Fr Adolfo Dacanay SJ, Atty Mel Sta Maria, Dr Antonia Siy discuss the implications of House Bill 9349 in "Divorce: Filipino Style"

As one of the few countries that currently doesn't allow divorce, the passage of House Bill 9394 — the Absolute Divorce Bill — has brought this contentious and divisive topic to the spotlight once again. It is with this in mind that three experts on the field of marriage were brought together as part of the Galing Ateneo series to tackle the topic and the controversial bill in "Divorce: Filipino Style."

A project of the School of Humanities, School of Law, and the Office of University Development and Alumni Affairs (OUDAA), "Divorce: Filipino Style," brought together a panel consisting of Ateneo Theology Professor Fr Adolfo N Dacanay SJ; Ateneo Law Professor Atty Mel Sta Maria; and RMT-Center for Family Ministries Pastoral Counselor Dr Antonia C Siy, RPsy, on the afternoon of Saturday, 21 September 2024 at the Leong Auditorium. Each of these brought their expertise and experiences — Fr Dacanay as a canon lawyer and as a former judge in the Matrimonial Tribunal, Atty Sta Maria as a lawyer and as a professor in Persons and Family Relations Law at Ateneo's School of Law, and Dr Sy as a counselor in the RMT-Center for Family Ministries  — to provide different viewpoints on the bill.

Moderating the panel was Dr Patricia Lambino, Dean of the School of Humanities, while Atty Jose Maria Hofileña, Dean of the School of Law, served as host. As part of her duties as moderator, Dr Lambino presented the panelists with various questions, including some taken from the audience (both on-site and online).

The questions covered a wide array of topics related to divorce, including the difference between it and annulment in both the eyes of the Church and the government, the existing grounds for the latter and how divorce will be different, and more.

Of particular interest was the topic of how the bill was compatible with Article XV, Section 2 of the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines, which calls marriage an "inviolable social institution." Here, Atty Sta Maria explained that articles of the constitution are either "aspirations," something for the country to aim for; or were "orders" that needed to be enforced; with the section in question being the former.

In addition, it was also pointed out that the bill treats absolute divorce as an option only to be used as a last resort once all other options have been exhausted.

Another topic that was brought up, this time by Dr Siy, was how divorce would work in a Filipino context and if it would truly help spare the spouses and, more importantly, the children, from suffering in a culture where even just going to counseling was already seen as a last resort.

Other talking points brought up by the panelists and members of the audience included some ambiguities in the wording of the bill and questions of whether the bill would allow divorce to be a more attainable solution when considering legal and other fees that would go with it.

After the panel, Ateneo de Manila University President Fr Roberto C Yap SJ came up on stage to share some closing remarks, not just on the topic of Divorce, but on the Galing Ateneo program in general.

Fr Yap stated that forums like Galing Ateneo allow Ateneans to show their commitment to opening their "eyes, hearts and minds" to differing viewpoints, especially on difficult and complicated issues like divorce.

"Divorce is a complicated issue and an even more challenging topic to discuss primarily because it affects families — the basic unit of society," Fr Yap stated. "Pope Francis invites us to take a pastoral approach to people in painful and difficult circumstances. 'The Church,' he said, 'must accompany with attention and care the weakest of her children who show signs of a wounded and troubled love by restoring in them hope and confidence.'"

Following the forum, a simple merienda was served at the Leong Hall atrium.

Watch the entirety of Galing Ateneo: Alumni Conversations – Divorce: Filipino Style here.