Pasig Cathedral

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Pasig Cathedral" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (October 2015) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Pasig Cathedral
Immaculate Conception Cathedral of Pasig
Katedral at Parokya ng Kalinis-linisang Paglilihi ( Pasig (since 2003)
Deanery	Immaculate Conception
Clergy
Bishop(s)	Mylo Hubert Claudio Vergara
Rector	Rev. Fr. Mariano L. Baranda
Assistant priest(s)	Rev. Fr. Rizalino Jose Rev. Fr. Adam Gregor Arellano Rev. Fr. Daniel Estacio

The Immaculate Conception Cathedral of Pasig, commonly known as the Pasig Cathedral is a

and one of the oldest structures in the city.

The church was founded as a parish by the Augustinian missionaries on July 2, 1573, coinciding with the foundation of the town of Pasig. Initially, the parish was consecrated to the Visitation of Our Lady, but on April 25, 1587, was changed to Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, the patroness of the Augustinian priests during that time.^[1]

The parish was administered by the

. The present parish priest and rector of the cathedral is Mariano L. Baranda.

History

The Immaculate Conception Parish was initially established as a mission-parish by an Augustinian friar, Alonso de Alvarado, on January 20, 1572, in the village of Pinagbuhatan. However, frequent flooding in the original site prompted the Augustinian priests to relocate it to higher ground, where the cathedral now currently stands.^[2]

On July 2, 1573, coinciding with the establishment of the town (now city) of Pasig, the church was consecrated to the Our Lady of the Visitation, which served as the first patroness of Pasig. The town patroness was eventually changed into the Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception on April 25, 1587.

During the brief British occupation of Manila in 1762 to 1764, the church served as the British military headquarters, its belfry used as a watchtower against the Spanish defenders.

After the

took over the supervision of the parish, and Manuel Sobreviñas, then auxiliary bishop of Manila, became the first Filipino parish priest. Assisting him as parochial administrator was Andres Desmet.

In 1993, Sobreviñas became the bishop of the

in the year 2000.

In October 2001, the Ecclesiastical District of Pasig was created, covering the Vicariate of the Immaculate Conception, along with the parishes of Pateros and Taguig. Nestor Cariño served as the only district bishop.

Two years later,

leaders and workers of Pasig Hall. Upon his retirement in February 2005, San Diego took over as acting parish priest and rector.

In June 2005, Roy Rosales was named fourth rector of the cathedral. He spearheaded the restoration of most of the cathedral's artifacts, like the image of Our Lady of the Apocalypse, the Baptistery, the Cathedral Facade, the processional image of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, the retablos and the original image of the Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, patroness of Pasig. It was also through the efforts of Rosales that the Immaculate Conception Cathedral-Parish witnessed the Solemn Canonical Coronation of its patron as

, the Bishop of Pasig, and the entire faithful in the diocese.

In May 2010, Orlando Cantillon was named fifth rector of the cathedral. In February 2015, Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara named Joselito I. Jopson, parish priest of Santo Rosario de Pasig Parish, as the sixth rector and eighth Filipino parish priest of the cathedral. In February 2021, Mariano L. Baranda was named the new rector and parish priest.

In February 2021, as part of the Celebration of the 500th Year Anniversary of the Arrival of Christianity in the Philippines, the Cathedral-Parish was named as a Jubilee Church in the Diocese of Pasig along with the Diocesan Shrine of St. Martha and Parish of St. Roch in Pateros and the Minor Basilica and Archdiocesan Shrine Parish of St. Anne in Taguig.

On March 25, 2022, the 7 year-long restoration and renovation of the cathedral (including the addition of ceiling paintings) has finally come to a close with a grand inauguration and blessing officiated by Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara. The restoration and renovation was done under the Abang Lingkod ni Maria under the supervision of Camarera Mayor Wilfrieda Legaspi. Along with this came the world premiere of 'Fresca Rosa Novella (Fresh New Rose),' an aria for tenor, composed by the youngest member of the Abang Lingkod ni Maria, Gabriel L. Legaspi.

The statue of La Inmaculada Concepción de Pasig

Inside the cathedral, one can see in the main altar a beautifully carved statue of the

. The coronation took place on December 7, 2008.

Ecclesiastical territory

Previously, the Immaculate Conception Cathedral belonged to the

Diocese of Pasig

in 2003.

The Immaculate Conception Cathedral comprises nine communities divided according to the patron of the chapel in the community:

• Pamayanan ng Nuestra Senora Rosa Mystica
• Pamayanan ng San Jose
• Pamayanan ng San Felipe at Santiago
• Pamayanan ng Our Lady of Fatima
• Pamayanan ng Sta. Rosa de Lima
• Pamayanan ng Sta. Rosa - Sumilang
• Pamayanan ng San Nicolas
• Pamayanan ng Sta. Cruz
• Pamayanan ng San Isidro Labrador at San Roque

Jurisdiction

The Immaculate Conception Cathedral comprises the following barangays in Pasig:

Pastors

Below is the list of Filipino parish priests.

Name	Years of pastorship	Present assignment
Manuel Sobreviñas	1979 to 1993	Deceased
Emmanuel V. Sunga	1993 to 1997	Archdiocesan Shrine and Parish of Our Lady of Loreto (Sampaloc, Manila)
Manuel G. Gabriel	1997 to 2003	retired in the Diocese of Parañaque
Rodolfo A. Gallardo	2003 to 2005	Deceased
Francisco C. San Diego	February to June 2005	deceased
Roy M. Rosales	2005 to 2010	Parish Priest, Santo Rosario de Pasig Parish Priest Coordinator, Diocesan Commission on the Cultural Heritage of the Church Spiritual Supervisor, Abang Lingkod ni Maria
Orlando B. Cantillon	2010 to 2015	Rector and Parish Priest, Archdiocesan Shrine of St. Anne Vicar-General, Diocese of Pasig Priest Coordinator, Diocesan Council of the Laity Vicar Forane, St. Anne Vicariate
Joselito I. Jopson	2015 to 2021	Parish Priest, Our Mother of Perpetual Help Parish Priest Coordinator, Pasig Diocesan Social Communications Ministry Priest Coordinator, Diocesan Basic Ecclesial Communities Commission
Mariano L. Baranda	June 2021 to present	Moderator Curiae, Diocese of Pasig Director, Human Resources Department, Diocese of Pasig Vicar Forane, Immaculate Conception Vicariate

See also

• Diocese of Pasig
• Francisco San Diego
• Archdiocese of Manila

References

Resources

• The 2010–2011 Catholic Directory of the Philippines (published by Claretian Publications for the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines, June 2008)
• Updated Diocese of Pasig Directory
• Aviso (Notice) by the Roman Catholic Bishop of Pasig dated February 22, 2021

External links

• Media related to Pasig Cathedral at Wikimedia Commons
• Official website