EL SHADDAI: A STUDY OF THEIR BELIEFS

AND PRACTICES IN THE PHILIPPINES

A Research Presented to the

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the course

By:
Jonah Jane A. Layson
Marc Jerald A. Tadeja

July 2019
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We, as the researchers of this study, are so much grateful to our Heavenly Father as He
gave us the daily wisdom and knowledge as we conducted and finished this research entitled “El
Shaddai: A Case Study of Beliefs and Practices in the Philippines”

We also would like to express our very great appreciation to Ptr. Raymond Echavez, our
professor in this course, Religion and Ethics in Modern Society in Manila Adventist College as
he lead and guide us through his dedication to this course.

To our family who gave us the motivation and financial support, we, researchers thanking
you. Also, to our friends who supported us morally to encourage us just to finish this study, thank
you so much.

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1
I. INTRODUCTION ……………………………………………………………… iv
II. BACKGROUND ……………………………………………………………… v

CHAPTER 2
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE ……………………………………… vi
History ……………………………………………………………… vi
Influence ……………………………………………………………… viii
Beliefs and Practices ………………………………………………………. ix

CHAPTER 3
CONCLUSION ……………………………………………………………… xii

REFERENCES…………………………………………………………………………….. xii

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 CHAPTER 1

I. INTRODUCTION

Ever since the world began, man has demonstrated a natural inclination towards faith and

worship of anything he considered superior or difficult to understand. Religion was made when

man started to do things to please and get favors from the Supreme being he feared. This resulted

in performing rituals and keeping laws and traditions to earn goodness or everlasting life.

Religion in the Philippines has always been part of the language through which power

relationships and radical political and economic change have been understood, manipulated and

resisted. From these works, Filipinos have transformed Catholic practice and symbols into

idioms through which they resist, cope with, bring about, and understand change. Religion have

been one of the ways through which Filipinos have reinvented themselves—both in the past and

today—in the context of recent religious innovations such as the El Shaddai movement.

The name "El Shaddai" is derived from the Hebrew; "El" stands for God and "Shaddai" for

omnipotence. So the word combination has the meaning of “God, the Almighty”. This name was

used and became the biggest charismatic movement of the Roman Catholic in light of its

relevance for local popular understandings of social mobility and modernity. It was founded on

1981and was led by Mariano Zuniega Velarde (Sanchez & Landy, 2017).

El Shaddai Movement has grown rapidly in the last decade and, as of 2005, had a reported 8

million members worldwide.

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In its worship, theology, and aesthetic, El Shaddai often seems more like the Filipino version of

an American Evangelical Protestant mega church than a traditional Catholic lay organization.

Nonetheless, the movement is linked to — and approved by — the Catholic Church, though not

all of its worshippers are Catholic.

II. BACKGROUND

El Shaddai DWXI Prayer Partners Fellowship International, popularly known as “El Shaddai”, is

a popular indigenous Catholic charismatic movement in the Philippines. Since the early 1980s,

approximately ten million people have tuned to charismatic businessman-turned preacher Mike

Velarde and his Catholic “prosperity” movement, El Shaddai. This movement has appealed

mainly to the Filipino lower classes by offering its followers the perceived opportunity to escape

their current poverty (Wiegele, 2005). Members’ stories about how they came to join El Shaddai

typically begin with some story of crisis in their lives.

Like other charismatic Christians worldwide, El Shaddai practice emphasizes the Holy Spirit and

experience over religious doctrine. In more emotional ceremonies they seek for a personal

interaction with the Holy Spirit, to get after creed and confessions his offerings and wonders.

This movement is based on the belief that certain charisms (a Greek word for gifts), bestowed by

the Holy Spirit, such as the abilities to speak in tongues and to heal should be practiced today.

Its core theology and practices are essentially Catholic Christian; the Eucharist is celebrated in

their gatherings, their spiritual advisors are from the Catholic hierarchy, and most of its members

profess the Catholic faith (Aboy, 2009).

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 CHAPTER 2

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

The review of literature for this study broadly focused on the El Shaddai movement; its

importance across the Philippines and around the world, as well as its beliefs and practices. The

literatures are thoroughly studied to know their history and foundation. Many views and opinions

were found by the works of many researchers who are interested in this charismatic movement of

the Catholic. Key words used to research were El Shaddai and; catholic, Philippines, charismatic

movement, Pentecost, beliefs and practices; and foundation.

HISTORY

Christianity in the Philippines started during the time of Spaniards when they colonized our

country and more than a century, most lowland Filipinos were converted to Roman Catholicism.

Over the centuries of being colonized, the Spanish missionaries were successful to convert and

introduce to Filipinos the Christianity in the country. But Christianity in Philippines change

during the end of colonization of the Spanish and overtaken by Americans. That’s where a lot of

religions were introduced and were made such as Seventh-Day Adventist and Jehovah’s

Witnesses who typically go door-to-door, sharing the messages that their sect support. Iglesia ni

Kristo is another sect that was made by a Filipino and has found strong support among Filipinos.

El Shaddai, was made on 1982; a fundamentalist Christian movement within Roman Catholicism

in the Philippines that attracted a large numbers of converts.

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El Shaddai is a popular indigenous Catholic charismatic movement based in Manila, Philippines

which began in 1981 as a nondenominational Christian radio program. According to Bethge

(2005), it was in the year 1978 where Mariano Zuniega Velarde, a qualified land surveyor and

later real estate agent, was inspired by his recovery from a heart ailment whom he believed that

an angel appeared to him at night and advised him to read and study the passage found in 1

Corinthian 10:13. Mike Velarde started a weekly Bible-quoting radio show on DWXI (1314 kHz)

AM; a station he acquired in 1982 as part of a real estate deal where he shared to others his

miraculous healing. The radio station becomes the germ cell of the charismatic religious

movement. Velarde called his show “El Shaddai”, a biblical name of God that he found in an

American religious pamphlet; a booklet written by Rev. Kenneth E. Hagin, a popular American

preacher of the prosperity gospel. Within fifteen years the group had become a substantial

movement with a followership of 9 to 11 million (Wiegele, 2005). According to Katharine

Wiegele, the group has chapters in nearly every province in the Philippines and in over 35

countries, with overseas participation comprising around 30% of the total. Millions of Filipinos

both at home and abroad are drawn to weekly El Shaddai outdoor rallies, events, and radio and

television programs. Many look up to their leader Mike Velarde when making decisions on

political candidates and current social issues. Indeed, Velarde has been called one of the fifty

most powerful people in Asia (Asiaweek, July 5, 1996) and one of the ten people “who made a

difference in the Philippines in the decade following the People Power Revolution” (Wiegele,

2005). The movement has now gained the support of the Catholic bishops and priests in other

countries all over the world where the El Shaddai DWXI-PPFI Centers are established. Through

El Shaddai, according to many people, Filipinos are transforming Catholicism in specific ways to

cope with economic, political, and social change.

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INFLUENCE

El Shaddai is characterized in the local press and in Manila society as movement of the masa, or

the “common people” which includes the poor and the so-called lower-middle class or the blue-

collar workers (Wiegele, 2005). It also has been called as the Church of the Poor. Helping the

poor becomes self-reliant. They say it gives poor people a positive attitude, something to hope

for, and teaches them to save their money, to not gamble, and to be responsible (Philippine

Studies vol. 54, 2006). El Shaddai is an answer to the need of the poor. They are drawn in to the

movement because of the inspiring healing messages of their servant leader. People from all

walks of life started to be interested in this movement and went to Velarde’s office for prayer and

counseling.

The Catholic Church was grateful for the movement because it prevents further exoduses from

their religion. The strong ties of El Shaddai to the Roman Catholic have psychological advantage

for the El Shaddai followers. It is said that they don’t have to give up their traditional faith

relationship for a new belief. It had prevented them from being attracted to non-Catholic

Christian movements and communities. The movement just made the followers active and

participative in outdoor activities to witness and have an experience of Christ (Rabena, 2017).

On the other hand, conspiracy theorists propagate the belief that El Shaddai plays a major role in

Philippine politics. They can form voting bloc because they are independent from the Catholic

church. It was reported that Velarde attempted to end a 2005 Philippine electoral crisis by uniting

the Estrada and Arroyo camps (Javellana, 2005). Velarde and his folowers have been

instrumental in national politics during successive presidencies beginning with the term of Fidel

Ramos.

viii
BELIEFS AND PRACTICES

The popularity of El Shaddai, Hebrew for ‘the God who has more than enough’, has stimulated

discourse about its adherence to Catholic doctrine, though accepted by the Church in a country

where more than eighty percent of the people are Roman Catholic. The El Shaddai movement led

by Mike Velarde relies on ‘healing’ rites through the messages that will lift up the spirit of the

members. They believe that through El Shaddai, members who participate in new ritual forms

bring about a new relationship with God. Mass congregation primarily consist prayer meetings in

local barrio chapters, open-air rallies, radio, and TV appearances and broadcasts to appeal to a

large number of people seeking messages and solutions to their poverty or problems (Russell,

1999). They believe that their movement has also been fascinating to journalists and other

observers to their belief which they called prosperity theology. According to Wilson (2007),

prosperity theology views the Bible as a contract between God and humans: if humans have faith

in God, He will deliver security and prosperity through “seed-faith” offerings, “positive

confession”, and “prayer requests” (Wiegle, 2005). El Shaddai believes seed-faith offering where

according to Roberts (1970), it uses familiar concept of planting (sowing) and harvesting

(reaping), is a voluntary tithe offering and a free sharing among the members in order to

encourage financial support toward a particular Christian ministry.

El Shaddai teaches the followers that giving money to a religious cause is like planting seed

towards God and they believe that their donations will be returned to them a hundred fold.

(Wiegle, 2006) They also practice positive confession in part through “prayer requests”, and

believe that God’s generosity in their specific statements can be claim in the present.

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According to Son (1996), El Shaddai’s festive rites, complete with choirs and a band atop an

elaborate stage in a park, draw mostly lower-income Filipinos. Male members call their spouses

“sister wives” and followers believe handkerchiefs printed with El Shaddai sayings can do things

like keep out heat or help heal illnesses. This same culture turns off many mainstream Catholics

and raises doubts among the public, but El Shaddai continues to pack the crowds in a country

that is fertile ground for religious groups of all kinds.

Furthermore, Katherine Wiegle added that Velarde discourages the traditional belief of Catholic

mediators, such as the saints and Virgin Mary, as images of devotion and intercession, and

instead, emphasize an individual’s direct connection with God. He also added during the rally on

May 12, 1996, “praying the rosary will not save you, but only the words of God can save you”.

Lastly, their prosperity gospel sets it apart from mainstream Roman Catholicism. According to

Carter (2017), prosperity gospel, also known as the “health and wealth gospel” is a perversion of

the gospel of Jesus that claims that God rewards increases in faith with increases in health and/or

wealth. They believe that this gospel “was a part in the package of salvation, since the

Atonement of Christ includes not just the removal of sin, but also the removal of sickness and

poverty.”

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 CHAPTER 3

CONCLUSION

Every day we encounter different people with different stories and different beliefs. Religion is

one of the things that gave a great impact to an individual and to the society. Its influence varies

greatly. It may not be important to some but it’s a very significant part of the lives of most

people. A lot of time, money and contemplation have been spent on religion. El Shaddai

movement is one of that said religions. It came to be because the followers have believed and

experienced something miraculous that changed their lives. This charismatic movement of the

Catholic Church gained many believers because the preaching of their leader struck a deep

chord, knowing their hopes and wants and thus wielding great influence over them. It is the aim

of the El Shaddai DWXI-Prayer Partners Foundation International, Inc. to proclaim to the world

God’s love and greatness and preach the Good News of Salvation offered by Jesus Christ.

The values one has learnt on this religion has developed for years and made them stronger. It

only depends on the person if he’ll put it in good use in the real world.

Religion may not give a beautiful experience to everyone but you have the freedom on what to

choose or what to believe in. Religion teaches us all the moral values that need to be learnt to

live within our family and with the outside world. Religion can be the light to guide us through

in all tunnels of life. It gives us meaning and a purpose in life. Our religion tells us that out of the

new ideas, customs and usages we should choose what is useful and worthy and should discard

what is improper and wrong but in the end, it is all up to us. We all have the freedom to follow or

not; and to search for the truth or not.

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 REFERENCES

1) Katherine L. Wiegele, Investing in Miracles: El Shaddai and the Transformation of

2) Katherine L. Weigele, "Mediated Spaces of Religious Community in Manila,

3) Mariano “Bro. Mike” Z. Velarde, With El Shaddai Miracles are Forever: 25 Years of
Faith, Love and Unity. Makati, Philippines: El Shaddai DWXI PPFI, Inc., 2009.

4) https://www.biblestudytools.com/bible-study/topical-studies/what-is-the-meaning-of-the-name-
shaddai.html?fbclid=iwar1ad8ei_ie0nkiagggdnmk9uo3azwgvgptyolnqosrtodehushklligvbs

5) https://www.catholicsandcultures.org/philippines-el-shaddai-serves-largest-population-
charismatic-followers?
fbclid=IwAR193v3Um7jj4G9ZbfA96gfIPdC7RITzRAZ4DDEKh6f6YV6GNVFlOJAY2Fk

6) https://www.academia.edu/33791850/Why_Do_Millions_of_Catholics_Follow_El_Shaddai_An_
Analysis_of_the_Catholic_Charismatic_Movement_in_the_Lens_of_Paul_Ricoeur_s_Philosophy
_and_Religious_Language?fbclid=IwAR0Gjc_5QlS42eyhV3f9WQ4PuLtmgNu-
JRVMs3ejiwjLRk14vExkeq7zjWg

7) https://www.revolvy.com/page/El-Shaddai-(movement)?stype=feedback&fbclid=IwAR1myv_-
yYkBJKHJ8iA0lg41ylrpyIoRuxwiDhRy6yMXYHuGlCqM8NEKzFk&cr=1

8) http://www.ipsnews.net/1996/08/religion-philippines-preacher-urges-people-to-pray-and-pay/

9) https://www.insights-philippines.de/elshaddai.htm?fbclid=IwAR3HaMxZGCDR6SZafVD7-
lIGUNg2e2FoCqVznLRibu5CMKA2yPodA5jULWs

10) https://ejournals.ph/article.php?id=5849&fbclid=IwAR3bzBQqzM8n4agEyhaNM-
8AMUbZoveiEg__al8coI7QX1mLXXuiLky9dVo

11) https://el-shaddaipcc.org/who-we-are/what-we-believe/?
fbclid=IwAR3UgdQe_zaskzJDU4xoR59WDgpxiVrwP0bJqw8Q02poNN6clnJSH9le-iI

12) https://web.archive.org/web/20070313224720/http://news.inquirer.net/nation/index.php?
index=1&story_id=47753

13) http://www.philippinestudies.net/ojs/index.php/ps/issue/view/22/showToc

14) https://journals.ateneo.edu/ojs/index.php/PS/article/view/ps.v54i4.301/0?
fbclid=IwAR33vW3UIFayRD2BviYR_P3iMpEKXqHo0xQpaUhsv2PAO--FUCoQXaEIx28

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