Visita Iglesia in Bulacan

I felt that I want to explore more, so as my campaign of church visits in the Philippines, I take one province at a time. After Laguna, Cavite, Rizal and Batangas provinces (Metro Manila on separate post), I want to embark more going north. Thus, Bulacan province is what comes to my mind since it's the gateway to Central Luzon. This province is so vast, that one day isn't enough to visit most of heritage churches. Because of this, I visited them in different dates.

Starting from the southern part of the province, the town of Obando is just stone's throw away from Valenzuela City. Its St. Paschal Baylon Church houses patrons famous for Fertility Rites which couples offer eggs and dance to festive beat in hoping of son/daughter, husband/wife, or good fortune.

The nearby Meycauayan City has St. Francis of Assisi Church standing at a nearby river. It has a historic tree near its façade.

The St. Michael The Archangel Church of Marilao is also located near a river.

The town of Bocaue is famous for their fireworks as well as their colonial period St. Martin of Tours Church.

  

Along the MacArthur highway lies the St. Ildefonsus of Toledo Church at Guiguinto town.

I rode a jeepney at Balagtas Market where a terminal going to the town of Bulakan is located. There, Our Lady of Assumption Church takes pride of its antiquity, as the oldest church in the province.

Off to Barasoain, Malolos City, the historic Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church has a museum at the church convent maintained by National Historical Institute.

 

Being the seat of the Diocese of Malolos, the Minor Basilica of Our Lady of Immaculate Conception at Malolos City has a bishop's residence at its wide plaza as well as the historic tree being the meeting place of our independence forefathers.

Famous for their native vinegar, Paombong has its parish, the St. James The Apostle Church.

Until I first visited this church, Hagonoy houses the National Shrine of St. Anne. The patron saint known as "Apo Ana" is the mother of Virgin Mary and her relics can be found here.

My one day ended here at this town. The other day, I continued my church visit starting at the adjacent town.

It was Sunday morning when I attended mass at the old church of Calumpit. St. John The Baptist Church is more that 400 years old standing on a nearby river.

 

St. Isidore The Laborer Church of Pulilan is where the carabaos kneel on the feast day of their patron saint.

 

 

Across the nearby river is the town of Plaridel formerly known as Quingua. There, the St. James The Apostle Church is famous for its mosque-like façade.

Going far north is the progressive town of Baliuag. St. Augustine of Hippo Church has a high bell tower and most of it remain intact.

The nearby town of Bustos has its patron venerated in Sto. Niño Church located at the bank of Angat River. Though a few kilometers away from Baliuag's town center, parishioners from Bustos petitioned to have their own parish due to an accident where people drowned in the mighty river as they went to nearby parish across it.

A remote town of San Rafael will take you to its parish, the St. John of God Church where the a bloody battle happened at its site.

On the eastern part of Bulacan lies Angat town where Sta. Monica Church stands next to municipal hall.

Neighboring town of Norzagaray has St. Andrew The Apostle Parish at their poblacion.

Going to south is the booming town of Sta. Maria where the Immaculate Conception Church stands on the hilly part of the vicinity.

Lastly, the San Jose del Monte City has its namesake for its patron at St. Joseph Church standing at the hilly part of the city, hence the city's name in Spanish literally means "St. Joseph of the mountain".

After the town of Baliuag, if you opt to move northward along the national highway, you can go directly to northern towns of San Ildefonso and San Miguel.

The flagship church of St. Ildephonse of Toledo in San Ildefonso is located along the highway. The red-brick facade is adjacent to a patio and police station.

At the heritage town of San Miguel, the parish of St. Michael the Archangel is nestled in the heart of poblacion, surrounded by old houses and right infront of brick-faced municipal hall.

As for recap, here are my routes for my two-day church visit:

Day 1: Obando-Meycauayan City-Marilao-Bocaue-Guiguinto-Bulakan-Malolos City-Barasoain-Paombong-Hagonoy

Day 2: Calumpit-Pulilan-Plaridel-Baliuag-Bustos-San Rafael-Angat-Norzagaray-Sta. Maria-San Jose del Monte City

Spinoff from Baliuag: San Ildefonso-San Miguel-(churches of Nueva Ecija in a separate post)

Have a blessed trip everyone! (n_n)

Visita Iglesia in Batangas

Coat of arms Archdiocese of Lipa
Archidioecesis Lipaensis (Latin)
Arsidiyosesis ng Lipa (Tagalog)

The Ecclesiastical Province of Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Lipa

The Archdiocese of Lipa has jurisdiction in the province of Batangas and suffragan territories in the civil provinces of Quezon, Marinduque, and Aurora.

It was Palm Sunday then that I continued my journey of heritage churches. This time, I went to the sunny province of Batangas. My mother told me that they've gone visita iglesia at the province as part of their church activity. Since I first started my trip at Laguna followed by Cavite, why not in Batangas? Thus, I began my church visit.

My first stop is Tanauan City. I start my visita iglesia by attending mass at the first church I step onto. Here, St. John The Evangelist Church stands next to the old municipal hall, now the city's museum. You can see the people flocking and waiting for their palms to be blessed.

After the mass, I took a jeepney ride on the way to Lipa City. In this city, the Archdiocese of Lipa  holds its masses at Metropolitan Cathedral of Saint Sebastian. 

Not so far from the cathedral of Lipa City, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish is administered by Carmelite sisters where one of them witnessed a miracle of Virgin Mary.

Going westward ang passing through lake towns, I reached Sta. Teresita where they have St. Therese of The Child Jesus Parish as the town's namesake.

What I really wanted to visit is the Heritage Town of Taal. As I see in postcards and history books, Taal is famous for having one of the largest churches here in Asia, the Basilica of St. Martin of Tours. I was in awe when I saw this heritage structure. This massive church stands on a hill overlooking the well-preserved houses in the vicinity. It's like a stronghold or great palace of faith.

Another pilgrimage site in Taal is the Shrine of Our Lady of Caysasay. It's also adjacent to the ruins of Sta. Lucia where its wells said to have miraculous waters.

 

Nearby Taal is the progressive town of Lemery. The St. Roch Parish is just across the municipal building.

Going back to eastward route, the town of Bauan has Immaculate Conception Church housing a miraculous cross venerated in it.

My last stop for one-day trip is the Basilica of The Immaculate Conception at Batangas City, one of 12 Minor Basilicas in the Philippines conferred by the Catholic Church.

I embarked on a second visita iglesia in Batangas last 2013. My first stop is San Jose, known as the Egg Capital, due to abundance of poultry farms in the town. Here, Archdiocesan Shrine of Saint Joseph the Patriarch stands on a hill overlooking the plaza and municipal hall. The interior retains the unobstructed view of altar.

Passing through Lipa City, my second stop is the Cattle-trading Capital town of Padre Garcia. This town was formerly known as Lumangbayan,  as this were the townsfolk originally settled before thy transferred to town of Rosarion, due to outbreak of World War II. Most Holy Rosary Parish still stands after renovation and the patroness remained in this church.

The adjacent town of Rosario was aptly named because of the patroness in their flagship church, Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary Parish.

The easternmost town of Batangas is a heritage town known for old houses and fine sand beaches.  San Juan retains its old glory with Saint John Nepomucene Parish as their patron since its establishment.

Lastly, the trading town of Ibaan stands proud at an intersection with Saint James the Greater Parish as their patron and managed by Oblates of Saint Joseph.

I also included here the heritage church and a National Cultural Treasure. The Immaculate Conception Church of Balayan is one of the few churches built by secular priests that is administered by Filipinos.

North-West route: Tanauan City-Lipa City-Sta. Teresita-Taal-Lemery-Bauan-Batangas City

South-East Route: San Jose-Padre Garcia-Rosario-San Juan-Ibaan

Have a blessed Batangas trip everyone! (n_n)

Visita Iglesia in Cavite

Roman Catholic Diocese of Imus
Dioecesis Imusensis (Latin)
Diyosesis ng Imus (Filipino)
Diócesis de Imus (Spanish)

After my Visita Iglesia in Laguna, I'm more excited to explore different provinces through my church visits. It's a different feeling to appreciate and take a glimpse of our culture as we pray on these bastions of faith. Good thing I have my reliable map to embark on a new adventure. This time, I visited the historic churches of Cavite province.  

I started my visita iglesia by hearing a mass on my first church, that is, St. Michael The Archangel Church of Bacoor City. Father Mariano Gomez, one of the Gomburza martyr priests, once served this parish.

Along the highway of Cavite coastal towns, the town of Kawit has an intact church of St. Mary Magdalene Church. Kawit was then known as Cavite El Viejo (Old Cavite). There, you can see the relic of the patron saint, where a piece of cloth was touched by her remains. It's the namesake of the revolutionary group Magdalo, hence Magdalena. Also, this church is said to be connected to Aguinaldo's house via an underground tunnel.

With the former church in ruins, Cavite City has has a currently renovated St. Roch Parish housing the venerated image of Our Lady of Sorrows of Porta Vaga.

Rosario town has a venerated image at the Our Lady of The Most Holy Rosary Church where it was miraculously found at a bay near Salinas (town's former name).

Tanza was formerly known as Sta. Cruz de Malabon. At the former town center, Holy Cross Church is under the patronage of St. Augustine. The church's convent served a historic signifance in our independence.

Going to Gen. Trias City town leads me to the inner town plaza where St. Francis of Assisi Church stands. Formerly known as San Francisco de Malabon, it has a fair share of antique items housed in the church's museum. 

The distant town of Naic can be reached mostly by mini-buses. The Immaculate Conception Church also served as a mute witness of people's struggles during revolutionary period.

Towering mountains form most part of Maragondon town with Our Lady of The Assumption Church at the plaza. The church was declared a National Cultural Treasure for its colonial style and raises funds for efforts of preserving it.

Last church in the coast is the Holy Child Church of Ternate. Townsfolk here speak a variant of Spanish creole language called Ternateño, similar to Chavacano of cities of Cavite and Zamboanga. 

This concludes the first day of my Cavite church visit.

The other day, I continued my journey down south. First is the Our Lady of Pillar Cathedral in Imus City, the seat of the Diocese.

The neighboring Dasmariñas City has an imposing Immaculate Conception Church with richly carved main door. It stands next to the City Hall.

Trece Martires City is the capital of the province. There, St. Jude Thaddeus Parish serves it townsfolk which a city hall stands nearby.

Near the Tagaytay ridge, Indang is a booming town under the patronage of St. Gregory The Great Church.

Southwest of Indang, Alfonso is an agricultural town with St. John Nepomucene Parish adjacent to municipal hall.

The quiet town of Mendez has a St. Augustine Parish at the highway across the town plaza.

Passing Tagaytay City, Amadeo is a small town famous for their coffee. St. Mary Magdalene Parish watches over its people.

Down the slopes of Tagaytay is the fruit-farming town of Silang. Our Lady of Candelaria Church has an intact white retablo of Rococo style.

Finally, I visited St. Joseph Parish of Carmona located at the inner section of the town. It's getting darker so I rode a bus plying to Metro Manila at Biñan City.

Again, here's my church visit itinerary:

Western Cavite coastal towns (Day 1): Bacoor City-Kawit-Cavite City-Rosario-Tanza-Gen. Trias City-Naic-Maragondon-Ternate

Southern Cavite inland towns (Day 2): Imus City-Dasmariñas City-Trece Martires City-Indang-Alfonso-Mendez-Amadeo-Silang-Carmona

Have a blessed visita iglesia! (n_n)