The Philippines has about as many
Catholic churches as Bali has temples. The arrival of Spanish conquistadores in
the 1570s also brought missionaries intent on claiming the Filipino pagans and
"Moros" (Muslims) for Christ.
Thus Catholicism came and stayed -
today, more than 80 percent of Filipinos consider themselves to be Catholic,
and Catholic ritual permeates Filipino culture deeply. (Most of the
Philippines' fiestas are devoted to the feast days of town patron saints.) The
Philippines' brand of folk Catholicism is particularly embodied in these old
churches - survivors of war and natural disaster that represent the long
continuity of Catholicism in this, the most Catholic country in all of Asia.
1.
San Agustin Church, Intramuros, Manila
More
than any other church in the Philippines, San Agustin Church has stood as a
witness to history. The first church on this site was built not long after the
arrival of the Spanish, but was destroyed when the Chinese pirate Limahong
attempted to conquer Manila in 1574.
The
present structure was completed in 1604, and has survived Manila's frequent
earthquakes, the occasional supertyphoon, and even the ravages of World War II:
San Agustin was the only building left standing in Intramuros after the war.
Fortunate for us: the church's ceiling and dome bear an ornate "trompe
l'oeil" painting done by Italian artisans in 1875.
The church
had an attached monastery that was later converted into a museum in 1973.
Visitors to the church and museum may enter the crypt where the Japanese
ruthlessly massacred over a hundred innocent civilians in 1945.
For
more on this historic survivor, read our guide
to San Agustin Church. More info about San Agustin's neighborhood can be
read in our travel
guide to Intramuros and our walking
tour of Intramuros.
·
Phone: +63 (0) 2 527 2746
2.
Iglesia de la Immaculada Concepcion (Baclayon Church), Bohol
Image © Mike Aquino, licensed to
About.com
This limestone and bamboo church on
the island of Bohol has stood on the same site for 300 years, serving as a
place of worship, safe harbor, watchtower against pirates, and dungeon for
heretics (!). The robust walls and buttresses are made of limestone hauled from
the sea by slave labor, and mortared together with a cement of limestone, sand
and eggwhite.
The interior is a treasurehouse of
meaning, which you can unravel if you hire a tour guide to accompany you as you
walk around. The gold-painted retablos (reredos) behind the altar are
filled with statues of saints, mostly replicas - the originals are kept in the
museum upstairs.
For more on this historical
structure in Bohol, read our guide to the Baclayon
Church, or go through our walking
tour of Baclayon Church.
- Address:
Tagbilaran East Road, Bohol (Google Maps)
- Phone:
+63 (0) 38 540 9176
3.
Quiapo Church, Manila
Photo Credit HERE
The district of Quiapo is a crowded,
dirty collection of side streets (one of them, Hidalgo, is Manila's go-to place
for cheap camera equipment), but the church is Quiapo's main landmark. Formally
known as the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene, the church got its name from
its being the home of the Black Nazarene, making it the focal point of the
annual Procession of the Black Nazarene that grips Manila every January.
The present church dates back only
to 1984, but a church has always stood on this site since the 1580s. Fire,
earthquake and war destroyed the previous churches standing here. Outside the
church, you'll find folk Catholicism in full flower - a number of street
vendors near the side doors hawk supplies for occult purposes, from love
potions to amulets to mystical candles.
- Address:
910 Plaza Miranda, Quiapo, Manila (Google Maps)
- Phone:
+63 (0) 2 733 4434 loc. 100
- Site:
quiapochurch.com
4.
Minor Basilica of the Holy Child, Cebu
Cebu City, 355 miles south of
Manila, is considered the birthplace of Catholicism in the Philippines; a group
of local nobles were the first converts baptized by the voyage of Miguel Lopez
de Legazpi in 1521. A gift made to one of the converts, a statue of the child
Jesus (locally known by its Spanish name, "Santo Niño"), was later
found in the ashes of a burned-down house by a later Spanish mission in 1565.
The "miraculous" discovery prompted the Spanish to erect a church on
the site.
The current building dates back to
1739; the old Cebu town grew around the church, and Cebu's other historical
sites are just a short walk away from the church - Fort San Pedro, the old Cebu
City Hall, and Magellan's Cross, among others. The Santo Niño statue itself is
kept in the nearby parish convent, and is brought out every year for the
Sinulog Festival.
- Address:
Osmeña Boulevard, Cebu City (Google Maps)
- Phone:
+63 (0) 32 255 6697
- Site:
basilicadelsantoninodecebu.org
5.
Binondo Church, Manila
Photo Credit HERE
Officially known as "The Minor
Basilica and National Shrine of San Lorenzo Ruiz", Binondo Church was
built to cater to the growing Chinese Catholic community in the Philippines.
The Spanish conquistadores distrusted the Chinese, and refused to allow them
into Intramuros to worship among them. Thus the Dominican friars built the
Binondo Church in 1596, on the other side of the Pasig River.
The present church is a
reconstruction of a structure that was almost completely destroyed during World
War II. The community that grew around the church is now recognized as Manila's
Chinatown: a popular (if crowded) stop for tourists seeking delicious Chinese
food and cheap souvenirs. Within the church premises, a retablo behind
the altar looks like a replica of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. Outside, the
octagonal bell tower recalls the design of Chinese pagodas, a nod to the
Church's roots in the Chinese community.
- Address:
Plaza Lorenzo Ruiz, Binondo, Manila (Google Maps)
- Phone:
+63 (0) 2 242 4850
6.
Paoay Church, Ilocos Norte
Photo credit HERE
The town of Paoay, about 290 miles
north of Manila, hosts another robust church: the St. Augustine Church,
colloquially known as Paoay Church. This house of worship embodies the
architectural style known as "Earthquake Gothic": due to its sturdy
construction, the Paoay Church has survived over 300 years of earthquakes. 24
buttresses support the sides of the church, preventing it from collapsing even
with the strongest tremors.
The bell tower is also separated
from the main church building, to prevent the church being damaged should the
tower fall in an earthquake. The tower served as an observation post for
Filipino freedom fighters in 1898 and 1945.
Along with a number of other
Baroque-style churches in the Philippines, the Paoay Church was designated a
UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993.
- Address: Marcos Avenue, Paoay, Ilocos Norte (Google Maps)
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