Chapter 3:

One Past but Many Histories;

Controversies and
Conflicting Views in
Philippine History
LESSON 8
BAPTISM
COMMUNION
WEDDING
SCHOOL PROGRAMS
SUNDAY MASS
THE SITE OF FIRST
MASS
Ferdinand Voyage
Magellan Around the
World

To find the
Moluccas
Purpose?
Island
 Butuan,
First claim Agusan Del
Norte

The first Eucharistic celebration was held near

the mouth of the Agusan River where a brick
pillar was mounted to serve as a monument.
 Second Limasawa,
Southern
claim Leyte

It was held on Limasawa Southern Leyte on

an Easter Sunday.
 Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 20) –
The National Historical Commission of the
Philippines (NHCP) sustained findings that the
Limasawa Island in Southern Leyte as the site of
the 1521 Easter Sunday Mass, the first Catholic
mass in the country.
The first catholic mass The first mass was
happened on March 31, officiated by Father
1521. Pedro Valderama.
 The NHCP panel examined the
Italian and French version of
Italian chronicler Antonio
Pigafetta's accounts in the
Magellan-Elcano expedition,
which showed the coordinates of
the 1521 Easter Sunday Mass are
closer to Limasawa (Mazaua).
 1. Account of Francisco Albo

He was one of the pilot

in one of the Magellan ship
(TRINIDAD) and he was one
of the 18 survivor who
accompanied Sebastian
Elcano in going back to
Spain.
 On the 16th day of March (1521) as they
sailed in a westernly course from Ladrones, they
saw land towards the northwest; but owing to
many shallow places they didn't approach it.
They found later that its name was Yunagan.
They went instead that
same day southwards to
another small island
named Suluan and there
they anchored. They saw
some canoes but they fled
to the Spaniards approach.
Departing from those 2 islands, they sailed
westward to an uninhabited island of
"Gada" where they took in a supply of wood
and water.

The sea around that island was free from

shallows.
From that island they sailed westwards towards
a large island names Seilani that was inhabited
and was known to have gold.

Seilani, as Pigafetta calls it as Ceylon, was known

as the Island of Leyte.

Sailing southwards along the coast of that large

island of Seilani, they turned southwest to a small
island called " Mazava".
The people of that island of Mazava we're very good.
There the Spaniards planted a cross upon a mountain
top, and from there they were shown three islands to
the west and Southwest, where they were told there
was was much gold. They showed us how the gold
was gathered, which came in small pieces like peas
and lentils.
From Mazava they sailed northwards Seilani. They followed the
coast of Seilani in a Northwesternly direction, ascending up to
10 degrees of latitude where they saw three small islands.
From there they sailed westwards some 10 leagues, and there
they saw 3 islets, where they dropped anchor for the night. In
the morning, they sailed southwest some 12 leagues, down to a
latitude of 10 and one-third degrees. There they entered a
channel between 2 islands, one of which was called "Matan"
and the other "Subu".
They sailed down that channel and then turned
westward, anchored at the town (la villa) of
Subu where they stayed more days and obtained
provisions and entered into a peace-pact the
local king.
BLOOD COMPACT
 March 29 - a Good Friday, a
"kasikasi" (blood compact) between
Ferdinand Magellan and Rajah Kulambu,
emissary of the King of Limasawa, an island
off the coast of Southern Leyte, sealed an
implicit political pact between Spain and the
Philippines.
 2. Account of Antonio Pigafetta
He was a famous
Italian traveler who
studied navigation and
known by the name of
Antonio Lambardo or
Francisco Antonio
Pigafetta.
• Saturday, March 16, 1521

Magellans expedition sighted a high

land named "Zamal“(now Marianas
Island) which was some 300 leagues
westward Ladrones.
• Sunday, March 17

The following day after sighting Zamal

Island, they landed on another island
which was uninhabited and which lay" to
the right " of the above-mentioned island
of" Zamal ".
• Sunday, March 17

Magellan named the entire

archipelago the "Islands of Saint
Lazarus", the reason being that it
was Sunday in the Lenten Season
when the gospel assigned for the
Mass and the liturgical office was
the 11th chapter of St. John, which
tells of the raising of Lazarus from
the dead.
• March 18

In the afternoon of their second day on that

island, they saw about coming towards them with 9
men in it. And exchange of gifts was affected.
Magellan asked for food supplies, and the men
went away, promising to bring rice and other
supplies in four days.
There were 2 springs of water on that island of
Homonhon Island (Humunu).

They saw there some indications that there was

gold in these islands. Consequently, Magellan
renamed the island and called it the "Watering
Place of the Good Omen”.
• Friday, March 22

At noon the natives returned. This time they

were in 2 boats, and they brought food
supplies.

Magellans expedition stayed 8 days at

Homonhon: from Sunday, March 17, to the
Monday of the following week, 25 of March.
• Monday, March 25
In the afternoon, the expedition weighed anchor and left
the island of Homonhon. In the ecclesiastical calendar,
this day was the feast day of the Incarnation, also called
the feast of the Annunciation and therefore "Our Ladys
Day". On this day, as they were about to weigh anchor,
and accident happened to Pigafetta: he fell into the water
but was rescued. He attributed his narrow escape from
death as grace obtained through the intercession of the
Blessed Virgin Mary on her feast day.
The route taken by the expedition after leaving
Homonhon was toward the west southwest, between 4
islands: namely
Cenalo, Hiunanghan, Ibusson and Albarien

Very probably "Cenalo" is a misspelling in the Italian

manuscript for what Pigafetta in his map calls"Ceilon"
and "Albo" calls "Seilano": namely the island of Leyte.
Hiunanghan seemed to Pigafetta to be a separate island,
but is actually on the mainland of Leyte (Ceilon).
On the other hand, Hibuson (Pigafettas Ibusson) is an
island east of Leytes southern tip. Thus, it is easy to see
what Pigafetta meant by sailing "towards west
towards" past those islands. They left Homonhon said
westward towards Leyte, then followed the Leyte coast
southwest passing between the island of Hibuson on
their portside Hiunangan Bay on their starboard, and
then continued southwest then turning westward to
"Mazaua".
• Thursday, March 28

In the morning of Holy Thursday, March 28, they

anchored off an island where the previous night they
seen a light or a bonfire. That island lies in a latitude of 9
two-thirds towards the Arctic Pole (North) and in a
longitude of 162 degrees from the line of demarcation. It
is 25 leagues from the Aquada and is called Mazaua.

They remained 7 days on Mazaua Island.

• April 4, 1521

They left Mazaua bound for Cebu and guided by their

King who sailed on his own boat. All throughout their
route, it took them past five island namely:
1. Ceylon
2. Bohol
3. Canighan
4. Baibai
5. Gatighan
Christians recall the events leading up to Jesus'
death by crucifixion and, according to their
faith, his Resurrection.
3. Account of Francisco Combes
The first time that the royal standards of the
Faith were seen to fly in this island (of Mindanao]
was when the Archipelago was first discovered by
the Admiral Alonso de Magallanes. He followed a
new and difficult route [across the Pacific],
entering by the Strait of Siargao, formed by that
island and Leyte, landing at the island of
Limasawa which is at the entrance of that Strait.
4. Account of Francisco Collins

On Easter Day, in the territory of Butuan, the

first Mass ever offered in these parts was
celebrated and a cross planted. Magellan then
took formal possession of the Islands in the
name of the Emperor and of the Crown of
Castille.
ACTIVITY

Direction: Use ¼ sheet of paper. (Name,

Course and Section)

1. What makes site of the first mass

significant to our history?