STAYING true to its legacy of bringing faith and social action together, members of the Philippine Independent Church, otherwise known as the Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI), held a liturgical forum on peace and martial law to commemorate their church’s 115th founding anniversary.
Held on Thursday at the IFI National Cathedral in Taft, Manila, the anniversary forum was more fervent than celebratory as IFI’s faithful called for the resumption of peace talks between the Philippine government and the National Democratic Front (NDF), the lifting of martial law in Mindanao, and the immediate release of political prisoner and IFI Bishop Carlo Morales, among other national issues.
Newly elected Obispo Maximo (High Bishop) Rhee Millena Timbang led the liturgical forum in memory of the independent church’s long and rich history. He reminded IFI members of their duty to “serve God by serving the people”.
“Today, we are celebrating the historic birth of a church that possesses a deep understanding that faith should come with an active advocacy to be one with the plight of the Filipino masses toward national identity, genuine freedom, hollistic sovereignty and toward a religious struggle for independence and peace,” Timbang said in Filipino.
IFI is known for being very vocal about issues of national importance. Some of their most recent statement releases include calls for an end to drug war-related extrajudicial killings, for decent work and just wages as matters of human dignity, and for the indigenous people’s right to self-determination.
On May 11 the church was put in the center of one issue they hold close to heart. IFI Bishop Carlo Morales was arrested in Ozamiz City together with his wife Maria Teofilina Morales, their driver Isadome Dalid and alleged New People’s Army (NPA) commander Rommel Salinas, after their vehicle was flagged down in a checkpoint and an MK2 hand grenade, a knife, P80,000 cash and other paraphernalia were reportedly found by authorities in Salinas’s belongings. Teofilina and Dalid were released after a night of detention, but Morales and Salinas remain detained, facing charges of illegal possession of firearms.
The bishop had previously denied personal familiarity of Salinas and his alleged affiliation with the NPA, citing purely humanitarian reasons Salinas was in their vehicle when they were flagged down in a checkpoint. According to Morales, Salinas simply hitched a ride with them.
Human-rights groups and IFI members have tagged Morales as a political prisoner, citing his arrest was “unlawful”, as authorities only had an arrest warrant against Salinas.
Speaking at Thursday’s anniversary forum, Maria Teofilina recounted how both she and the bishop thought his detention would not last a week. She said the whole experience has been very traumatic for their family of four. She tearfully thanked the IFI community for their support throughout the ordeal.
“Thank you for all being my source of strength. It is truly difficult to see my husband in jail, but I hope the whole IFI community somehow finds hope that justice will prevail and Bishop Morales will be released soon, and all trumped-up charges dropped. The fight goes on,” Maria Teofilina said.
Activist Teodoro Casino, who gave the opening lecture on Thursday’s event, called out the current administration for its approach on some issues, such as President Duterte’s ongoing war on drugs, and the declaration of martial law in Mindanao.
“It does not do to always respond to problems with violence. With the drug problem, the government has to be able to look deeper as to why a lot of people are drawn into drug use. Is it poverty; is it social injustice? Then, don’t kill drug users. Instead, work to solve poverty and social injustice. It’s the same with the conflict problem in Mindanao. The Moro has a deep history of struggle that roots from the oppression they have been experiencing since the Spanish occupation era. It is a long and historic fight for self-identification and autonomy. The roots of the problem should be addressed, instead of simply killing off people who rise to resist the oppression,” Casino said.