Mariano Zuniega Velarde (born August 20, 1939), better known as Brother Mike Velarde, is the founder and "Servant Leader" of a

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

-based

Catholic charismatic movement The Catholic Charismatic Renewal is a movement within the Catholic Church that is part of the wider charismatic movement across historic Christian churches. The Renewal has been described as a "current of grace". It began in 1967 when Cathol ...

called

El Shaddai El Shaddai ( ''ʾĒl Šadday''; ) or just Shaddai is one of the names of the God of Israel. ''El Shaddai'' is conventionally translated into English as ''God Almighty'' (''Deus Omnipotens'' in Latin, الله عز وجل Allāh 'azzawajal in Ara ...

which has estimated following of three to seven million. He is a famous

televangelist Televangelism ( tele- "distance" and " evangelism," meaning " ministry," sometimes called teleministry) is the use of media, specifically radio and television, to communicate Christianity. Televangelists are ministers, whether official or self-p ...

in the Philippines. He is also the owner of Amvel Land Development Corporation, a real estate company, and Delta Broadcasting System.

Personal life

Bro. Mike is married to Avelina "Belen" del Monte and they have four children: Franklin, Rene, Sherry and Michael. Velarde's son Rene Velarde, representing the

Buhay The buhay ( uk, бугай) (also known as a bugai, buhai, berebenytsia, bika, buga, bochka) is a musical instrument that is used in Ukraine and is classified as a friction drum. ''Buhay'' is the Ukrainian word for great bittern (Botaurus st ...

party-list, is the richest party-list congressman with a net worth of P30.9 million. His son, Franklin is an investor in the Puyat controlled Manila Bank (total assets of P7.57 billion). He son Mariano Michael Velarde Jr. was appointed second in command of the

Technical Education and Skills Development Authority The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA ; fil, Pangasiwaan sa Edukasyong Teknikal at Pagpapaunlad ng Kasanayan) serves as the Philippines' Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) authority. As a government a ...

in 2019. But now, he serve in the El Shaddai Movement as assistant servant leader.

Theology

Bro. Mike began his involvement with Charismatic Christianity together with the late Russian-Filipino actor-turned-evangelist Ronald Remy who eventually founded the Corpus Christi Community, an

Evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual exp ...

congregation now known as Lord Jesus Our Redeemer (LJOR) Church. Velarde, having experienced and having been exposed to the Charismatic movement, decided to remain within the Roman Catholic Church. In 1984, he founded the El Shaddai movement which has become an eclectic expression of Philippine folk Christianity, the Charismatic movement and Roman Catholicism. Velarde remains a

layman In religious organizations, the laity () consists of all members who are not part of the clergy, usually including any non-ordained members of religious orders, e.g. a nun or a lay brother. In both religious and wider secular usage, a layperso ...

within the

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

church. His preaching style is no different from typical

prosperity gospel Prosperity theology (sometimes referred to as the prosperity gospel, the health and wealth gospel, the gospel of success, or seed faith) is a religious belief among some Protestant Christians that financial blessing and physical well-being are ...

-driven

Pentecostal Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement

televangelists Televangelism ( tele- "distance" and " evangelism," meaning " ministry," sometimes called teleministry) is the use of media, specifically radio and television, to communicate Christianity. Televangelists are ministers, whether official or self-p ...

. It promises God's financial and physical blessings to all provided that they remain faithful in attendance to gatherings, giving their

tithe A tithe (; from Old English: ''teogoþa'' "tenth") is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash or cheques or more ...

s and offerings, and obedience. Part of Velarde's practical theology is the use of certain inanimate objects such as handkerchiefs, bankbooks and umbrellas which are held aloft during services. Such practices are not foreign to Filipino indigenous and folk religion. Thus, Velarde's brand of Catholic Charismaticism is highly acceptable to a majority of Filipinos. Initially, Bro. Mike reports that only "the poorest of the poor" attended El Shaddai's services.

Politics

Bro. Mike over the years has both endorsed political candidates and ran for office himself, such as for the

Philippine House of Representatives The House of Representatives of the Philippines ( fil, Kapulungan ng mga Kinatawan ng Pilipinas, italic=unset, ''Kamara'' or ''Kamara de Representantes'' from the Spanish word ''cámara'', meaning "chamber") is the lower house of Congress, th ...

. In 2022, he endorsed

Bongbong Marcos Ferdinand "Bongbong" Romualdez Marcos Jr. ( , , ; born September 13, 1957), commonly referred to by the initials PBBM or BBM, is a Filipino politician who is the 17th and current president of the Philippines. He previously served as a sena ...

for the presidential candidacy.

Filmography

Television

*''El Shaddai'' (1992–present) *''Mga Himala at Gintong Aral ni El Shaddai'' (1994–1997)

Films

*''Bro. Mike's Miracles are Forever'' (2016)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Velarde, Mike 1939 births Living people Filipino television evangelists Filipino Christian religious leaders Filipino Roman Catholics People from Catanduanes