WHERE HAVE ALL THE GOOD GIRLS GONE? Do Filipinos Know The Bible?

Pea tackles one of the most common sources of confusion for Western men dating Filipinas: why does such an openly religious country produce women who don't seem to follow the Bible's teachings on marriage? She hits the streets to quiz random Filipinos on basic Bible knowledge, then connects the results to real relationship dynamics — particularly the tension over a Filipina prioritizing her parents over her husband.

Pea's framing and disclaimers ​

• She calls this "the mother of all truth bombs" and expects backlash for it
• Makes clear she's not promoting or attacking religion — she's explaining the difference between Western believers and Filipino believers
• Her point: even if you don't care about religion, if you're interested in a Filipina, religion will come into play in your relationship one way or another

The statistics on Filipino religiosity ​

• According to the Philippines National Statistics Office, 86% of the population identifies as Roman Catholic
• The remaining 14% is Protestant, Muslim, and others
• Less than one-tenth of one percent say they have no religion
• Pea notes that while people have freedom to choose any religion, it's a good idea to actually read the book at the core of your faith

Street interviews: testing Bible knowledge ​

• Pea interviewed 31 people over two days and says she did not cherry-pick responses
• Most Filipino respondents said they were religious, go to church (some every day), and believe in the Bible
• However, when asked basic Bible questions, most couldn't answer them:
  • "Can you name Adam and Eve's children?" — Most didn't know (one guessed "Canaan"); only one person named Cain and Abel
  • "Which apostle betrayed Jesus and for how much?" — One person answered "Satan," most didn't know
  • "Who built the big boat and loaded every animal?" — Most got Noah correct
  • "List as many of the Ten Commandments as you can" — Most could only name two or three: honor your father and mother, thou shall not kill, thou shall not steal
• One woman admitted she loves the Bible but doesn't read it thoroughly
• One respondent said Adam and Eve "came from bamboo" — mixing Filipino creation folklore with the Bible
• By contrast, the foreign non-believers Pea interviewed had a "pretty impressive grasp of the basics"

Foreign atheist interview ​

• One foreigner said he's not religious, doesn't go to church, doesn't believe in any gods
• He had read the Bible and also the Quran (which he said was "even worse than the Bible")
• He could name other religions and knew details — demonstrating Pea's point that even Western non-believers tend to know more Bible content than many devout Filipino Catholics

Witchcraft and folklore belief ​

• Multiple Filipino respondents confirmed they believe witchcraft and sorcery are used in the Philippines
• Several said they believe in fairies, trolls, and ghosts based on stories from siblings and friends
• One said the spirits "have some kind of power but not as powerful as God" — an "evil power"
• One former Catholic turned Baptist said he stopped believing in witchcraft after switching denominations
• Some said their relatives actively believe in and use witch doctors

Pea's core analysis: why Filipinos don't know the Bible as well as Westerners expect ​

• She's not saying Filipinos aren't true believers — she's saying their knowledge of their own religion is often thin
• Filipinos believe, but they're "not as interested in all the particulars" and often accept what others tell them rather than reading the Bible themselves
• Western pushback ("it's the same in the West — most churchgoers haven't opened the Bible") doesn't hold up, Pea argues: even Westerners from heavily agnostic countries seem to know more about basic Bible content
• Average Filipinos often know more about Mother Mary and rosary beads than about the Ten Commandments
• Westerners assume Filipinos know the Bible well because of how openly religious the Philippines is — this assumption is wrong

The key explanation: Catholicism as a Western transplant mixed with local folklore ​

• Catholicism was brought to the Philippines by the Spanish
• What exists now is a blend of local folklore (trolls, fairies, witchcraft, dwarves) mixed with Catholicism
• Both local traditions and Catholic teachings affect how Filipinos see the world
• Filipinos are still heavily influenced by traditional pre-colonial culture, so even though they're Catholic, "it doesn't always translate the way you expect it to"
• This is why some Filipinos can tell you as much about who uses witchcraft as they can about Bible stories

The relationship implications: why your Filipina puts family first ​

• Of the Ten Commandments Filipinos could name, "honor thy father and mother" was at the top — that message is pounded home in Filipino culture
• But the verse about "cleaving onto your husband" (a wife's duty to prioritize her husband) gets lost in the shuffle or never comes up
• Pea references a previous interview with "more religious province girls" who acted like they'd never heard the chapter about the roles of man and wife — because they probably hadn't
• For many Filipinos, "it's all about mother and father first and it always will be"
• This creates real tension for Western men who are mystified when they come in "second or third on the totem pole"

Will being a non-believer cause problems in the Philippines? ​

• Pea says to put your fears to rest — many Filipinas are fine with whatever you believe or don't
• The way Filipinos understand their religion explains why they don't care about yours: they see religion as a personal choice that doesn't affect the relationship
• A Filipina wife might happily go to church every Sunday while leaving you at home "to pursue more earthly delights" and it won't cause problems
• It's rare for a Filipina to complain about her partner's lack of belief
• Filipinas are "far more concerned about what kind of person you are"
• One foreign non-believer confirmed he has no problem making friends despite being surrounded by religious Filipinos — "it's not a deal breaker"
• That same foreigner noted his wife and stepdaughter both believe in the Bible but have never actually read it — "it's amazing the amount of people that believe that have never read the Bible"

Pea's closing warning to idealistic Westerners ​

• Some foreigners say they look forward to living in a country "where the word of God reigns supreme"
• Pea's response: "Religion may reign supreme here, but sometimes it doesn't have all that much to do with the actual word of God"

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