History


A Brief History of the Mother Butler Guild
                Mother Marie Joseph Butler, an Irish nun of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary, was so in love with our Lord in the Eucharist. This urged her to inculcate the same love and devotion to the students of Marymount College, a school she had established in Tarrytown, New York, and later on in Los Angeles, California. She encouraged her students and the alumnae of their schools to sew vestments and linens, as well as procure sacred vessels to be used for Holy Mass and other liturgical celebrations. These liturgical paraphernalia were then distributed to needy parishes. This was to ensure that Jesus in the Eucharist was never left unattended on altars of churches, especially in depressed areas.

                In the late fifties, this same love for the Eucharist inspired some Catholic lay women who came in contact with the schools Mother Butler had founded to begin the apostolate of providing poor parishes in the Philippines with liturgical paraphernalia.

                 His Eminence Rufino Cardinal Santos, the first Filipino Prince of the Church, was so moved by the pitiful condition of the altar of a number of parish churches in the Archdiocese of Manila. In his observation: "Ang mga gamit sa Misa marumi, magulo, hindi mabango, parang walang nag-aalaga." He immediately decreed the creation of service guild, organized on the parochial level. This guild consisted of the Catholic laywomen whose main concern would be to make and take care of priestly vestments and altar linens, as well as ensure the cleanliness and beautification of their respective parish churches. That this work shall be a means for their sanctification. "Pag-tatahi at pag-aalaga sa kasuotan at ibang gamit sa Misa, at pag-ayos at pagpapaganda ng simbahan ng parokyang kinabibilangan nila ay magiging paraan ng kanilang kabanalan." 

                That decree was officially promulgated on April 28, 1961. That particular organization of Catholic laywomen was called MOTHER BUTLER GUILD (MBG) in honor of Mother Marie Joseph Butler of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary. Her devotion to the Eucharist shall be held as an example for the MBG apostolate, as well as for the lives of the members of the guild.

                The Mother Butler Guild has started with five parish units in the Archdiocese of Manila:
  1. Christ the King, Project 7, Quezon City
  2. Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Project 6, Quezon City 
  3. Sta. Rita, Philamlife Homes, Quezon City
  4. Parish of Malolos, Bulacan
  5. Parish of San Miguel, Bulacan
              The latter two parishes of Bulacan were then part of the Archdiocese of Manila until several months later when Bulacan was erected as the independent diocese of Malolos.

              The first set of officers of the Manila Archdiocesan Council, the Mother Butler Guild's highest governing body then was inducted into office on July 1961 at the Sta. Rita Parish in Philamlife Homes, Quezon City by His Excellency Bishop Pedro N. Bantigue, who was appointed by Cardinal Santos as the first Manila Archdiocesan Spiritual Director of the Council. The officers were:


Lydia Garrido, Sta Risa Parish                                                                              President 
Ester Pascual, San Miguel Parish                                                                         First Vice President
Arsena Tiongson, Malolos Parish                                                                         Second Vice President
Salome Loanzon, Sta. Rita Parish                                                                        Secretary
Corazon delos Santos, Christ the King Parish                                                      Assistant Secretary
Julie Calinawan, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish                                             Treasurer
Sonia Ledesma, Sta. Rita Parish                                                                          Assistant Treasurer

            In the early seventies, His Eminence Jaime L. Cardinal Sin recognizing how the MBG apostolate responded to a specific need in the Church and desiring to share and extend the service of the MBG with other dioceses, especially in depressed areas, tasked Mrs. Henrietta T. de Villa, then MBG Manila Archdiocesan Council president to go the different ecclesiastical territories and offer to their Local Ordinaries the MBG apostolate. In July 1976, the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), through its Episcopal Commission on the Laity (ECLA), gave official recognition to the MBG as a mandated national religious organization of Catholic laywomen whose service is to provide for the sacristy needs, and maintain cleanliness and beautification of the parish churches of their members. Among the first dioceses that welcomed the MBG apostolate were: Caceres, Jaro, Lucena, Ozamiz, and Palawan.

            The first set of officers of the National Council of the Mother Butler Guild were inducted on February 9, 1978 at the Most Holy Redeemer Parish by His Excellency Bishop Bienvido M. Lopez who was appointed by CBCP at the first MBG National Spiritual Director. The officers were:

 Henrietta T. de Villa                                                                                            President
Immaculate Conception Parish, Cubao
Luz Domingo                                                                                                      Vice President
St. Joseph the Worker Parish, Balintawak 
Justina delos Reyes                                                                                           Recording Secretary
Most Holy Redeemer Parish, Brixton Hill
Feling Suban                                                                                                      Executive Secretary
Sta. Clara de Montefalco Parish, Pasay
Lourdes Escutin                                                                                                  Treasurer
Christ the King Parish, Project 7, Quezon City
Mary Agatep                                                                                                        Auditor
Sta. Rita Parish, Philamlife Homes, Quezon City

 Regional Coordinators:
            Irene Gamalinda             Luzon
            Araceli Azul                    Bicol
            Flor Sedigo                     Visayas
            Remedios Huliganga      Mindanao

 Chairpersons for Standing Committees:
            Rizalina Mendoza           Worship
            Corazon delos Santos      Education
            Lina Gatmaitan                Service
            Carlita Yap                       Temporalities

             The Lord has been faithful and generous. He has blessed the Mother Butler Guild with abundance in years, wisdom and grace. To date, there are some one thousand MBG parish units and close to fifteen thousand members nationwide. he has also bestowed on his Mother Butlers the gift and the task or preparing the vestments and linens, and providing vestry service for the liturgical celebration of momentous historical events of the Church in the Philippines:
  • the first Papal Visit to the Philippines of Pope Paul VI in November 27, 1970 
  • the first Papal Visit to the Philippines of Pope John Paul II which occasioned the beatification in Manila of the first Filipino Servant of God, Blessed Lorenzo Ruiz, and companion martyrs, in February 17-22, 1981
  • the second Papal Visit of Pope John Paul II which occasioned the 10th World Youth Day and the Celebration of the Quadricentennial Anniversary of the Archdioceses of Manila, Cebu Caceres, and Nueva Segovia in January 12-16, 1995
  • the 4th World Meeting of Families convened in Manila by Pope John Paul II in January 22-26, 2003 
  • the 1st National Congress of the Clergy which gathered 4000 priests and bishops at the World Trade Center, Metro Manila in July 5-9, 2004 
Humility, love, joy define by the Mother Butler Guild member's journey into a new way of living, a new way of loving, a new way of serving. Happy in going about her "Mary" chores of taking care of Jesus on the altar, the MBG member experiences a three-fold historical movement at every moment she serves the Lord...
  1. A movement of listening to Jesus, and entering into the habit of hearing the good news that she is his beloved
  2. A movement of fruitfulness wherein her listening movements bring Christ to birth in herself, in others she relates with, in the community where she is
  3. A movement of pro-active hope born from perseverance amidst challenges to know Jesus and make him known, to love Jesus and make him loved
On the Feast of the Divine Mercy
03 April 2005

cf. Mrs Corazon delos Santos, 1971 
cf. Ambassador Henrietta T. de Villa, 2005

An Update

As the Mother Butler Guild moves forward to its journey of loving service, Our Lord continues to gift the MBG with the space to enhance the liturgy, through its vestry service, in significant ecclesial events in the history of the Catholic Church in the Philippines. These include:

  • the Ecumenical Conference convened by the Vatican Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, together with the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences (FABC) and the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) in the Pius XII Catholic Center, presided by His Eminence Walter Cardinal Kasper of the Holy See, on February 8-10, 2007
  • the IX FABC (Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences) Plenary Assembly in the Pius XII Catholic Center, with the presence of His Excellency Archbishop Robert Sarah of the Holy See, on August 10-16, 2009 
  • the 2nd National Congress of the Clergy chaired by His Eminence Guadencio B. Cardinal Rosales which gathered 5542 priests and 100 bishops in the World Trade Center, with Rev. Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa, Pontifical Household Preacher as Guest Speaker, on January 25-29, 2010
  • the 1st RED MASS For Public Officials to be held in the Philippines presided by His Eminence Gaudencio B. Cardinal Rosales, and con-celebrated by the Philippine Bishops and the clergy, in the Manila Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception on July 7, 2010
  • the Quadricentennial Anniversary Celebration of the Royal and Pontifical University of Santo Tomas headed by its Rector Magnificus, Rev. Fr. Rolando V. de la Rosa, OP , and presenced by the Papal Legate appointed by Pope Benedict XVI, His Eminence Zenon Cardinal Grocholewski, Perfect of the Congregation for Catholic Education, on January 24-28, 2011
The Mother Butler Guild celebrates its 50th Anniversary in July 2011. Fifty years of loving service to the Lord, to the Church and to all those whom the Lord loves. To mark this amazing grace, the MBG offers to Jesus our Servant God six (6) Jubilee Dioceses - Alaminos, Bacolod, Borongan, Calbayog, Catarman, Daet - organized, formed and inducted into the MBG fold in order to widen the network of the MBG office of love, amoris officium, in the ecclesiastical provinces of the Philippines. In addition, the MBG is offering our Jubilee members, recruited, formed and inducted into the Guild during the year-long preparation for our 50th anniversary, so as to increase and multiply minds that know Jesus, hearts that love Jesus, and hands that serve Jesus and pray to him for and with people. As of today, Jubilee members now number more than five hundred (500), and increasing still.

MBG, rejoice. It is the year of favor from the Lord.


Ambassador Henrietta T. de Villa 
MBG National President