Saturdays with Fray Villalobos

          After reading the story, the group realized that it has something to do with the colonization of the Philippines from the Spaniards. Catholicism. The fact that Fray Villalobos and Monja Barraquias roam to every village in the area in order to spread the word of God, is one of the reasons how the Philippines was ruled under the Spanish government. It was also the spices which captured the hearts of the Spaniards that can be symbolized by the food  two have been trying and learning to understand. Also, the food also represents how hospitable Filipinos naturally are, as well as the resouces Philippines have. The fact that they accepted Fray Villalobos and Monja Barraquias and show them how they cooked is a good sign that they are welcomed whole heartedly in their respective homes. It is also a sign that Spaniards are taking advantage of our resources.

 

 

           On the other hand, even though the intentions of Fray Villalobos was to spread the Word of God, still some strongly refused to accept Catholicism as obviously shown by the Indio priest who lately killed Fray Villalobos. A lot of Filipinos didn’t embraced the Catholicism eagerly, for they knew that there are anomalies in the Catholic church. Filipinos thought that since they are pagans and Catholicism was finally introduced in our country, progress will now be achieved. However, some Filipinos found out what was really going on, as the Spaniards only used the said religion for us to be under the control of the Spaniards. The Indio priest symbolizes as one of the Filipinos who wanted to retain what Filipinos already had. Dinuguan, as Monja Barraquias’ last recipe symbolizes war. The lines, “It tasted exactly like I imagined it would,” and “All you need is patience,” is an indication that a war is already happening.