Bohol Philippines: Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception in Baclayon Town
The Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception in Baclayon town is one of the best preserved Jesuit-built churches in the region. The mission was established by Fr. Juan de Torres and Fr. Gabriel Sanchez, who arrived in Bohol from Cebu in November 1596. The Jesuit priests convinced the locals to build a church, which was probably a bamboo and thatch church.
Baclayon served at one time as the residential or center of the Bohol missions, where the superior resided. There are claims that the present stone church in Baclayon is the oldest in the Philippines but evidence places the construction of the church to 1727. The belief that the church was built in 1595 was probably because of a 19th century report from the Recollects that the mission was founded in 1595. The same report, however also lists two other dates 1593 and 1594. The date 1595 inscribed on the church facade is a later addition.
Baclayon bacame a parish only in 1717. Native laborers constructed the church from coral stones, which they took from the sea, cut into square blocks, and piled. They used bamboo to move and lift the stones in position and used millions of egg whites to cement the stones together. The current building was completed in 1727. The church obtained a large bell in 1835. Inside the church is dungeon where natives who violated the rules of the Roman Catholic Church were said to be punished.
The adjoining but separate tower may have been started by the Jesuits but was completed during the administration of the Recollects in 1777, as what is said in a stone inscription on the tower. The inscription was recently defaced.
The church has two facades, an inner one which is classical inspired and an outer one built in the 19th century by the Recollects is a portico decorated by three arches. The addition of porticoes to the facade is a style prevalent in Bohol and Cebu during the 19th century. Porticoes are found in churches in Loay, Loboc and Cortes in Bohol, and in Talisay, Recolletos in Cebu.
The green and gilded altars are the focal point of the interior. The main retablo displays of saints of Recollect devotion but the retablo itself traces to Jesuits whose emblem and motto, which is “Ad majorem Dei gloriam” surmounts the main altar. A painting of the Ascension, Church Fathers and San Vicente Ferrer, which date back to the 19th century, are found in the nave.
A pipe organ was installed in the 1800s but this organ is presently in disrepair. The choir and organ loft are decorated with cut out designs.
Next to the church is an old convent, which also houses a small museum with centuries-old religious relics, artifacts and other antiquities dating back to the 16th century. Baclayon started the trend in Bohol of establishing parish museums. Included in the collection is an ivory statue of the crucified Jesus Christ looking towards heaven, a statue of the Blessed Virgin which was said to be presented by Queen Catherine of Aragon, relics of St. Ignatius of Loyola and old gold embroidered ecclesiastical vestments. Cantorals or large handwritten music books in Latin also form part of the collection. Included in these cantorals is the Misa Baclayona, a musical setting for the Mass, which has been revived and is part of the repertoire of the internationally multi-awarded Loboc Children’s Choir.
How to get there
Baclayon is some six kilometers east of Tagbilaran City. Buses and jeepneys bound for the town are available in Tagbilaran. There are also tricycles that ply the Baclayon route.
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One Response to “Bohol Philippines: Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception in Baclayon Town”
By Ninia on Apr 20, 2009 | Reply
Wow!!! Very fantastic creation in the past and its look like fortresses in Europe…I’m also amazed like this when I was in France for an internship abroad in France in 2004. Thanks for posting this information.