A Catholic parish in a posh area of the Philippine capital’s business district, Makati, has drawn flak for proposing to charge more than US$1,000 for weddings held in the parish church. A barrage of social media posts has condemned Santuario de San Antonio Parish in Makati’s exclusive Forbes Park village for raising its wedding rates from about US$767 to US$1,250.

The parish church has slots for 936 weddings each year. Of US$1,000 for every wedding held, the parish gets US$936,000 or about 490 million pesos a year.

Most churches in the Philippines charge a wedding fee of about US$100 to US$400.

Special discounts are also given to parishioners, or if couples decide to hold their wedding on a weekday. Air-conditioned churches charge extra to cover electricity and other operational costs.

Santuario de San Antonio Parish also announced on March 15 that it would raise annual accreditation fees for wedding planners, florists, musicians, videogra-phers and photographers.

The parish also planned to charge wedding planners an annual accreditation fee of as much as US$1,000 while photographers and videographers would be charged at least US$575.

Wedding blogger and photographer Dominic Barrios said the new rates are “excessive.” He said those getting married in the church will be burdened because they will pay for the suppliers.

Parish priest Reu Jose Galoy, a Francis-can, immediately withdrew the new rates following the slew of criticism.

“We apologize if the regulations and the rates caused you all concern as it was never our intention to do so,” said the priest in a statement released by the parish.

He said that “while we feel the regulations … were fair and well thought out, we now realize that they should be considered a work in progress rather than the final product.” The new regulations and rates for weddings were presented during the parish’s first “wedding congress” held on March 15.

The State Administration for Religious Affairs (SARA), also known as the “Religious Affairs Bureau,” so far under the authority of the Council of State, has passed under the direct rule of the Communist Party. The move is among a detailed program of reforms on the Party and the state institutions released.

The decision to eliminate SARA was passed in the third plenary session of the 19th Communist Party’s Central Committee in late February. Part of the program was reviewed in the recently concluded National People’s Congress, China’s parlia-ment. Detail of the program was made public on March 21, with indication that the reform should be implemented by the end of 2018.

Among the reforms, religious affairs are now managed by the United Front Work Department (UFWD), an organ of the Commu-nist Party’s Central Committee, whose main function is to manage relations with the non-Communist elite, including individuals and organizations, such as religious groups. Also now under the management of the UFWD are the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office and the Ethnic Affairs Commission, both also originally under the State Council.

The structural change received mixed views among Chinese Christians and observers. “There won’t be big change to religious environment, neither loosen nor tighten. It is only a change on management structure and they will do the same thing,” said Father Liu, a priest who serves in a Southern province.

More Filipinos support the legalization of divorce in the country, a Church-initiated public survey showed.

The survey conducted by Church-run Radio Veritas revealed that 39% of the 1,200 respondents strongly agree with the proposed measure in Congress, while only 35% strongly dis-agreed. 13% of those surveyed said they somewhat agree while another 13% said they somewhat disagree.

The survey, dubbed “Veritas Truth Survey (VTS),” was conducted from December 2017 until last January. Fr Anton Pascual, president of Radio Veritas, said this survey result is a wake-up call to the Catholic Church. “This is a wake-up call and a big challenge to the Catholic Church, especially since many of the faithful are in favour of the legalization of divorce here in the Philippines, the only country aside from the Vatican without a divorce law,” he lamented. The priest said this means the Church needs to preach more on marriage. Of the female respondents, 43% said they strongly agree with the legalization versus 35% who said they strongly disagree.

A Catholic Archbishop in the Philippines has been named a “hero for the environment” for his strong advocacy against mining, especially in the northern part of the country.

The Gawad Bayani ng Kalikasan award was given to Archbishop Sergio Utleg of Tuguegarao for his “exemplary deeds and initiatives” to advance environmental protection. The award is given to those who “serve as an example” in protecting the environment by activist groups led by the Centre for Environmental Concerns. “We honour the efforts of extraordinary environmental defenders who are fighting through various forms and capacities,” said Owen Migraso, executive director of the organization.

The award recognized Archbishop Utleg’s “passion, commitment, and integrity” to carry on his advocacy for the environment “amidst life-threatening circumstances.”

“He is recognized for being a rock and foundation of pro-environment movements that successfully closed down illegal mining operations,” said Migraso. In a message read during the awarding ceremony, Archbishop Utleg said he was “sharing this award with all the people who stand for the protection of all creation, the promotion of human rights and the dignity of life.”

Danggayan, an activist group in Cagayan nominated Archbishop Utleg for the award. “He is not just a good shepherd but also a fierce environment defender,” said Isabelo Adviento, the group’s leader.