Over the course of the past half-century, our lifestyles have changed dramatically as a result of the growing information age. In fact, at the beginning of 2023, there were 85.16 million internet users in the Philippines. The internet penetration rate of the Philippines stood at 73.1% of the total population (Kemp, 2023). But what do Filipinos search for on the internet? 

In response to this question, Capstone-Intel Corp., a research and actionable intelligence agency, revealed the top trending topics during the first half of July 2023. The company makes use of social listening tools through artificial intelligence to scan more than 80 million publicly available Filipino Facebook accounts. Several categories with wide-ranging keywords were included. From this, topics related to the Catholic Church ranked first, garnering an overall engagement score of 19 million. 

The engagement score measures the active involvement of audiences with the specific content that is being analyzed as per the high-impact intelligence agency–Capstone-Intel Corporation. The level of audience interaction online is calculated using a formula that factors in both the number of comments and reactions, multiplied by 0.1, and the number of shares (Capstone, 2023). 

Background

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The Philippines is a predominantly Christian country, with Roman Catholics comprising 78.8% of the household population (Philippine Statistics Authority, 2023). As such, religion continues to hold substantial importance in the lives of Filipinos, particularly evident during times of adversity (Ballano, 2019), such as the recent COVID-19 pandemic (Cordero, 2023). In fact, during the pandemic, churches quickly adapted to digital platforms to conduct religious sacraments, such as regular Sunday masses. This is in response to COVID-19 restrictions that kept churchgoers from physically attending mass gatherings. Evidently, when disasters strike the nation, the faith of the people becomes more pronounced, and their reliance on religious beliefs and practices deepens, offering solace and hope in the face of challenges. The enduring influence of religion in the Philippines serves as a guiding force that unites and provides comfort to the population during difficult times. With this, we listed the top 10 keywords related to the Catholic Church (see Table 1). The findings illustrate the continuing relevance of religion in the lives of Filipinos, extending beyond traditional religious practices toward modern and rather digitalized expressions of faith.

Findings

Out of over 150 words garnering engagement scores by the thousands, topics related to the Catholic Church ranked first. Among the keywords related to this category, “catholic” had the highest engagement score of 1,094,734. Closely following with an engagement score of 1,040,152 is “Quiapo Church” which is popularly and locally used as a reference to the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene Shrine of the Black Nazarene, a prominent basilica in the district of Quiapo in the city of Manila, Philippines. In honor of the Nuestro Señor Jesús Nazareno, a status of Jesus Christ believed by many to hold miraculous capabilities, the church holds a novena every Friday–better known as Quiapo Day. Accordingly, other words associated with Quiapo Church dominate the list, including the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene, Nazareno, Biyaya Sa Quiapo, and Nuestro Padre Jesus Nazareno. 

Interestingly, among the sea of keywords familiar to the Catholic Church, online and live masses take the ninth and tenth spots in the list, respectively. Now, what does this trend say about contemporary and post-pandemic religiosity in the country?Background

The Philippines is a predominantly Christian country, with Roman Catholics comprising 78.8% of the household population (Philippine Statistics Authority, 2023). As such, religion continues to hold substantial importance in the lives of Filipinos, particularly evident during times of adversity (Ballano, 2019), such as the recent COVID-19 pandemic (Cordero, 2023). In fact, during the pandemic, churches quickly adapted to digital platforms to conduct religious sacraments, such as regular Sunday masses. This is in response to COVID-19 restrictions that kept churchgoers from physically attending mass gatherings. Evidently, when disasters strike the nation, the faith of the people becomes more pronounced, and their reliance on religious beliefs and practices deepens, offering solace and hope in the face of challenges. The enduring influence of religion in the Philippines serves as a guiding force that unites and provides comfort to the population during difficult times. With this, we listed the top 10 keywords related to the Catholic Church (see Table 1). The findings illustrate the continuing relevance of religion in the lives of Filipinos, extending beyond traditional religious practices toward modern and rather digitalized expressions of faith.

Findings

Out of over 150 words garnering engagement scores by the thousands, topics related to the Catholic Church ranked first. Among the keywords related to this category, “catholic” had the highest engagement score of 1,094,734. Closely following with an engagement score of 1,040,152 is “Quiapo Church” which is popularly and locally used as a reference to the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene Shrine of the Black Nazarene, a prominent basilica in the district of Quiapo in the city of Manila, Philippines. In honor of the Nuestro Señor Jesús Nazareno, a status of Jesus Christ believed by many to hold miraculous capabilities, the church holds a novena every Friday–better known as Quiapo Day. Accordingly, other words associated with Quiapo Church dominate the list, including the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene, Nazareno, Biyaya Sa Quiapo, and Nuestro Padre Jesus Nazareno.

Interestingly, among the sea of keywords familiar to the Catholic Church, online and live masses take the ninth and tenth spots in the list, respectively. Now, what does this trend say about contemporary and post-pandemic religiosity in the country?

Toward Digital Expressions of Faith

It is without a doubt that religion does not only dominate the traditional aspect of Filipinos’ lives. The advent of Information Communication Technology (ICT) and the internet has ushered in a new era of social presence for Christians known as Telepresence—a term coined by Marvin Minsky. This “feeling of presence in an environment by means of a communication medium” is mostly maximized through internet access. Catholics are now able to join virtual Christian communities where virtual masses are held in cyberspace (Ballano, 2021). 

As modern expressions of faith emerged, Filipinos learned to embrace digital platforms to cater to the changing times. This shift became particularly evident during the height of the pandemic, when physical gatherings were restricted, and online and live masses took center stage. Even when churches reopened for physical masses, virtual services quickly became a mainstay for Filipinos, as illustrated by the findings above where online and live masses ranked ninth and tenth, respectively. As Filipinos continue to embrace this change, a new dimension is added to the country’s religious landscape. Blending the traditional with the contemporary expands the ways in which Filipinos can express and nurture their faith and spirituality.

As we slowly approach the post-pandemic era in the Philippines, learning about such trends can help demonstrate the impacts of the pandemic on the landscape of Philippine society. Through Capstone-Intel’s tools and strategies actionable intelligence, social trends, and emerging patterns can be collated and analyzed.