Rethinking Encounters and Re-imagining Muslim-Christian Relations in Post-colonial Philippines

This chapter explores the colonial and post-colonial government policies that affected Muslim-Christian relationships. Using selected policies and government actions, I argue that the colonists, political authorities, and religious leaders functioned as arbiters of Muslim-Christian relations. To understand this relationship, the chapter will consider the following: Islam in pre-colonial Philippines; Christianity as a colonial export and tool of the colonists’ “civilizing” mission; post-colonial policies affecting Muslim-Christian relations, and contemporary efforts by Muslims and Christians on promoting inter-religious understanding.