Tuguegarao City Cathedral

The Saint Peter Metropolitan Cathedral, also known as the Tuguegarao Cathedral, is an 18th-century Baroque church located along Rizal Street, Barangay Centro 10, Tuguegarao, Cagayan, Philippines. The church, originally built by Dominican friars, is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Tuguegarao and is considered one of the largest churches in the Cagayan Valley. A historical marker bearing a brief history of the church was installed in 1982 by the National Historical Institute, precursor of the National Historical Commission of the Philippines.

History

Tuguegarao was founded as a mission on May 9, 1604, by Dominican friars. Father Tomas Villa was assigned as its first vicar. Father Villa erected a temporary parochial structure made of light materials with Saint Peter and Saint Paul as patron saints. The current church is attributed to Father Antonio Lobato, OP who initiated the construction in 1761 and was completed in 1768. The reason why it is called "Cathedral" is because of the chair of the Archbishop
The church sustained heavy damage during World War II and was subsequently rebuilt by Monsignor Bishop Constance Jurgens.

Architecture

The cathedral's façade is described as whimsical and playful. Most notable of all its features is the broken and crested pediment that is mirrored in other churches in the Cagayan Valley namely, the churches of Dupax del Sur and Bambang and Saint Dominic's Cathedral in Nueva Vizcaya. Archival photos of the Calasiao Church in Pangasinan also showed that it once had the “Cagayan-style” pediment. Other notable architectural features of the church are consistently repeated on many of its parts and on the Ermita de San Jacinto, a Spanish-era brick chapel located on the opposite site of the Tuguegarao city proper.

The main focal point of the façade is the deeply recessed oculus. To the left of the church rises the five-storey quadrilateral bell tower. The tower mirrors motifs from the façade such as the pilasters and framed windows. Blind windows can be found on the base. The bell tower is topped with a roofed canopy and a cross.

Some few meters away from the church is the Catholic cemetery with its notable brick arched entryway and fence.

Restoration

Spearheaded by the city's parish priest, Monsignor Gerard Ariston Perez, the parishioners started accumulating 25 million pesos for the restoration of the church. Included in the church's restoration are the rehabilitation of worn-out bricks, reverting the original painted ceiling from the trussed ceiling and the altarpieces.

Image Gallery

File:Allan_Jay_Quesada_-_Tuguegarao_Cathedral_Exterior_reflection_DSC_0452.jpg, Tuguegarao Cathedral in 2017
File:JC Tuguegarao 3.jpg, Details of the pediment and pilasters prior to the restoration
File:JC Tuguegarao 1.jpg, Saint's niche and National Historical Institute marker
File:JC Tuguegarao 4.jpg, Sacred Heart of Jesus monument in front of the Cathedral
File:JC Tuguegarao 10.jpg, Left transept altarpiece
File:JC Tuguegarao 7.jpg, Main altarpiece
File:Cathedra in Tuguegarao Cathedral.jpg, Cathedra of the Archbishop of Tuguegarao
File:Relic of Sts Peter and JP II.jpg, Reliquary of the relics of Sts. Peter and John Paul II beneath the altar
File:Tuguegarao Cathedral Interior.jpeg, Church nave as seen from main portal
File:JC Tuguegarao 8.jpg, Church nave as seen from main altar
File:JC Tuguegarao 5.jpg, Side walls
File:JC Tuguegarao 11.jpg, Side portal

External links

Langway Media - Lakbay Norte

References

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Roman Catholic churches in Cagayan
Roman Catholic cathedrals in the Philippines
Buildings and structures in Tuguegarao
Spanish Colonial architecture in the Philippines
Roman Catholic churches completed in 1768
1768 establishments in the Spanish Empire
18th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the Philippines