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Apostolic Catholic Church of Our Beloved
Ingkong
The seal of the Apostolic Catholic Church showing the
Catholic cross (right) and the Eastern Orthodox cross
(left).
Orientation Apostolic and Paleo-orthodox
Polity Episcopal
Leader John Florentine L. Teruel[1]
Associations National Council of Churches in the
Philippines
[2]
Region Philippines
Founder John Florentine L. Teruel and Maria
Virginia Peaflor Leonzon[1]
Origin July 7, 1992[1]
Philippines Hermosa, Bataan,
Philippines
Separated from Roman Catholic Church
Members 5,000,000 to 8,000,000
Official website http://www.acc-ingkong.org/
Apostolic Catholic Church (Philippines)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Apostolic Catholic Church)
The Apostolic Catholic Church (ACC) is a self-
governing church
[1]
that traces its faith and worship from
the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church that Jesus
Christ and his Apostles established and claims 24 lines
of apostolic succession. The church believes the
Trinitarian doctrine that states that the Father, the Son
and the Holy Spirit are three persons in one God.
The church's goal is to mediate and unite the Western
Rite or the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Rite
or the Orthodox Church to form a single Catholic
Church. It is a conservative church because it observes
the traditional attire of men and women. Especially
during the sacrifice of the Holy Mass, veils and decent
dress are worn by women while men wear white shirts
and pants but mostly white soutanes. Attire such as mini
skirts and jeans by women and sando shirts by men are
strictly prohibited. These ancient church traditions were
removed after the Vatican II Council by the Roman
Catholic Church but were all retained by the Apostolic
Catholic Church. Members of the church are also
known for their discipline and piety, youths are not
allowed intimate relationships with one another. Adults
are prohibited alcohol, cigarettes, gambling and drugs.
The Apostolic Catholic Church is classified as an
independent and autocephalous Catholic church because
it is not in communion with the Vatican or the Holy See
and the Bishop of Rome although it follows Catholic
teaching and theology, such as Marian devotions and
recitation of the 15 decades of the Rosary.
The church is currently headed by Patriarch John
Florentine L. Teruel, P.P. It does not recognize the
supremacy of the Pope as the head of the Catholic Church, although it includes the Pope in its prayer during Mass
(in the canon) and respects him as a patriarch of the Western Rite.
The Apostolic Catholic Church was founded in 1992 by John Florentine L. Teruel. His mother, the ACC
Matriarch, Maria Virginia Peaflor Leonzon, became its honorary foundress. The church is based in Sacrifice
Valley Ecclesiastical State in Hermosa, Bataan, Philippines. It has two main shrines: one is the Cathedral of the
Most Holy Trinity in Sacrifice Valley and the other is the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Rock in Quezon City,
with the first as its main cathedral. The church was registered with the Philippine Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC) on August 4, 1992.
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The Cathedral of the Most Holy
Trinity in Sacrifice Valley, Hemosa,
Bataan, Philippines
Picture of ACC
Patriarch
Contents
1 Patriarchate
2 Denomination
3 Church governance and congregation
4 Saints
5 Symbol
6 References
Patriarchate
The Apostolic Catholic Church has a
patriarchate similar to Eastern Orthodox
churches, and is located in Hermosa, Bataan,
Philippines. The highest clergy of the church and
the Patriarch, Dr. John Florentine Leonzon
Teruel, reside and govern the entire
denomination from what is officially called
Barangay Sacrifice Valley Ecclesiastical State.
Like other Christian patriarchates worldwide,
Sacrifice Valley does not accept the authority of
the See of Rome (but still generally respects
it).
[3]
Its principal church is The Cathedral of the
Most Holy Trinity, where the history and foundation of the church took
place. There is also a One-of-a-kind outdoor church, called the Nature's Basilica of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
which has circular structures that shelter the different images of Mary, the Theotokos. It is also known as the
Pilgrimage Capital of Bataan because every year during Holy Week, thousands of people including Roman
Catholics visit it for their devotion to Mahal na Ingkong, the title given by their leader to God as revealed to the
Patriarch and St Maria Virginia. The Apostolic Catholic Church follows the Episcopal polity because it maintains a
council of bishops that is headed by a sole leader, the Patriarch.
Denomination
The Apostolic Catholic Church is a mainline Protestant denomination that can be classified as paleo-orthodox
because its goal is to mediate Catholicism to revive the ancient traditions that Jesus Christ taught humanity.
[4]
The
church manifests itself as Protestant catholic because it does not accept the authority of the Pope nor the Doctrine
of Papal Infallibility and the conditions approved in the Vatican II Council that removed some ancient Christian
traditions.
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The Coat of Arms of the Patriarch of
the Apostolic Catholic Church
Order of the Missionaries of John
Florentine
Order of the Missionaries of the Holy
Spirit Sisters
The church is an active member of the National Council of Churches in the Philippines along with other Protestant
and non-Roman Catholic churches whose goal is to achieve ecumenism.
[5]
Today, the church is said to have more
than five to eight million members worldwide, making it the third largest Christian denomination in the Philippines
after the Roman Catholic Church as the first and the Iglesia Filipina Independiente or Aglipayan as the second.
[6]
Church governance and congregation
The Apostolic Catholic Church, as a self-governing autocephalous
church, having two congregation and religious order which is the Order
of the Missionaries of the Holy Spirit (OMHS) and the Order of the
Missionaries of John Florentine (OMJF) . The members of the
congregation are the archbishops, bishops, priests, deacons, subdeacons,
nuns, and third order members, bound by their evangelical vows of
chastity, poverty, obedience, and acceptance of their immediate
superiors, to the Patriarch, John Florentine L. Teruel, P.P., and to God
the Holy Spirit, who is called by his new Name Ingkong.
[7]
The lay
governing body of the Apostolic Catholic Church is headed by the Parish
Pastoral Council, with its own elected officers and committees, the
working force of the church.
Saints
The Apostolic Catholic Church follows the doctrine of recognizing saints
and holy people based on what
they have done while still alive.
Similar to the Episcopal
Church and the Anglican
Communion, it recognizes all
Roman Catholic and Orthodox
saints.
[8]
Currently, there is
only one saint beatified by the
ACC Patriarch. St. Maria
Virginia Peaflor Leonzon,
mother of the Church and the
Patriarch, Dr. John Florentine
L. Teruel, PP. She is the
honorary foundress of
Apostolic Catholic Church and
its Cursillo Movement. Having
an elevated spiritual life, she was beatified and canonized a saint in 1995 by the Patriarch. Because of this, St.
Maria Virginia P. Leonzon became the first Filipino non-Roman Catholic saint. When she was still alive, St. Maria
Virginia was a living saint for all ACC members. She died at the age of 83 in Sacrifice Valley in 2005.
[9]
Symbol
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EDSA, Quezon City
Matriarch of
Apostolic Catholic
Church
The Eastern Rite Cross (left)
and The Western Rite Cross
(right)
The official symbol of the church are two crosses with a dove between them. The Eastern Rite Orthodox cross is
on the left and the Western Rite Roman Catholic cross is on the right with a dove that represents unity and peace
between them in the center. The combination of the two crosses are viewed by the Apostolic Catholic Church as
symbolic of the unity of Christianity, particularly the Eastern and Western Churches.
References
1. ^
a

b

c

d
"History of the Apostolic Catholic Church" (http://acc-
ingkong.com/content/view/21/22/). Acc-ingkong.com. Retrieved 2011-09-
19.
2. ^ National Council of Churches in the Philippines. "Our Member Churches"
(http://nccphilippines.org/site/about-us/our-member-churches/). Retrieved
13 March 2012.
3. ^ "Governance" (http://acc-ingkong.com/content/view/2/4/). Acc-
ingkong.com. Retrieved 2011-09-19.
4. ^ "at" (http://paleo-orthodoxy.com). Paleo-orthodoxy.com. Retrieved 2011-
09-19.
5. ^ "Our Member Churches"
(http://www.nccphilippines.org/index_files/Page519.htm). National Council
of Churches in the Philippines. Retrieved 2009-07-31.
6. ^ http://uw.abs-
cbnnews.com/images/news/microsites/TheCorrespondents/TheCorrespondents/tc04052004sekta.htm
7. ^ "Ingkong (The Holy Spirit)" (http://www.acc-ingkong.com/content/view/6/5/). Acc-ingkong.com. Retrieved
2011-09-19.
8. ^ Expert: The Ven. Dr. Brian A. Evans - 6/6/2006 (2006-06-06). "Anglicans: Saints in the Anglican Church, roman
catholic saints, dietrich bonhoeffer" (http://en.allexperts.com/q/Anglicans-943/Saints-Anglican-Church.htm).
En.allexperts.com. Retrieved 2011-09-19.
9. ^ http://uw.abs-
cbnnews.com/images/news/microsites/TheCorrwspondents/TheCorrespondents/tc04052004sekta.htm
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Categories: Independent Catholic churches Christian denominations in Asia
Christian denominations founded in the Philippines Religious organizations established in 1992
Christian denominations established in the 20th century Christianity in the Philippines Religion in Bataan
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