By Anna Valmero
MANILA CITY, METRO MANILA— One of the oldest churches in the country is the Binondo Church located at Ongpin Street in the heart of Manila’s Chinatown district.
The church’s patroness is the image of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary but there is also an image of St. Lorenzo Ruiz on the left side of the altar to honor the first Filipino saint.
St. Lorenzo Ruiz, who was a Filipino-Chinese, served as an altar boy at the church in the 17th century. He went to Japan as a missionary but, together with his shipmates, was executed because of his religion.
The present granite structure was completed in 1852 some two centuries after the Dominican priests built the original church in 1596. Today, what was left of the 16th century structure is the Chinese-inspired octagonal bell tower.
The original structure was torn down a few times during the Chinese revolt in 1603, during the brief occupation of the British who bombarded the structure in 1762, an earthquake a century after and during the American occupation when they bombed Manila.
Between 1946 and 1971, the church and convent were renovated, according to the historical marker on site. Up until now, the Chinese community has been maintaining the church and funding its renovations, including the columns set in marble and the altar.
A marble marker on the left facade of the Church states that his eminence Jaime Cardinal Sin, Archbishop of Manila, commissioned Rev. Msgr. Federico Navarro to restore and renovate the church from January 1977 to January 1984.
On May 9, 1985, the church was blessed by the archbishop together with the three-storey concrete parish and convent at the back of the church in Ongpin Street.
On any given day, the church opens at around 10a.m. to accommodate the Fil-Chinese community before they go to their businesses in the area. Both young and old, some even dressed in their casual business attire, visit the church to say a few words of prayer and to light a candle at the gallery located at the church’s entrance.
Some offer garlands of sampaguita bought from the vendors outside.
Bert, a church cleaner on mornings, said that hundreds from the Chinatown community pay a visit to the church on weekdays but almost over a thousand attend the mass on Sundays, filling the pews inside.
While most of the churchgoers pray for the intercession of The Lady of the Holy Rosary, he said that others pray to other saints, too, such as St. Lorenzo Ruiz, Our Lady of Perpetual Help and the apostles of Christ whose images are also found lining the side aisles toward the altar.
Noting the grand altar and the numerous saints displayed alongside the patroness, The Lady of the Holy Rosary, Bert told me that it was a move to cover the holes at the old altar wall. To their credit, it was a smart move that added beauty to the altar.
When you enter the church before 12 noon (when the lights are turned on for the prayer of the Angelus), you will see the antique beauty of the church’s interior, with the thick columns on each side and the colorful ceilings painted with important events from the Bible such as the stations of the cross and when Blessed Mary was enthroned the Queen of heaven.
The paintings done by artists in the area were realistic in style and would seem to rival the paintings of the Sistine Chapel. The detailed paintings make Binondo Church a famous stop among tourists in the area.
In an article at Worldwanderings.net, a visitor to the church wrote: “Probably, what may be the most eye-catching feature of Binondo Church is the ceiling which features massive paintings of each mystery of the Holy Rosary.”
“The paintings are far from a Michelangelo, in fact, they look more like good movie posters. But I still think that they are good additions to an already impressive church.”
***
loQal.ph is a website owned and operated by Filquest Media Concepts, Inc. It works under the principle of giving voice to the voiceless, empowering Filipinos and uplifting the image of the Philippines by highlighting its unique culture. To do this, the loQal.ph team produces stories, video, photos and other multimedia content types to inspire and celebrate Filipino achievements, ideas, products and places.
1 comment