Lesson 4: The Filipino Way

Lesson Objectives (KSA):

a) Recognize some of the strengths and weaknesses of Filipinos in terms of character;
b) Explain the influence of Filipino culture on the way students look at moral experiences
and solve moral dilemmas; and
c) Sincerity to improve at least a few personal weaknesses

Introduction
Our culture is a big reflection of our great and complex history. It is influenced by
most of the people we have interacted with. A blend of the Malayo-Polynesian and
Hispanic culture with the influence from Chinese, Indians Arabs, and other Asian
cultures really contribute to the customs and traditions of the Filipinos.
Filipino culture is unique compared to other Asian countries, and beliefs applied
every day in the life of the Filipinos reveal how rich and blessed the culture the
people have.

The Filipino Customs and Traditions

What is it about the Philippines that makes it different from the rest of the world?
Well, for one thing, it is all about their culture. When children or young people greet
or say goodbye to their elders, they typically do so by taking the right hand of the
elder with their right hand and place the back the elder’s hand lightly on their
forehead. It is a way of giving respect to the elders and it is believed that is also a
way of receiving blessing to the elders.
"Mano po" is the term used when kissing the hands of elders. Mano is a Spanish
word for "hand" while po is used at the end of the sentence when addressing elders
or superiors.
The Filipinos are one of the most hospitable people you may find anywhere.
Foreign visitors in the country are treated with the utmost respect. This trait is
usually seen during fiestas and holidays where many Filipinos are giving their best
to entertain their visitors well.
It is amazing to see that even the simplest home along the road opens its door to a
stranger. For Filipinos, to be able to serve others gives them honor of showing true
friendship. Filipino hospitality is a trait you can’t take away from them.
1. Having close family ties is also one of their unique traits.
 It is one of the outstanding cultural values that Filipinos have.
 The family takes care of each other and is taught to be loyal to family and elders
by simply obeying their authorities.
 This is one of the unique characteristics of Filipinos.
 Having fondness for family reunions during secular and religious holidays Such
as Christmas, New Year’s Eve, All Saints Day, Holy Week, Fiestas,
homecomings, birthdays, weddings, graduations, baptisms, funerals etc.
 This is the evidence that Filipino people value not only our cultural tradition but
the spirit of our family.
  As Filipinos, we are blessed to have been brought up with strong family ties.
2. The Bayanihan
 It is the spirit of communal unity or effort to achieve a particular objective. A
famous example of this is the neighbors carrying a hut or house to a new
location. People nowadays use it to describe an outpouring of community spirit-
as people give their all to the common good, without expecting recognition or
personal gain.
3. Courtship
 We Filipinos are very romantic when it comes to heart affairs.
 Serenading or ‘harana’ in Tagalog is one of the most popular forms of courtship
to show that a man is very serious with his intentions to a woman.
 A serenade would require the young man to sing a love song in front of the
young lady's house. Normally, he is accompanied by his male friends who act as
back-up singers.
 The man himself or his friend played the instrument, usually a guitar, which
provides the background music to his song.
 They would have to wait until the young lady opened a window to listen.
 It would be up to her if she wanted to invite them in for some refreshment and to
chat after the song.
 Even if they had been asked to come in, the suitor would not expect that he could
have the chance or a private moment with his object of affection. It was highly
likely that the parents would also be there to entertain the man and his friends.
4) Religion
 The Philippines is one of two predominantly Roman Catholic nations in Asia-
Pacific.
 Their habit of going to church and often praying reflects that Filipinos have a
deep faith and belief when it comes to religion.
 They are very devoted to religions that sometimes many take the risk of their
lives just to touch the Black Nazarene (in Quiapo, Manila).
 For many, it is just a choice between their faith and fears.
 Filipinos believe that having a strong devotion may lead to a better lite and their
guidance to face every day lite.
5. Superstition
 In the Philippines, superstitious beliefs have grown throughout the country.
 These beliefs have come from the different sayings and beliefs of our ancestors
that aim to prevent danger from happening or to make a peso retrain from doing
something in particular.
 These beliefs are part of our culture, for one derives his/ her beliefs from the
influences of what his/ her customs, traditions and culture have dictated to
explain certain phenomena or to scare people.
 Some are practiced primarily because Filipinos believe that there is nothing to
lose if they will comply with these beliefs.
6. Marriage and Wedding Customs
  In the country, marriage is a sacred union of man and woman atter a period of
courtship and engagement.
 It is a sacrament between two people who love each other.
 For many Filipinos, the eternal quality of dedication to God pervades a truly
sacred marriage.
 A sacred marriage is a covenant between two who love each other in God and
with God, whose joining becomes an expression of the desire of each to love and
serve God together.
7. Death
 Death in the Philippines is one of the most important occasions in family life.
 For many Filipinos, a death of a relative is an opportunity to strengthen ties in the
family.
 To pay respect and honor the relationship to the deceased, long lost relatives,
friends, and even relatives working abroad are reunited.
 The Philippines is the home of some unique death rituals that are partly religious
and mostly superstitious.
 The mourning and the weeping are still present, but a happy and welcoming
atmosphere would usually envelop the place to help the deceased on his/ her
journey to the afterlife.
 Atter the death of a person, a nine-day period of having a novena of prayers and
masses offered up to the deceased is held, although the beginning of the ‘siyam
na araw’ varies, but usually ends the week after the death.
 Another period follows after death, the 40-day mourning period.
 Family members indicate their state of bereavement by wearing a small, black
rectangular plastic pin on their left breast or breast pocket area.
 A ceremonial mass is held at the end of this 40-day period. Common belief states
that the soul goes to Heaven after these 40 days, following the belief that Jesus
Christ ascended to Heaven after the said period of days.
8. Society
 The primary ancestors of Filipinos are Malays who came from the Southeastern
Asian country.
 The Philippines is a combined society, both singular and plural in form.
 It is singular as one nation, but plural in that it is fragmented geographically and
culturally.
 The nation is divided between Christians, Muslims, and other religious-ethno-
linguistic groups; between urban and rural people; between upland and lowland
people; and between the rich and the poor.
 Although different in numerous ways, the Filipinos are very hospitable and give
appropriate respect to everybody regardless of race, culture and belief.
9. Christmas in the Philippines
 is considered as one of the biggest holidays in the archipelago.
 We earned the distinction of celebrating the world's longest Christmas season
with Christmas carols heard as early as September and lasting until Epiphany,
 the feast of the Black Nazarene on January 9 or the Feast of the Santo Nino de
Cebu on the third Sunday of January.
 In one article, Archbishop Cruz told in his Christmas message that "the essence
or Christmas is God made flesh, God who has come among us in an act of love
that joins humankind to the Living God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
 For many Filipinos, the true essence of Christmas is not gift giving but sharing
this special holy day with family.
10. Fiestas
 Every town and city in the Philippines has a fiesta of its own; whatever time of the
year it is, there’s sure to be a fiesta going on somewhere.
 Fiestas in the Philippines are held to celebrate a patron saint.
 It is part and parcel of Filipino culture through good times and bad times, it must
go on.
 The biggest and most elaborate festival of all is Christmas, a season celebrated
with all the pomp and pageantry where the whole country breaks Out in
celebrations that can begin long before December.
 For individual Filipinos, fiestas can be a way of supplicating the heavens or to
make amends tor past wrongs.
 It is a way to celebrate their blessings, commemorate their past and observe
solemn religious rituals.
 Celebrations may take the form of music, dancing, feasting, beauty contests,
balls, processions, sports challenges or a host of other events.
 Spanish influence is evident in the elaborate masks, makeup, headdresses and
costumes worn by the revelers; outfits which often take months of preparation.
11. Living with Parents
 Filipinos highly value the presence of family more than anything.
 Adult children living with their parents are another Filipino traditional that make
them exceptional.
 Unlike in the United States where children leave the home atter finishing high
school or college, many Filipinos continue living with parents until they get
married. (Abundo, 2015)

Characteristics of Filipino Culture

Here are some characteristics of the Filipinos that set them apart from any other
culture and society: (Dumaraos, 2018):
1. The Filipino people are very resilient
 In times of calamities and catastrophes, Filipinos always manage to rise above
the challenge.
 Instead of wallowing they manage to pick themselves up and smile.
2. Filipinos take pride in their families
 In the Philippines, it is family first.
  So, whether you are part of the immediate family or you belong to the third or
fourth generation, you are treated as a family member. Sometimes, even the
closest or friends are considered family, too.
3. Filipinos are very religious
 In all corners of a Filipino house, you can find brazen images of crosses and
other religious paraphernalia.
 They go to church every Sunday, or sometimes even twice or three times a
week.
4. Filipinos are very respectful
 From the moment they are born into this world, they are already taught how to be
respectful by using these simple catchphrases po and opo, words that end
sentences when addressing elders.
 They have a culture of pagmamano, which is where they raise the backs of the
hands of their elders to their foreheads as a sign of respect.
5. Filipinos help one another
 More popularly known as Bayanihan, Filipinos help one another-without
expecting anything in return-so that undertaking their tasks and responsibilities
become much easier. Sometimes this is called "Community spirit."
6. Filipinos value traditions and culture
 For Filipinos, traditions in their home and in their family are important.
 They usually set aside a specific day for a certain celebration like festivals,
Birthday Parties, reunions, etc.
 And of course, every gathering is dedicated to keeping up with each other over
sumptuous food.
7. Filipinos have the longest Christmas celebrations
 Even as early as August, you can hear Christmas songs and jingles being played
in the malls or in the restaurants in the Philippines.
 TIhe mood becomes festive, with many people shopping and in good spirits.
Christmas celebrations last until around the first or second week of January.
8. Filipinos love art and architecture
 Just look at the massive and tall buildings everywhere.
 Filipinos have a penchant for bringing art and architecture to a whole new level.
 They love to design creatively, to think intuitively, and have a passion for
anything different and unique.
9. The Filipin0s are hospitable people
 Foreign visitors in the country are treated with the utmost respect.
 This trait is usually seen during fiestas and holidays where many Filipinos are
giving their best to entertain their visitors well.

Filipino Family Values

 The family is the center of the social structure and includes the nuclear family, aunts,
uncles, grandparents, cousins and honorary relations such as godparents, sponsors,
and close family friends.
People get strength and stability from their family.
As such, many children have several godparents.
Concern for the extended family is seen in the patronage provided to family
members when they seek employment.
It is common for members of the same family to work for the same company.
In fact, many collective bargaining agreements state that preferential hiring will be
given to family members.

The Filipino Family Traditional Values:

1. Paggalang (Respect)
 The English translation of paggalang means to be respectful or to give respect to
a person.
 Filipinos are accustomed to using the words po, opo, and "ho when they are
conversing with older people or, sometimes, with those who are in a high role or
a prestigious member of society.
 Using these words is customary in the Philippines, and it shows a sign of respect
if you do so.
 Paggalang can also be shown toward your elders by kissing their hands before
leaving/ to say goodbye and upon arrival/ to greet them.
 The younger members of the family can show respect toward older siblings by
calling them kuya (older brother) or ate (older sister).
2. Pakikisama (Helping Others)
 Pakikisama has the connotation of getting along with people in general. There is
a general yearning to be accepted and well-liked among Filipinos.
 This applies to one and his or her friends, colleagues, boss, and even relatives.
This desire is what steers one to perform Pakikisama.
 The word pakikisama literally translates to "helping others."
 Therefore, this trait usually fosters general cooperation and performing good or
helpful deeds, which can lead to others viewing you in a favorable light.

3. Utang na Loob (Debt of Gratitude)

 means to pay your debt with gratitude. With utang na loob, there is usually a
system of obligation.
 When this value is applied, it imparts a sense of duty and responsibility on the
younger siblings to serve and repay the favors done to them by their elders.
4. Pagpapahalaga sa Pamilya (Prioritizing Family)
 Pagpapahalaga sa pamilya is in other words, putting importance on your family.
 This implies that a person will place a high regard on his/ her family and prioritize
that before anything else.
  For example, this is why it's not uncommon for a father or a mother in a Filipino
family from the Philippines to seek employment abroad or a job they don t want
just to earn a decent wage for their family.
 They've placed the utmost priority on meeting the family’s basic needs and
toward practicing pagpapanalaga sa pamilya.
5. Hiya (Shame)
 This controls the social behaviors and interactions of a Filipino.
 It is the value that drives a Filipino to be obedient and respectful to their parents,
older siblings, and other authorities.
 This is also a key ingredient in the loyalty of one's family.
6. Damayan system
 extending sympathy for people who lost their loved ones.
 In case of death of a certain member of the community, the whole community
sympathizes with the bereaved family.
 Neighbors, friends, and relatives of the deceased usually give certain amount of
money as their way of showing sympathy.
7. Compassionate
 a Filipino trait of being sympathetic to others even the person is a stranger.
 An example of this is giving alms to the beggars.
 This is observed when we hear Filipinos saying, "kawawa naman or nakakaawa
naman.”
8. Fun-loving Trait
 a trait found in most Filipinos, a trait that makes them unique that even in times of
calamities and other challenges in life, they always have something to be happy
about, a reason to celebrate.

Social Values of the Filipinos

The great majority of the Philippine population is bound together by common values
and a common religion.
Philippine society is characterized by many positive traits:
1. High regard for amor propio (self-esteem)
 Self-esteem reflects an individual’s subjective emotional evaluation of his or her
own worth.
 It is the decision made by an individual as an attitude towards the self.
 Self-esteem encompasses beliefs about oneself, as well as emotional states,
such as triumph, despair, pride, and shame (ffewitt, 2009). Smith and Mackie
(2007) defined it by saying "The self-concept is what we think about the self; self-
esteem is the positive or negative evaluations of the self, as in how we teel about
it.
 This characteristic is generally conducive to the smooth running of society,
although, when taken to extreme, it can develop into an authoritarianism that
discourages independent judgment and individual responsibility and initiative.
  Filipinos are sensitive to attacks on their own sell-esteem and cultivate a
sensitivity to the sell-esteem of others as well.
 Anything that might hurt another's self-esteem is to be avoided or else one risks
terminating the relationship.
 One who is insensitive to others is said to lack a sense of shame and
embarrassment, the principal sanction against improper behavior.
 This great concern for self-esteem helps to maintain harmony in society and
within one’s particular circle, but it also can give rise to clannishness and a
willingness to sacrifice personal integrity to remain in the good graces of the
group.
 Strong personal faith enables Filipinos to face great difficulties and unpredictable
risks in the assurance that "God will take care of things."
 But it allowed to deteriorate into fatalism, even this admirable characteristic can
hinder initiative and stand in the way of progress.
2. Smooth interpersonal relationships
 is the nature of interaction that occurs between two or more people.
 People in an interpersonal relationship may interact overtly, covertly, face-to-face
or even anonymously.
 Interpersonal relationships may occur with friends, family, co- workers, strangers,
chat room participants, doctors or clients.

3. Personal alliance system

 This scheme is anchored on kinship, beginning with the nuclear family.
 A Filipino loyalty goes first to the immediate family; identity is deeply embedded
in the web of kinship.
 It is normative that one owes support, loyalty, and trust to one's close kin and,
because kinship is structured bilaterally with affinal as well as consanguineal
relatives, one's kin can include quite a large number of people.
 Still, beyond the nuclear family, Filipinos do not assume the same degree of
support, loyalty, and trust that they assume for immediate family members for
whom loyalty is nothing less than a social imperative.
 With respect to kin beyond this nuclear family, closeness in relationship depends
very much on physical proximity.
4. The Compadre system
 Bonds of ritual kinship, sealed on any of three ceremonial occasions-baptism,
confirmation, and marriage intensity and extend personal alliances.
 This mutual kinship system, known as compadre, meaning god-parenthood or
sponsorship, dates back at least to the introduction or Christianity and perhaps
earlier.
 It is a primary method of extending the group from which one can expect help in
the way of favors, such as jobs, loans, or just simple gifts on special occasions.
  But in asking a friend to become godparent to a child, a Filipino is also asking
that person to become a closer friend. Ihus it 1s common to ask acquaintances
who are of higher economic or social status than oneself to be sponsors.
 Such ritual kinship cannot be depended on in moments of crisis to the same
extent as real kinship, but it still functions for small and regular acts of support
such as gift giving
5. Utang-na-loob
 A dyadic bond between two individuals may be formed based on the concept of
utang na loob.
 Although it is expected that the debtor will attempt repayment, it is widely
recognized that the debt (as in one's obligation to a parent) can never be fully
repaid and the obligation can last for generations.
 Saving another's lite, providing employment, or making it possible for another to
become educated are "gifts" that incur utang na loob.
 Moreover, such gifts initiate a long-term reciprocal interdependency in winch the
grantor of the favor can expect help from the debtor whenever the need arises
and the debtor can, in turn, ask other favors.
 Such reciprocal personal alliances have had obvious implications for the society
in general and the political system in particular.
 In 1990, educated Filipinos were less likely to feel obligated to extend help
thereby not initiating an utang na loob relationship than were rural dwellers
among whom traditional values remained strong.
 Some observers believed that as Philippine society became more modernized
and urban in orientation, utang na loob would become less important in the
political and social systems.
6. Suki relationship
 In the commercial context, suki relationships (market- exchange partnerships)
may develop between two people who agree to become regular customer and
suppler.
 In the marketplace, Filipinos Will regularly buy from certain specific suppliers who
will give them, in return, reduced prices, good quality, and, often, credit.
 Suki relationships often apply in other contexts as well.
 For example, regular patrons of restaurants and small neighborhood retail shops
and tailoring shops often receive special treatment in return for their patronage.
 Suki does more than help develop economic exchange relationships.
 Because trust is such a vital aspect, it creates a platform for personal
relationships that can blossom into genuine friendship between individuals
(Dolan, 1991).
7. Friendship
 Friendship often is placed on at par with kinship as the most central of Filipino
relationships.
 Certainly, ties among those within one's group of friends are an important factor
in the development of personal alliance systems.
  Here, as in other categories, a willingness to help one another provides the prime
rationale for the relationship.

Weaknesses of the Filipino Character

1. Passivity and lack of initiative
 Acceptance of what happens, without active response or resistance.

2. Colonial mentality
 Colonial mentality more strictly refers to the attitude the Filipinos feel that
products coming from other countries are more superior than the local products.
 For example, Filipinos often romanticize Western Culture and prefer to indulge in
American restaurants or consume Western media rather than supporting local
businesses that were created with Filipino Culture. McDonald's versus Jollibee is
one example.
 Many customers might simply just prefer McDonald 's due to its association with
American culture and Ife, and therefore, American superiority
3. Kanya-kanya syndrome
 Filipinos have a selfish, self-serving attitude that generates a feeling of envy and
competitiveness towards others, particularly one's peers who seem to have
gained some status or prestige.
 Towards them, the Filipino demonstrates the so-called crab mentality referring to
the tendency of crabs in a basket to pull each other down using the levelling
instruments of tsismis, intriga, and unconstructive criticism to bring others down.
 There seems to be a basic assumption that other’s gain is one's loss. The kanya-
kanya syndrome is also evident in the personal ambition and the drive for power
and status that is completely insensitive to the common good.
 Personal and in-group interests reign supreme.
 This characteristic is also evident in the lack of a sense of service among people
in the government bureaucracy.
 The public is made feel that service from these offices and from these civil
servants is an extra perk that has to be paid for.
4. Extreme personalism
 Filipinos view the world in terms of personal relationships and the extent to which
one is able to personally relate things and people determines the recognition of
their existence and the value given to them.
 There is no separation between an objective task and emotional involvement.
 This personalism is manifested in the tendency to give personal interpretations to
actions, i.e., "take things personally.
 Thus, a sincere question may be viewed as a challenge to one’s competence or
positive feedback may be interpreted as a sign of special attention.
 There is in fact some basis for such interpretations as Filipinos are quite personal
in criticism and praise.
  Personalism is also manifested in the necessity for the establishment of personal
relationships before any business or work relationships can be successful.
5. Extreme family centeredness
 While concern for the family is one of the Filipino's greatest strengths, in the
extreme it becomes a serious flaw.
 Excessive concern for the family creates an in-group to which the Filipino is
fiercely loyal to the detriment of concern for the larger community or tor the
common good.
 Excessive concern for family manifests itself in the use of one's office and power
as a means of promoting the interest of the family, in factionalism, patronage,
and political dynasties and in the protection of erring family members.
 It results in lack of concern for the common good and it acts as a block to
national consciousness.
6. Lack of discipline
 Procrastination is one reason of lack of self-discipline.
 Lack of willpower, motivation and ambition are also causes for lack of self-
discipline.
 A weak state of health might also lead to weakness of this important ability.
7. Lack of self-analysis and reflection
 There is a tendency in the Filipino to be superficial and even somewhat flighty.
 In the face of serious problems, both personal and social, there is lack of analysis
or reflection.
 We joke about the most serious matters and this prevents looking deeply into the
problem.
 There is no need to validate our hypotheses or explanation of things.
 Thus, we are satisfied with superficial explanations and superficial solution to
problems.
 Related to this is the Filipino emphasis on form (porma) rather than on
substance.
 There is a tendency to be satisfied with rhetoric and to substitute this for reality.
 Empty rhetoric and endless words are very much part of public life. as long as the
right things are said, as long as the proper documents and reports exist, as long
are deluded into believing that what ought to be actually exist.
8. Ningas cogon
 A Filipino attitude of being enthusiastic only during the start of new undertaking
but ends dismally in accomplishing nothing.
9. Gaya-Gaya Attitude
 A Filipino attitude of imitating or copying other culture specifically in mode of
dressing, language, fashion, trend or even haircut.

REFERENCE:
Leaño, Gubia-on, Ocampo, (2018). Ethics For College Students. Mindshapers
Company Incorporated. Manila, Philippines.