The Minor Basilica and Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of Malolos,; es, Basílica Menor y Catedral de la Inmaculada Concepción de Malolos commonly known as Malolos Cathedral is a

Catholic 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 ...

minor basilica and cathedral in the city of

Malolos, Bulacan Malolos, officially the City of Malolos ( fil, Lungsod ng Malolos), is a 1st class component city and capital of the province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 261,189 people. It is the capital city ...

in the

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 cathedral is the

see See or SEE may refer to: * Sight - seeing Arts, entertainment, and media * Music: ** ''See'' (album), studio album by rock band The Rascals *** "See", song by The Rascals, on the album ''See'' ** "See" (Tycho song), song by Tycho * Television * ...

of the

Bishop of Malolos A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

, a suffragan of the

Archdiocese of Manila In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

. The shrine is dedicated to the

Blessed 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 Jews, Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Jose ...

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 ...

Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII ( la, Ioannes XXIII; it, Giovanni XXIII; born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, ; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death in June 19 ...

granted the decree ''Christi Fidelium Consulere'' which elevated the shrine as a Cathedral on November 25, 1962.

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

later raised the shrine to the status of

Minor Basilica In the Catholic Church, a basilica is a designation given by the Pope to a church building. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectural sense (a rectangular ...

via decree on April 9, 1999.

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granted a Pontifical decree of coronation towards its enshrined Marian image on May 11, 2011. The image was canonically crowned on March 10, 2012.

History

The parish dates back to the arrival of Spanish missionaries to Malolos in 1580, and the establishment of an

Augustinian Augustinian may refer to: *Augustinians, members of religious orders following the Rule of St Augustine *Augustinianism, the teachings of Augustine of Hippo and his intellectual heirs *Someone who follows Augustine of Hippo * Canons Regular of Sain ...

monastery. The first church and convent were built in 1591 of modest means. The congregation was formally established as a parish until 1673, the same year the town of Malolos was incorporated. The original church complex was expanded in 1691, and entirely reconstructed from 1734-1744. In 1813, a fire destroyed both the church and convent, and reconstruction was started in 1819. The new church was consecrated by Francisco Alban, bishop of Nueva Segovia on October 18, 1826. The earthquakes of 1863 and 1880 both damaged the church, and restorations were undertaken from 1859-1872 and in 1883. On September 10, 1898, the convent was appropriated by General Emilio Aguinaldo and used as the presidential palace for the

First Philippine Republic The Philippine Republic ( es, República Filipina), now officially known as the First Philippine Republic, also referred to by historians as the Malolos Republic, was established in Malolos, Bulacan during the Philippine Revolution against ...

. On March 31, 1899, as they were fleeing from the American army, Aguinaldo ordered General

Antonio Luna Antonio Narciso Luna de San Pedro y Novicio Ancheta (; October 29, 1866 – June 5, 1899) was a Filipino army general who fought in the Philippine–American War before his assassination in 1899. Regarded as one of the fiercest generals of hi ...

to set fire to the complex as part of their scorched-earth policy. During the American occupation of the Philippines, the church and convent were gradually rebuilt and renovated. A new baptistery was dedicated in 1954, and the roof replaced in 1955-1961. The church was renovated further in preparation for its designation as a cathedral after the diocese of Malolos was created in 1962. It was consecrated as a cathedral by its second bishop, Rev. Cirilo Almario Jr., in 1976. From 1990-1992, a chapel of Eucharistic adoration was built, the baptistery was converted to a mortuary chapel, and a crypt was built beneath the high altar. On April 9, 1999, the cathedral was elevated by

to a

minor basilica In the Catholic Church, a basilica is a designation given by the Pope to a church building. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectural sense (a rectangular ...

dedicated to the Immaculate Conception. A

Catholic Mass The Mass is the central liturgical service of the Eucharist in the Catholic Church, in which bread and wine are consecrated and become the body and blood of Christ. As defined by the Church at the Council of Trent, in the Mass, "the same Christ ...

was later offered with festivities for its inauguration ceremony on December 4, 1999.

Architecture

The cathedral's architecture is primarily Neoclassical with Baroque influences and moderate ornamentation.

Gallery

File:J1887cMalolosCathedralfvfjr 28.JPG, Close view of the facade File:09716jfBarangay Diocese Malolos Cathedral City Bulacanfvf 12.JPG,

Cupola In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, most often dome-like, tall structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome. The word derives, via Italian, fro ...

File:Malolos Cathedral interior 2023-12-16.jpg, Cathedral interior in 2023 File:02843jfMalolos City Cathedralfvf 12.JPG,

Sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred place, such as a shrine. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This secondary use can be categorized into human sanctuary, a sa ...

and high altar

Notes

References

External links

* {{Roman Catholic Diocese of Malolos Roman Catholic churches in Bulacan Roman Catholic cathedrals in the Philippines Basilica churches in the Philippines Buildings and structures in Malolos Spanish Colonial architecture in the Philippines Roman Catholic churches completed in 1817 1580 establishments in the Philippines 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the Philippines Neoclassical church buildings in the Philippines Churches in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Malolos