Catholic Church in the Philippines

Catholic Church in the Philippines
; Catholic Church in the Philippines
Simbahang Katoliko sa Pilipinas (Filipino)
	Manila Cathedral
Type	National polity
Classification	Catholic
Orientation	Latin
Scripture	Bible
Theology	Catholic theology
Polity	Episcopal
Governance	Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines
Pope	Francis
President	Pablo Virgilio S. David
Apostolic Nuncio	Charles John Brown
Region	Philippines
Language	Latin, Filipino, Native Philippine regional languages, English, Spanish
Headquarters	Intramuros, Manila
Origin	March 17, 1521 ; Spanish East Indies, Spanish Empire
Branched from	Catholic Church in Spain
Separations	Philippine Independent Church (1902); Apostolic Catholic Church (1992)
Members	92.65 million (2021)
Tertiary institutions	See list
Seminaries	San Carlos Seminary, San Jacinto Seminary
Other name(s)	Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines; Iglesya Katolika or Iglesia Katolika; Simbahang Katolika; Simbahang Katolika Romana;
Official website	www.cbcponline.net; www.cbcpnews.net

As part of the worldwide Catholic Church, the Catholic Church in the Philippines (Filipino: Simbahang Katolika sa Pilipinas, Spanish: Iglesia católica en Filipinas), or the Philippine Catholic Church, is under the spiritual direction of the Pope in Rome. The Philippines is one of the two nations in Asia having a substantial portion of the population professing the Catholic faith, along with East Timor, and has the third largest Catholic population in the world after Brazil and Mexico.^[2] The episcopal conference responsible in governing the faith is the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP).

Christianity was first brought to the Philippine islands by Spanish pirates, missionaries and settlers, who arrived in waves beginning in the early 16th century in Cebu by way of colonization. Compared to the Spanish colonial period, when Christianity was recognized as the state religion, the faith today is practiced in the context of a secular state. In 2020, it was estimated that 85.7 million Filipinos, or roughly 78.8% of the population, profess the Catholic faith.^[3]

^ "Catholic Church in Philippines". GCatholic.org. Retrieved September 11, 2023.
^ "Philippines still top Christian country in Asia, 5th in world". Inquirer Global Nation. December 21, 2011.
^ Yraola, Abigail Marie P. (February 22, 2023). "Catholics make up nearly 79% of Philippine population". BusinessWorld. Retrieved April 8, 2023.

[1] "Catholic Church in Philippines". GCatholic.org. Retrieved September 11, 2023.

[2] "Philippines still top Christian country in Asia, 5th in world". Inquirer Global Nation. December 21, 2011.

[population-update-3] Yraola, Abigail Marie P. (February 22, 2023). "Catholics make up nearly 79% of Philippine population". BusinessWorld. Retrieved April 8, 2023.

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Catholic Church in the Philippines
Simbahang Katoliko sa Pilipinas (Filipino)
Manila Cathedral
Type	National polity
Classification	Catholic
Orientation	Latin
Scripture	Bible
Theology	Catholic theology
Polity	Episcopal
Governance	Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines
Pope	Francis
President	Pablo Virgilio S. David
Apostolic Nuncio	Charles John Brown
Region	Philippines
Language	Latin, Filipino, Native Philippine regional languages, English, Spanish
Headquarters	Intramuros, Manila
Origin	March 17, 1521 Spanish East Indies, Spanish Empire
Branched from	Catholic Church in Spain
Separations	Philippine Independent Church (1902) Apostolic Catholic Church (1992)
Members	92.65 million (2021) ^[1]
Tertiary institutions	See list
Seminaries	San Carlos Seminary, San Jacinto Seminary
Other name(s)	Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines Iglesya Katolika or Iglesia Katolika Simbahang Katolika Simbahang Katolika Romana
Official website	www.cbcponline.net www.cbcpnews.net