Where Did the First Catholic Mass

Takes Place in the Philippines?

Reported by:
MENESES, Job
DE JESUS, Amiedel
✣ Butuan has long been believed
as the site of the first Mass. In
this has been the case for 3
centuries. Specifically the 17th,
18th and the 19th century.

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✣ On the strength of that
tradition and embodying it,
a monument was erected
in 1872 near Agusan River
which commemorates the
expedition’s arrival and
celebration of Mass on
April 8, 1521.

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 Two Primary Sources of the
First Mass

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 Francisco Albo

✣ One of the pilot in Magellan’s ship

(Trinidad)

✣ He was also one of the 18 survivors

who returned with Sebastian Elcano in
ship Victoria after circumnavigated the
world.
 Antonio Pigafetta

✣ Primo Viaggio intorno al mondo (First

Voyage Around the World).

✣ Was a member of the Magellan

Expidition and eyewitness of the
events, particularly the first Mass.
 Francisco Albo’s Log

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 Francisco Albo’s Log

 On the 16th of March 1521 as they sailed in a westerly course from

Ladrones, they saw land towards the northwest; but owing to many
shallow places they did not approach it. And found later its name
was Yunagan.
 They went instead the same day southwards to another small
island named Suluan.
 Departing from those two islands, they sailed westward to an
uninhabited island of “Gada” where they took wood and water.
 From that island they sailed westwards towards a large island
named Seilani that was inhabited and was known to have gold.

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 Francisco Albo’s Log

 Sailing southwards along the coast of that large of Seilani, they

turned southwest to a small island called “Mazava”.
 The people of that island of Mazava were very good. There the
Spaniards planted a cross upon a mountain-top, and from there
they were shown three island to west and southwest where they
were told there was much gold.
 From Mazava they sailed northwards again towards Seilani.
 From there they sailed. In the morning they sailed southwest. They
entered a channel between two island, one of which called “Matan”
and the other “Subu”.

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 Francisco Albo’s Log

 They sailed down that channel and turned westward and anchored at
the town of Subu where they many days and obtained provisions and
entered into a peace-pact with local king.
 The town of Subu was on an east-west direction with the islands of
Suluan and Mazava but between Mazava and Subu, there were so
many shallows that the boats could not go westward directly but has
to go in a round-about way.

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✣ In Albo’s account, the location of
Mazava fits the location of the
island of Limasawa, at the
southern tip of Leyte, Albo does
not mention the First Mass, but
only the planting of cross upon a
mountain-top which could be
seen three island to west and
southwest which also fits the
southern end of Limasawa.

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 Antonio Pigafetta’s Log

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 Antonio Pigafetta’s Log

 Saturday, 16 March 1521, Magellan’s expedition sighted a “high

land” named “Zamal” which was westwards of Ladrones (now the
Marianas) Islands.
 Sunday, March 17, “The following day” after sighting Zamal Island,
they landed on “another island which was uninhabited” and which
lay “to the right” (which means south or southwest) of the above-
mentioned island of “Zamal.” The name of this island was
“Humunu” (Humonhon).
 On the same day (Sunday, March 17, Magellan named the entire
archipelafo the “Island of Saint Lazarus”

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 Antonio Pigafetta’s Log

 Monday, March 18, In the afternoon of their second day on that

island, they saw a boat coming towards them with nine men in it.
Magellan asked for food supplies, and men went away, promising
to bring rice and other supplies in “four days”.
 There were two springs of water on that island of Homonhon.
Magellan renamed the island and called it the “Watering Place of
Good Omen” (Acquada la di bouni segnialli).
 Friday, March 22, At noon the natives returned. This time thet were
in two boats, and they brought food supplies.
 Magellan’s expedition stayed eight days at Homonhon: from
Sunday, March 17, to the Monday of the following wee, March 25.

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 Antonio Pigafetta’s Log

 Monday, March 25, In the afternoon, Magellan left the island of

Homonhon. This day was the feast-day of the incarnation, also called
“Our Lady’s Day”.
 The route taken by the expedition after leaving Homonhon was
towards southwest, between four islands, namely; Cenalo,
Hiunanghan, Ibusson and Albarien. Past those islands. They left
Homonhon sailing westwards towards Leyte, then followed the Leyte
coast southward, passing between Hinuson, then continued
southward, then turning westward to “Mazaua”
 Thursday, March 28, In the morning of Holy Thursday, they anchored
off an island where the previous night they had seen a bonfire. That
island is called “Mazaua”
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 Antonio Pigafetta’s Log

 They remained seven days in Mazaua Island.

 Thursday, April 4, they left Mazaua, bound for Cebu. They were
guided by king of Mazaua who sailed in his own boat.
 At Gatinghan they sailed westwards to the three islands of the
Camotes Group (Poro, Pasihan and Ponson).
 From the Camotes Islands they sailed southwards towards “Zubu”
 Sunday, April 7, at noon they entered the harbor of “Zubu”(Cebu). It
had taken them three days to negotiate the journey from Mazaua
northwards to the Camotes Islands and then southwards to Cebu.

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✣ It must be pointed out that both
Albo and Pigafetta’s
testimonies coincide and
corroborate each other.
Pigafetta gave more details on
what they did during their
weeklong stay at Mazaua.

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 Pigafetta and Seven days in Mazaua

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 Pigafetta and Seven days in Mazua

 “Holy Thursday”, March 28, in the morning they anchored near an

island where they had seen light the night before a small boat came
with eight natives. The natives paddled away, but two hours later two
larger boats came, in one of which the native king sat under an
awning mats. In the afternoon Spanish ships weighed anchored and
came closer to shore near the native king’s village.
 Friday, March 29, “Next Day. Holy Friday” Magellan sent his slave
interpreter ashore in a small boat to ask the king if he could provide
the expedition with food supplies and to say that they had come as
friends not enemies. The king himself came in a boat with six or eight
of his men. After, the native king and his comapnions returned
ashore, bringing with them two members of Magellan’s expedition as
guests. One of them was Pigafetta.
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 Pigafetta and Seven days in Mazua

 Saturday, March 30, The following morning Pigafetta and his

companion took leave of their hosts and returned to the ships.
 Sunday, March 31, “Early in the morning of Sunday, the last of
March, Easter day”, Magellan sent the priest ashore with some men
to prepare for the Mass. After the celebration, they returned to the
ship to have noon-day meal, but returned in the afternoon to plant
the cross on the summit of the highest hill wherein the king of
Mazaua and the king of Butuan is present.
 Monday, April 1, Magellan sent men ashore to help with the harvest,
but no work was done that day because two kings were sleeping off
their drinking bout the night before.

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 Pigafetta and Seven days in Mazua

 Tuesday, April 2 and Wednesday, April 3, Work on the harvest

during the next two days
 Thursday, April 4, They leave Mazaua, bound for Cebu

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✣ Miguel A. Bernard in his work
Butuan or Limasawa: The site
of the First Mass in the
Philippines: A Reexamination
of Evidence (1981) lays down
the argument that in the
Pigafetta account, a crucial
aspect of Butuan was not
mentioned – the river.

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