Minor Basilica of Our Lady of Immaculate Conception or the Basilica Minore dela Nuestra Señora de Immaculada Concepcion is the ecclesiastical seat of the Diocese of Malolos. The Neo-Classical church is located in front of the municipal hall. It is originally built using light materials in 1591. A century later in 1691, it was once again rebuilt and extended by Fr. Barrionuevo. Fr. Sanchez in 1740 rebuilt the church using strong materials. It was completed in 1740 under the supervision of Fr. De Meseguer. Minor restorations were done in 1753 by Fr. De Vivar and both were destroyed by flames in 1813.

The current church was started in 1819 by Fr. Melchor Fernandez and consecrated on October of 1826. An earthquake severely damaged the church in  June 1863 and it was restored from 1859-1872 by Fr. Moreno. Starting 1963, a lot of renovations and restorations were pursued by Engineer Alfredo Aldaba, affecting the dome, façade, transept and main altar. Both the church and the convent were blessed in 1976 by Rev. Bruno Torpigliani, Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines.

Style and Design

A semi circular arch in its lower part which served as the predominant feature of this Cathedral-Basilica. It possesses a moderately-decorated, symmetrical façade divided into three segments by superposition Doric columns and dominated by large, semicircular arched openings on the first level. The triangular pediment, decorated by an Augustinian Emblem at the center, is topped by acroteria and torch-like finials. The horizontal Doric frieze is decorated with triglyphs and the fluted pilaster-flanked, statued niche is topped  by a segmented canopy crowning the tilted frame of the center window. The cathedral-basilica has a slender, four-storey belfry on its right, topped by a Marian statue and the convent is located on the opposite end. 

Marian Statue at the belfry

The statue of the Immaculate Concepcion seated on the topmost portion of the belfry was made before the Second World War – this is according to a reliable information (source: Wikipedia). The piece was made by Donding Ople, a gifted artist who was orphaned at a very young age. The original work is kept private but the statue at the high enclosure behind the main altar is a perfect replication of the original. A lot of devotees come for the image of the Immaculate Concepcion.

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 18^th 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. 

The tradition of Visita Iglesia or visiting seven churches on Holy Thursday is considered to be an ancient practice believed to have originated from Rome, where early pilgrims visited the seven pilgrim churches as penance. The seven churches are St. John Lateran, Saint Mary Major, Saint Peter, Saint Paul-outside-the-walls, Holy Cross-in-Jerusalem, St. Lawrence Outside the Walls and traditionally St. Sebastian Outside the walls, however, Pope John Paul II replaced it with Sanctuary of the Madonna of Divine Love during the jubilee year of 2000.

In the Philippines, the Catholics carry out Visita Iglesia (or church visits) and some expand to include fourteen churches, symbolizing one church for each station of the cross.

The Way of the Crus or Via Crucis in Latin refers to the depiction of the final hours of Jesus Christ and the devotion celebrating the Passion. The tradition as chapel devotion started with St, Francis of Assisi and gained popularity throughout the Roman Catholic Church during the medieval period.

The Traditional Form of Station of the Cross composed of 14 pictures or sculptures depicting the following scences:

1. Jesus is condemned to death
2. Jesus is given his cross

3. Jesus falls the first time

4. Jesus meets His Mother

5. Simon of Cyrene carries the cross

6. Veronica wipes the face of Jesus

7. Jesus falls the second time

8. Jesus meets the daughters of Jerusalem

9. Jesus falls the third time

10. Jesus is stripped of His garments

11. Crucifixion: Jesus is nailed to the cross

12. Jesus dies on the cross

13. Jesus’ body is removed from the cross

14. Jesus is laid in the tomb and covered in incense.

The church is the ecclesiastical seat of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Cebu. The diocese of Cebu was established on August 14, 1595. It was promoted to a metropolitan archdiocese on April 28, 1934 with the provinces of Dumaguete, Maasin, Tagbilaran and Talibon as suffragans.

The lack of funds and other unexpected events delayed the construction of the cathedral for several years. At one time, funds for the building of the cathedral were spent to fund the moro wars. The death of an incumbent bishop who spearheaded the reconstruction and vacancies in the office were also factors.

The architecture of the church is mainly made of squat and with thick walls to withstand typhoons, earthquake and other natural calamities. The façade shows a tre-foil shaped pediment which decorated with carved relieves of floral motifs and HIS inscriptions with a pair of griffins. The Spanish Royal Coat of Arms is inscribed in low relief above the main entrance.

During the World War II, the cathedral was partially destroyed by Allied bombings of the city. The only remaining structures were the belfry made in 1835, the façade and the walls. It was rebuilt almost immediately in the 1950s under the supervision of architect Jose Ma. Zaragosa during the incumbency of Archbishop Gabriel Reyes.

A mausoleum was built in 1982 that served as a final resting place for the remains of Cebu’s bishop and clergy at the initiation of Archbishop Julio Cardinal Rosales.

The cathedral was renovated on April 28, 2009 during the 75^th anniversary celebration of the elevation of Cebu into an archdiocese. There is a pending application at the Vatican for the cathedral’s elevation into a minor basilica in honor of St. Vitalis, a Christian martyr.

Minor Basilica of the Santo Niño

The basilica was once known as the San Agustin Church. It was built by Legaspi and Urdaneta for the 30-cm high image of Sto. Niño. The statue is said to be a gift from Magellan to Raja Humabon’s wife and recovered unscathed in a pinewood box by Juan Camus on April 27, 1565. It is enshrined in a small chapel in the left part of the altar.

The first church was built using wood and nipa by Fr. Diego de Herrera but was destroyed by fire on November 1, 1566. They replaced the burnt church with that made of stone by 1606 but was again set on flames on March of 1628. It was rebuilt soon after with stones and bricks by Fr. Juan de Medina but was demolished by Fr. Jose Bosqued in 1731. The present stone structure was started on February 29, 1735 by Fr. Diego Bergano, Gov. Gen. Fernando Valdex and Bishop Manuel Antonio Decio and was completed by Fr. Juan de Albarran in 1740. It was restored and reinforced in 1782 and was again slightly restored in 1889 by Fr. Mateo Diez who added the windows. The church and the convent was reestablished in 1965 during the 4th centennial of the Christianization of the country. The retablos on the sides, the old organ and some portions of the monastery were removed. During the 400th year of Cebu’s Christianization on April 28, 1965, the church was conferred to the title, Basilica Minore del Santo Niño by Hildebrando Cardinal Antonuitti papal legate of Pope Paul VI. The basilica is considered to be a national landmark in the island.

The church has an impressive, solid façade. It is mixture of Muslim, Romanesque and Neo-Classical Features. It is divided into two levels with shallow pilasters dividing each storey into three segments. The graceful, Muslim-inspired, trefoil arched the main entrance is glanced by shallow, rectangular, statued niches above which are the semi-circular arched windows of the second level. It is topped by a double-edged triangular pediment. The baroque style bell tower has two alternate shaped blind and open windows ending up in triangular pinnacles with a circular disc. It is crowned by balusters and a Muslim-influenced dome. The convent, finished in 1796 is located at the opposite far end.

The interior is composed of a painted ceiling, finely carved retablo and a choir loft. The image of Our Lady of the Fort (Nuestra Señora de la Cotta) adorned the baptistery. The image was recovered in the vicinity of the church while Fort san Pedro was being built in 1565. It is believed to be the one given by Pigafetta (Magellan’s Chronicler) to Queen Juana on the day of their baptism. Among the treasures inside the church is the Ecce Homo (Bust of Christ), believed exhumed from a spot near the church on August 20, 1572 by a Spanish soldier while digging for the foundation of his house. The image was in a coffin containing the remains of an imminent person identified as Raxa Carli which could have been a Latin version of Raja Carlos as Raja Humabon had been christened.

Tel. No.: 032- 2556699

The town’s restored 18th century church was built from 1691 to 1692 by Fr. Cortes. This served as a refugee camp for evacuees during the Basi Revolt in 1807. The church was rebuilt and restored by Fr. E. Navarro (parish priest 1870-1875) and was continued by Fr. L. Villanueva in 1892. Fr. A. Versoza patched the roof with galvanized iron. The church underwent another repair in 1950 due to the damage it incur during the 2nd World War.

The church’s facade is flanked by massive rectangular twin towers that has features of Baroque, Neo-Gothic and Pseudo-Romanesque features. The neo-Gothic is visible in the recessed main entrance, having a pointed lancet like arch flanked by blind pointed arcading. On the other hand, the decorative volutes around the second level window suggests the baroque feature and finally, the central window shaft with balustrade is considered to be pseudo-Romanesque in feature.

The facade’s only decorated parts are broken curves along the top of the triangular pediment and the inverted traceries below the eaves. A separate three-storey hill top, square bell tower, which served as a look out for an approaching enemy. It offers a fine view of an old nearby cemetery and the rest of the area.

The church is the home of the oldest Marian image in the Ilocos, Our Lady of Charity. The image is said to be miraculous and venerated by the Ilocanos. The 50-inch tall image is made of wood, except for the ivory face and hands (the ivory parts were stolen in 1928). The image was crowned by Egidio Vagnozi, Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines on January 13, 1956.

Photos Courtesy of Mr. Ivan Mainar, R.N.

The town’s most impressive landmark is the Aztech-like church, situated near the banks of the Wawa River. This church was included in the UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 1994 and also declared as a National Treasure for its architecture. This fortress-like church is a premier example of Philippine Earthquake Baroque Architecture.  The construction lasted from 1699 – 1702 under the term of Fr. Antonio Estavillo and repairs were done in 1865 by Fr. Ruperto Rodriguez. A major restoration was supervised by Fr. Baldomero Real from 1889 -1898.  The official inauguration was on the 18^th of February 1896.

The only one in the country with a 24 2.5 meter (3 varas) thick massive stone buttresses that ballast the walls and two exterior stone staircases (near the main altar transept) on both sides that reached the roof of the church. Thick coral block walls (1.67-meter )  were faced with bricks and sealed with a particularly hard lime mortar with sugar cane juice.

Fourteen molave posts supports the main nave. Measuring 60 meters (72 varas) long, 15 meters (17 varas) wide and 5.10 meters (6 varas high). The transept is about 7 meters (8 varas) high.

A combination of gothic, Baroque and oriental’s Indian madjapahit designs adorn the church’s unique two-level triangular façade divided by horizontal string courses. Baroque features are seen in the elegant curving and flowing huge scrolled buttresses. On the other hand, the decorative pinnacles are of Gothic nature. Chinese and Javanese influence are also present with the gables and the crenellations and five niches respectively. The formerly molave-made arched main entrance door is now made of wrought iron. Plain with square pillars extending vertically to the pediment and capped pinnacles makes up the lower level. Rosettes, volutes, foliage, royal emblems, and coat of arms decorate the horizontal cornices that divide the huge pediment.

Twenty Seven oil paintings are hung in the interior walls supported by gold pointed wooden frames at least 1.25 meters wide. Thirteen paintings on the sacristy wall, represent the Passion of Christ while the four paintings of buen pincel represent the four evangelists. John the Baptist’s painting decorates the baptistery. The 3-storey main altar has almost life-size wooded statue and the secondary altars on each side are each fitted with golden retablos.  A large statue of Christ is found over the wooden rail of the choir loft. A majestically designed pulpit and a statue of the Holy family were imported from Spain in 1891. While the windows are still made of Capiz shells, the ceiling is covered with strangds of cana de boxo.

A separate three-storey  coral stone bell tower was primarily built with 3.5 meter high wooden posts and three bells and enlarged from 1759 to 1759 by Fr. Torres using chopped coral stones and molave braces glued together. In 1793 and 1818, the main entrance doors as well as five bells were installed by Fr. Jose Nieto correspondingly. The katipuneros used it as a watch tower during the Spanish war at the same time the local guerillas used it during the Japanese regime.

* photos compliments of Mr. Ivan Mainar, R.N.

St. Paul’s Metropolitan Cathedral was built by the Augustinian clergy around 1790 and like the St. William’s Cathedral, it has features a design intended to minimize earthquake damage that was referred to as “earthquake baroque”.  Furthermore, it also features the Neo-Gothic and pseudo Romanesque motifs. There are brass communion handrails copied from China, complete with Chinese characters scribbled by its makers.

In the south of the cathedral lies the eight-sided bell tower used as a safety measure of the church. It was said to be built separately so that in any event of an earthquake, it would not topple into the church. The design said to have a Chinese Feng Shui influences. Lies inside the church is a tombstone of the great Ilocano poet Leona Florentino.

It is also in this church where Vigan’s Beloved late Governor Floro Crisologo was gunned down while he knelt on a pew inside the Cathedral in 1970.

*PHOTOS: Courtesy of Mr. Ivan Mainar

In 1580, the Augustinian Clergy founded the parish and made a  church out of wood and tactched nipa palm chapel. It was then turned into a magnificent mixture of an Italian Renaissance Design and Baroque-style that was said to build between 1650 and 1700.  It was seriously damaged during an earthquake in November 17, 1707, partially destroyed by fire in 1843. It was Fr. Vicente Barreiro who had completely restored it then.

Again, the church succumb to another damage in July 18, 1880 earthquake and it was Fr. Santiago Muniz and Engineer Antonio de la Camara who took charge of the repairs.

The church served as sanctuary for Pedro Almazan in 1661, the revolutionaries in 1896, American forces in 1899 and Aglipayans in 1901. The 1932 diocesan Marian Congress was held here as well. Further, the church suffered from another earthquake in September 7, 1983 which caused some statues from the altar and niches plummet into the floor.

This church made of brick and stone has a unique, newly-plastered, two-storey façade with a main arched entrance flanked by four pairs of over scaled, twin-engaged pilasters,  with the absence of pediments, adorned by a series of coupled urn-motifs finials and pseudo- Corinthian Capitals with its rosettes and acanthus leaves. Five sets of mini-columns with pseudo-Doric Capitals arise from the architrave and decorated the choir loft level. Columns in each storey follow their patterns ending abruptly without reaching the next level. Capiz windows with wrought iron grilles and two-exterior stone staircases, one of it was converted into a grotto. The chandeliers donated by the late President Ferdinand Marcos hang gloriously in its barrel-vaulted ceilings. Over the altar lies the Augustinian emblem of a transfixed heart and a tasseled hat. The image of their Patron Saint San Guillermo is placed in a deeply recessed niche.

*PHOTOS: COURTESY of Mr. Ivan Mainar

This beautiful church, built n 1920 by Italian Architect Verasconi was elevated to pro-cathedral on December 1994, the second in the country to be declared so. Behind it are the ruins of the city’s original church, now a grotto. Silay is located 14.4 kilometers (a 20 to 30 minute drive) north of Bacolod City.

* Benjamin Locsin Layug, A Tourist Guide to Notable Philippine Churches