Lucena Cathedral ( fil, Katedral ng Lucena), canonically the Saint Ferdinand Cathedral Parish ( fil, Parokyang Katedral ni San Fernando), is a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

in the city of

Lucena Lucena, officially the City of Lucena ( fil, Lungsod ng Lucena), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the Calabarzon region of the Philippines. It is the capital city of the province of Quezon where it is geographically situated but, in t ...

Quezon Quezon, officially the Province of Quezon ( tl, Lalawigan ng Quezon), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Calabarzon Regions of the Philippines, region on Luzon. Kalilayan was the first known name of th ...

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. The seat of the Bishop of Lucena, it is dedicated to Saint Ferdinand III of Castile, a

13th century The 13th century was the century which lasted from January 1, 1201 ( MCCI) through December 31, 1300 ( MCCC) in accordance with the Julian calendar. The Mongol Empire was founded by Genghis Khan, which stretched from Eastern Asia to Eastern Eu ...

monarch A monarch is a head of stateWebster's II New College DictionarMonarch Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. Life tenure, for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority ...

who reigned in parts of modern-day

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. The cathedral is situated at

Barangay A barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as barrio (abbreviated as Bo.), is the smallest administrative division in the Philippines and is the native Filipino term for a village, district, or ward. In metropolitan ...

5 (

Poblacion ''Poblacion'' (literally "town" or "settlement" in Spanish language in the Philippines, Spanish; ) is the common term used for the administrative center, central, downtown, old town or central business district area of a Philippines, Philippi ...

), in the city proper of Lucena.

History

The

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

of Saint Ferdinand in Lucena traces its roots to its first

parish priest A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...

friar A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders founded in the twelfth or thirteenth century; the term distinguishes the mendicants' itinerant apostolic character, exercised broadly under the jurisdiction of a superior general, from the ol ...

Fray Mariano Granja, when he himself made a proposal to establish a separate town and parish from

Tayabas Tayabas, officially the City of Tayabas ( fil, Lungsod ng Tayabas), is a 6th class component city in the province of Quezon, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 112,658 people. It is known for ''lambanog'' (cocon ...

, where he was serving as parish priest before being transferred to Lucena. The proposal was sought by the principalias from the

barrio ''Barrio'' () is a Spanish language, Spanish word that means "Quarter (urban subdivision), quarter" or "neighborhood". In the modern Spanish language, it is generally defined as each area of a city, usually delimited by functional (e.g. residenti ...

s of Cotta, Iyam Silangan, Ilayang Dupay, Ibabang Dupay, Gulang-gulang and other smaller barrios. On March 1, 1881, the decree establishing the parish of Lucena was released by Casimiro Herrero Pérez, then bishop of Caceres. The first church, which was made of half

masonry Masonry is the building of structures from individual units, which are often laid in and bound together by mortar; the term ''masonry'' can also refer to the units themselves. The common materials of masonry construction are bricks, building ...

and half

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 ...

, was constructed from May 1882 until July 1884 through the savings of Fr. Granja. However, this was damaged by a

typhoon A typhoon is a mature tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere. This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, and is the most active tropical cyclone basin on Earth, accounting for a ...

a few years later. On May 24, 1887, a fire razed the church, and in the same year, the

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

of wood and masonry was also charred by fire. The church and convent were reconstructed in November 1887 and by Fr. Teodoro Fernandez in 1891, respectively. Aside from the church, Fr. Granja is also credited for the construction and founding of the following: the

tribunal A tribunal, generally, is any person or institution with authority to judge, adjudicate on, or determine claims or disputes—whether or not it is called a tribunal in its title. For example, an advocate who appears before a court with a single ...

made of stone and wood,

cemetery A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a buri ...

made of stone, a

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...

for boys and girls built with wooden planks, a Franciscan tertiary women-managed

hospital A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...

, and a

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...

for women, which were all likewise funded by his incomes and stipends while serving in Tayabas. Under the helm of Msgr. Pedrito Baldovino, a new convent adjacent to the cathedral was built. During the terms of Msgr. Oscar Leaño and Msgr. Leandro Castro, the Bishop Alfredo Maria Obviar Building and the Edificio de San Fernando were constructed, respectively. The parish of Lucena became a cathedral when the eponymous diocese was founded in 1950 and is considered an enduring physical representation of the diocese.

Gallery

File:Lucenajf7340 11.JPG, PHC historical marker File:LucenaCathedraljf7266 31.JPG, Altar of the cathedral File:LucenaCathedraljf7266 26.JPG, Cathedral ceiling view towards the

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:LucenaCathedraljf7266 06.JPG, The bishop's

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 principa ...

File:LucenaCathedraljf7266 01.JPG, The cathedral's

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

File:LucenaCityCathedralVillajf7406 15.JPG, Belfry of the cathedral

References

External links

* Facebook pag

* {{Roman Catholic Diocese of Lucena, state=collapsed Roman Catholic churches in Quezon Baroque architecture in the Philippines Marked Historical Structures of the Philippines Spanish Colonial architecture in the Philippines Roman Catholic cathedrals in the Philippines 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the Philippines Buildings and structures in Lucena, Philippines Churches in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lucena