• With several possibilities of interpretating

the past .
• This can be define as a way of look at
historical event, personalities ,development,
cultures and societies from different
perspective.
 1521 Eastern
Sunday mass
controversy

Prepared by: Leandro A.

Fernandez Jr.
Primary Resources to
the First Mass in the
Philippines

• Antonio Pigafetta
• Francisco Albo
• Sebastian Elcano
• The Survivor Crew of
the Magellan
Expedition
• The National Historical Commission of
the Philippine revisited the controversy
surrounding the site of the First Mass
• National Historical Institute – The issued
about exact location of said mass
according to NHI ( National Historical
Association) through the panel expert :
the first headed by former Supreme Court
Justice Emilio Gancayco (1995) and the
second by historian Dr. Benito J. Lagarda
( 2008)
• Both panel ruled that the site of the 1521
Easter Sunday Mass was in Limasawa
Island, now Municipality in Southern
Leyte.
 Reopening of the
Historical Problem
• In 2018, NHCP received a number of
request from various institution, including
the Catholic Bishop’s Conference of the
Philippines.
• To re examine the earlier decision of the
NHI ( National Historical Institute
• The request were made in the light of the
claim that there were new primary resources
• NHCP ( National Historical Commission of
the Philippine) also saw the necessity of
reopening a new inquiry because of the
forthcoming commemoration of the 500th
anniversary of the introduction of
Christianity in the Philippine in 2021.
 NHCP- CBCP Joint Panel
Historian
• In November 2018, the NHCP created a new panel of
expert reexamined the historical controversy and review Artist
the findings of the previous panel
• It was headed by historian and National Artist for
Paleographer
Literature Dr. Resil Mojares. Translator
• The member included national and internationally
recognized historian, paleographer and translator. NHCP
- Dr. Danilo M. Gerona ( Partido State University)
CBCP
- Dr. Francis M. Navarro ( Ateneo De Manila University )
- Dr. Carlos Madrid Alvare - Piner ( University of Guam) Archivist
- Fr. Antonio Franciso B. De Castro ( Loyal School of
Theology , CBCP)
Cartographer
- Historian Dr. Jose Victor Z. Torres ( De La Salle Literature
University)
• NHCP Chaiperson Dr. Rene Escalante and Fr. De Historian
Castro Church Historian they are also a panel.
• The Joint Panel make sure that no member of the panel Artist
came from either Agusan Del Norte or Sourthern Leyte Paleographer
• Fr. Milan Ted Torralba ( CBCP Episcopal Commission
for Culture Heritage of the Church) Translator
• Fr. Emil Quilanta, OAR ( Archivist, Augustina
Recollect Archives)
NHCP
• Fr. Amado Tumbali, SJ ( Archivist, Archives of the CBCP
Philippine Province of the Society of Jesus)
• Fr. Antonio Uy, SVD ( Historian) Archivist
• Fr. Albert Flores ( Archivist, Manila Archdiocesan Cartographer
Achieves and Museum)
Literature
Primary Resources
• NQC obtained high resolution digital copy of the
extant Pigafetta manuscript
• Nancy Codex – French version currently kept in Yale
University’s Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript
Library
• Ambrosiana Codex – Italian Version in the Veneranda
Bibliotheque Ambrosiana
• Edward Aryer Collection at New Library in Chicago-
Transcriptions and note made by American Scholar
James Alexander Robertson English Version
• Gines de Mafra and Francisco Albo and Genoese Pilot
• 400th Anniversary of Magellan Elcano Expedition –
Trinidad H. Prado de Tavera Collection
Butuan Proponet
Limasawa in Southern Leyte
 Conclusion
• The Panel unanimously agreed that the
evidence and arguments presented by the
pro- Butuan advocates are not sufficient and
convincing enough to warrants the repeal or
reversal of the ruling on the case by the
NHI, the Panel recommend that Limasawa
Island, Southern Leyte, be sustained as the
site of the 1521 Easter Sunday Mass
Recommendation
• Before it ended its, report , the panel
recommended to the NHCP and to the
Butuan Based scholar to explore further the
historical significance of Butuan as a
precolonial trading center. Butuan has a lot
of archeological artifacts and cultural
traditions that could be used to promote the
city as one of the country’s premier
historical site