Catmon Church & Patron Saint... CatmonanonSabAko: BLIND FAITH

Halfway to this research, I sincerely asked St. William of Gellone and St. William of Maleval and all Saints and Angels, including Mama Mary, our Dear Sto. Nino, and of course Jesus to grant me the wisdom, guidance, and the courage to impart my piece to the parishioners. All entries are from many reliable sources which are mentioned in the last part of this presentation. I DO NOT WISH YOU TO BELIEVE EVERYTHING, BUT I DO PRAY FOR YOU TO FIND INTEREST IN THE SUBJECT MATTER AND DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH TO DISCOVER YOUR FAITH.

The folktale about our Patron Saint William that was passed down through the generations by the words of mouth wasn’t put into writing until 1985, during the celebration of the 150^th Year of the founding of Catmon, please correct me if I am wrong. Souvenir Program called the Jubilee Year Book was designed to compensate the expenses of the celebration through paid advertisement, the program featured numerous varieties of traditional narrative from the founding of our parish to 1985. Some are based on facts and some are mythical in nature, such as The Legend of Budbud Kabog.

The life story of our Patron Saint is not a myth or a fairy tale, but an oral tradition of a true life story that was well lived, characterized by sinful errors, sacrifices, and penitence that made him a Saint. It is his story that inspires the parishioners and strengthens their faith for centuries.

Who in his right mind would write a true life story capped with his wild imagination, altered and mangled it to make it sound like the real deal? The sad thing is, the story has been published in every year’s fiesta celebration souvenir program. Nobody dares to question it; nobody cares, because nobody knows.

This gives us the notion not to rely on stories and accept it as true without doing our homework and find out the truth ourselves. We should burn our candle, dig a little deeper, and widen our understanding. To embrace Him wholeheartedly first, we have to know Him truthfully and intimately.

To write a fabricated story misled the believers, will create confusion, and will perhaps question their faith. How can we honor a Saint, not knowing who He really was? How can we idolize Him? Believing the false story and idolizing and praising Him for what He is not, is somewhat idiotic… BLIND FAITH.

The substance of the story behind the Saint is the foundation of our faith towards Him. The same as the story of Jesus Christ is the core of our faith as Christians. Without the benefit of understanding and embracing the story, what kind of a Christian would we be?

I thought my research would be meaningless, nobody told me to do so, it just happened one day without reason. The first time I read the story intimately; my interest grew and made me dig even more. I don’t know, I just felt that there is something to be straightened, something to be discovered, and something to be changed… I just didn’t realize it was in fact the beginning of something full of twists and turns, a very intricate adventure for me but worth every penny.

This presentation is mainly for the purpose of appreciating the life of St. William of Catmon and is based on facts and writings by reputable historians, from catholic encyclopedias, dictionaries of saints, and books on the lives of the saints, and reliable websites, including our very own book Balaanong Bahandi an update to the 1886 publication Breve Reseña.

I neither added nor deleted anything to mangle the stories to serve my fancies; I only did retouching on some parts of the stories to make it more readable and understandable. I did not twist facts; I merely presented the stories as written by their authors.

Comments from my own perspective are mine alone; it does not reflect anybody else’s. If I have offended someone in the course of my presentation, I am very sorry; I am responsible and will accept whatever the consequence. But please, STOP deceiving the Parishioners.

Let’s take a look at the story of St. William of Gellone as characterized by the writer in our fiesta souvenir program, please refer to Case #1.

In Case #1: (Souvenir Program Story)

"St. William of Gellone is said to have gone to pilgrimage in 1130 AD per advised of Pope Eugenius III. A friend Bernard of Clairvaux helped Him reconcile with the Church after He was excommunicated for supporting Anti Pope Anacletus against the rightful authority of Pope Innocent II in the same year 1130 AD."

CONTRADICTION based on the dates of their Birth and Death:

Dates of their Birth and Death

Facts:

St. William of Gellone: ___________(8th-9th Centuries)

Born: 755 AD

Died: May 28, 812 AD

Antipope Anacletus: _____________(11th-12th Centuries)

Born: 1090 AD

Died: January 25, 1138 AD

Pope Innocent II: ________________(11^th-12th Century)

Born: ---

Died: September 23, 1143 AD

Pope Eugenius III: _______________(11th-12th Centuries)

Born: 1080 AD

Died: July 8, 1153 AD

St. Bernard of Clairvaux: __________(11th-12th Centuries)

Born: 1090 AD

Died: August 20, 1153 AD

SPECIFICS on Contradiction:

St. William of Gellone could not have defended the antipope Anacletus against the rightful authority of Pope Innocent II in 1130. St. Bernard of Clairvaux could not have helped St. William of Gellone to reunite himself with the Church, much more; Pope Eugenius III could not have convinced St. William of Gellone to do pilgrimage in Jerusalem for the forgiveness of his sins.

The two Popes, Bernard of Clairvaux who later became a Saint mentioned in the story including the Antipope Anacletus are more than three (3) centuries younger than St. William of Gellone, meaning more than three hundred (300) years younger. They were not born yet during the time of St. William of Gellone. How can they commune with William?

William of Gellone Duke of Aquitaine was Canonized a Saint by Pope Alexander II in 1066 and therefore was already a Saint during the era of Antipope Anacletus, Pope Innocent II, Pope Eugenius III, Bernard of Clairvaux, William of Maleval, and William X, also Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, and Count of Poitou from 1126 to 1137.

Saint William of Gellone who was born in 755 AD (8th Century) was 325 years older than Pope Eugenius III who was born in 1080 AD (11th Century). Pope Eugenius III was the youngest among the individuals mentioned in the story. All others were living during the time period, except for William of Gellone who was already with our Almighty God and a Saint.

THEN WHO IS THIS WILLIAM Duke of Aquitaine who went to pilgrimage in 1130’s?

Citing from one of the many references, below quotation and profile are taken from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_X,_Duke_of_Aquitaine, as follows:

“William X, Duke of Aquitaine, initially supported antipope Anacletus II in the papal schism of 1130, opposite to Pope Innocent II, against the will of his own bishops. In 1134 Saint Bernard of Clairvaux convinced William to drop his support to Anacletus and join Innocent. In 1137 William joined the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, but died during the trip.”

William X, called the Saint: ---------- (11th-12th Centuries)
Born: 1099
Died: 9 April 1137
Profession: Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, and Count of Poitou from 1126 to 1137.

THREE different LIVES rolled into one:

It is very clear that the writer of the story in the fiesta souvenir program was misguided, confused, and followed his instinct, as a result compounded the life of William X to William of Gellone both were Duke of Aquitaine in a different time period.

Not only the writer compounded the life of William X to William of Gellone, but also interpolated the life of William the Hermit to William of Gellone. Three very distinct lives rolled into one, this is the story featured in the souvenir program, a hoax. Please see Case # 2.

In Case # 2, as quoted (Souvenir Program Story):

“He was later received back into the church and begged the pardon of the newly elected Pope Eugenius III who sent him to Patriarch of Jerusalem for counseling and guidance. There in a nearby cave, he began his life of penance and atonement for sins. He ate sparingly of the course black bread of the region and drank nothing but water. He slept on the bare ground and used a stone for a pillow. He underwent the severest of fastings considering himself as the worst of criminals.”

The above is very similar to the life of William the Hermit who implored the Holy Father for pardon and prescriptive penance for his sinfulness. Pope Eugenius III encouraged William to make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 1145.

Please read the context below taken from one of the many very reliable sources.

From the book “The Lives of the Saints, 1866” by Rev. Alban Butler (1711–73). Volume II: February.

February 10

St. William of Maleval, Hermit, and Institutor of the Order of Gulielmites

(http://www.bartleby.com/210/2/103.html)

“He is thought to have passed his youth in the army, and to have given into a licentious manner of living, too common among persons of that profession. The first accounts we have of him represent him as a holy penitent, filled with the greatest sentiments of compunction and fervour, and making a pilgrimage to the tombs of the apostles at Rome. Here he begged Pope Eugenius III to put him into a course of penance, who enjoined him a pilgrimage to Jerusalem in the year 1145.

In performing this, with great devotion, the saint spent eight years. Returning into Tuscany in 1153, he retired into a desert. He was prevailed upon to undertake the government of a monastery in the Isle of Lupocavio, in the territory of Pisa: but not being able to bear with the tepidity and irregularity of his monks, he withdrew and settled on Mount Pruno, till finding disciples there no less indocile to the severity of his discipline than the former, he was determined to pursue himself that rigorous plan of life which he had hitherto unsuccessfully proposed to others.

He pitched upon a desolate valley for this purpose, the very sight of which was sufficient to strike the most resolute with horror. It was then called the Stable of Rhodes, but since, Maleval; and is situated in the territory of Sienna, in the diocess of Grosseto. He entered this frightful solitude in September, 1155, and had no other lodging than a cave in the ground, till being discovered some months after, the lord of Buriano built him a cell. During the first four months, he had no other company but that of wild beasts, eating only the herbs on which they fed.”

“The saint in his discourses with others, always treated himself as the most infamous of criminals, and deserving the worst of deaths; and that these were his real sentiments, appeared from that extreme severity which he exercised upon himself. He lay on the bare ground: though he fed on the coarsest fare and drank nothing but water, he was very sparing in the use of each; saying, sensuality was to be feared even in the most ordinary food. Prayer, divine contemplation, and manual labour, employed his whole time.”

From the book:

WRITER’S acknowledgement:

The (fiesta souvenir program) writer of the life story of St. William of Catmon mentioned that our Patron Saint embraced a hermitical life in a cave and subjected himself with great sacrifices as a form of penance for his sins. He later founded a Monastery.

The writer acknowledges that our Patron Saint is a Hermit not a Monk. This expressly substantiated the story handed down from generation to generation, the very same story I’ve heard from my elders when I was a kid… that our Patron Saint is a Hermit.

In the course to support his claim that our Patron Saint is William of Gellone Duke of Aquitaine, the writer made it appear that St. William of Gellone was a Hermit in some point in his life after his pilgrimage. The writer did not disclose any statistics as to when the events transpired not even his death and where he died. William of Gellone died in the Benedictine Monastery he founded as a Monk in May 28, 812 AD. St. William of Gellone Duke of Aquitaine is a Benedictine Monk NOT an Augustinian Hermit. His life is celebrated every 28^th of May the day he died NOT February 10.

From the Book BALAANONG BAHANDI:

"The book Balaanong Bahandi: Sacred Treasures of the Archdiocese of Cebu is a beautiful tome that celebrates the religious architecture, treasures, cultural heritage and faith of the Cebuanos on the occassion of the diamond jubilee of the Archdiocese of Cebu.

The book is an update to the 1886 publication Breve Reseña de lo que fue y de lo que es la Diocesis de Cebu en las Islas Filipinas (A Brief Account of What is and What was the Diocese of Cebu in the Philippine Islands) by Felipe Redondo, secretary to the Bishop Benito Romero de Madridejos. Redondo’s work is the most important source for those studying the history of the Diocese of Cebu during the Spanish Colonial period."

From these books, Catmon's Patron Saint is named St. William the Hermit. Saint William the Hermit is one of the three Saints named William venerated by the Augustinians who built the Church of Catmon in 1835.

From the conception, our Patron Saint was Saint William the Hermit and this was authenticated by the publication of the book BREVE RESENA in 1886, some 51 years after the start of the construction of the Catmon Church.

Saint William the Hermit was the Patron Saint of Catmon from 1835, (fortified by the publication of the book Breve Resena in 1886, and again by the recent publication of the Balaanong Bahandi,) until local historian of Catmon replaced St. William the Hermit with St. William of Gellone Duke of Aquitaine in 1985 assuming both Saints are one and the same person "out of confusion".

Saints FEAST Day:

From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calendar_of_saints:

“The word "feast" in this context does not mean "a large meal, typically a celebratory one", but instead "an annual religious celebration, a day dedicated to a particular saint".

“The system arose from the early Christian custom of commemorating each martyr annually on the DATE OF HIS OR HER DEATH, or birth into heaven, a date therefore referred to in Latin as the martyr's dies natalis ("day of birth")…”

From http://orthodoxwiki.org/Feast_day:

“The Orthodox Church commemorates certain saints or sacred events in its history every day of the year. The FEAST DAY of a SAINT is GENERALLY the DATE OF HIS OR HER DEATH.”

From http://www.catholic.org/saints/faq.php:

February 10 May 28

Bl. Alexander of Lugo St. Accidia

St. Andrew St. Bernard of Montjoux

St. Aponius St. Caraunus

St. Austreberta St. Emilius

St. Baldegundis St. Heliconis

St. Erluph BI. John Shert

Bl. Louise Bessay de la Voute St. Justus of Urgel

Bl. Louise Poirier Barre BI. Margaret Pole

St. Paganus St. Paul Hann

St. Paul and Ninety Companions St. Podius

Bl. Pierre Fremond BI. Robert Johnson

St. Scholastica St. Senator

St. Trumwin BI. Thomas Ford

St. William of Maleval St. William of Gellone

From the Book BUTLER’S LIVES OF THE SAINTS:

AUGUSTIANIAN Friars:

The Church of Catmon was built by the Augustinian Missionaries in 1835. Do you agree that Augustinian Friars espoused Augustinian Saints? They built Churches in honor of their Saints. The Augustinian Saint William of Catmon was chosen by the Augustinian Friars from among their many Saints as Patron Saint of our Parish, He was a Hermit and Died on February 10, 1157 AD. His Feast Day is on the Day of His Death.

Is it possible that St. William of Gellone NOT the Patron Saint of Catmon?

St. William of Gellone Duke of Aquitaine is a Monk NOT a Hermit, He is a Saint of the Benedictine Order NOT of the Augustinian, His Feast Day is May 28 NOT February 10, these facts tells us that He is NOT Saint William assigned by the Augustinian Friars to guard and protect the parish of Catmon, therefore NOT the Saint the Church was named after.

If we base our understanding on facts, no doubt the Saint given the responsibilities to protect, guard, guide, and or help the parishioners of Catmon is Saint William of Maleval otherwise known as Saint William the Hermit and also Saint William the Great. He died a Hermit on February 10, 1157 AD, and His Order, the Hermits of Saint William known as the “Bare-Footed Friars” eventually, was incorporated into the Hermits of Saint Augustine. He is an Augustinian Saint.

CATMONANON as we are:

I chatted with some Catmonanons and some open the possibility that St. William of Gellone and ST. William of Maleval is one and the same person. Point blank, I told them that it is not possible; they walked on earth in different time period more than 300 years apart. By the time William of Maleval did his penitence William of Gellone was already a Saint.

Another possibility was in correlation with the Patron Saint of Dalaguete. Dalaguete’s Patron Saint is St. William of Aquitaine which was also subject to several disagreements among some of the parishioners. The possibility is that the writer of the story of St. William of Catmon might have entertained the idea that Dalaguete and Catmon has the same Patron Saint since they both are named William or Guillermo.

The writer should have done his research before winding up his story. He should have known that there are many Saints by the name William or Guillermo and dig up a little bit more. The writer should have considered the day of their death since traditionally Saints Feast Day is held on that day. He should have also considered the group who revered the Saint and the group of friars who built the Parish Church of Catmon. The Parish Church of Catmon was built by the Augustinian Missionaries and therefore should have named their Church after their venerated Saints.

Why would the writer made a presumption and emulate other parish’s Faith? Catmon is not Dalaguete, we have our own identity and it must be respected not to be subjugated by one’s ignorance and ineptness. Why run to Dalaguete, don’t we have our own resources?

For all we know our talents are much better than those of the writer’s out-of-town thinker. Besides, we need no thinker to know our Patron Saint, numerous reliable references from world acclaimed historians is more than enough coupled with interest and dedication.

Research is CONTEMPLATION:

Misapplying a few facts to support a traditional myth and ignoring the reams of facts is not a research but a total sham. It’s always nonsensical to manipulate facts to promote own point of view. Whether or not we realize it, we all have certain presuppositions and biases that affect the way we view all of life and reality. To make the long story short, if you’re interested in any topic, read objective histories about it, then bring in as many primary sources as you can to test those histories, and then make a decision about what really happened based on facts.

References:

BOOKS

1. The Lives of the Saints, 1866” by Rev. Alban Butler (1711–73). Volume II: February.