San Pedro Macati Church

San Pedro Macati Church
Sts. Peter and Paul Parish Church
Poblacion Church
San Pedro de Macati Church
14°33′58″N 121°01′53″E / 14.566130°N 121.031385°E / 14.566130; 121.031385Coordinates: 14°33′58″N 121°01′53″E / 14.566130°N 121.031385°E / 14.566130; 121.031385
Location 5539 D.M. Rivera St.
Poblacion, Makati
Country Philippines
Denomination Roman Catholic
History
Founded 1620
Founder(s) Fr. Pedro de los Montes
Dedication Peter and Paul
Architecture
Status Parish church
Functional status Active
Heritage designation Cultural Property
Designated around 1937
Style Baroque
Administration
Archdiocese Manila
District District of Makati
Clergy
Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, D.D.
Priest(s) Rev. Msgr. Gerardo O. Santos, Ed.D, P.C.
Assistant Rev. Fr. Gabriel A. Paraan, Jr.

The San Pedro Macati Church, also known as Saints Peter and Paul Parish Church, is a Roman Catholic Church located in the Makati Poblacion, the cultural and heritage district of Makati, Philippines. Across the church is Plaza Cristo Rey which was formerly the San Pedro de Macati Cemetery. The Poblacion Church is a government-recognized cultural property based on the official list provided by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines. After 394 years, the Church was re-dedicated, the first dedication happened in 1620 when it became a parish church, the next after the reconstruction of the facade in 1796 and finally again, on the 30th day of January, 2015. The Dedication was led by Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, D.D., Archbishop of Manila, con-celebrated by Rev. Msgr. Gerardo O. Santos, Ed.D, Parish Priest, bishops and priests.

History

The Poblacion Church houses an altar with its carved retablo.

San Pedro de Macati used to be part of the Kingdom of Sapa. The Franciscan missionaries were the first to initiate Sapa into the Christian Faith in 1578. In 1608, Capitan Pedro de Brito, newly elected Alferez General and his wife, Ana de Herrera made a donation of land to the Jesuits. On July 1, 1608, Fray Gregorio Lopez S.J. accepted the deed of donation and an endowment of 14,000 pesos for a house of probation . This house and the church were to be built in the highest hill in the area called Buenavista and were to be placed under the patronage of Saint Peter, the namesake of the donor.

Construction of the first church commenced in 1620 under the direction of Fray Pedro delos Montes S.J. As the Jesuits began to earn at least 30,000 pesos annually from turning clay into fine earthenware, their vision of building an imposing structure began to be realized. The church known as San Pedro y Paul Viejo was made from hewn stone, pebbles and gravel mixed with mortar. Its facade is dominated with a three tiered papal tiara with the cross keys of Saint Peter.

In 1718, an ivory image of the Blessed Virgin Mary depicted as Virgen de la Rosa (Virgin of the Rose) was brought from Mexico to the Philippines through the Manila-Acapulco Galleon Trade. This image of the Virgin Mary was enshrined in this church and was frequently due to a relic of the Virgin's hair enshrined in the image's breast.

The church was destroyed during the British occupation of Manila in 1762. The church was reconstructed much later in 1849 using stones from nearby Guadalupe in Makati and Meycauayan in Bulacan province. Other materials include used include yakal and molave as wood materials, and capiz shells for windows.[1]

During the Philippine-American War from 1899 to 1902, the church was used as a hospital to tend wounded American soldiers. American volunteers also camped on church grounds.[2] This stay however resulted to the lost of the original image of the Virgen de la Rosa and her relic.

Over the years the Makati Church underwent several renovations and changes in the design but most of its features like the reredos and the church bells are still original.[1]

Architecture

The church structure follows the Baroque style of architecture. Its architectural feature of a single rectangular nave consisting of an apse and sacristy is typical of churches during the Spanish Colonial Period.[3] The altar with its original carved reredos with motifs of various flowers and fruits following the Baroque Rococo tradition can still be found in the church.[4]

Cultural property and historical marker

The Saints Peter and Paul Parish Church is a government-recognized important cultural property with the placement of a historical marker around 1937 by the Philippine Historical Research and Markers Committee, the precursor to the present National Historical Commission of the Philippines.[5]

Parish Priests

Name Years of Pastorship Present Assignment
Rev. Msgr. Jose Dimbla 1899 to 1904 deceased
Rev. Fr. Tirso Tomacruz 1918 deceased
Rev. Fr. Adriano Cuerpo 1920 to 1929 deceased
Rev. Fr. Getulio Ingal 1930 deceased
Rev. Fr. Osmundo Aguilar 1931 to 1939 deceased
Rev. Fr. Lazaro Ochuga 1939 to 1951 deceased
Rev. Fr. Francisco Teodoro 1955 to 1974 deceased
Rev. Fr. Pablo Dimagiba 1974
Rev. Msgr. Feliciano Santos 1974 to 1980 deceased
Rev. Msgr. Antonio B. Unson, H.P. 1980 to 2006 Retired Priest
Rev. Fr. Estelito Villegas 2006 to 2014 Parish Priest of Tondo Church
Rev. Msgr. Pedro Gerardo O. Santos, Ed. D., PC December 15, 2014 to present

Former Priests

Name Years of Pastorship Previous Assignment
Rev. Fr. Virgilio Soriano 1937
Rev. Fr. Pio Palad 1951
Rev. Fr. Dalmacio Eusebio 1960 Parochial Vicar
Rev. Fr. Amado Ligon, Jr. 1967 Parochial Vicar
Rev. Msgr. Augusto Pedrosa 1968 Parochial Vicar
Rev. Fr. Celso Sta. Maria 1970 Parochial Vicar
Rev. Fr. Rogelio Positar, OSA 1996 Attached Priest
Rev. Fr. Jaime Bautista 1996 Parochial Vicar
Rev. Fr. Wilmer Rosario 2006 Parochial Vicar
Rev. Fr. Estanislao Amper Parochial Vicar
Rev. Fr. Roy Bellen 2006 - 2011
Rev. Fr. John Patrick D. Calimlim 2008 - 2015 Parochial Vicar
Rev. Fr. Ryan O. Diño, SVD 2016 Attached Priest

Present Priest

Name Assignment
Rev. Fr. Gabriel A. Paraan, Jr. Asst. Parish Priest
Rev. Fr. Boy Aurelio T. Buhay Resident Priest

Chapel Communities

References

  1. 1 2 Algarme, Claire (2014-05-11)."File:Sts. Peter and Paul Church 9.JPG". Wikimedia Commons. Retrieved on 2014-11-26.
  2. ↑ "Philippine-American War".
  3. ↑ "Makati's Historic Churches".
  4. ↑ "Sts. Peter and Paul Parish Church".
  5. ↑ Administration. "National Registry of Historic Sites and Structures in the Philippines". National Historical Commission of the Philippines. Retrieved on 2014-11-26.

Media related to Makati Church at Wikimedia Commons

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