Public Opinion and Policy Impact: Assessing ChurchState Separation in the Philippines

The Philippines is a democratic country where the separation of church and state is enshrined in the Constitution. However, the separation of church and state is a complex and controversial issue in the Philippines. Despite the enactment of the 1987 Constitution's Article III Section 6, upholding this principle faces ongoing challenges, including the pervasive influence of religion on politics and the discrimination against religious minorities. In this paper, the researchers used descriptive analysis and ANOVA to analyze the data comprehensively. The findings of this paper show that personal experience and education are the most influential factors in shaping Filipinos' views on the separation of church and state. Also, the paper finds that most Filipinos support a strong separation of church and state. Moreover, the papers' results suggest that respondents' perception of church-state separation is similar. The paper concludes that the nation should continue to work towards developing everyone's attitude and acknowledge the reality that the state and the church need to have a determined boundary between them. It also recommends that the government continue developing a more inclusive society where individuals are free to practice their beliefs without fear of discrimination.