The principal patroness of the Philippines is the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title of the Immaculate Conception, declared by Pope Pius XII in 1942, with two secondary patronesses: St. Pudentiana, an early Roman virgin honored in the islands since the sixteenth century, and St. Rose of Lima, the first saint of the Americas. The country also has two canonized saints of its own, the martyrs St. Lorenzo Ruiz and St. Pedro Calungsod, and its most beloved devotion is the Santo Niño, the Holy Child of Cebu. The feast of the Immaculate Conception, December 8, is a national holiday in the Philippines. Below are the patrons of the Philippines, the Filipino saints, and prayers for the country, for Filipinos abroad and in times of typhoon.
A short prayer for the Philippines, written for this page:
Mary Immaculate, patroness of the Philippines, watch over the Filipino people.
Protect the islands from storms and disasters, strengthen families,
bring home those who work far away, and keep our faith alive and joyful. Amen.
The Immaculate Conception, principal patroness
Devotion to Mary Immaculate came to the Philippines with the first Spanish missionaries, and many of the oldest churches, including the cathedral of Manila, are dedicated to the Immaculate Conception. At the request of the Filipino bishops, Pope Pius XII declared her the principal patroness of the Philippines in the apostolic letter Impositi Nobis of September 12, 1942, during the Second World War, and he confirmed the patronage in 1958. See the Immaculate Conception.
St. Pudentiana and St. Rose of Lima, secondary patronesses
- St. Pudentiana was a Roman virgin of the second century, honored by tradition as the daughter of the senator Pudens mentioned by St. Paul. The Spanish chose her as the first patroness of the islands in the sixteenth century, and her feast is May 19.
- St. Rose of Lima (1586–1617), the Peruvian mystic, was named patroness of the Americas, the Indies and the Philippines after her canonization in 1671. Her feast is August 23. See the St. Rose of Lima prayer.
The Filipino saints
St. Lorenzo Ruiz (September 28)
Lorenzo Ruiz, born in Binondo, Manila, around 1600, to a Chinese father and a Filipina mother, was a married layman, a calligrapher and a member of the Confraternity of the Rosary. Forced to flee the Philippines after being falsely accused of a crime, he sailed with Dominican missionaries to Japan, where Christians were being persecuted. He was arrested and tortured, and he was killed at Nagasaki in 1637, saying that he would gladly give a thousand lives for God. St. John Paul II beatified him in Manila in 1981 and canonized him in 1987, the first Filipino saint.
St. Pedro Calungsod (April 2)
Pedro Calungsod was a teenage catechist from the Visayas who went with the Jesuit missionary Blessed Diego Luis de San Vitores to the Mariana Islands. On April 2, 1672, on Guam, he and Father Diego were killed by men opposed to the mission. He was about seventeen. Pope Benedict XVI canonized him in 2012, and he is a patron of Filipino young people and catechists.
The Santo Niño
The small image of the Holy Child that Magellan’s expedition gave to the queen of Cebu in 1521, found unharmed by Spanish soldiers in 1565, is the oldest Christian image in the Philippines and the center of the Sinulog festival every January. See the Santo Niño novena.
Scripture for the islands
The prophet Isaias called the islands to praise God (Isaias 42:10–12, Douay-Rheims):
Sing ye to the Lord a new song, his praise is from the ends of the earth: you that go down to the sea, and all that are therein: ye islands, and ye inhabitants of them.
Let the desert and the cities thereof be exalted: Cedar shall dwell in houses: ye inhabitants of Petra, give praise, they shall cry from the top of the mountains.
They shall give glory to the Lord, and shall declare his praise in the islands.
Prayers for the Philippines
Written for this page.
For Filipinos working abroad
St. Lorenzo Ruiz, you left home and died far from the Philippines.
Pray for every Filipino who works overseas: protect them, give them fair treatment,
comfort their loneliness, and bring them home safely to their families. Amen.
In a typhoon or disaster
Mary Immaculate, our patroness, cover the Philippines with your mantle.
Protect families from the storm, save the lives in danger,
and move the hearts of all to help those who have lost everything. Amen.
For young Filipinos
St. Pedro Calungsod, you gave your life for Jesus as a teenager.
Pray for the young people of the Philippines, that they may know, love and share their faith. Amen.
Frequently asked questions
Who is the patron saint of the Philippines?
The Immaculate Conception is the principal patroness. St. Pudentiana and St. Rose of Lima are secondary patronesses.
Who are the Filipino saints?
St. Lorenzo Ruiz, martyred in Japan in 1637, and St. Pedro Calungsod, martyred on Guam in 1672.
When is the feast of the patroness of the Philippines?
December 8, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception.
More prayers
- Santo Niño novena
- Simbang Gabi
- Immaculate Conception
- St. Rose of Lima prayer
- Patron saints of countries
- Patron saint of the weather
Texts and sources
- Isaias 42:10–12 (Douay-Rheims).
- Pius XII, apostolic letter Impositi Nobis (1942), declaring the Immaculate Conception principal patroness of the Philippine Islands.