It said this translates to a net trust rating of +59, or “very good.”
SWS noted the Pope—formerly Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio—enjoyed a “very good” +59 with 71 percent having much trust in him and 12 percent having little trust in him in September 2013.
“The Catholic Pope has always been highly regarded by Filipinos, with Pope John Paul II garnering the highest public trust in the history of SWS surveys,” SWS said.
The survey used face-to-face interviews of 1,800 adults nationwide, with 300 each in Metro Manila, Balance Luzon and Mindanao, and 900 in the Visayas.
Sampling error margins of ±2% for national percentages, ±6% each for Metro Manila, Balance Luzon and Mindanao, and ±3% for Visayas applied to the survey.
SWS trust ratings consider net scores of +70 and above as “excellent”; +50 to +69 as “very good”; +30 to +49 “good”; +10 to +29 “moderate”; +9 to -9 “neutral”; -10 to -29 “poor”; -30 to -49 “bad”; -50 to -69 “very bad”; -70 and below “execrable.”
John Paul II, Benedict XVI
But SWS noted Pope Francis’ trust ratings may not be as high as those enjoyed by now Saint John Paul II, who visited the Philippines in 1981 and 1995.
Saint John Paul II enjoyed a net trust rating of a “very good” +65 when surveyed by SWS in December 1994, a month before his January 1995 visit.
His trust ratings shot up to an all-time high of “excellent” +72 in April 1995 then tapered off to “very good” +58 in December 2003 and +62 in March 2005.
On the other hand, Pope Benedict XVI’s net trust rating was also at a “very good” +58 in May 2005.
Catholics, other religious groups
Pope Francis, known for his openness and simplicity, enjoyed a rise in trust rating among all religions compared to September 2013.
He had a “very good” trust rating of +68 among Catholics, up by two points from +66 in September 2013.
The Pope’s score was upgraded to “good” with +33 among Iglesia ni Cristo members—an improvement of 10 points from a “moderate” +23 in September 2013.
Among Muslims, his trust rating was upgraded to a “neutral” -8—two points better than a “poor” -10 in September 2013.
Meanwhile, he enjoyed a “good” +40 among other Christians, eight points better than the +32 in September 2013.
Catholics and religious services
The survey also showed 41 percent of adult Catholics attend religious services at least weekly.
“In general, weekly attendance to religious services among adult Filipinos has been above 50 percent in only five out of 16 surveys since June 2010, reaching as low as 43 percent in February 2013,” it said.
SWS said the 48 percent was the highest since 57 percent in May 2012, and is two points above the 46 percent annual average in 2014.
By religion, the December 2014 survey showed weekly church/mosque attendance was 89 percent among Iglesia ni Cristo members, 83 percent among Muslims, 72 percent among other Christians, and 41 percent among Catholics.
It said the 41 percent brings the 2014 average proportion of weekly church-goers among adult Catholics to 39 percent.
“This is similar to the 39 percent average of 2013, but the lowest since the 42 percent average of 2008,” it said.
