Once, during a religious seminar I participated in, the issue of Filipino parents sending their children came into focus. I admit, having been involved in the media for most of my Canadian life, this issue never came up in my front burner. I have always regarded it as a given in the Filipino immigrants’ life to send their child or children to a Catholic school. And I assumed that Canadians knew the Catholic background of the Philippines.

When the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan sailing under the Spanish flag landed on the shores of Cebu, a southern province of the Philippines, he brought with him Catholicism. This was about 451 years ago, close to half a millennium. Suffice it to say, Catholicism gained roots in that Southeast Asian country.

Over the years, Filipino Catholics have emigrated and found themselves living in different countries like Canada where there is a separate school board for Catholic students who attend Catholic schools from elementary through high school. When they move to university, it’s natural to see them enrolled in a college with ties to the Vatican. I know University of Toronto has St. Michael’s College which is home to students from Catholic high schools and has a connexion with St. Basil’s Parish.

That Filipinos send their offspring to Catholic schools here in Canada is a given. They were brought up Catholics, so we’re their parents, grandparents and great grandparents. They were taught the basic tenet of Catholicism: love God above all else and love thy neighbour as thyself.  They want to pass this to their children and hope that their children would pass them on to their own children. And they hope and pray that this cycle would not be broken. As simple as that.

Filipinos have always found comfort in their being Roman Catholics. At any time during the day, when you enter a Catholic Church, you would see a Filipino seated inside. There’s a saying that Catholics go to church to seek peace in the presence of God. This is so true of Catholic Filipinos here in Canada. They find solace in the church, being so far away from their birth country.

Like other Catholics who immigrated from other countries, they introduce their children at a young age to the Sunday liturgy. By the time these children are old enough to understand the service, they are encouraged to be altar servers and singers in the church choir. They themselves volunteer to be Eucharistic ministers and join organizations like the Catholic Women’s League (CWL), Knights of Columbus, Development and Peace and Caritas. Without putting that much effort into the whole exercise of being Catholics, their activities become a family affair.

Being Catholic has always been ingrained in the Filipino. Some of them meet their better half in the church and start a family. It has never been a question whether or not to send the offspring to a Catholic school. It is a given. Even when a Filipino strays to another Christian sect, his values remain rooted in Catholicism, whether he is aware of this or not. And the choice between a Catholic education versus public education is never a question on the table. The Filipino will opt for Catholic education.