Mexican Creole Father Miguel C. Hidalgo launched from the pulpit the Mexican War of Independence. From the scaffold, Father Jose Burgos nourished the movement to fight for the dignity and honor of the Filipino clergy. Both lost their lives struggling to realize their visions. Father Burgos’ death nourished the movement to secularize the Philippine parishes. Many Filipino priests took up Father Burgos’ cause. One of them was Msgr. Gregorio Aglipay y Labayan who helped Filipinize the parishes and established religious freedom in the country.

Msgr. Aglipay was born in Batac, Ilocos Norte, on May 5, 1860. After a few years of studying in the University of Santo Tomas (UST), he entered the Vigan Seminary and was ordained priest on December 21, 1883. He became coadjutor of several towns in Cavite, Nueva Ecija, Bulacan, Laguna, and Tarlac. His experiences in these places nurtured his nationalistic sentiments. While coadjutor of Victoria, Tarlac, he helped Valentin Diaz and Francisco Makabulos establish a Katipunan branch in the town. He was one of the Filipino priests who joined the revolution when it broke out in 1896. On October 30, 1898, President Emilio F. Aguinaldo appointed him Military Vicar General of the Filipino forces, thus making him the highest church dignitary of the Filipinos, the “Chief religious leader of a people in arms,” Msgr. Aglipay said.

In 1899, the delegates to the Malolos Congress approved the Malolos Constitution. One of its provisions was the separation of Church and State. This provision strengthened Msgr. Aglipay’s effort to effect a religious revolution in the country At his initiative, several Filipino priests convened in Paniqui, Tarlac, and decided to establish the foundations of Filipino leadership in all ecclesiastical matters in the country. Attempts by the religious orders to restore themselves to their Philippine parishes pushed the Filipino priests and their civilian supporters to establish an independent Filipino Church. On August 3, 1902, the Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI) was established with Msgr. Aglipay as its first Obispo Maximo (Supreme Bishop).

Msgr. Aglipay was equally active in fighting for the freedom of his country. He joined the Filipino forces in Ilocos Norte and waged guerilla war against the Americans. He ceased armed resistance in April, 1901. Until his death on September 1, 1940, Msgr. Aglipay actively supported the Filipino quest for freedom. He was a member of the Asociacion de Veteranos de la Revolucion when it was founded in 1912. He ran for the presidency in 1935 but lost to Manuel L. Quezon.

The end of the secularization problem, the Filipinization of the parishes, and the establishment of religious freedom in the country – these were some of Msgr. Gregorio Aglipay’s legacies to his countrymen. Priest-warrior, nationalist, patriot, revolutionary hero, and religious reformer, Msgr. Aglipay is a true hero of the Filipino race for he fought for the dignity and honor of his country and people. (Lifted from the Manila Bulletin, May 5, 2009)