The Role of Jesuits in the Spirituality and Development of the Congregation of the

Religious of the Virgin Mary – The First Filipino Congregation for Religious Women

Kurt D. Casas
Master of Arts in History – 1

Xavier University – Ateneo de Cagayan

Historiography 1

Prof. Faina C. Abaya – Ulindang

October 12, 2019

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 ABSTRACT

The extent of the Spanish colonization of the Philippine archipelago can be credited not

only to the might of the Spanish armed forces, but also to the acts of benevolence and sacrifices

of the friars who introduced Christianity to the native inhabitants of the island. Spain’s 3Gs:

God, gold and glory, have been proven to be effective in consolidating the territories the

territories, both conquered and even unconquered, by the Spanish military. One of these religious

orders, the Jesuits, was not only known for their Christianization and educational efforts in the

Philippines through their reducciones, but also for its role in the creation and development of the

first religious congregation or Filipina women through their spiritual guidance and assistance.

This paper argues that the Society of Jesus has a significant contribution in guiding the Beatas

and Recogidas in their spiritual exercises, eventually leading to the establishment, growth and

expansion of the Congregation of the Religious of the Virgin Mary through various works of

mission and ministry in the country and overseas.

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Definition of Terms

1. Reduccion

 An Indian community set up under ecclesiastical or royal authority to facilitate

colonization. Native peoples, many of whom had lived in small villages or

hamlets before contact with Europeans, were forcibly relocated to these new

settlements. At reducciones, Jesuit missionaries and other colonial administrators

attempted to convert Indians to Christianity and to teach them better farming

methods and simple crafts. The Indians lived under a strict regimen and were

required to contribute their labour to various agricultural and construction

enterprises.

2. Beata

 Derived from the Latin word “beatus” which means blessed and was used to refer

to the women during the Spanish period that entered the religious life.

3. Beaterio

 A place which houses the Beatas for their spiritual formation and exercises

4. Recogida

 Women, both married and unmarried, who decided to enter the convent or

congregation to serve the Lord as laywomen.

5. Libertos

 Freed or ransomed slaves of the Muslims in Mindanao, after the Jesuits bought

their freedom and put them in the reducciones.

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 CHAPTER I

Introduction

The Congregation of the Religious of the Virgin Mary or the RVM started with a

significant breakthrough of a Filipino-Chinese mestiza who went against the socio-political

norms of her time, which led to the creation of the first Filipino congregation for religious

women. At present, the RVM has more than 700 members and is considered to be the largest

religious congregation for women in the Philippines. The congregation also engages into various

ministries of which education is the most evident with around 50 RVM schools colleges and

university nation-wide. However, despite all of these, much of the history of the RVM

Congregation is shrouded in silence, but one important aspect stands out: the prominent role of

the Jesuit Fathers.

The lack of historical studies about the RVM prompted Fr. Horario de la Costa, S.J. to

comment that “many tantalizing gaps of her (Mother Ignacia) account remain to be filled out.”

And so he encouraged further research as the “beginning of a continuing effort to bring the

personality of Mother Ignacia, so truly Filipina in her vigour, practicality and charm, into the full

light of history.”

A study, therefore, of the influence of the Society of Jesus on the Spirituality of the RVM

Congregation, as reflected in its constitutions, could shed more light to the identity, roots and

direction of the congregation. Since the Jesuits’ role and rules were closely identified with the

birth and growth of the congregation, a study focusing on the Jesuit constitutions’ influence on

the Beatas’ constitutions would be important in tracing the development of the Beaterio.

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 The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between the Society of Jesus and

the Congregation of the Religious of the Virgin Mary in terms of spirituality and the

development of the RVM as a congregation. In this narrative, the degree of cooperation between

the RVM and Jesuits would also be determined especially on terms of Christianization of the

natives of Mindanao and the education ministry, thus giving a view of the Jesuit guidance and

influence on the RVM as the first religious congregation for Filipina women.

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 CHAPTER 2

Review of Related Literature

Inasmuch as it is a first attempt to make a study of the Jesuit influence on the spirituality

and development of the Congregation of the Religious of the Virgin Mary, there is almost

nothing of a similar nature that it can take hold of to relate to its study. However, this study

makes use of sources, both primary and secondary, concerning the history of the congregation

with the Jesuits. Although not one of these is centered on the Jesuit influence on the RVM, most

of them mentioned the support and guidance of the Jesuits to the RVM sisters and their

cooperation in the missions in Mindanao in the late 19th century.

Among the works are: Pedro Murillo Velarde’s Historia de la Provincia de Filipinas de

la Compania de Jesus (1749); Fr. John N. Schumacher’s From Beaterio to Congregation (1975);

Fr. Pablo Pastell’s Mision de la Compania de las Islas Filipinas (1916); Fr. Jose Arcilla’s Jesuit

Mission Policies in the Philippines: 1859-1899 (1979) and Fr. Horacio dela Costa’s The Jesuits

in the Philippines: 1581-1768 (1961). Although the abovementioned works did not focus on the

Jesuit – RVM relationship and cooperation, all of them have mentioned or briefly discussed the

Society’s support and spiritual guidance to the beatas.

Some secondary sources were also consulted from the books or publications published by

the RVM Congregation: S. Ma. Corazon Ricafrente’s Beaterio Papers: Ignatian Spirituality and

the RVM Life and Constitutions (1987); S. Ma. Consuelo Alvino’s The Spirituality of Mother

Ignacia del Espiritu Santo: 1663-1748 (1981); and S. Ma. Rita Ferraris’ A History of

Congregation of the Sisters of the Blessed Virgin Mary of the Philippines (1969), of which all

have made mention of the Jesuit – RVM cooperation especially in the missions in Mindanao.

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 CHAPTER 3

Method Used

As the study focuses on the Jesuit role in the spirituality and development of the

Congregation of the Religious of the Virgin Mary, the historical method was used. To achieve

this, the researcher gathered the needed data from various sources, both primary and secondary,

mostly written by Jesuit historians and RVM sisters. Some of the materials or sources were

retrieved from the RVM library at the Congregation’s Regional House located at Bulua, Cagayan

de Oro City

Scope and Limitation

This paper focuses on a specific part of the history of the Religious of the Virgin Mary:

the beatas’ cooperation with the Jesuits in the development and spiritual formation of the RVM

congregation – founded in 1684 by a Filipino – Chinese mestiza, Ignacia del Espiritu Santo. The

study started with the pre-hispanic Philippines and the changes brought by the Spanish

colonization and Catholicism. The main points that were discussed are the Jesuit history in the

Philippines, Mother Ignacia’s Jesuit spiritual director, the Jesuits as the spiritual directors of the

Beatas de la Compania, and the first missionary exposure of the Beatas in Mindanao with the

Jesuits. The study only limits its discussion in an argument that the Jesuits had a significant role

in the development and spiritual formation of the Religious of the Virgin Mary.

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 CHAPTER IV

i. Setting the Scene

Contrary to some misconceptions, civilization was already flourishing in the Philippines

even before the arrival of European colonizers. The early Filipinos were already engaging in

economic trade with their neighbouring Asian states especially with the Chinese merchants who

brought porcelain, gold and textiles such as silk. On the other hand, the Arab missionaries’ early

encounter with the Filipinos also resulted to the propagation of Islam in the Philippines – the

religion of the majority of Filipinos before the Spanish colonization, though some artefacts show

that Hinduism also gained its foothold in the pre-hispanic Philippines, more specifically in

Butuan. When it comes to the political aspect, the archipelago was once dominated by numerous

Datus or Rajas – of whom each ruled a barangay or a pre-hispanic political unit in the

Philippines which possesses four elements for it to qualify as an independent state: territory,

people, government and sovereignty. A barangay during the pre-colonial period was composed

of more or less one hundred families and also followed a strict social structure: the ruling class

and the elite were classified as maharlika, freemen as timawa and the slaves were called aliping

sagigilid and aliping namamahay. Generally, the Philippines as a single state did not exist before

the colonization as it was divided into several barangay, kingdoms or sultanates with different

culture, language and religion.

The arrival of Ferdinand Magellan on the shores of Homonhon in 1521 signalled the start

of the socio-cultural changes to be brought by the Spaniards and led to the successful

colonization of the archipelago by Miguel Lopez de Legazpi in 1565 that would last for three

centuries and influence almost all aspects of Filipino way of life until the present day. Permanent

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settlements, like the walled-city of Intramuros, were established and trade of goods and services

with the Chinese, reached record high. Spain first introduced a centralized form of government to

the Filipinos. Under the Spanish rule, the whole archipelago was governed by a central

government headed by a Spanish governor general sent by Spain from the Viceroyalty of Nueva

Espana or the present-day Mexico. Social structure and mobility was heavily influenced by race

or ethnicity: the highest government position a Filipino can attain is only gobernadorcillo since

only the peninsulares or Spaniards born in Spain were allowed to become a governor general.

Filipinos, especially those in urban areas, quickly adopted a Hispanic way of life.

However, if there has been a very powerful change in the Philippine culture and society

during the Spanish period, it was neither the type of government nor the language but it was

Catholicism – one of the main guiding principles and foundation of the Spanish conquest of its

newly found lands. The religion brought by the Spaniards shaped the destiny of the archipelago

as an Asian Hispanic colony in terms of social structure, culture, tradition, education, family,

even government and economy. The Christianization of the native population took place even

before the official colonization in 1565, as Ferdinand Magellan already did some religious

conversion of the natives in the islands of Cebu, Bohol and Leyte in 1521. However, majority of

the Christianization efforts were done by the different foreign religious orders which came here

in the Philippines, such as the Franciscans, Dominicans, Recollects and Jesuits. The concept of

reducciones was employed by these religious orders, especially the Jesuits, to gather the native

population and organize a small community aimed at teaching the natives farming methods,

basic households and literacy, and the Catholic way of life. These religious missions and

conversions resulted to less native resistance and easier integration of the natives to the newly-

introduced socio-political and economic systems in the archipelago.

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ii. Religious Orders for Men in the Philippines

With every contingent of soldiers in the Spanish government sent to colonize the

Philippines came the cross-bearing “long-robes.” In many instances, the cross conquered where

the sword failed. One Philippine historian comments on the early Spanish missionaries:

“Historical writers justly hailed these apostle heroes for their achievements, not only in religion,

but also in education, economics, arts and science – achievements which are really unique and

without parallel in history.”

The trail-blazers in the Philippines among the religious orders of men were the

Augustinians who came in 1565 under the leadership of Legaspi’s pilot, Fray Andres de

Urdaneta. The province of the order that developed from the mission bore the name Santisimo

Nombre de Jesus.

In 1577, Fray Pedro de Alfaro led the Franciscans and laid the foundation of the

Provincia de San Geregorio Magno and the Jesuits followed in 1581 which expanded their

missions to schools and parishes.

The first Dominican to reach the Philippines was Bishop Salazar in 1581. The regular

mission was established in 1587 under the patronage of the Holy Rosary. On the other hand, the

Recoletos were led by Fray Juan de San Jeronimo in 1606 who established the Provincia de San

Nicolas de Tolentino, while the Benedictines came to Surigao in 1895.

These religious orders laid the foundation of the wide-scale propagation of Catholicism in

the Philippines, bringing radical changes still evident today in the country’s society, culture,

tradition and education. Thus, a large part of the colonization process of the Spaniards and the

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integration of the natives into the Hispanic way of life in the Philippines were made possible by

the Spanish friars who proved that the Cross is sometimes mightier than the sword.

iii. Jesuit History in the Philippines

The first batch of Jesuits which arrived in the Philippines in 1581 was from the Mexican

Jesuit province and was led by Fr. Antonio Sedeño, the Superior. His companions were Fr.

Alonso Sanchez and Brother Nicolas Gallardo.

In 1585, the first novice was accepted, Juan Garcia Pacheco, a Spaniard. In 1591, mission

stations were established in Balayan, Batangas, in Taytay, and in Antipolo, Rizal. In 1593, the

first Jesuit mission stations were established in the Visayas in Tibauan, Panay. There, Fr. Pedro

Chirino opened the first school of the Society of Jesus in the Philippines.

In June of 1595, Fr. General Claudio Acquaviva made the Philippine Mission into a Vice

Province dependent on the Province of Mexico. Fr. Sedeño was its first Vice-Provincial. In

September of the same year, the College of Manila was opened in the Jesuit compound in

Intramuros on Calle Real (later Calle General Luna). The College offered courses in grammar,

philosophy, theology, and canon law.In the same year, residences of Jesuits were established in

Cebu, in Leyte, and in Samar.

In 1605, just 24 years after the arrival of the first Jesuits, Fr. General Acquaviva made the

Philippine Vice Province into an independent Province. By that time, the Province had 67

members who labored in one college of higher studies (the College of Manila), one residential

seminary (San Jose), seven mission residences, and two mission stations.

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 In 1656, 50 years after the establishment of the Province and 75 years after the founding

of the Mission, the membership of the Province had risen to 108 (74 priests, 11 scholastics, and

23 coadjutor Brothers). There were five colleges, one novitiate, one Seminary-College, nine

mission residences, and the spiritual administration of 73 towns. In these 75 years, 372 Jesuits

had come to the Philippines from Europe and New Spain. 143 Jesuits had been admitted to and

had persevered in the Society in the Philippines. Three had been received as priests, 23 as

scholastics, and 117 as coadjutor brothers.

In 1768, the Jesuits were banished from the Philippines. On February 27, 1767, King

Charles III of Spain had issued a decree banishing the Society of Jesus from Spain and the

Spanish dominions. This decree reached Manila on May 17, 1768. Between 1769 and 1771, the

Jesuits in the Philippines were transported to Spain and from there deported to Italy. The

possessions of the Province were declared forfeit to the crown except the obras pias, which were

maintained as ecclesiastical property. Among these was the College of San Jose, which

continued to exist, first under the administration of the secular clergy and later under that of the

Dominicans. The Jesuits were only able to restore their mission in the Philippines on June 14,

1859; ninety years after their expulsion.

iv. Religious Life for Women in Spanish Philippines

The Vatican II has come to an end and urged the Holy See urged the Catholic Church and

religious around the world to commit themselves to renewal and adaptation. Christianity

awakened to a deeper realization that culture has a specific contribution to the understanding of

the Mystery of Christ. With this move towards indigenization, its purpose is not to strip itself

totally of its “foreign” garb in Asia but to find out how culture can be brought to its maximum

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potential by adding in it the Christian dimension, hence, its goal is a Christianization of culture;

namely an integration of it into the daily Christian life and worship of people. To achieve this,

the Church is exhorted to open a dialogue with life which includes culture and religion. Her aim

is not to identify itself with culture but to maintain contacts with varied cultures.

In 1684, a big and significant step was taken by a Chinese-Filipino mestiza from Binondo

when she founded the first all-Filipino religious congregation for women in the Philippines.

Mother Ignacia del Espiritu Santo, against all odds and the fact that racial discrimination exists

even in the practice of religious life, laid the foundation of the Congregation of the Religious of

the Virgin Mary; the oldest and largest Filipino congregation in the Philippines at present with

more than 700 members and at least 50 educational institutions scattered all over the archipelago.

Ignacia’s radical response was a daring break from what was common and ordinary in the

Philippine Church of the seventeenth century. For at that time, the native women or yndias were

considered inferior to the Spanish women and lacking in maturity and in the capacity for full

participation in religious life. At least this was what Spanish colonial government thought and so

it made policies which entrenched that impression. Religious life was closed to native women.

This radical distinction was turned by Mother Ignacia del Espiritu Santo into a stepping

stone for the native Filipinos to follow their own spiritual aspirations and pursue a distinctly

Filipina life of holiness and dedication to the full. This in itself was a significant contribution to

the Philippines in general, to Filipino womanhood and at the same time as a protest against

colonial discrimination and a refutation of the prevailing prejudices against the natives. Inspired

by God to “serve His Majesty”, Ignacia’s response marked a turning point in the life of women

in the Philippine Church.

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 By 1700s, there were three houses in Manila dedicated to the service of God: Santa Clara,

a monastery; the Beaterio de la Santa Catalina, and the Beaterio de la Compania. The first two

were exclusively for Spanish vocations, while the third was founded by and for the indio. The

Casa de Recogidas as the Beaterio de la Compania was sometimes called gave the native woman

a place where she may serve the Lord in the manner of a religious.

v. Mother Ignacia and the RVM

The Beaterio was established silently and unobtrusively. It had its humble beginnings in a

Chinese mestiza from Binondo, Manila, Ignacia del Espiritu Santo, who was born in 1663. Her

parents wished her to be married, settle down and pursue the ordinary life of women at that time.

But Ignacia had another preference and plans.

She went to the College of Manila and there made her confession to Fr. Klein of the

Society of Jesus. One wonders why she went to a Jesuit when she belonged to the parish of

Binondo run by the Dominicans. In fact, she was baptized in the Parian Church by a Dominican,

Fr. Alberto Collares, and was most probably taught catechism there by the Dominican friars.

Mother Ignacia started her journey to the religious life in 1684 and directed by the divine

inspiration and guidance of her spiritual director, Fr. Paul Klein, S.J. At the age of twenty-one,

Ignacia left her family and friends to establish a group of Filipinas dedicated to religious life.

The first members of this religious institution were her niece Cristina Gonzales, and two young

girls, Teodora de Jesus and Ana Margarita whose piety and penance attracted more Filipinas to

join the group and were later known as Beatas.

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 Attracted by Mother Ignacia’s unobtrusive and virtuous life, other natives and mestizos

joined her. They frequented the college church to assist at mass, receive sacraments, and perform

their spiritual exercises and devotions.

In 1732, the Archbishop of Manila approved the rules then in use among the Beatas to

accommodate the increasing number which numbered fifty in 1748 when its foundress, Mother

Ignacia del Espiritu Santo passed away. The congregation was granted proteccion civil by King

Ferdinand IV on November 25, 1755 which formally established and recognized it as the first

all-Filipino religious congregation for women in the Philippines.

vi. The Beaterio and the Society of Jesus

The beginnings of the RVM Congregation and its subsequent history can never be told

without mentioning the Society of Jesus. The pervasive presence and major role of the sons of

Ignatius in the birth, growth and development of the Congregation is best summed up by Mother

Foundress Ignacia del Espiritu Santo herself in her “Allegation” to the Archbishop of Manila for

the approval of her first Rules:

I, Ignacia del Espiritu Santo, at present the Superior of the native women residing

at the Beaterio under the direction of the Reverend Fathers of the Society of

Jesus, hereby respectfully testify before your Lordship:

That as far back as 1685, several poor native young women started to live

together who petitioned the Reverend Fathers of the Society of Jesus to help them

in their desire to serve God;

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 Since then the Fathers have attended to them, encouraged them, and showed them

the way to perfection, and have continued to give them the same help…

I … entreat and recommend to the Reverend Father Provincial of the Society of

Jesus , that for the love of God, he keeps us in their charge, under his Province,

so that thus the Society may continue the spiritual guidance of these native

women.

Indeed, the Beaterio was born and nourished under the “luxuriant tree” that was the

Society of Jesus. From there it got its “soul and life.” With the help of the Society, it grew,

developed and fructified. Indeed, it was through one of the sons of Ignatius that this beautiful

happening came into being.

The Beatas were so closely linked to the Society of Jesus that they attended the church

liturgies in the Jesuit College and performed their devotions there. The Jesuits guided and helped

them in their state of life and they listened to the exhortations given by the Jesuits. The Beatas

earned the appellation “Beatas de la Compania” and the beaterio was known as the “Beaterio de

la Compania.” – titles which manifests the deep and essential Jesuit influence to the Beatas not

only because of the physical proximity of the Beaterio to the Jesuit College nor the frequent

attendance of the Beatas in the Jesuit church, but most importantly due to the Jesuit influence on

the foundation and spiritual formations of the Beatas de la Compania.

As early as 1738, a contemporary of Mother Ignacia and her first Beatas wrote:

There is a Beaterio, in the city of Manila, of respectable Indian women with their

mistress, who have withdrawn withdrawn from the world, and are employed in

holy living and exercises. Although the fathers of the Society do not have any

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 charge of it and its government, because of the prohibition in their statutes, it is

through the common error of the crowd, called “Las Beatas de la Compania”, for

they hear mass, confess and receive communion in their church at the college of

the society.

In his letter to the Cathedral Chapter in 1758, the Governor General required that statutes

of the “Beaterio de Jesuitas” be submitted for the purpose of recognition. The “daughters of

Loyola” in the “Beaterio de San Ignacio” were similarly known from the very start of the

foundation.

The guidance of the Jesuits did not stop at helping the Beatas draw up the first set of rules

of constitution but also helping them seek church recognition, canonical erection, Decree of

Praise and Pontifical approval. However, in spite of this close collaboration and association,

there was no juridical connection between the Beaterio and the Society of Jesus for the rules of

the latter forbade it. The Society had no jurisdiction over the Beatas nor did the Beatas owe the

Jesuits obedience. Therefore, the Jesuits’ role in the beaterio was purely on spiritual guidance.

vii. The RVM and the Jesuit Expulsion

The Beaterio met its first major challenge as a congregation in 1768 when the Society of

Jesus was ordered to leave the Philippines and also signalled the loss of the Beatas’ spiritual

directors and benefactors. Brought up and guided from the beginning by the Jesuits, the Beatas

felt suddenly deprived of the source of “spirit, life and sustenance” after eighty-four years of

working together with their Jesuit brothers.

The Beaterio was then under the direct supervision of the governor general although it

was the Archbishop of Manila closely supervised the Beatas. The financial benefits that the

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Beatas received through the Jesuit benefactors ended with the Jesuit expulsion, but various

churchmen came to the rescue to support the Beaterio and its apostolates.

The absence of the Jesuits also created a gap in the history of the apostolic works

conducted by the Beaterio. There is no evidence to show whether the education and retreat

apostolates were continued or stopped. Most likely, the educational work was continued but

consisted mainly of religion, writing, reading and feminine domestic work.

viii. The Beaterio under the Provisor de Manila

The expulsion of the Jesuits from the Philippines by the decree if 1767 resulted in a

change of directors for the Beaterio de la Compania. The archbishop of Manila delegated the

charge of the house to the provisor of the archdiocese. This state of affairs continued until 1900

when a chapter of the superiors requested that the Jesuits resume the direction of the Beatas. The

priora of the Beaterio was the immediate superior of the house, but the provisor, or in some

instances, the capellan acted as the higher superior.

Together with the expulsion of the Jesuits, the regular source of income of the Beaterio

was also affected. Thus, the financial support of for the Beatas came through other sources: the

Most Rev. Juan dela Fuente yepes, which ceased in 1847; Don Manuel dela Funete Rosilo, began

in 1863 and ended in 1888; the Most Rev. Domingo de Valencia, until 1847; and from a. Inese

del Barrio Escalada, from 1848 to 1900.

ix. Jesuit Return and Beaterio Missionary Expansion

The Jesuits were able to return to the Philippines and resume their missions in 1859

which also began the wider scope and expression of the apostolic orientation of the Beatas. In the

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account from Mision de la Compania de Jesus by P. Pablo Pastells, S.J., the Beatas were referred

to for the first time as “sisters” when they set sail for Tamontaca in Cotabato in 1874.

The Tamontaka mission is particularly significant to for the Beaterio: it marked the

beginning of its missionary expansion. This new development and direction is attributed to the

Fathers of the Society of Jesus so that they can be considered as the co-founders of the missions

in Mindanao specifically of the Tirurays of Tamontaka.

The Tamontaka mission was followed in quick succession by Dapitan (1880), Dipolog

(1890), Zamboanga (1894), Lubungan (1895), Butuan (1896) and Surigao(1897) which were all

Jesuit mission territories. Wherever the Jesuits went, the Beatas followed to assist in religious

instruction, teach catechism to the natives, show them how to work and live properly, prepare

them for sacraments of baptism and marriage, help conduct retreats, and act as intermediaries for

the priests’ closer contact with the people.

The Rescate in Tamontaca

The famine in Tamontaca, Cotabato of 1872 opened a new field of apostolate to the

restored Jesuits in the Philippines: the ransom of slaves. Under the presidency of the Archbishop

of Manila, a committee was formed: Junta para el Rescate de Ninos Infieles. The freed children,

libertos, needed the opening of an orphanage. While the Jesuits took care of the boys, the girls

were put under the care of the Beatas. In a report to the Archbishop of Manila in 1882, Fr. Jose

Ignacio Guerrico, S.J. states:

The girls live in another house, engaged in chores of fields as well as other

proper to their sex. They are directed by the religious or Beatas if the Beaterio de

Manila who had volunteered spontaneously for this labour of charity.

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 The work of the Beatas in the orphanage was deeply appreciated by their Jesuit co-

workers. The girls’ orphanage was transferred to another site in 1884.

The Mission in Dapitan

As a response to the decree of 1863 which mandate the primary education for the native

children, the Beatas were sent by the Jesuits to Dapitan in 1889 to run the municipal school for

girls. Fr. Pablo Pastells, S.J. records their arrival in his collection of Jesuit missionary accounts:

Four Mares of the Beaterio de la Compania de Maria in Manila arrived in

Dapitan on the 22nd of February onboard the ship Gravina. They were Agapita

Domingo, superior; Maxima de Leon, teacher of girls with a title obtained from

the Normal School in Manila; Prudencia Lopez and Antera de la Cruz. The

principalia of the town gave them a splendid reception on the shore with a band

of musicians. The entire populace gathered, drawn either by interest or curiosity.

the Beatas were installed in a good house expressly bought for their use.

Some remarkable reports were also made by the people of the town, especially from the

young girls and children who had received the Beatas’ instruction and Christian education.

The Mission in Zamboanga and Butuan

The Beatas took charge of the Zamboanga municipal school in 1893, according to Father

Pastells, to prevent the school from falling into the hands of “una maestra mala.” The people’s

expectation of the Beatas’ work was as much as those in Dapitan: “Tambien esperaba que

produceria como lo produjo otra muy notable en Dapitan…” The problem of accepting

recogidas from among converted moras necessitated an appeal to the Beatas of Tamontaxa who

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were experienced with their libertas. At the outbreak of the Spanish – American War in 1898,

Tamontaca was abandoned, and the Jesuits brought the Beatas to join the Zamboanga

community. Later, the Tamontaca community occupied the abandoned convent at Tetuan until

they went to Manila. On the other hand, the municipal school for girls was taken over by the

Beatas just before the outbreak of the Philippine revolution.

x. The RVM Congregation Today

The Congregation of the Religious Mary has continued to grow ever since, being able to

reach all regions of the country and even establishing overseas missions in Indonesia, East

Timor, Pakistan, Ghana and Italy. At present, RVM is the largest religious congregation for

women in the Philippines with over 700 members who are engaged in the congregation’s various

ministries: education, retreat, dormitory, social and overseas.

The most wide-spread and successful ministry of the congregation is education, having

the most number of schools among all other religious congregation in the Philippines – over fifty

schools and colleges and one university. The educational thrust of RVM schools involves an

integral process towards the intended Transformative Ignacian Marian Education, which

encompasses inclusive education that promotes and respects diversity in all aspects of life.

Transformative Ignacian Marian Education also involves responsible partnership to sustain

national and global leverage to connect students to the different social context and to respond

appropriately to contemporary issues for improvement of life especially those favouring the

disadvantaged sectors of society.

At present, the sisters of the Congregation of the Religious of the Virgin Mary continue

to embody the values started by Mother Ignacia and nurtured by the Ignatian spirituality.

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 CHAPTER V

Conclusion and Analysis

The presence of the Spanish colonizers in the Philippine archipelago, together with the

religion brought by the Spanish friars did not only bring significant changes to the Filipino

people’s culture, tradition and language but also deepened the sense of spirituality of the

Filipinos which also caused a surge of nationalism and women empowerment when subjected to

some of the colonizers’ racial-biased socio-political policies.

Mother Ignacia’s defiance of the social norm during her time shows her courage to

challenge of what is “normal” and expected from a native woman in a male – dominated society

during the Spanish period in the Philippines. It also exposed the level of discrimination of the

European colonizers to the native settlers of the archipelago, who even deprived the Filipinos of

the right to enter the religious life, the right to serve God as a religious. However, the Philippines

as a Spanish colony is not an all – dark chapter of our country’s history. The majority of the

Filipinos did not become Catholics through force and violence but as a fruit of labor and

sacrifices of the Spanish friars from the different religious orders, especially the Jesuits who even

took part in the formation and development of the first Filipino religious congregation for

women – the Congregation of the Religious of the Virgin Mary.

The history of the RVM congregation would be incomplete without mentioning the

Jesuits of the Society of Jesus. The Society’s role in the birth of the RVM started with Fr. Klein’s

guidance to Mother Ignacia, setting the first set of rules or constitution of the Beaterio and has

continued to the various fields and ministries such as the Christianization and education of

Mindanao. I believe that the Jesuits’ tolerance and openness to the native population was the

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reason of the Beatas decision to seek guidance and work with the Jesuits, together with a

common factor: the Ignatian spirituality, since the assistance of the Jesuits was mainly focused to

the spiritual direction of the community and the direction of the spiritual exercises.

Had the Jesuits refused to support and house the Beatas and recogidas in their college, it

would have been extremely difficult or even impossible for the Beaterio to exist as the all other

religious congregation, both for men and women, prohibited the admission of the natives into

religious life and if ever permitted, indios were only allowed to become servants in the different

Spanish-exclusive Beaterios. The Jesuits certainly had a huge role in the birth of the

congregation who helped in laying the foundation of the congregation.

The Jesuit missions in Mindanao had also given the RVM sisters an opportunity to

participate and expand their congregation’s mission to Mindanao. I believe that it was also the

beginning of the congregation’s most successful ministry – education. The Jesuits’ decision to

send the RVM sisters to manage schools for girls in Mindanao allowed its members to be trained

and exposed in its new mission: to provide an integral and transformative Ignacian – Marian

Catholic education especially to the youth.

Undoubtedly, the Society of Jesus and its support and guidance for the RVM throughout

the centuries had helped the congregation to attain its spiritual maturity and develop into its

present state: a religious congregation committed to serve God through witnessing faith, passion

for excellence and an attitude for humble service. The Jesuits’ contribution to the identity and

formation of the RVM Congregation is as big as Spain and Catholicism’s influence to the present

Filipino culture and society.

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Arizala, P. [Letter of the Archbishop Pedro de la Santisima Trinidad Martinez Arizala to
Ferdinand IV, King of Spain dated July 19, 1748]. Beaterio Papers. 360-364.
Arcilla, J. S. (1979). Jesuit Mission Policies in the Philippines: 1859-1899. Philippine Studies,
176-197.
Blair, E.H., Robertson, A. (1906). The Philippine Islands, 1498-1898. Volume XLIV. Arthur H.
Clark Company. Ohio.
Del Castillo, M. [Letter to the Archbishop dated September 22, 1812]. Beaterio Papers. 365-366.
De la Costa, H., Schumacher, J.N. (1979). The Filipino Clergy: Historical Studies and Future
Perspectives. Loyola Papers 12. Loyola School of Theology. Manila.
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Foronda, M. (1963). Through the Centuries with Mother Ignacia Foundress of the Religious of
the Virgin Mary. RVM Committee on Publication. Quezon City
Murillo, V. (1749). Historia de la Provincia de Filipinas de la Compania de Jesus: Segunda Parte.
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Pastells, P.(1916). Mision de la Compania de las Islas Filipinas: Obra del Rescate de Ninos de
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Schumacher, J. N. (1975). From Beaterio to Congregation. Philippine Studies: Historical and
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