Rev Fr Eduardo Pardo Hontiveros, SJ (20 December 1923 – 15 January 2008), also known as "Fr. Honti", was a

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

Jesuit composer and musician, best known as an innovative

hymnwriter A hymnwriter (or hymn writer, hymnist, hymnodist, hymnographer, etc.) is someone who writes the text, music, or both of hymns. In the Judeo-Christian tradition, the composition of hymns dates back to before the time of David, who composed many of ...

behind popular

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liturgical music.

Biography

He was born in Molo, Iloilo City, one of eight siblings, to José Hontiveros and Vicenta Pardo. He studied at the Capiz Elementary School and transferred to

Ateneo de Manila High School , mottoeng = Light in the Lord , type = Private, research, non-profit, coeducational basic and higher education institution , established = December 10, 1859 , religious_affiliation = Roman Catholic (Jesuits) , academic_af ...

, graduating in 1939. He entered the San José Seminary from 1939 to 1945, and entered the

Society of Jesus , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

in 1945; he professed his simple vows in 1947. He studied

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in the

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in 1951, and was ordained a priest by Cardinal

Francis Spellman Francis Joseph Spellman (May 4, 1889 – December 2, 1967) was an American bishop and cardinal of the Catholic Church. From 1939 until his death in 1967, he served as the sixth Archbishop of New York; he had previously served as an auxiliary ...

in 1954. With the

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mandate of localisation of the

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different eleme ...

, Fr. Honti began to write liturgical hymns in the 1960s. He wrote his first hymn for services at the Jesuit-administered parish at Barangka,

Marikina Marikina (), officially the City of Marikina ( fil, Lungsod ng Marikina), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 456,159 people. It is loca ...

, with the intent that it could be easily sung and learnt by ordinary Filipinos. This brought about the tradition of Filipino popular

hymnody Robert Gerhard's Hymnody is a contemporary classical work from 1963, which was an assignment from BBC. This piece was written during February and March of that year. Composer notes A note from the composer: First citation comes from Psalm ...

which was later labelled "Jesuit Music". His more famous hymns include a setting for the Tagalog text of the '' Gloria'', ''"Papuri sa Diyos"'', " Magnificat (Ang Puso Ko'y Nagpupuri)", ''"Maria, Bukang-Liwayway"'' (lit. "Mary, Dawn"), ''"Pananagutan"'' ("Responsibility"), among many others. His works have been published and sung in many parishes in the Philippines and in other countries as well; his ''"Papuri"'' has been sung at

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. His publisher is the Ateneo-based Jesuit Music Ministry.

Illness and death

Fr. Honti suffered a stroke in 1991, affecting his mobility and ability to communicate. On 4 January 2008, he was found lying unconscious in a hallway of the Loyola House of Studies in

Quezon City Quezon City (, ; fil, Lungsod Quezon ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read in Filipino as Kyusi), is the most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 2,960,048 people. It was fou ...

and physicians later determined that he had suffered another stroke. He was pronounced dead on 15 January 2008, and among the attendees at his funeral on 19 January were

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal Arroyo (, born April 5, 1947), often referred to by her initials GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician serving as one of the House Deputy Speakers since 2022, and previously from 2016 to 2017. She previously ...

, who presented a posthumous award for his work.

Gallery

Awards

*1976 - ''Tanglaw ng Lahi'' Awards (

Ateneo de Manila University , mottoeng = Light in the Lord , type = Private, research, non-profit, coeducational basic and higher education institution , established = December 10, 1859 , religious_affiliation = Roman Catholic ( Jesuits) , academic ...

) *1992 - Asian Catholic Publisher's Outstanding Catholic Author Award *2000 -

Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice ''Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice'' ("For Church and Pope" in Latin) is a decoration of the Holy See. It is currently conferred for distinguished service to the Catholic Church by lay people and clergy. History The medal was established by Leo XIII o ...

*2008 - Presidential Medal of Merit ''(posthumous)''

References

External links