Parish of San Nicholas de Tolentino (Lambunao, Iloilo)

July 8, 2009 by admin  
Filed under Churches, Northern Iloilo

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facade of the lambunao catholic church

Long before 1745, Augustinian priests have already established a small chapel  at Malunod, however, due to the mysterious death of the parish priest, Spanish authorities recommended the house of worship to be transferred elsewhere. It was decided that the new church be built near the Lambunao creek.

The year was 1879 when the church was transferred to its final and present site, Daraiton. Gobernadorcillo Martin Lingaya donated the lot. And like most churches in the island, this citadel is a product of force labor, sweat and blood of the natives of Lambunao. Men were lashed if they could not bring a lime stone and a meter-squared firewood used to prepare the lime. Women, on the other hand, were punished if they could not bring a sackful of sand. In 1883, the Baroque Church of San Nicholas de Tolentino was built under the leadership of Fr. Jose Lobo. On his and Agustin Livo’s orders, all able-bodied men of legal ages were obliged to cut at definite sizes white rocks from the mountain ranges of Tinocuan, Dingle. They carried these rocks to Lambunao passing two stations: Dueñas, Carvasana and and then Lambunao. There was no marriage that was solemnized not unless the potential bride and groom produce a meter-square of firewood and a sack of sand respectively. Furthermore, no baptism is to take place not until the parents and the sponsors do the same task as the former.

At four o’clock on the 9^th of September 1890, Fr. Manuel Castandillo officiated the blessing of the newly white-stoned Catholic Church of Lambunao. A cogon grass roofing covers the church. The following day, September 10, the church was flocked with devotees to celebrate the feast of San Nicholas de Tolentino.

Fr. Joaquin Diaz brought bells of different sizes that would sound at dawn, noon, dusk and during religious ceremonies to Manila in December, 1894. He had it reminted to make them rotary at the base. The moment it was done, the bells were temporarily placed beside the church until a concrete belfry was constructed. The bells were mounted permanently on March 24, 1896.

From the time it had been constructed, this fortress was already razed down by fire three times (the first one was caused by lightning and the last two were because of the flying embers from the kaingin nearby). The Japanese occupation caused a partial damage to the church. Moreover, it was not saved from the violent earthquake of 1948, the church suffered from heavy damage. Several reconstruction were pursued by parish priests to refurbish this citadel to its former glory: transforming the interiors, improvement of the façade, installing of chandeliers and laying of a marble floor.

The exterior is made of stone and bricks and is designed in Tuscan order. The interior design is Doric. In the 1900, it is burnt down by the revolutionaries and only the bell tower remained standing. The facade has a flat outlook except for the roundness paired with ionic columns and fenestrations.

The presently yellow-colored house of God stands in all of its glory in front of the wide and beautiful town plaza.

Location          : Lambunao, Iloilo

Feast Day         : September 10

Tags: baroque churches, Churches, Lambunao, Northern Iloilo

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