Grand entrance

I've already shown you the colonnade and porch of the Museum of the Filipino People, which used to be the government Finance Building. Now let's step inside and see its beautifully restored grand entrance hall.



Each doorway in the hall is topped by an arch with a stained glass window featuring the seal of the Department of Finance and the coat of arms of the Republic of the Philippines.



Here is a closer look at one of the stained glass windows featuring only the seal of the Department of Finance. I couldn't find any information about it so I don't know what they all mean, but the elements include the sun rising above a pair of marine lions holding a shield containing balance scales and a key. Under and around the marine lions (also a symbol of the City of Manila) is a scroll and three stars which represent the three major geographic areas of the country: Luzon (where Metro Manila is), Visayas and Mindanao.



Some of the stained glass windows can also be seen from the hallway of the second floor, where they are protected by more of the beautiful black iron grills that we saw at the porch.


To appreciate both the architecture and exhibits of the National Museum of the Philippines, especially if you're a first-time visitor, I highly recommend the museum tour of John Silva. Aside from his vast knowledge about architecture, history, art and archeological artifacts, he also has an insider's stories about the restoration of the buildings, the hard work required to breathe life into its musty halls and exhibits, and the struggle to preserve the heritage of the Filipino people.

Something old for something new

THEME DAY: GLASS • During the 1930s, the campus of the Ateneo de Manila University was along Padre Faura Street in Ermita, Manila. All of its buildings were destroyed during WWII. When the Jesuits rebuilt the campus, they also built a circular chapel on the grounds. In Germany, Fr. Raymond Annable, S.J. found a set of stained glass windows depicting the Stations of the Cross and the walls of the chapel were designed specifically for them. In the 1950s, the university's main campus was moved to its current location in Loyola Heights, Quezon City and the Padre Faura land was sold to John L. Gokongwei, one of the Philippines' wealthiest businessmen. Fifty years passed before the light of the sun shone through those stained glass windows again, when they were installed in the Church of the Gesù in 2002. They provide a beautiful backdrop to the church's unique holy water font, made out of a single piece of volcanic rock with a water circulating system built inside it. Reflected on the stained glass panels is the crucifix over the altar and the windows of the two other sides of the pyramid-shaped church.



Rough, smooth, faceted, colored, smoky, translucent, transparent, mirrored—look at or look through glass with the City Daily Photo bloggers. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants.

Tourists in Quebec: Basilique-Cathédrale Notre Dame de Québec

The exterior of the Notre-Dame de Québec Basilica Cathedral is relatively simple, with no elaborate reliefs or ornamentation. It also looks quite small from the front until you notice how far back it extends.




The interior, however, is another matter altogether.




Here is a closer view of the altar and its ornate, golden baldaquin (canopy of state).




The magnificent stained glass windows along the nave depict scenes from the life of Mary. Here are the three from the childhood of Jesus: his birth, his presentation at the temple, and his finding in the temple.

Family history

From May 12 to 24, my husband and I went on a road trip through the Central Luzon and Ilocos Regions, stopping at cities and towns that we've never visited before. My Manila goes outside Metro Manila for the next few days. I hope you enjoy the trip.

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My husband and I spent two days in the province of La Union. One of the reasons for that was personal—he wanted to visit the town of Bacnotan, where his mother's family originally was from. He remembers visiting Bacnotan, 243 kilometers northwest of Metro Manila, a few times when he and his siblings were little children and just walking to the beach from the house. We found the house thanks to a map that his mother had drawn for him. Sadly, it is in a very bad state.


All but one of my mother-in-law's family moved to Metro Manila or the U.S. a long time ago and the brother who stayed behind passed away several years ago. Since then, no one has taken care of the property. In the spacious yard, we saw the well where, my husband recalls, their bath water was drawn from.


After visiting the house, we decided to walk around the vicinity and discovered that the town hall was just a few blocks away. A very young-looking town hall, considering the fact that Bacnotan was formally founded in 1599.


The Catholic parish of Bacnotan has existed since 1787, but the original church constructed by the Spanish was completely destroyed in a fire in 1877. The church was rebuilt in 1888–91 and, according to the plaque at the church entrance, was repaired in 1937. For that information to be included in the plaque, I assume that the damage was quite heavy; the plaque, however, does not state why the church needed major repairs. But Bacnotan was a setting for one of the many battles of the Spanish-American War at the turn of the 20th century, so it may be correct to guess that the church was damaged then.


The complete name of the church is Saint Michael the Archangel Catholic Church, and there is a poorly rendered statue of the archangel in front of the church. Whoever painted it couldn't even distinguish the snake from the rock it was on and painted them the same red color.


The big bronze church bell, green with age, lies under an ivied trellis in the churchyard.  


Without a guide—then and right now on the web—it is is difficult for me to say anything with precision about the church other than the dates that are written on the plaque; I can only make guesses based on observation. And it seems to me that the 19th century church was made of red bricks, and the 1937 repair and reconstruction used marble and other stone blocks. Note the stained glass window here which depicts Mary carrying the infant Jesus with a dove representing the Holy Spirit—we will get back to it at the end of this post.


In many parts of the church, the bricks have been reinforced by concrete.


The exterior of the church may be a mix of 1891 and 1937 construction, but the interior of the church looks much, much newer than 1937. Like the Agoo Basilica, the ceiling is made of wood, but the Church of Saint Michael the Archangel is simpler. No arched aisles, no transept even, which I find unusual for a 19th century church. I have to admit, I find the simplicity of the ceiling and walls soothing. The retablo (reredos) behind the altar and the two similarly-designed iconostasis flanking the sanctuary are the most ornate items inside the church.


But even the retablo is simple compared to those of other churches in the country, having only three niches aside from the tabernacle. In the topmost niche is an icon of Saint Michael the Archangel, the patron saint of the parish.


The stained glass window over the church's main doors depicts the Descent of the Holy Spirit upon Mary and the remaining eleven of Jesus' apostles, described in the Acts of the Apostles 1:12-14 and 2:1-8.


Now we get back to the stained glass window on the church's facade. My husband and I discovered that there is a second one behind it, which can only be seen from the loft inside the church. It depicts Saint Michael the Archangel slaying the devil, not just a snake which symbolizes him—a much more powerful image befitting the history of the church than that awful statue. Unfortunately, the parish has not gotten around to repairing the loft yet, which means that very few people get to see this gem. The floorboards of the loft are very old and weak, and I had to walk right beside the wall where the wood was strongest—hence the skewing. I don't think we were even meant to be there; the gate of the stairs to the loft was unlocked but a chair was blocking it. My husband and I didn't know better, and there was no one to stop us, so we just moved the chair. I think the image was worth the risk. LUZON ROAD TRIP SERIES #3

Agog in Agoo

From May 12 to 24, my husband and I went on a road trip through the Central Luzon and Ilocos Regions, stopping at cities and towns that we've never visited before. My Manila goes outside Metro Manila for the next few days. I hope you enjoy the trip.

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After leaving Tarlac City on day two of our road trip, we spent a couple of hours in the town of Agoo (pronounced with three syllables), 200 kilometers northwest of Metro Manila on the western coast of Luzon, and one of the oldest towns in the province of La Union. It was already an important port and trade center populated by local Pangasinense and Japanese settlers before the Spanish, led by Juan de Salcedo, "founded" it in 1578. Salcedo was accompanied by two Franciscan missionaries, Fray Juan Bautista Lucarelli of Italy and Fray Sebastian de Baeza of Spain.


The Basilica of Our Lady of Charity, better known as the Agoo Basilica, was constructed only in 1976–78. The original church built by the Spanish was completely destroyed by an earthquake in 1892.


The church was designed by Architect Ignacio Palma Bautista. The architecture is unusual because of its two bell towers. The left bell tower is hexagonal and has four layers, though the actual belfry seems to be only the top two layers, and I'm not really sure about the top layer. The second layer from the bottom seems to hold only horn loudspeakers.


The right bell tower is designed after an espadaña or bell-gable, which is less expensive than full towers and is more often used for smaller churches and parishes.


The main doors are etched with what look to me to be Hebrew characters. I cannot read what they say, but the two doors remind me so much of the two tablets on which God inscribed the Ten Commandments which he gave to Moses on Mount Sinai. I will have to ask the help of Dina for these doors.


For worshipers who may have forgotten their things at home, candles, rosaries, scapulars and medallions are sold just inside the doors. It may be just me, but I wish the parish would build a special kiosk outside the church for this; I keep thinking of the story of Jesus going ballistic against the money changers and animal sellers in the Temple. 


Inside, what I found most striking was the church's wooden ceiling. Isn't it gorgeous? 


The ceiling over the aisles—which always have pews in our churches because of the number of church-goers—are just as beautiful and made even warmer because of the stained glass windows beside them.


The confessionals are designed to match the ceiling. One stands in front of the stained glass window showing the crucifixion of Jesus and the two thieves. It is near the entrance, hence the holy water font on its right. The framed marble relief on the left shows Jesus falling while carrying the cross to Golgotha, one of three times he does so in the Way of the Cross.


A small plaza in the grounds is dedicated to the Blessed Pope John Paul II, who elevated the church to a basilica minore in 1982. 


Across the church is the Jose D. Aspiras Civic Center, from where I took the first photo. It is named after a former Philippine Tourism Minister and major benefactor of the church who was from Agoo. It made me smile to see that it echoes the design of the church. However, the O-C in me wishes that the pole-lined brick path was also centered on the civic center's entrance and not just the church's.  LUZON ROAD TRIP SERIES #2

Internal glow

The evening Mass had ended, but the lights were still on inside the National Shrine of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, allowing us to see its lovely stained glass windows from the outside.

The windows are on the sides of the church and can't be seen from the street. You have to enter the church's compound to see them. They must be even more magnificent from the inside—where you won't see the metal grills—during the day.

Preparing the way

I've featured the 1896 St. John the Baptist Parish Church (better known locally as the Pinaglabanan Church) quite a few times, but mostly its exterior, which I love. I finally had an opportunity to take a photo of its interior from the main aisle. I confess that I'm not crazy about it since I've never been fond of dark wood, and all the wood in the church is dark, from the retablo (reredos) to the pews. I do like the stained glass windows flanking the crucifix, showing St. John the Baptist preaching, and baptizing Jesus.

The church's unique chevron-shaped and intricately-detailed stained glass window, which I posted back in 2010, is worth revisiting.

The Spirit like a dove

THEME DAY: BEST PHOTO OF 2009 • I originally posted this stained glass window on March 3, 2009. It depicts Jesus being baptized by John the Baptist in the Jordan River and the Holy Spirit descending upon him from the heavens like a dove. The window is one of many in the historic Malate Church, built anywhere between the late 16th century to the early 18th (I can't find exact information), which is dedicated to Nuestra Señora de los Remedios (Our Lady of the Remedies). I don't really know if it is my best photo of the year, but it was the first time I tried taking a picture of a stained glass window and I was very happy with the result.



The best of the best! We're going to have a wonderful tour around the world today. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants.

Jorge de Leon's gift to Manila

This was my other choice for my March theme day post: one of the stained glass windows in Malate Church depicting Jesus being baptized by John in the Jordan River with the Holy Spirit descending on Him in the form of a dove. I actually like the colors of this photo much better. A dark interior with bright daylight outside brought out the brilliant colors of the stained glass very well. Unfortunately, I do not know anything about Malate Church's windows—who the artist is or when they were created. The only thing I know about this panel is that it was donated by someone named Jorge de Leon, as it says at the bottom.

Rosy moment

The delicate pink stained glass windows of the Chapel of St. Thomas More in the Ateneo Professional Schools do not have obviously religious images unlike those in other Catholic churches and chapels I've seen.

Urban or rural, natural or man-made, take a sightseeing tour of our world's diverse scenery!

Glory

The beautiful stained glass window of Pinaglabanan Church, the St. John the Baptist Parish Church, under the peak of the ceiling between the narthex (entrance hall) and the nave (where the congregation sits). The biblical passage written on it is from the letter of Saint Paul to the Philippians, chapter 2, verse 10: "That at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven, on earth and under the earth."

In her heart

This is the companion piece to the stained glass window featuring St. Ignatius of Loyola behind the altar of the chapel of the Loyola Retreat House in the town of Angono in Rizal Province. It is a depiction of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, a devotion to Mary which focuses on her interior spiritual life. The 19th verse of the 2nd chapter of the Gospel of Luke, after Mary learns from the angel that she will soon be a mother, sums up the concept well: "And Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart." Quite appropriate for a spiritual retreat center.




Many countries, including the Philippines, are celebrating Mother's Day today. So, to all mothers: may you have a wonderful day filled with love and joy. And to everybody: no matter how flawed or imperfect our mothers are, they dedicated a large part of their lives to us—please tell them how much you appreciate that in any way you can.

Happy Mother's Day!

Go to Joseph!

The Manila Metropolitan Cathedral-Basilica, whose formal name is the Cathedral-Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, but is more popularly known simply as the Manila Cathedral, has a set of stained glass windows dedicated to Joseph, husband of Mary and foster father of Jesus. The Latin "Ite ad Joseph" in the small, circular window means "Go to Joseph" and is an admonition to Catholics to seek the intercession of Saint Joseph.

Psychedelic

"Love was a feeling completely bound up with color, like thousands of rainbows superimposed one on top of the other."

~Paulo Coelho, Brazilian novelist

The interior side of the bronze doors of the Abbey of Our Lady of Montserrat (see yesterday's post) are made of panels of stained glass which glow brightly during the day. They kind of look messy and incomplete without the bronze, though. I would love to see the doors from outside at night when the lights of the church are on.

A simple feast

This stained glass window is located over the door of the chapel of the Loyola Retreat House in the town of Angono in the province of Rizal where we had a spiritual retreat last April. I thought it appropriate to post today because many Filipinos will be attending Mass in celebration of the Nativity of Our Lady. It is not a holiday but it is a holy day in this largely Catholic country.

The resurrection and the life

This hopeful image of the resurrected Christ greets visitors and mourners at the entrance of the crypt of Our Lady of Mount Carmel church in New Manila, Quezon City. The odd lighting pattern comes from the fact that the columbarium is in the basement of the church and fluorescent tubes had to be installed behind the panels. Nevertheless, I think that the stained glass is beautiful.

A gym for the spirit

The two-day prayer recollection that I went to earlier this week was held at the Loyola Retreat House in the town of Angono in Rizal Province, east of Metro Manila. It is run by the Society of Jesus and visitors and retreatants are greeted by a statue of St. Ignatius of Loyola holding his Spiritual Exercises, which was the basis of our recollection, though in a much shorter form.




Almost hidden among the trees at the back of the retreat house is a small shrine depicting one of the most important events in the life of Ignatius. He was a Basque soldier and after his conversion, he made a pilgrimage to the Benedictine monastery of Santa Maria de Montserrat in Catalonia, Spain where he lay down his arms and armor in front of an image of the Virgin Mary.




The Loyola Retreat House is nowhere near as gorgeous as last year's Caleruega. It is actually quite spartan in its furnishings and design, but since it is used strictly as a venue for spiritual retreats, I think it was a much better choice—it was completely quiet. The most extravagant adornments in the center are the beautiful stained glass windows in the small chapel. Again, St. Ignatius is depicted holding the book of the Spiritual Exercises in one of the four large windows behind the altar.

Urban or rural, natural or man-made, take a sightseeing tour of our world's diverse scenery!