Question

Why would Filipinos have been surprised at President William McKinley's claim that the United States had to take command of the Philippines in order to Christianize them?

Answer 1

Because the Philippines was already a largely Christian country, being the country with the largest number of Catholics in all of Asia, even before the US interference.

Step-by-step explanation:

After the Spanish-American war, President Mckinley showed an interest in attaching the Philippines to American territory, in addition to suffering some political pressure both to allow this annexation to occur quickly and to prevent it from occurring. Mckinley, however, had an interest in the annexation and claimed that it was a matter of responsibility, as the United States should Christianize the Philippines. This showed how much Americans were unaware of the Philippines, since Filipinos were already Christians, mostly Catholics.