Our Lady of Candelaria Parish Church (Silang)
Silang Church | |
---|---|
| |
Church building | |
Groundbreaking | 1637 |
Completed | 1639 |
Specifications | |
Materials | Adobe stones |
Administration | |
Archdiocese | Manila |
Diocese | Imus |
Clergy | |
Priest(s) | Parish Priest: Rev Fr. Luisito Gatdula Parochial Vicar: Rev. Fr. Earl Gabriel S. Tan |
Laity | |
Servers' guild | Ministry of Altar Servers |
The Diocesan Shrine and Parish of Our Lady of Candelaria, commonly known as the Silang Church, is a
The church and retablo of the Our Lady of Candelaria Parish was declared a National Cultural Treasure by the National Museum of the Philippines on 3 February 2017.
Church history
The
Features
Unlike other Jesuit churches like
In 1937, the original wooden floor was replaced by red clay tiles.[4] Due to a fire in 1950, the ceiling was replaced one meter away from the original location.[4]
Belfry
It has a four-story belfry connected to the main church. The first floor is four sided while the rest of the floors are octagonal. The fourth story of the belfry was destroyed in the
Retablos or altarpieces
The retablos of Silang falls under the baroque style and is built from 1643 to 1663. It has three retablo, one retablo mayor or main altar and two side altars or colaterales in each side of the transepts which are mirror images of each other.[7] The side altars have three levels containing relieves except for the central niche of the second story. The first and second level has three niches while the third level has a single niche.[7] Fluted ionic columns and corinthian columns designed the first story and the second and third stories respectively.[7] On top of the altars are statues of angels holding shields. One of the side altar is dedicated to women saints, saints in the New Testaments and martyrs.[7] The other one was dedicated to the Jesuit saints. The presence of local styles such as plants, fruits, volutes or circular designs and millipedes made the retablo of Silang distinct.[7]
The altar mayor is the largest and highest altar among the three altars and known relieves depicting the story of Jesus in the life of
The six relieves on the altar mayor are:[4]
- Ang Pagbisita (Visitation of the Angel Gabriel to Mary)
- Ang Panunulúyan (Re-enactment of the journey of St. Joseph and Mary in search for lodging in Bethlehem)
- Ang mga Mago (The Three Kings)
- Ang Presentasyon sa Templo (The Presentation of Jesus at the Temple)
- Ang Koronasyon (The Coronation of Mary)
The seventh relief on the topmost level is a relief of the Santo Niño de Ternate.
Restorations
During the 1980s up to the early 1990s, the church had a white interior with hints of gold in the columns, niches, pediments, saints and foliage of the retablo which was done during the 1970s restoration by Talleres de Maximo Vicente through application of varnish.[8] Revarnishing was done in 1989 for preservation. The original pastel color of the retablo was restored in 2002 by carefully removing layers of lacquer, modern varnish, paraffin and soot.[8] In 2004, the golden pillars were restored to beige with a hint of avocado green and its rouge flowers to pink to complement the modern-day adobe wall-cladding.[8] Ceiling height was also restored to its original location. During the 21st century restoration, a statue of Paul holding a sword located at the right-most portion of the retablo was stolen. It was never recovered and a replica was used to replace the original statue.[8]
Devotion to the Virgin of Candelaria
Andres, an indio from Silang discovered a box containing an image of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the mountains of Silang in 1640.[7] Another indio, stunned by the glory of the image requested Andres to give it to him and without hesitation, Andres gave it to the indio. Later on, a tabernacle was built because of the large number of devotees. On January 30, 1643, the indio left the town and forgot about the sacred Friday devotion that he inherited from his ancestors. Upon his return to Silang, the image was not anymore in the tabernacle. He asked for forgiveness, searched for the image and found it. It again disappeared for nine times over the next few years.[9] Upon the advice of the Jesuit rector, he ordered the people to make vigil, bring the image to the church in festive mood. From then on, the image was permanently placed in the retablo of the church of Silang. Until now, the same procession and festive mood is still celebrated in Silang from February 1 to 3 every year that coincides with the feast of the Virgin of Candelaria every February 2.[7]
Notes
- ^ De Borja 2005, p. 55
- ^ Moya-Torrecampo 2005
- ^ a b Huerta 1865, p. 559
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Medina 2013
- ^ "History of Silang: The Jesuits". Museo de Silan, A Virtual Museum. Retrieved September 3, 2014.
- ^ a b "Silang Church (Silang, Cavite)". Philippine Heritage. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Javellana 1991
- ^ a b c d "History of Silang: Silang Series". Museo de Silan, A Virtual Museum. Retrieved September 3, 2014.
- ^ "Tourist Attractions, Cavite, Religious". Retrieved September 4, 2014.
Bibliography
- Javellana, Rene (1991). Wood & Stone for God's Greater Glory: Jesuit Art & Architecture in the Philippines. Ateneo de Manila University Press. ISBN 9715500552.
- Huerta, Felix (1865). Estado geográfico, topográfico, estadístico, histórico-religioso (in Spanish). Binondo: Imprenta de M. Sanchez y Ca.
- Medina, Philip (September 2013). "Erihiya, Retablo, at mga Banal na Hiyas: Mga Piling Yamang Bayan ng Silang, Cavite na may Kaugnayan sa Pananampalataya sa Panahon ng mga Heswita noong 1599–1768" (PDF). Saliksik e-Journal. 2 (1).
- Moya-Torrecampo, Rosella (2005). "The Tropa's Tropes: An Ear for the Language (Recovering History and Identity from the Vernacular)". Journal of English Studies and Comparative Literature. 8 (1). Retrieved September 6, 2014.
- De Borja, Marciano R. (2005). Basques in the Philippines. University of Nevada Press. ISBN 978-0-87417-590-5.
External links
- Media related to Our Lady of Candelaria Parish Church of Silang at Wikimedia Commons
- Our Lady of Candelaria Parish Church on Facebook