Augustinian Province of the Most Holy Name of Jesus of the Philippines
The Province of the Most Holy Name of Jesus of the Philippines (Spanish: Provincia Agustiniana del Santísimo Nombre de Jesús de Filipinas) was a geographical and administrative subdivision of the religious Order of St. Augustine that was formally affiliated to the Order on March 7, 1575, to originally cater the needs of the growing Augustinian presence in Philippines who were serving Filipinos in more than 300 towns in the 16th century.
The Province later on expanded its presence in East Asia, Africa and the Americas in the 20th century to help build and serve more communities.
[2] Already in his sixties and in poor health, Urdaneta considered himself retired as a navigator especially after having earlier turned his back on the world by joining the Augustinian Order in Mexico.
When Philip II ordered the viceroy to "prepare a fleet of discovery" of the western islands near the Moluccas and wrote Urdaneta a letter asking him to guide the voyage, he felt compelled to obey for "the glory of God and the expansion of our faith."
The Spaniards considered it miraculous to have found the statue, a gift from Ferdinand Magellan to the wife of the rajah of Cebu after her conversion to Catholicism in 1521.
[2] When Urdaneta and Aguirre returned to Mexico, De Rada, Herrera, and Gamboa remained and quickly learned the local Cebuano language.
On April 16, 1644, following the timeline prescribed by their holy rules, the provincial chapter of the province convened at the convent of San Pablo in Manila.
[6] Father Fray Gerónimo de Medrano had led the province with great success during his second term, earning widespread regret when his tenure ended and a strong desire among many for his continued leadership.
Casimiro Diaz recounts the events of 1651–52, focusing on the oppressive and unlawful actions of Fajardo’s confidant, Venegas, and his eventual downfall.
World-renowned botanist Father Blanco had built a botanical garden for his plant experiments in Intramuros that became the basis for his internationally acclaimed book.
Augustinian friars made researches in the languages of the Philippine Islands including Diego Bergano, and José Sequi (d. 1844), a prominent missionary of the order.
On 12 August 1879, Pope Leo XIII, in the Breve Ex debito Pastoralis Officii, entrusted to the Augustinians of the Province of the Philippines the Mission of Northern Hunan in China.
Fray Michael Yang Gaojian, OSA, former superior of the Augustinians in China in the 1950s, was also consecrated as bishop of the Diocese of Changde but without any papal mandate.
He entered the Augustinian Order in 1931, was ordained priest in 1938 and was consecrated as bishop by the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association (CPCA) in October 1958.
From its houses in Spain and its missions in the Philippines, the Province in the past had deployed missionaries to Brazil, Colombia, Peru, and Venezuela.
Throughout its lifetime, the Province of the Most Holy Name of Jesus of the Philippines became a prolific mother to other Augustinian circumscriptions worldwide who were in need of additional help for administering the faithful.
At the turn of the twentieth century, the Province of the Most Holy Name of Jesus of the Philippines decided to shift its missionary activities to newer territories, such as Peru, Colombia, and Venezuela.
Plans for the organization of such a Province began in 1974 when the Regional Assembly of the Philippine Augustinian Vicariate asked for the creation of a Vice-Province in the islands.
Though the plan was not realized, it was again revived by a group of Filipino Augustinians at a meeting in the Basilica Minore del Santo Niño in Cebu on April 29, 1981.
The proposal was overwhelmingly approved by the members of the 174th General Chapter held in Rome on September 15, 1983, and the new province was canonically established on December 25, 1983.
