Ask any lawyer, law student or anyone who has attended Consti 101 classes, the Preamble DOES NOT grant substantive legal rights or expand government authority. The phrase “imploring the aid of Almighty God” is merely a recognition of the religious identity of Filipinos. It refrains from endorsing any specific dogma, church, or institutional religion. The Constitutional Commission intended the phrase to embrace diverse faith traditions across the country—including Christianity, Islam, and indigenous beliefs—without creating a state religion or infringing upon the Non-Establishment Clause (Article III, Section 5)

In other words, one cannot invoke the Preamble to justify imposing or objecting to a government policy simply because one’s religious beliefs do not align with it.

So for anyone harboring ideas or delusions, that the Philippines is a “Christian nation”, Article III, Section 5 squarely disagrees:

“No law shall be made respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof. The free exercise and enjoyment of religious profession and worship, without discrimination or preference, shall forever be allowed. No religious test shall be required for the exercise of civil or political rights.“

While it is fair to say that “Faith is Constitutional” it does not mean that the State bears the responsibility to ‘teach’ or ‘nurture’ one’s “faith” because to do so violates the separation of Church and State, even if the majority of Filipinos belong to one of the Christian denominations.

The Supreme Court in Estrada v. Escritor (2003 & 2006), formally adopted benevolent neutrality as the constitutional framework for Philippine religious freedom. Under this approach, the State is not hostile to religion; rather, it actively accommodates religious practice unless an overriding public interest requires otherwise.

That overriding public interest is the protection of LGBTQ Filipinos, especially the youth, who are subjected to discrimination, bullying, violence and marginalization. To carry this out, various state policies are being implemented like the Gender and Development programs, DepEd Child Protection Policy, DepEd Order No. 40, s. 2012 – protects children from many forms of abuse like bullying, Gender-Responsive Basic Education Policy, DepEd Order No. 32, s. 2017 – a framework fffor gender-responsive education grounded in the Constitution, Enhanced Basic Education Act, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, CEDAW, and other human-rights commitments of the Philippines.

Such policies are based on evidence, advances in child development, and the lived realities of Filipino children.

Objections and opposition to these state policies based on religious dogma deserves recognition as it is your right to express such views, but like any other views in a free and democratic society, it needs to be addressed, tested and opposed especially if such views promote harm, hate and suffering.