Indigenous Religion, the State and Civil Society in Bukidnon, Philippines

The paper describes the religion of an indigenous case community in Bukidnon, Philippines from participant observation, interviews, focused group discussions and content analysis of documents from government and civil society organizations and other secondary materials. It analyzes the diversifying role of indigenous religion in the public sphere amidst social change in the uplands with the entrance of migrants, logging companies, the state and civil society organizations. The paper also intends to shed light on how indigenous religion contributes to communal adaptation and sustainable development as well as efforts to protect ancestral domain in the face of increasing commercialization of the economy, as well as political and environmental conflict. The increasing visibility of religion and the strategies of religious leaders to position themselves in the changing context has implications as well for the relations between religion and the state and civil society.  Theoretical perspectives examining the role of religion in the public sphere as well as political ecology will be utilized as frameworks for analysis.