Chapter 9 -Election of Rev. Moley Famillaran, CPBC President

                                          Chapter 9

                          Election of  Rev. Moley Famillaran,   CPBC  President-

It   was  May  1976.   Four years, after President Ferdinand Marcos declared Martial Law.  In  Negros, Panay and  different parts of the country there were continued and intensified   human rights violations, killings  and  military abuses  under   President Marcos and Defense Secretary Juan Ponce Enrile’s rule in the country.

In the Baptist Convention, Rev. Jesus Vaflor was President in 1974-May 1976.  I am not so sure, who the General Secretary of the CPBC in 1975-1976. 

In the midst of growing social,   economic and  political unrest,  brought by   arrests,  imprisonments of thousands and thousands of people and killings under President Marcos’s martial rule,  the Convention of Philippine Baptist Churches  General Assembly  met  to    elect the President, Vice President and 7 members of the Board of Trustees.  A  month later, the Board of Trustees will elect the CPBC General Secretary.

Bacolod Evangelical Church, the venue of the assembly, is  the biggest Convention Baptist Church in Negros Occdental.  It’s  at Rosario  &  San Juan Streets, in Bacolod City. Here delegates, from Panay, Romblon, Mindoro, Manila,  Luzon and Mindanao   converged  for the assembly.

Across  Bacolod Evangelical Church  was   Bacolod Elementary School,  a  wide and big school in the  city. The school  assisted  CPBC by opening their classrooms as housing for   delegates - there delegates  will  slept, take baths & showers,  have fellowship and sharing  before and after the  sessions in   the assembly. 

Rev. Pamplona was the  minister.  He was pastor of BEC for about  30    years.  He was one of the respected pastors  holding big pastorates.  The 3- days General Assembly  was  filled with  delegates. 

At Central Maao Evangelical Church, we have 6 official delegates. They will have the right to vote officials of the Convention. We have also 8  visitors attending the assembly.  They cannot vote. They came to listen, learn and  have fellowship  with  the assembly.

Maao   Central   Evangelical   Church    choir   sang    in   the    assembly  together with big churches - Bacolod Evangelical Church, Bacolod Cosmipolitan  Church, Bakyas Baptist  Church, La Carlota Evangelical Church and other churches that will provide music for  the assembly.

The group that led CPBC before 1976 for some  years,  were commited church leaders and pastors. At the top of this leadership includes,  Mr. Johnny de la Fuente,  Rev. Levi Lajaylahay, Rev. Malvar Castillon and Atty. Reinero Noledo and   Dr. Agustin  Masa, President of Filamer Christian College.

They were at the helm of the national leadership.  They were spiritual leaders.  Except for a very few,  however,  most  of  the  leaders have  remained  silent and voiceless under the growing repressions of the Marcos regimes.

A group of young pastors and church leaders were looking for change. They were  young, with visions and dreams for the future – Rev. Sammy Formelleza, from Romblon  and current Coordinator of Center for Education and Research (CER) Rev. Larry Leysa, Promotional Secretary of Iloilo Kasapulanan.

Rev. Eliseo  Fantilaga, of  Capiz and Coordinator of NCCP in Western Visayas, Pastor Tony Elequin of Antique, Domngo Bernal of  Aklan,

In Negros Occidental, the group were headed by  Fred and Victoria Bat-og, Baptist Youth leaders, Rev. Esfe Tandog, Provincial  Minister of Negros Kasapulanan  and Pastor Rudy Bernal of   Maao Central Evangelical Church, with the church   radio program, “Hour of Discovery”over DYHB in Bacolod. They were also surrounded with young leaders, with visions for change.

These pastors and church leaders have transformational   minds  and leadership that can touched and  reached   some pastors and  leaders of the churches  in the Kasapulanans and the Baptist Convention.

We attended the May 1976 CPBC  Assembly ready to work for change. We were also committed to resist President Marcos martial rule.  During the last 2  years, we were involved   in    seminars by   the   Center   for   Education   and Research (CER), with Rev. Conrad Brown, trying to educate church people  in  leadership and  formation.   Some  young pastors  were involved in the trainings,   headed by Rev. Sammy Formelleza.

I cannot remember the  people  who led the worships services, those who led workshops and those who preached the messages during the assembly.  But for us,   the call   was clear.  The need   for change for change in the   leadership  of the Convention. A leadership with new visions, clear directons and capacity to mobilize the churches  to respond  to the problem of grave poverty and  resist the growing repressions and  human rights violation in the country. 

The decision was  made.   We will worked and  participate in the change of   leadership.    We    made plans  to mobilized  delegates to attend  the assembly.

We  called  on  churches in   Iloilo, Capiz, Aklan and Antique to help  send  delegates to the assembly, the churches providing  money for   delegates   transportation,  registration fees, foods and snacks during the assembly.

To assist some delegates who have difficulties to buy their food at the assembly mess halls,  we   organized a group who will cooked  food for some delegates. One room in the Elementary school was requested where food can be cooked for  delegates who have difficulties to buy their food. Fred and Vic Bat-og, joined groups that  donates  rice, vegetables, coffees, fish and meat  for the delegates that who have difficulties on foods.

It was a great event, the CPBC assembly of 1976. But we have not identified the  possible  candidate  for President yet. 

After scouting the potentials in the assembly, it seems, no one has the capacity to defeat the candidate  who was running with the  backing of the CPBC administration.  Fred Bat-og suggested to select a  team of  10  pastors and church leaders to visit  Rev. Moley  Famillaran  and  asked  him to  provide  the  needed leadership.

We came to him at his office at Bacolod City Hall on the  First Day. Rev. Famillaran thanked us for  efforts  to   help.  But he did not accept the challenge to run for President of CPBC.   He said: “I am busy with my work as Secretary to the Mayor. I have to be at the office every day. It’s difficult to take responsibility with the Convention. It’s not easy to be President of the organization.” He requested the group to find another person to run for CPBC President.

After discussing the situation  that night, the group felt, there was no one, but Rev. Famillaran to run for President with potentials to win.  The group decided to  visit him  again and requsst him m ake himself available for the presidency of the Convention. On the  2^nd day, another team of  about 15  leaders came to see  him   with  a final  request for  Rev. Famillaran to run for president. 

Fred Bat-og said: “ We came to request you to run for President. We believe you are needed by the hour. If you will not,  we will not pushed you. But we will not have a candidate for President in  this assembly.”

Rev. Famillaran looked at all of us. He said.  “Okey, I will run. I will file my candidacy. But I will not campaign.  I will just visit the assembly, on the 3^rd day, for about an hour to show my face, met some friends and shook hands  with some who  were   in the assembly.”

We shooked  hands with Rev. Famillaran. We told him, we were  happy with his decision. We asked one to pray. Pastor Tony Elequin prayed for us all and Rev. Famillaran. We left the  office of the Mayor that afternoon.

The elections of the next  CPBC President  was the  big   challenge of the time.

Most of the delegates were busy in the assembly  hall  at Bacolod Evangelical Church. 

There were beautiful singings. There were  sermons during the assembly, by well known speakers. Different choirs sang during different times of worships. Our choir at  Maao Central Evangelical Church also sung our  piece. We were all  touched by the musical renditions of the  different choirs.

There were food available in the mess hall of the assembly.   In the Elementary School,  delegates  eat  food prepared by the group’s  cooks. There were excitements  during  that  3 day  of the assembly.

The campaigns for elections of the CPBC leaders – President, Vice President and Board of Trustees was felt. It was a strong and hard  campaigns.  Mostly done in whispers and by raising of our hands,  in a kind of salute.   It was the first time, I participated  in the election of officials of  the Convention.  I felt, it was a great spiritual exercise, being  active in electing  of  CPBC officers. I felt, deep inside me, God was working in each of   the delegates minds and hearts.

An hour before the casting  of votes, I met one of the CPBC  Board member, running for re-election. He said: “Rudy, your group were campaigning. That’s not right.”  I said, yes, Sir.  We’re campaigning.  “This is an election of the highest officers of the Convention. In all elections, campaigns were   needed. Issues must be discussed and clarified. We’re presenting an alternative person.   And and we propose  alternative programs.”  He looked at me.  I smiled.  Then,   I laughed loud.  And he   laughed with me.

The election  was  held that afternoon. It was  a solemn process. We elected the  President,  Vice President and  7 members of the Board of Trustees. We chosed from among the men and women who offered themselves in the service of the Lord, thru the leadership of the Convention of Philippine Baptist Churches.

Electing the top officials of the CPBC is a holy  process.  It’s a  call  for high  and deeper   commitments. The President, Vice President and Members of the Board,  were  not paid salaries for their services. They’re  all volunteers. All of them  accepted the call of Jesus for  leadership through the CPBC.

At 7:30 PM,  the result of the election  canvas was announced.  Rev. Moley Famillaran was elected President of the Convention. Also elected were the Vice President and  members  of the Board of Trustees.

That evening, Rev. Moley Famillaran, was installed as President. Also installed were the  Vice President and the members of the Board of Trustees.

Rev. Famillaran was elected President,  in one of the crucial period of our country’s  history –when the country  was struggling and many people were suffering under President Ferdinand Marcos martial law regime,  the most deadly, brutal and corruption  ridden regime in the country’s history.

Rev. Moley Famillaran election as  CPBC President was a new milestone for the Baptist Convention’s ministries. There were major changes and  directions  made during his  years leadership.

In  the first 3 months of his term, with the new  General Secretary, they  led in the Program Planning Process that looked deep in the ministry of the CPBC and tried to  worked and mobilized the 3 Programs of the Convention—Evangelism, Christian Education and Stewardship to be more relevant to the needs  of the churches.

He started  started planning a pilot program on Urban Industrial Mission (UIM), in Insular Lumber Company (ILCO)  in Hinobaan, Negros Occidental that soon  became the 4^th  program of the Convention,  the   New Frontier Ministries,  the   development arms of  CPBC.

The Children’ Development Programs was started  under his leadership, where Kindernothilfe of Germany  partnered with CPBC in children’s  ministry. Mrs. Elsbeth Diel, a German and wife of   Dr. Domingo Diel, Jr.,  was  instrumental  in the start of the KNH  in Iloilo and Negros, that soon reaches  many  parts of the country.  

These was followed with the Support an Orphan Program (SAO), the children’s program from Australia Baptist Federation, with feeding assistance, education  from Kinder School to vocational and college education.

Rev. Famillaran with  Rev. Edwin Lopz,  General Secretary,   worked to address the issues of  Human Dignity, Human Rights violations  and  worked extensively to help address and alleviate deep  poverty suffered by the people, in a society controlled by the rich, extremely rich  and powerful economic and political warlords.  

After serving for one term as President,  Rev. Moley Familiaran accepted the God’s call to serve as Pastor of Cosmopolitan Church, a church related to the United Church of Christ in Philippines (UCCP).  The UCCP stood strongly with the NCCP,  against human rights violations and other abuses of the Marcos Martial rule. 

He took the place of Rev. Cerilo Rigos, who was called   to   Pastor   Ellenwood Church of Malate,  Manila, also a UCCP  member church. From this venue, Rev. Famillaran was called by the Board of International Ministries, to work in the US for services in Asia and the Pacific.

In the 1980’s, the National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP), the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP), the Philippine Indipendent Church (PIC) together with  more than 20 organizations  were tagged by the  military as communists fronts.

These were hard  and dangerous times to work  for peace,  justice and human rights.  But  many in the churches, in journalism,  labor,  peasantry, professionals, students, out-of-school-youths, lawyers, physicians and nurses, fishermen, ioined together,  working  for peace, justice, freedom and human rights.