The Performance of the Christian Faith under a Populist President: The Case of the Philippine Church under Duterte

Ruben Mendoza

The Performance of the Christian Faith under a Populist President

The Case of the Philippine Church under Duterte

Authors

Ruben Mendoza Ateneo de Manila University

Keywords:

War on drugs, Catholic Church, Field hospital, Human rights, President Rodrigo Duterte, Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines

Abstract

President Rodrigo Duterte has been consistent in his attacks against the Catholic Church. True to his campaign promise, he has unleashed his brutal “war on drugs” which has resulted to the deaths of thousands of suspected drug dependents and pushers. In response to his criticisms and the excesses of his anti-illegal drugs program, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines has issued various pastoral statements in faithfulness to its mission. Nevertheless, the majority of Filipinos continue to support Duterte and his anti-illegal drugs stance. In this context, the call of Pope Francis’ for the church to become a “field hospital” becomes all the more pastorally relevant.

Author Biography

Ruben Mendoza, Ateneo de Manila University

Dr. Ruben C. Mendoza, PhD, STD, is an associate professor and the chair of the Department of Theology, Ateneo de Manila University. He obtained both his MA in Theology/STL (2004) and PhD in Theology/STD (2009) from the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium. He presently serves as the president of Damdaming Katoliko sa Teolohiya (DaKaTeo), the Catholic Theological Society of the Philippines.

The Performance of the Christian Faith under a Populist President: The Case of the Philippine Church under Duterte