WATCH: How this century-old Filipino church marked Palm Sunday 2024

Rappler senior reporter Paterno Esmaquel II joins the Palm Sunday celebration of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente, a homegrown church also known by the name 'Aglipay'

MANILA, Philippines – If one does not know them from the get-go, it is easy to mistake their procession for a Roman Catholic ritual because the gestures, songs, and prayers can often look or sound the same.

But over the past century, the Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI) – commonly known as the Aglipay Church – has developed a solid core apart from the Roman Catholic Church, from which it separated in due to the abuses of Spanish friars in 1902.

On Palm Sunday, March 24, Rappler senior multimedia reporter Paterno Esmaquel II joined the Palm Sunday celebration of the IFI at the Cathedral of the Holy Child, Mandaluyong City, to learn more about this homegrown Filipino church.

Watch the video at the topmost portion of this page. – videography and video editing by Franz Lopez/Rappler.com