The Immaculate Conception Parish Church (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

: ''Iglesia Parroquial de la Inmaculada Concepción''), commonly known as Guiuan Church, is a

Roman Catholic church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

in the municipality of

Guiuan, Eastern Samar Guiuan ( �giˌwan; war, Bungto han Guiuan, fil, Bayan ng Guiuan), officially the Municipality of Guiuan, is a 2nd class municipality in the province of Eastern Samar, Philippines. It constitutes the southeastern extremity of Samar Island and ...

, Philippines, within the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Borongan. The church is classified as a

National Cultural Treasure National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

by the

National Museum of the Philippines The National Museum of the Philippines ( fil, Pambansang Museo ng Pilipinas}) is an umbrella government organization that oversees a number of national museums in the Philippines including ethnographic, anthropological, archaeological, and visu ...

. It was formerly nominated to the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

World Heritage A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

Sites of the Philippines under two categories, the

Baroque Churches of the Philippines The Baroque Churches of the Philippines are a collection of four Spanish Colonial-era baroque churches in the Philippines, which were included in UNESCO's World Heritage List in 1993. The churches are also considered as national cultural treas ...

(Extension) and the Jesuit Churches of the Philippines. The church, built in the 18th century, was significantly damaged when

Typhoon Haiyan Typhoon Haiyan, known in the Philippines as Super Typhoon Yolanda, was one of the most powerful tropical cyclones ever recorded. On making landfall, Haiyan devastated portions of Southeast Asia, particularly the Philippines. It is one of the ...

(local name: Yolanda) made landfall in Guiuan and struck other parts of

Central Visayas Central Visayas ( ceb, Tunga-tungang Kabisay-an; tl, Gitnang Kabisayaan) is an administrative region in the Philippines, numerically designated as Region VII. It consists of four provinces: (Cebu, Bohol, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor) and thr ...

on November 8, 2013. While the church's roof was destroyed and the façade damaged, the church's walls were largely left intact. Restoration of the damaged church was completed in 2019.

Church history

Immaculate Conception Church in Guiuan, Eastern Samar, in 1945

Guiuan (also spelled as ''Guiguan'') was founded by the

Jesuits The Society of Jesus ( la, Societas Iesu; abbreviation: SJ), also known as the Jesuits (; la, Iesuitæ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

in 1595. It was handed over to the

Augustinians Augustinians are members of Christian religious orders that follow the Rule of Saint Augustine, written in about 400 AD by Augustine of Hippo. There are two distinct types of Augustinians in Catholic religious orders dating back to the 12th–13 ...

upon instructions from the Spanish colonial government due to the Jesuits Suppression in 1768. It was then transferred to the

Franciscans , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

in 1795 but due to lack of priests, Father Miguel Pérez, the first Franciscan priest of Guiuan was only assigned in 1804. The original church of Guiuan was made of

wood Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin th ...

and destroyed by

fire Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material (the fuel) in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction Product (chemistry), products. At a certain point in the combustion reaction, called the ignition ...

. The present

stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...

church was dedicated to the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...

under the title of the

Immaculate Conception The Immaculate Conception is the belief that the Virgin Mary was free of original sin from the moment of her conception. It is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church, meaning that it is held to be a divinely revealed truth w ...

and was built by the early Jesuits in 1718 and was renovated by adding a

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building withi ...

and

baptistery In Christian architecture the baptistery or baptistry (Old French ''baptisterie''; Latin ''baptisterium''; Greek , 'bathing-place, baptistery', from , baptízein, 'to baptize') is the separate centrally planned structure surrounding the baptismal ...

during the term of Father Manuel Valverde and Pedro Monasterio in 1844. A

bell tower A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell tower ...

on top fort was built in 1854. Another convent was built by Father Arsenio Figueroa in 1872. The church was refurbished in 1935 and the sanctuary was renovated in 1987. On November 8, 2013, the church along with other buildings and structures in Guiuan was severely damaged due to

. While the roof was destroyed and the façade was damaged, the church's stone walls remain unscathed, as do the floors and the crypts. File:Inmaculada Concepcion Parish Church, Guiuan, Eastern Samar (Before and After 2013 Typhoon Haiyan).jpg, Guiuan Church before (''left'') and after (''right'') Typhoon Haiyan. Church of Guiuan historical marker

Historical and cultural declarations

The

named Guiuan Church a

in 2001. As a nominee for the UNESCO World Heritage Sites of the Philippines, it is grouped with

Maragondon Church The Our Lady of the Assumption Parish Church (Spanish: ''Iglesia Parroquial de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción''), commonly known as Maragondon Church, is the only heritage structure in the municipality of Maragondon, Cavite, Philippines declared ...

, Baclayon Church and

Loboc Church The San Pedro Apostol Parish Church (also ''Saint Peter the Apostle Parish Church'', Spanish: ''Iglesia Parroquial de San Pedro Apóstol''), commonly known as Loboc Church, is a Roman Catholic church in the municipality of Loboc, Bohol, Philippin ...

for the ''Jesuit Churches of the Philippines'' and with Boljoon Church,

Tumauini Church The San Matias Parish Church (Spanish: ''Iglesia Parroquial de San Matías''), commonly known as Tumauini Church, is a Roman Catholic church in the municipality of Tumauini, Isabela, Philippines, within the jurisdiction of the Roman Catholic Dioc ...

and

Lazi Church The San Isidro Labrador Parish Church (Spanish: ''Iglesia Parroquial de San Isidro Labrador''), commonly known as Lazi Church, is a Roman Catholic church in the municipality of Lazi, Siquijor, Philippines within the jurisdiction of the Diocese of ...

for the ''Baroque Churches of the Philippines (Extension)'' nomination. However, due to its total destruction, it was then removed to the roster of nominated sites. On March 18, 2021, as part of the 2021 Quincentennial Commemorations in the Philippines marking the 500th anniversary of the arrival of the

Magellan–Elcano circumnavigation The Magellan expedition, also known as the Magellan–Elcano expedition, was the first voyage around the world in recorded history. It was a 16th century Spanish expedition initially led by Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan to the Moluccas ...

to the Philippines, the National Historical Commission of the Philippines unveiled a historical marker commemorating the church. The Immaculate Conception Church of Guiuan in 2019

The Immaculate Conception Church of Guiuan in 2019

Description

Guiuan Church is nestled inside a

fort A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

. It is well known for its extensive

shell Shell may refer to: Architecture and design * Shell (structure), a thin structure ** Concrete shell, a thin shell of concrete, usually with no interior columns or exterior buttresses ** Thin-shell structure Science Biology * Seashell, a hard o ...

ornamentation in its interiors. Studies revealed that at least eight types of seashells were used. Before its destruction, it still has two elaborately carved doors out of the original three doors. The main door on the entrance has exquisite carvings of the

Twelve Apostles In Christian theology and ecclesiology, the apostles, particularly the Twelve Apostles (also known as the Twelve Disciples or simply the Twelve), were the primary disciples of Jesus according to the New Testament. During the life and minist ...

while a side door has carved representations of

angels In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...

. Former First Lady

Imelda Marcos Imelda Romualdez Marcos (; born Imelda Remedios Visitacion Trinidad Romualdez; July 2, 1929) is a Filipino politician who served as the First Lady of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986, wielding significant political power during the dictator ...

was interested in purchasing the church's door for ₱1,000,000 using government funds siphoned by her husband, Ferdinand Marcos.

Present condition

Due to Typhoon Haiyan, all of its original

retablo A retablo is a devotional painting, especially a small popular or folk art one using iconography derived from traditional Catholic church art. More generally ''retablo'' is also the Spanish term for a retable or reredos above an altar, whether ...

, roof (dated 1700s) and other church relics were damaged. Only the stone walls and

remained standing. Restoration of the church is on-going under the supervision of the

. Funds for the reconstruction of the church amounting to $300,000 was given by the Embassy of the United States in the Philippines and ₱112 million from the National Museum of the Philippines. Restoration of the church was completed in 2019.

Church history

Historical and cultural declarations

Description

Present condition

See also

Notes

Bibliography

Further reading