Apostolic Catholic Church (Philippines)

The Apostolic Catholic Church (ACC) (Filipino: Apostolika't Katolikang Simbahan or Simbahang Apostolika Katolika; Spanish: iglesia católica apostólica) is an Independent Catholic denomination established in 1992 by John Florentine L. Teruel.[3][4] The ACC has its origin as a Catholic organization founded in the 1970s in Hermosa, Bataan.

Not to be confused with Catholic Apostolic Church.
Seal of the Apostolic Catholic Church
Apostolic Catholic Church
ClassificationWestern Christian
OrientationIndependent Catholic, Protestant
PolityEpiscopal
PatriarchJuan Almario E. M. Calampiano
AssociationsNational Council of Churches in the Philippines
Canadian Council of Churches
Christian Conference of Asia
World Council of Churches (through NCCP)
RegionPhilippines, United States of America, Canada, Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Cambodia, United Kingdom, Europe, Middle East, Russia and the Pacific Islands.
HeadquartersNational Shrine of Ina Poon Bato
FounderJohn Florentine L. Teruel and Maria Virginia Peñaflor Leonzon
Origin1991
 Philippines
Separated fromRoman Catholicism
Congregations192
Members5,000,000 (2009 estimate)[1]
10,000,000 (2015 estimate)
Tertiary institutionsCollege of the Most Holy Trinity and
Colegio de Santa Maria Virginia Leonzon[2]
Official websitehttps://acc.org.ph/

History

The Apostolic Catholic Church started as a mainstream Catholic lay organization that was founded in Hermosa, Bataan in the early 1970s by Maria Virginia P. Leonzon Vda. De Teruel.[5]

In 1991 the organization schismed with the Roman Catholic Church; due to varying issues, it formally separated itself from the Roman Catholic Church, when John Florentine Teruel was consecrated as a patriarch and registered the church as both a Protestant and Independent Catholic denomination. But by that time, the movement had already spread throughout the Philippines, Hong Kong, Australia, Canada and the United States of America.[5]

John Florentine Teruel was consecrated as patriarch by the National Conference of Old Catholic and Orthodox Archbishops, on July 13, 1991, at St. Paul's German Old Catholic Church.[6] Florentine ordained several men throughout the Philippines and America to become priests and deacons.[5] Teruel died on 19 January 2021.[7]

Patriarch Juan Almario (born as Elvis Mitra Calampiano) became the second patriarch of the Apostolic Catholic Church. He was consecrated as patriarch through ceremonies held on 31 January 2021. Before his appointment as head of the church, he served as long-time senior archbishop and chancellor to the patriarch at the National Shrine of Ina Poon Bato in Quezon City, Philippines.[7][8]

Organization

The Apostolic Catholic Church is autocephalous and headed by a patriarch.[9] The church's two ecclesiastical centers, the National Shrine of Ina Poon Bato and the Shrine of the Queen of Patriarchs, are located in Quezon City.[10]

According to the church, one of its initial goals was to unite the Western Rite or the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Rite or the Eastern Orthodox Church to form a single Catholic church.[11]

The Apostolic Catholic Church currently has three main religious orders and congregations: the Order of the Missionaries of the Holy Spirit, the Order of the Missionaries of John Florentine, and the Congregation of St. Maria Virginia.[12]

The members of the congregations are the archbishops, bishops, priests, deacons, subdeacons, nuns, and third order members, bound by their evangelical vows of chastity, poverty, obedience, acceptance of their immediate superiors to the patriarch and to God the Holy Spirit, whom adherents address as Ingkong (an archaic Tagalog honorific often glossed as "grandfather", used to refer to any elderly man).[13]

The church currently has 32 dioceses worldwide located all over the Philippines as well as in various key cities of the United States of America, Canada, Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Cambodia, United Kingdom, Europe, Middle East, Russia and the Pacific Islands.[12][7] The Apostolic Catholic Church is estimated to have more than 5 million members and has 192 congregations, all over the world.[5]

National Shrine of Ina Poon Bato

The National Shrine of Ina Poon Bato (Filipino: Pambansang Dambana ng Ina Poon Bato) is one of the main cathedrals of the Apostolic Catholic Church and serves as the pontifical seat of Patriarch Juan Almario E.M. Calampiano.[14] The shrine also houses multiple administrative offices of the church.[14]

The shrine was preceded by a chapel built in the 1980s at the northern end of the EDSA dedicated to Our Lady of Ina Poon Bato. The chapel was demolished during the construction of the MRT-3 and its last train station, but a shrine was constructed as a replacement.[14] Although the shrine was initially intended only as a temporary replacement, it became the national shrine and headquarters of the Apostolic Catholic Church in the subsequent years.[14][15] The canonization of Patriarch John Florentine occurred at the shrine on 1 August 2021.[4]

Doctrine

The Apostolic Catholic Church treats the Sacrament of Holy Sealing as the Baptism of Fire and Spirit.[16][17] All members of the church undergoes this sealing in order for them to be recognized as a full-fledged member.[18] The church believes that by divine revelation, the third person of the Trinity called himself with the name Ingkong and manifested himself in the Philippines through Maria De Teruel. Members are referred to as apo or tinatakan.[5]

Ecumenical relations

The ACC is part of the National Council of Churches in the Philippines,[5][19] and the Canadian Council of Churches.[20]

See also

References
  1. National Council of Churches in the Philippines. "Our Member Churches". Retrieved 13 March 2012.
  2. "The Church". acc-ingkong.com. Archived from the original on 2011-10-29.
  3. Esmaquel II, Paterno (13 September 2017). "Christian churches on drug war: 'Stop the slaughter!'". RAPPLER. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
  4. "Apostolic church patriarch and founding bishop". The Manila Times. 2021-07-31. Retrieved 2021-11-11.
  5. "Our Member Churches". Retrieved 2022-03-30.
  6. "The Patriarch". ACC Ingkong. Archived from the original on 2011-10-29. Retrieved 2022-07-20.
  7. "Apostolic Catholic Church installs new Patriarch". Apostolic Catholic Church. 15 February 2021. Retrieved 2022-03-30.
  8. "MARIAN FESTIVAL CULMINATES TODAY". Philippine Daily Inquirer. 27 July 2019. Retrieved 2022-07-19 – via pressreader.
  9. "About | Apostolic Catholic Church Of Canada". www.acc-canada.com. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  10. "National and local officials lead Gawad San Juan Florentino". The Manila Times. 2 July 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
  11. "Goals of the church". Archived from the original on 2013-04-10. Retrieved 2022-09-26.
  12. "Home Page". Apostolic Catholic Church. Retrieved 2022-03-30.
  13. "Ingkong (THE Holy Spirit)". Acc-ingkong.com. Archived from the original on 2011-10-08. Retrieved 2011-09-19.
  14. "NSIPB". Apostolic Catholic Church. 2020-10-30. Retrieved 2022-10-04.
  15. "Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2022-10-04.
  16. "ACC Members | Apostolic Catholic Church Of Canada". www.acc-canada.com. Retrieved 2022-10-30.
  17. "Members". 2011-10-29. Archived from the original on 2011-10-29. Retrieved 2022-10-30.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  18. Revnomeromhs (2009-09-23). "ACC - DIOCESE OF OUR LADY OF MT. CARMEL: APOSTOLIC CATHOLIC CHURCH". ACC - DIOCESE OF OUR LADY OF MT. CARMEL. Retrieved 2022-10-30.
  19. Go, Raymundo (30 April 2019). The Philippine Council of Evangelical Churches: Its Background, Context, and Formation among Post-World War II Churches. Langham Publishing. p. 124. ISBN 978-1-78368-592-9. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
  20. "Members". The Canadian Council of Churches. 2021-03-16. Retrieved 2022-08-15.
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