Balanga Cathedral, formally known as Diocesan Shrine and Cathedral Parish of St. Joseph in
Balanga,
Bataan
Bataan (), officially the Province of Bataan ( fil, Lalawigan ng Bataan ), is a province in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. Its capital is the city of Balanga while Mariveles is the largest town in the province. Occupying the enti ...
, is the seat of the
Diocese of Balanga which comprises entire of the civil province of Bataan. Currently, Ernesto B. De Leon and Prudencio “Denz” B. Dumaguing, Jr. serve as the cathedral priests. On March 19, 2015, the cathedral was formally declared a diocesan shrine.
History
During the Japanese invasion the cathedral was used as an artillery emplacement to bombard Mt. Samat, where the Filipino-American troops made their last stand. It was later renovated by the first bishop of the Diocese, Celso Guevarra and made its patron saint,
Saint Joseph
Joseph (; el, Ἰωσήφ, translit=Ioséph) was a 1st-century Jewish man of Nazareth who, according to the canonical Gospels, was married to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and was the legal father of Jesus. The Gospels also name some brothers of ...
.
Bishops
Interior and exterior
After the war Bishop Celso renovated the church. Its walls were white and a number of chandeliers hung from the ceiling, the largest before the altar. Behind the altar was a structure painted green with stripes of gold and a statue of
Jesus in the left,
Mary
Mary may refer to:
People
* Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name)
Religious contexts
* New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below
* Mary, mother of Jesus, also call ...
on the right, and
Joseph holding the hand of Baby Jesus. Beside the altar, there were two statues,
Lorenzo Ruiz
Lorenzo Ruiz ( fil, Lorenzo Ruiz ng Maynila; zh, link=no, 李樂倫; es, link=no, Lorenzo Ruiz de Manila; November 28, 1594 – September 29, 1637), also called Saint Lorenzo of Manila, is a Filipino saint venerated in the Catholic Church. ...
in the left and Mary at the right. There was a group of bells lined together vertically by metal grilles, the usual bell design in almost all of the parishes in Bataan. There was a statue of Jesus of Nazareth near the main door, which was kept for rehabilitation, believed to be miraculous. People lined up and gave sampaguitas to its neck and cross, they would usually wipe its feet. Along the cathedral's aisle are the coat of arms of respective bishops of Balanga that were added during their installation dates, with the latest being the coat of arms of Bishop
Ruperto Santos which was added when he became bishop of the diocese on July 8, 2010.
When Bishop Socrates Villegas became Bishop of Balanga on July 3, 2004, he saw that the decorations were in bad shape; he renovated the inside with a new design. When it was finished, the white walls were replaced by a wall of bricks, the structure behind the altar became marble white, the floors were higher and the chandeliers were replaced by ceiling lights. A few months before he became
archbishop of Lingayen-Dagupan in
Pangasinan
Pangasinan, officially the Province of Pangasinan ( pag, Luyag/Probinsia na Pangasinan, ; ilo, Probinsia ti Pangasinan; tl, Lalawigan ng Pangasinan), is a coastal province in the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region of Luzon. Its capi ...
on November 4, 2009, which ended his term as Bishop of Balanga, images featuring the
ancestors of Jesus and image of Jesus Christ at the cathedral's dome were added. Outside the cathedral are the statues of saints with their names which were also added during Socrates Villegas' term as Bishop of Balanga.
Feast of the patron saint
The feast day of Saint Joseph is celebrated twice annually in the city of Balanga, on March 19 and the "pistang bayan" every April 28.
Image gallery
File:BalangaCathedraljf2878 14.JPG, 1940 Philippine Historical Committed Marker
File:BalangaCathedraljf2939 06.JPG, Historical marker
File:BalangaCathedraljf2939 12.JPG, Angels, Logo in the middle of the Center facade
File:BalangaCathedraljf2894 08.JPG, Right facade
File:BalangaCathedraljf2894 07.JPG, Facade of the Balanga Cathedral
File:BalangaCathedraljf2894 06.JPG, Left facade
File:BalangaCathedraljf2939 02.JPG, Center facade
File:BalangaCathedraljf2894 05.JPG, Remote left facade
File:BalangaCathedraljf2939 03.JPG, Left facade
File:BalangaCathedraljf2894 04.JPG, Near left facade
File:BalangaCathedraljf2894 03.JPG, Belfry
File:BalangaCathedraljf2894 02.JPG, Rear facade of bell tower
File:BalangaCathedraljf2894 01.JPG, Left facade of Cathedral
File:BalangaCathedraljf2878 13.JPG, Right side of Cathedral
File:BalangaCathedraljf2878 12.JPG, Frontage of right side entrance
File:BalangaCathedraljf2939 05.JPG, Right half of main door
File:BalangaCathedraljf2939 04.JPG, Left half
File:BalangaCathedraljf2939 01.JPG, Schedule of Masses
File:BalangaCathedraljf2907 12.JPG, The Cathedral/Bishop's Coat of arms ( Ecclesiastical heraldry)
File:BalangaCathedraljf2907 11.JPG, Cathedra
A ''cathedra'' is the raised throne of a bishop in the early Christian basilica. When used with this meaning, it may also be called the bishop's throne. With time, the related term ''cathedral'' became synonymous with the "seat", or principal ...
File:BalangaCathedraljf2907 10.JPG, Our Lady of Lourdes
Our Lady of Lourdes (french: Notre-Dame de Lourdes) is a title of the Virgin Mary. She is venerated under this title by the Roman Catholic church due to her apparitions that occurred in Lourdes, France. The first apparition of 11 February 1858, ...
File:BalangaCathedraljf2907 09.JPG, Dome
File:BalangaCathedraljf2907 07.JPG, Our Lady of Perpetual Help
Our Lady of Perpetual Help (also known as Our Lady of Perpetual Succour) is a Roman Catholic title of the Blessed Virgin Mary associated with a 15th-century Byzantine icon with an alleged Marian apparition. The icon is believed to have or ...
File:BalangaCathedraljf2907 06.JPG, Choir loft
A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...
File:BalangaCathedraljf2894 11.JPG, Black Nazarene
The Black Nazarene ( es, El Nazareno Negro, Nuestro Padre Jesús Nazareno; fil, Poóng Itím na Nazareno, Hesus Nazareno) is a life-sized image of a dark-skinned, kneeling Jesus Christ carrying the Cross enshrined in the Minor Basilica of the ...
File:BalangaCathedraljf2894 09.JPG, Confessional
File:BalangaCathedraljf2894 12.JPG, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Fernando
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Fernando ( lat, Archidioecesis Sancti Ferdinandi; fil, Arkidiyosesis ng San Fernando; es, Arquidiócesis de San Fernando; Kapampangan: ''Arkidiosesis ning San Fernando'') is the archdiocese of the Latin Chu ...
- 1st Bishop Celso Nogoy Guevarra, D.D.+, Church grave
File:BalangaCathedraljf2907 02.JPG, Grave
File:BalangaCathedraljf2907 05.JPG, Ceiling
File:BalangaCathedraljf2939 07.JPG, Ceiling
File:BalangaCathedraljf2894 10.JPG, Interior
File:BalangaCathedraljf2939 11.JPG, Interior
File:BalangaCathedraljf2939 10.JPG, Sanctuary
File:BalangaCathedraljf2939 09.JPG, Retablo
File:BalangaCathedraljf2939 08.JPG, Tabernacle in the altar
File:BalangaCathedraljf2878 11.JPG, Columbarium
A columbarium (; pl. columbaria) is a structure for the reverential and usually public storage of funerary urns, holding cremated remains of the deceased.
The term can also mean the nesting boxes of pigeons. The term comes from the Latin "''colum ...
File:BalangaCathedraljf2878 10.JPG, Statue inside
File:BalangaCathedraljf2878 09.JPG, Individual storage of cinerary urns
File:BalangaCathedraljf2878 08.JPG, Facade of the columbarium
File:BalangaCathedraljf2878 07.JPG, Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes
Our Lady of Lourdes (french: Notre-Dame de Lourdes) is a title of the Virgin Mary. She is venerated under this title by the Roman Catholic church due to her apparitions that occurred in Lourdes, France. The first apparition of 11 February 1858, ...
File:BalangaCathedraljf2878 05.JPG, Priests' Residence
File:BalangaCathedraljf2878 04.JPG, St. Joseph Formation Center
File:BalangaCathedraljf2878 02.JPG, Fr. Mariano Sarili Hall
File:BalangaCathedraljf2878 01.JPG, Parish Offices
See also
*
Roman Catholicism in the Philippines
, native_name_lang =
, image = Front view of The Cathedral in Intramuros, Manila.jpg
, imagewidth = 250px
, alt =
, caption = Minor Basilica of the Immaculate Concepcion
, abbreviation ...
*
Roman Catholic Diocese of Balanga
References
External links
CBCP Diocese of BalangaRoman Catholic Diocese of BalangaCoordinatesCBCP">Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines, CBCP Website
GCatholic
{{Central Luzon attractions
Roman Catholic cathedrals in the Philippines
Balanga, Bataan
Tourist attractions in Bataan
Roman Catholic churches in Bataan
Churches in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Balanga