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BUKIDNON IS A LANDLOCKED plateau in North Central Mindanao, Philippines. It is the third largest province in the country and the largest in Mindanao. Dubbed as the “Food Basket of Mindanao” (www.manilatimes.net), Bukidnon has been a major producer of rice, corn, sugarcane, coffee, cassava, tomato, and other fruits and vegetables in the region. Its vast fields and relatively cool and humid climate paved the way for many plantations that eventually have made the province a key source of bananas and pineapples for domestic consumption and for export as well.
In 1850, Bukidnon became part of Misamis province as a municipality. With the creation of the Department of Mindanao and Sulu, it became a “regular province” in 1914 (bukidnon.gov.ph), the same year the Iglesia Ni Cristo (Church Of Christ) was registered with the government in the Philippines.
The word “Bukidnon” originally means “people who live in the mountains.” With God’s grace, members of the Church Of Christ in the province always strive to take the spiritual high ground.
In May 1956, Brother Felix Y. Manalo, God’s Messenger in these last days, tasked Brother Lorenzo T. Gamboa, then the district supervising minister of Agusan, to find the brethren who were living in Maramag, Bukidnon. Brother Gamboa found in Danggawan (now called Colambugon) the brethren who belonged to the Yecyec clan and those from Batangas, Ilocos, and Bohol. The next day, before returning to Agusan, he officiated the worship gathering of the said brethren, which was held at the school in Danggawan.
A local congregation was thus formed in Danggawan with Brother Rizalino Roa as its first resident ministerial worker. The local congregation was eventually placed under the supervision of the Ecclesiastical District of Misamis Oriental as its district office was nearer to the place. Due to the rigorous propagational works of the Iglesia Ni Cristo in Bukidnon, other local congregations were later formed in the province, still under the Ecclesiastical District of Misamis Oriental: Pangantucan and Wao (1956); Dangcagan (1957); Magsaysay (1958); Sultan Alonto (1959); Kaatuan (1960); Kadingilan and Malapag (1961); Bangcud (1962); Maramag (1964); and Kibawe, Don Carlos, Lurogan, Pualas, Sawaga, Lantapan, and Kitayhon (1965).
This phenomenal growth of the Church in the province prompted Brother Eraño G. Manalo, then the Executive Minister, to form Bukidnon as a separate ecclesiastical district in June 1965. Brother Carlos Villanueva was assigned as its first district supervising minister. Its first district office was situated in the Municipality of Maramag. On November 16, 1981, it was transferred to its current location at FYM and Hagkol Streets, Sayre Highway in Valencia City, Bukidnon.
On September 17, 1972, the Church Administration sent Brother Teofilo C. Ramos Sr. to visit the district and officiate at a special worship service held at the Bukidnon State College (BUSCO) Auditorium in Malaybalay. The nonmembers witnessed the multitude and the zeal of the Iglesia Ni Cristo members as the venue was filled to the brim. In 1986, the representatives of the national committee of the KADIWA and Binhi organizations also visited this district and conducted a district-wide meeting of the organizations held in Valencia.
In commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the district (dubbed as “Bukidnon at 50”), the district held a special gathering of all Church officers in Valencia on June 12, 2015, which was officiated by Brother Rolando A. Esguerra from the Iglesia Ni Cristo Central Office. On the same day, an INC Life was held at the Valencia City Gymnasium attended by more than 8,000 Church members and nonmembers.
On September 23, 2016, the devotional prayers of the brethren were answered by the Lord when Brother Eduardo V. Manalo conducted a pastoral visit in the district. They were overjoyed to see and hear the beloved Executive Minister preach God’s words, an experience that will remain etched in their memories, as it inspired them and uplifted their faith.
