A Brief History of the Traditional Latin Mass Movement in the Philippines and the Ecclesia Dei Society of St. Joseph

For those who are not aware how the Traditional Latin Mass movement as sanctioned by the Archdiocese of Manila began, it was started by
a group of young people in 1987 as organized by yours truly and as encouraged by Msgr. Moises Andrade. As we researched and prepared for our request, we found some groups attached to the Our Lady of the Roses Bayside apparition advocating the TLM. However, these groups for the wrong reasons requested the TLM and of course were turned down. When I personally requested the late Jaime Cardinal Sin, former Archbishop of Manila for the TLM, he told me that he loved the Latin Mass and Gregorian Chants and even plays tapes of them in his car. He told us that we can always have the Novus Ordo Mass celebrated solemnly in Latin with Gregorian Chants (and I presume ad orientem) anytime without any bishop's permission. However, he was reluctant to allow us the TLM since we might be used by other groups with different agenda and there might be no priest who knows how to celebrate the TLM.
Eventually, two priests supported us and celebrated for us privately the TLM, they were the late Fr. Manuel Pinon, O.P., and Msgr. Augusto Pedrosa who asked us to organize ourselves under the name Kilusang Misa Para sa Latin (Latin Mass Movement) from the former Latin Mass Society of the Philippines. Unfortunately, we were discovered by Church authorities and the two priests were sanctioned. One member of the group went to Rome and sought celebrets for the priests thus a communiqué from Ecclesia Dei Commission under Card. Innocenti instructed (rather forced) the Archdiocese of Manila to allow the TLM and form a local commission which was assigned to Msgr. Josefino Ramirez to oversee the TLM and that it be officially celebrated and regulated at Sto. Domingo Church in Q.C.. The commission encouraged not only Fr. Pinon to be celebrant of the TLM but also other priests willing to do so. Msgr. Ramirez officially appointed yours truly to be liaison to other priests willing to celebrate the TLM Mass since the SSPX already started to establish their center here.
We had a pool of priests alternately celebrating Sunday TLM Masses but eventually after four years it was stopped due to the protest of the Dominican Fathers and the presence of SSPX priests. The late Fr. Jose Maria Cavanna, CM, who was in his late 80's celebrated the TLM Mass for us in their chapel convent. Msgr. Ramirez allowed the TLM later to be transferred to a private chapel in Quiapo then as we changed our group’s name to Ecclesia Dei Society of St. Joseph, with Msgr. Thomas Chao and Fr. Pio Lomibao, OSB, as celebrants; then to his parish, the Basilica Minore of San Lorenzo Ruiz and finally to the Most Holy Redeemer Parish of Fr. Michell Joe Zerrudo who was given the Indult. When the Archdiocese of Manila was split into several Dioceses, Fr. Zerrudo became part of the new Diocese of Cubao and when transferred to his new Parish of Our Lord of Divine Mercy, it is now the present site of the official TLM Mass of the Diocese of Cubao. Fr. Zerrudo is not yet even 40years old and celebrates the TLM daily. Last September 2007, Msgr. Moises Andrade, invoking Pope Benedict XVI's Summorum Pontificum, started in his parish his Sunday TLM Mass where I also serve as organist and cantor. Fr. Joseph Skelton, a black-American priest incardinated in the Diocese of Tagbilaran, Bohol, celebrates his daily TLM there and here in Manila whenever he visits. Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam!

The Ecclesia Dei Society of St. Joseph

This is a group of Roman Catholics united with the Holy See and recognized by the Diocese of Cubao in the Philippines promoting and preserving valid Roman Catholic culture, tradition, liturgy and music; especially the celebration of the Holy Mass according to the 1962 Roman Rite. The group is based at the Parish of the Lord of Divine Mercy at Sikatuna in Quezon City where the Indult Traditional Latin Mass is celebrated every Sunday at 1:30PM and other special feastdays. The parish priest, Fr. Jojo Zerrudo, together with the Ecclesia Dei Society of St. Joseph, has been granted the indult to have the Traditional Masses celebrated on Sundays and special days, as announced during the Last Sunday Mass of the Liturgical Year (November 21, 2004). At present the Society is under the guiding principles of Pope Benedict XVI's Motu Proprio, Summorum Pontificum.