The Institute of Social Order marked its 77th founding anniversary last July 31.
Through the years the institution remained steadfast in its mission — to promote faith that does justice through the empowerment of the poor and marginalized sectors of Philippine Society.
This mission dates back to when the Institute of Social Order was founded by Fr. Walter Hogan SJ, and his former student and lay partner Mr. Juan Tan. Together, they mingled with the workers, met and befriended their leaders, attended union meetings, and interviewed employees. They aimed to grasp the challenges faced by workers and introduce Church social teachings into their struggles. They organized seminars and night classes for workers about union, social encyclicals, and public speaking (Fabros: 1988, p. 32).
During the early years, the ISO continued its training and education programs for the labor and peasant sectors, as well as held special conferences and seminars for leaders of basic Christian communities and alternative social development institutions. Many of the forerunners of the NGO movement in the Philippines later on traced their initial exposure to social activism from the ISO.
Post-EDSA, the ISO continued focusing on organizational development and professionalization in the effort to find its niche in social development. This period of discernment resulted in the shift of program strategies towards integrated area development. For its target sector, the ISO decided to focus on the “poorest of the poor” at that period, namely the municipal fishers. The ISO likewise decided to go to the peripheries – communities receiving limited assistance both from the government, the church, and the non-government sector.
Today, the ISO continues its work in community organizing and capacity building under its banner program, Social Transformation and Grassroot Empowerment or STAGE. STAGE is a multi-phased strategy for community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) that seeks to empower the marginalized fisherfolks through collaborative and participatory approaches. Carrying on the legacy of Fr. Walter Hogan, SJ and Mr. Juan Tan, the ISO and its partner lay organizations continue to protect the rights of the underprivileged and disadvantaged in the Philippines.
Building on these stories of leadership formation and organizational development, case studies of select organizations and movements that ISO formed and influenced throughout its 77 years of existence are featured in an Anniversary Book. These were formed based on the ideals and principles of our Jesuit founding father, Fr. Walter Hogan, S.J., and his student, Mr. Juan Tan. The book honors them and the other prime movers that have become part of our institutions.
*This is an excerpt from the article written by ISO’s Executive Director for the institution’s upcoming Anniversary Book. Stay tuned for its release.
**The accounts of the early history of the ISO are taken largely from Wilfredo Fabros, The Church and its Social Involvement in the Philippines, 1930-1972, Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University Press, 1988. Fr. Fabros’ accounts are supplemented by lecture materials prepared by Fr. John J. Carroll, SJ entitled, Philippine Jesuit Social Apostolate, Chronology of Selected Events (1900-1990s), (Outline) as presented in the ISO Organizational Development Workshop last November 24, 1995, as well as with interviews with some of the former directors and staff of the ISO.
Institute of Social Order 