married on their past due to absence of

divorce.

The purpose of the research are to correlate the factors unto why there is a high demand

rates of divorce in the Philippines and what stops them not to. It is contradictory with what the

teachings of the Church , but this is a tool to broaden their perspective of what reality looks like

nowadays.