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.

The massive white coral baroque style church dedicated to San Juan Nepomuceno was built around 1630-1638 by priests working in Antique. It could be Fr. Hipolito Casiano but there was no evident recorded of the identity of the person who constructed it. It is the oldest, only century-old existing church in Antique.

Their foundation, which still exists, is 33 m long and 13 m wide. The new foundations close to the original measures 48m x 12.5m long. In 1879, Fr. Jeronimo Vaquerin finished the construction. It was almost totally destroyed during the war; some parts can be seen besude the modern concrete and wood convent in order to keep memories of the past. It was Fr. William Erickweld who took effort in the restoration of the edifice to its original splendor. The original look was somehow maintained.

It has a single-rectangular level and a triangular pediment with a niche in the center, flanked by two rose-windows and ending upon finials. The lower level is composed of two central pilasters divided into three equal sections. Rosette edges the upper part of the main entrance; the same pattern adorned the other openings and niches of the façade and side walls. Two stained niches are found on the main entrance and is topped by two identical rose windows. Three-story hexagonal belfry has one arched window on each level and is roofed with a rounded dome.

The façade is breathtaking because of its clear, new baroque design and easy linear movement. Floriated capitals of the pilasters carved in coral stones.

sta. barbara catholic church and convent

Catmon is the old name of the town. In 1849, a Baroque-Renaissance model of church was built up in lieu of the old church that was destroyed in the 1787 earthquake. It took almost thirty years to finish it (1878). The interior is composed on one nave and a very spacious transept which is said to belong to the Tuscan orders.

the main entrance

Furthermore, huge stones that were used as walls, posts and floors of the church and convent were called bato piedra sileria and piedra tsina. The former stones came from the mountains of Leon, Alimodian and Tubungan, while the latter was use as ship ballast sailing from China to the Philippines. Other materials were steel, wood and galvanized iron. Carabao-drawn carriage pulled the stone blocks quarried from Alimodian hills through the almost-impassable roads during the rainy months.

Forced labor was also employed in building this church to men aging 16 years old and above. It is a law called ‘repartamiento’ wherein they would serve for 40 days of compulsory service. Each family had to contribute 8 reales (P1.00) which was later increased to 12 reales (P1.50) as a source of fund. People who are well-off were allowed to pay in cash instead of serving for 40 days.

the convent from inside the church

There was no plan in building this church. Completion of one portion prompted the plan for the next. Thus, closer inspection of the walls and posts shows sketches which shows plans and designs were made gradually. Its façade and three altars were designed after the churches in Spain.

The church is luckily spared from destruction during the hostilities and remained unscathed during the Japanese regime and even survived the 1948 earthquake that destroyed a lot of churches.

Some say it possesses a neoclassical style of white-coral edifice. It has a well-unified design of broken arches, columns and top finials. The main entrance is a semi-circular arch and both sides stood another arched niche. A carving of an Augustinian emblem toppled three identical windows. The interior reveals a spacious and large, devoid of any ill-placed pilars which causes obstruction of lighting and sound. The convent, on the other hand, is a long and big two-story building.The ground floor is made of bricks and piedra sillen while the second floor is of wood and steel. The roof is made of galvanized iron sheet and maintains its perfect condition even after 130 years.

Most outstanding feature of the church was the painting of the four evangelist, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John high above the ceilinig. However, this masterpiece was brought down and completely destroyed by the 1948 earthquake. It was only in the early 60s when the belfry was materialized by Msgr. Juan Nilmar.

This was the headquarters of the celebrated Ilonggo hero, Gen. Martin Delgado and his forces in 1898 against the Spaniards and American forces.

cemetery of sta.barbara

Half-kilometer away from the church in Sitio Anghasan is the cemetery of Sta. Barbara, built on the same year as the creation of parish in 1760.However, it was only in 1845 when the massive stone gate of the cemetery was built, the year the church convent was also constructed. It is composed of big stone blocks called piedra por esta ultimo. This is the place where the town’s illustrious citizen, General Martin Delgado, the commander-in-chief of the revolutionary army was laid to rest.

Location          : Sta. Barbara, Iloilo

Feast Day         : December 4

The construction started in 1833 and fully completed in 1866 under the supervision of Fr. Manuel Ruiz. It is one of the best structure and largest in Panay. The interiors composed of a spacious transept and one main nave. A neo circular type, each side of the church seemed to be a facade. It is sandwiched by massive squat towers which destroys the balance of its classic structure. Three bull’s eye windows is pasted on the rear wall of the citadel. Fr. Manuel Gutierrez decorated the interiors in 1894 that resembled a basilica rather than an ordinary church. It has originally four big bells on each window of the four belfries. The ceiling is adorn with famous painting in Romes and beautiful chandeliers.

baptistery

The church has three domes: on each side of the main structure is a bell and a huge clock and the third dome was over the center. The pediment of the church is decorated with the pope’s tiara flanked by an Augustinian emblem of a transfixed heart capped by the Bishop’s heart surrounded by a cord. There are nineteen circular windows on the upper part with panes of different colors and ten massive doors including the main entrance. There were two minor altars besides the main one where masses and religious ceremonies were being held. The symmetrical arrangement of voids place a bit of neo-classic into Baroque roundness and massiveness.

Through the Scorched Earth Policy, the church was destroyed through fire by the guerillas. To repair the Tiring Land Field using bricks and stones during the Japanese Occupation in 1943, the church was completely demolished except for the front portion. In 1984, they began to reconstruct the church.

A Romanic cemetery in perfect square shape was built by Fr. Porras with solid base stone and steel railings is found in Barangay Banguit. The chapel found inside the cemetery has Byzantine touches.

the cabatuan cemetery

A touch of neoclassical is seen amidst the Baroque roundness and massiveness with the symmetrical arrangement of voids. It is said to have the most organized and planned niches in the whole province of Iloilo. Although the cemetery was heavily damaged during the 1948 earthquake, it was reconstructed to its original form.

Location          : Cabatuan, Iloilo

Feast Day         : September 10

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

Alimodian Catholic Church

Alimodian became an independent parish from Oton in October of 1574. A few months later, a house of worship made of cogon, bamboos and logs was established. In 1784, a new church made of briks and rocks plastered with lime was built under the leadership of Fr. Francisco Monasterio and was partially damaged by the earthquake in 1787.

The cornerstone of the new and permanent church was laid on the 5^th of December in 1859 amidst a lavish religious ceremony with the singing of Te Deun, Laudamus Litania de San Marcos, ringing of church bells and signing of documents of church and town officials. Coins (1 sicualohon (P0.6 ¼), 1 sicapaton (P0.12 ¼), 1 capatihon (P0.25), 1 salapion (P0.50) 1 pisoson (P1.00), a gold necklace and documents were burried on the church’s proposed main entrance. The visitors then were brought in the home of Capitan Timoteo Amarra. On December of 1864, five years later, the church was formally opened. In a tri-square form, a convent same size as the church occupy the north to south and winding westward was started immediately and completed in 1868.

the statue of st. john the baptist pouring water over christ's head inside the baptistery

This house of worship is another product of force labor. A quota was given to the cabeza de barangay or face lashing or palmeta. They gathered tabla from Camando (now a part of Leon) which is more or less 25 kilometers away. Labor was not paid and laborers were to bring their own food. Even women and children were employed in gathering lime stones and turning them into lime. (Lime is produced by roasting white stones in improvised oven for nine days and nights pouring cold water over them to cool then pounded to produce lime powder). It was mixed with clay and stomped with human feet or by carabao and shaped into rectangles or squares and burned in the kiln. Walls, roofs and floors of the church were made of tisa.

A stampede brought by an unidentified intensity earthquake that shook the building caused injury to many people on Sunday morning of the 20^th of June 1869.

The installation of new bells made of bronze of silver alloy was done on February 17, 1877. The bells were made from a foundry in La Villa de Arevalo a year before by Juan Reyes. In order to get the bells to Alimodian, two pairs of bull carts were arranged side by side while residents form a queue on the streets offering Spanish coins to settle the hauling expenses.

Hundreds of men were utilized to pull the bells using a big cable up to the belfry. One man died in the process when the cable snapped. The largest bell weigh about 1.5 tons, it was said that a man named Pino placed the largest bell on its place. Each bells had names inscribed on its surface such as: San Agustin, Sta. Monica, Ma. Consolacion de Leonisa, Sto. Tomas de Villanueva and San Ignacio de Loyola.

The roof made of bricks and limes were changed into galvanized iron in February 13, 1882. Five years later, on the same day in 1887, an earthquake rocked the building that caused the statue of San Agustin to fall from its niche over the main entrance of the church.

During the World War II, the convent became the refuge of wealthy families from the city. However, when the Japanese landed in Oton, people fled to the mountains, leaving the whole town bare and a magnet to thieves and robbers. In the fear that the church will be used as storage of supplies and hiding place of the enemy, the Civil Government ordered it to be burned. The only remnants of the old church were the base and walls made of tabla and bricks. Luckily two saints were saved from ashes: Sto. Tomas de Villanueva was saved by Tomas Claveria and Santo Entiero by Antonio Allonar.

Post-war damage claims brought new improvement to the church in 1946. Pews were donated and two side altars were roofed with nipa. But on the dawn of January 28, 1948, the infamous earthquake “Lady Kaykay” shook the whole island of Panay causing the major portion of the church, convent and two-thirds of the belfry to topple down, bringing all the bells except the largest one to the ground.

the old face of Alimodian Catholic Church

A temporary church was built on the southern part of the ruins and beside it is a convent made of wood, bamboo and nipa. After the assurance of the engineer of the safety of the façade, the parishioners decided to contribute and pool their resources to put up a permanent church — roof made of galvanized iron, cemented arches and iron bars reinforcement, and walls plastered with cement. Fr. Juan Nacawili modified the main and side altars while the walls behind the main altar were changed into hallow blocks. Mr. Manuel Alegrado donated new communion rails and a pulpit made of marble. The church was open for public worship in 1951. The next year, the ‘Caballeros de San Jose’ fixed the remains of the belfry and installed the bells.

the beautiful landscape beside the church

In the present, a huge concrete figure of Our Lady of Lourdes stands on the convent ruins, a triple arched concrete canopy broken with a bass relief of an Augustinian Emblem stood life-size images of St. Peter, St. Joseph and at the center, St. Thomas of Villanova. The walls and buttresses of this house of God reveal a robust baroque architecture.

the facade of the calinog church

Baroque in style, the church was built in 1874. Each entrance of the lower level is topped by a rose window with the same size. The first building is made of light materials were replaced with stones in 1874 by Fr. Cresencio Bravo. There is one main nave and a transept measuring 76 meters long and 17 meters wide.

In 1943, during the outbreak of the war, a fire blazed the church and turned the church’s collections of 19^th century ivory images and icons into ashes. Just like the rest of the houses of worship in 1948, Calinog Catholic Church was not saved from the clutches of the 6.8 magnitude earthquake referred to as “kaykay.”

The pilasters mounted on the rectangular bases up to the pediment, dividing the façade into one whole rectangular bases up to the pediment. A one story affair is indicated by the pilasters and occoli or small rose in a plain horizontal arrangement indicating the level of the choir loft.

The beautiful Lady of Immaculate Conception stands in the façade of the church welcoming her children with open arms and help their way back to Christ, To Jesus, through Mary.

Location          : Calinog, Iloilo

Feast Day         : December 8

After two churches were burnt down and raided by Muslim pirates in 1741 and 1754, a site in Tacas was chosen on top of a hill which has a perfect view of the Miag-ao River. This world-famous Miag-ao church is one of the four baroque churches in the Philippines recorded in 1993 on the World Heritage List sponsored by UNESCO. The three other churches are: (1) Immaculate Concepcion (Intramuros, Manila), (2) Nuestra Senora (Ilocos Sur) and (3) San Agustin (Ilocos Norte).

An egg and a limestone – two things that the natives were obliged to bring in building this church or face whipping. The travel is about 30-35 kilometers from the mountains of Sitio Tubo in San Joaquin and from the Mountains of Igbaras enduring a stone of weight on one shoulder.

The whole church featured a Neo-classist type of design fused with several local tendencies and the builders achieved in making a national architecture. The balance is reinforced by the massive bell towers, suggestive of a medieval castle. Two belfries taper up gradually and end up in uneven height. Fr. Francisco Perez, the old man of Miag-ao added one story to the left tower in 1830 in order that the two could be equal in height, still the left tower is short with one level.

The façade is breathtaking with an intricate sculpture of coconut, banana and papaya trees and stylized guava fruit and below is a niche encasing the patron saint of the town, St. Thomas of Villanova.

The construction of this house of worship started in 1798 under the supervision of another Augustinian Priest, Fr. Francisco Gonzales and it took ten years to finish the whole structure. The church is not built solely for the reason of hearing mass; this fortress also provided the natives a strong defense against the invading Moors. The left belfry has a clear view of the shores of this town. The bell would ring as a warning of the approaching enemy and the townsfolk’s would rush inside the church to protect themselves. It sinks to as deep as six meters below the ground with walls as much as 2 ½ meters thick including the outside columns.

The side walls of the exteriors is said to liken the keys of the piano, except that it doesn’t produce any sound and the color became green because of the moss-growth throughout the years.

It is an architectural wonder how an egg yolk managed to paste the group of lime stones on top of the other (no steel bars) and survived the 1898 revolution, 1910 fire and the 1948 earthquake that toppled the belfry of Jaro Cathedral and destroyed the church of Oton, although a small portion of its left belfry was also damaged.

An excavation was done in 1982 that led to the discovery of the original altar which is used until today. It is partially made of gold and silver. A saint made of lime was also discovered during the excavation and is now encased in a glass panel situated near the Baptistery. Their Baptistery, where the Birhen ng Baranagy statue stood, is found at the right side of the church facing the altar, still used until today to welcome new members of the Catholic Church.

The patron saint is Santo Tomas de Villanova and their annual fiesta falls on the 22nd of September.

Fifty three kilometers from the city of Iloilo, is a town with one of the most beautiful sea coast in the Visayas – San Joaquin, Iloilo. Historically, the town was formerly called Suaraga.

Beside the famous beach resort and magnificent houses seen along the way, there are two ancient architectural masterpieces that graced this place — the century-old cemetery and the house of God.

The victory of Spanish soldiers under the leadership of General Leopoldo O’Donnel against the force of the crowned prince of Morocco, Milley Abbacas in the infamous Rendicion d’ Tetuan or the Battle of Tetuan is immortalized in the façade of the San Joaquin Church, making this house of worship the only church in the whole country with a touch of militarism. The men on foot and horses are shown breaking the defense of moors before buttress tower and date palms.

Fr. Tomas Santaren’s patriotism brought about one of the architectural masterpieces in the island of Panay. It is said that the church is half-way finished when the news of the triumph reached the country. The priest was the master architect and was assisted by a Spanish Engineer, Don Felipe Diez. Skilled masons, famous sculptors, celebrated painters and craftsmen from Spain and Mexico were contracted to build the massive Baroque structure.

However, this picturesque citadel is a product of literally sweat and blood of the natives over a century ago. The Spaniards employed forced labor among the townsfolk. Coral stones were quarried from the mountains of Igbaras. The one responsible for the quota of sillar (a lime stone or rock shaped into a rectangular tube of a given dimension), lime, gravel, sand and lumber is the head of barangay or village. If unmet, natives would face lashing depending on the amount of unfilled quota. Palmeta of hitting the palm of the hand with a wooden paddle was a means of punishment for light offenses. Furthermore, people who can afford, pay for the finished sillar from the stone cutters in order to fill their quota.

Natives excavate the stone or rocks from Magurampao, Malagting, Bugnayan and Igcadlum and let the expert cutters shaped them. The finished products are the carried by bamboo rafts and pulled along the littoral of Punta Talisayan.

Even women and children were not exempted; they were subjected to haul gravel and sand from the adjacent shore. They were paid with steel needles (which were scant then), threads and other useful household articles.

During Muslim invasion, the church was used as fortress. While men fought bravely outside the doors, women hid inside. When the Japanese occupied the Philippines, the church was also used as an evacuation center of the San Juaquiños. However, on the 29th of January, 1943, the guerilla leader of Panay, Col. Macario Peralta ordered to set all houses and the church in town on fire – it explained the soot that can still be seen in the pediment.

The 1948 earthquake caused the tower of the church to topple down.

The national government declared the church a historical landmark in 1974. The National Historical Institute shouldered all the expenses in the restoration and reconstruction of the church in 1982.

The patron saint is St. Joaquim and the annual parish fiesta falls on the 16th of August.

Built in 1892, the cemetery of San Joaquin is made of coral stones. In this final resting place, a baroque style gate with a statue of Jesus that stands on top literally welcomes visitors with open arms. The place is also guarded by two angels in each column standing on each side of Christ. Furthermore, sculpted heads of two cherubs and a skull representing death marks the entrance of the cemetery. A 20-stepped stairway supported by balustrade led into a small chapel (now closed) where once believed funeral masses were performed.