Barasoain Church or Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish (Malolos City, Bulacan)
September 17, 2011 by chucha
Filed under Churches, Luzon, Visita Iglesia
Barasoain Church, a place which also earned the title as the Cradle of Democracy in the East, was built in 1630 in Malolos City Bulacan. Considered to be one of the most important religious structures in the country because of its historical importance, this is the venue of the first Philippine Republic.
Barasoain Church is one of the many churches founded by the Augustinians in 1869, its original structure was burned during the Philippine Revolution, but was carefully restored to it former glory.
The church witnessed some of the most significant historical events that occurred in the Philippines while Former President General Emilio Aguinaldo was in residence:
- The convening of the First Philippine Congress 9-15-1898
- Drafting of the Malolos Consitution 9-29-1898 to 01-21-0899
- Inaguration of the First Philippine Republic 01-23-1899
Furthermore, Pres. Ferdinand Marcos proclaimed this church as a National Shrine (PD No. 260) on August 1, 1973. Lastly, this has been the venue of the inaugural affairs of two past presidents namely Aguinaldo and Estrada.
History
This stone structure was built when Barasoain was still independent from Malolos. This was built by Fr. Melchor Fernandez in 1816, rebuilt in stone from 1871 to 1878 by Fr. Francisco Royo but was destroyed during the July 1880 earthquake. The present structure was built in 1885 after a fire burned it down a year before by a builder named Magpayo contracted by Fr. Juan Giron.
The 4-storey belfry on the left was built in 1859 by Fr. M. Arconada and is crowned by a conical roof. It houses three bells installed in 1897 and has a alternating open and false windows rising in uneven modules that end up in the crenellated base of the pointed pinnacle.
Design
The façade shows a Neo-Classical touch with recessed main rhythmic layers. The main entrance has a Romanesque feature with its concentric arches flanked by two smaller doors, fluted flat pilasters which speak a Renaissance feature, and a Baroque segmental pediment and sharp line moldings at the cornice base and top of the piers. The two sides of the façade, wit its sweeping concave lines at the upper wall, curve inward to form an oval shape. Inside is an exceptional 18th century altar frontal with beautiful stone columns and murals on the walls and ceilings done by Baliwag artists and the National Historical Institute. It is now air-conditioned during Sunday Masses. The church houses two museums: Church Ecclesiastical Museum and the Church’s Historical Landmarks History Museum. While the Barasoain Church Ecclesiastical Museum has been a repository of important artifacts found within the vicinity of the province, the Church’s Historical Landmarks History Museum concerns on preserving the fruits of the Philippine Revolution as well as freedom and the Filipinos’ heritage of democracy.
Where did Barasoain came from?
The tern Barasoain came from a place in Spain to which the missionaries found the place in Malolos somewhat similar. When the Spanish-Filipino war broke-out, revolutionaries coined the term, baras ng suwail which means dungeon of the defiant.
Recently, the church was depicted in the new generation series of the Philippine 200-peso bill.
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