Faith and Action: Beatas and Contemporary Women in Religion

Pananampalataya at Pagkilos: Ang mga Beata at Kontemporaryong Kababaihang Relihiyoso

Despite attempts to eradicate the Babaylan, they found ways to practice their spirituality within the new religion. Some became Hermanas (sisters), while the women feeling a higher calling became Beatas or "blessed women," a term for those living devout lives. Some religious orders ostracized these women, prompting them to establish beaterios as their communal sanctuaries.

Mother Ignacia del Espiritu Santo

(01 February 1663 – 10 September 1748)

Founded the Beaterio de la Compania de Jesus (now the Congregation of the Religious of the

Virgin Mary) the first Filipino congregation of religious women.

Beaterio Constitution

Title page of the Constitution of the Beaterio de la Compania de Jesus (1747; revised and recopied, 1795)

Notable Beatas include Mother Francisca del Espíritu Santo (1647-1711) and Talangpaz sisters, Dionicia Mitas Talangpaz de Santa Maria (1691–1732) and Cecilia Rosa Talangpaz de Jesus (1693–1731). 

Sister Mary John Mananzan

Sister Mary John Mananzan campaigning

Sister Mariani Dimaranan

Ciudad Mistica

Ciudad Mistica members are seen holding a service at their chapel. The traditional Filipino reverence for female Babaylanes and priestesses continues today through the leadership of women in many religious groups across the country. Ciudad Mistica, the largest religious group in Banahaw, has always been led by a woman as their supreme spiritual leader.

Through the years, women’s religious orders flourished, with some becoming more active as feminists and political activists. Notable figures include Sister Mary John Mananzan, OSB, Sister Mariani Dimaranan, RGS, Sister Christine Tan, RGS, and Sister Mary Soledad Perpiñan, RGS.

References

• Joaquin, N. (2004). The Beatas of 17th-Century Manila. In Culture and History. Anvil Publishing, Inc.

• Santiago, L. P. R. (2005). To Love and to Suffer: The Development of the Religious Congregations for Women in the Spanish Philippines, 1565–1898. Ateneo de Manila University Press.