Philouise’s Weblog

SANGAL DI KULTURA

Encounters with the Igorot Diaspora in Singapore

            Christmas approaches with weddings, reunions and church celebrations. By December 23, my nephew Osmen Balokey Jr. and wife Lingwan will celebrate their wedded life the Besao tradition. The family now resides in Singapore for the past couple of years and decided to come home to celebrate Christmas and have a church blessing of their civil marriage. I have known JayR as he is commonly known when I frequented Besao during my stint in the Mountain Province from 1989 to 1995 and he was one time the Sangguniang Secretary. This time we will be going home to Besao for their wedding.

My first  travel overseas was when I went with my dad  to the  Asian Convention of the  Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship (FGBMFI)  in Singapore in 1990.  This trip happened after we relocated to Bontoc, Mountain Province while  managing the community BSBT Foundation technical vocational school and leading the community education training of Upland Development Institute. In that first trip to Singapore, we were with the Philippine delegation and we met others from the different countries in Asia. The convention included a tour and we were able to visit Sentosa where we watched the dancing musical fountain, the dolphins and experience the man-made tropical forest. The aviary and safari was also fascinating to me at that time. (Later, it paled after I saw India, Indonesia and Australia)

After the convention we visited Fr. Alexander Paatan, who was then the rector of  St Hilda’s Anglican Church in Katong Area. This was a church founded in 1934 and frequented by those living around the area which were mostly of Chinese descent. The church is described as sacramental, evangelical and charismatic church. We attended the English service celebrated by Fr. Paatan who hails from Sagada, Mountain Province. He also brought us to the St Andrew’s Cathedral, which is a landmark being the Cathedral of the Anglican Church in Singapore and a mother church of more than 26 churches and more than 55 congregations. It was established in 1856 and they celebrated their 150^th year in 2006. It was in St Andrew’s Cathedral that we met more Igorots from the different provinces of the Cordillera who were serving in the business establishments as well as domestic helpers. They also brought us to the shopping mall where more Igorots where milling around.  Some of them have been in Singapore for ages.

While based in Nepal as a Christian Missionary and development worker from 1996 to 2000, Singapore was my frequent stop over. It was at this time that I had more chance to see the Igorots. They were not organized but on Sundays, most would converge in St Andrew’s Cathedral where some would attend the sacramental service in the morning where the Holy Communion or Eucharist is part of the service. Some of them will attend the afternoon Charismatic service, and usually they continue the fellowship after the service, sometimes to welcome new comers of visiting fellow Igorots. In one of my stops, I attended a Wednesday evening prayer meeting and I was glad to meet one Filipino. And in the later years, I met some nurses, doctors, teachers, other professionals and skilled workers who are now working in Singapore. During those fellowships after service, most discussions were of the life back home, their children who are studying or refuse to study, the parents who are ailing and preparing for the next life. At times, they would pass the hat around for “abuloy” for a relative who died. Usually, they share a meal after service by going to a restaurant or a potluck which they share in the church grounds, I was blessed because they shared their meal to all, me included.

It is evident that the church becomes a converging place for Igorot Diaspora, unfortunately the church affiliations and doctrines, which are not necessarily Biblically based becomes the points of bitter discussions and disagreements contrary to what our LORD desires towards a unity of all peoples. This is reflected in our Cordillera communities today, that used to have one or two churches but in this generation,  churches are more than the clans affiliations in the community. We witness a breakdown in family relations and community unity because of this. But though it is so, we also witness a stronger bonding because of the Igorot identity. When Igorot Diaspora call based on the ethnic lineage, a lot will come together for a feast, support a cause for the suffering or victims of calamities. The Filipino is a strong people, more so , the Igorots. As the social media is maximized for this purpose as it is evident in the Igorot Diaspora of Singapore coming together because of Ethnic affiliations. (Dec 15, 2013)