Long time ago there was a man
Living with his people in a mysterious island
He believed that he was great among all in their land
For he is under the protection of "anitos" and "tikbalang."
When the full moon comes, just like of his ancestors,
Fire has been made at the midst of his people
To offer a sacrifice of blood, dances, and songs,
For the great harvest, healings, and protections.
Long time ago there was a man
Who believed piously to anitos, "engkanto" and "tikbalang,"
He entrusts all his life to them
Together with his people, family, and land.
Long time ago there was a man,
Who came a sudden to that mysterious land,
Claiming to be a servant of the Mighty One,
Who traveled to the sea and from land to land,
Just to bear witness to the God who became a man.
His arrival became the advent of dawn,
A dawn that makes us turn away from the light of the moon
to face the new light of the Sun of salvation,
that freed us from the bondage of fears and the unknown.
The sacrifice of blood that comes from the animals,
Has been replace by the Blood of the Lamb,
The thousands of altars that is dedicated to the "anitos" and "tikbalang"
Has been replaced by the Great Altar
to worship the God, the Most High.
Long time ago there was a man,
Serving the "anitos" and "tikbalang,"
He was the great man among all in their land
But now became a slave of the Mighty One.
Though he did not forget the way he lived before,
The way he celebrates and the way he mourns,
But one thing is for sure, after he answered the call,
He is not the man that we used to see before.
He's still a Filipino to the way he dresses,
To the way he listens and the way he speaks.
He still like the people of old in this land,
that believes in the sacredness, spirits, and meanings of life.
But he is not the mighty man of old that lives before
For he is now the adopted son of God the hopes to live forevermore.
