Saint Peter of Alcantara Parish Church

The St. Peter of Alcantara Parish Church ( Filipino: ''Parokya ni San Pedro Alcantara''), designated as the Diocesan Shrine of Nuestra Señora de los Dolores de Turumba, is a Roman Catholic church in Pakil, Laguna, Philippines. It enshrines the ''Our Lady of Turumba'' painting.

History

The first Catholic community in Pakil was organized by Fray Pedro Bautista (later canonized as San Pedro de Bautista) as a '' visita'' of Paete in 1588. It was separated from Paete in 1676. Father Francisco de Barajas, a priest from Santa Ana de Sapa Church in Manila, was named as the first parish priest on May 12, 1676. The first church was constructed of bamboo, nipa and other light materials, by volunteers under the patronage of Peter of Alcantara.

In 1684, the government, through Governor General Gabriel Curuscalegui, approved the collection of a tribute for five years for the sole purpose of constructing a stone church. The foundation was laid in 1732 during the term of Father Fernando Haro, but it burned down in 1739. It was begun again, and the construction of the church finished in 1767 with the addition of a tower in 1777. The image of Our Lady of Turumba was unveiled in 1788. In 1840, Father Joaquin de Coria repaired the church, but because of a fire in 1851 which ravaged most of the town, Father Juan de Llanera fixed the damages to the church the following year. Father Juan de Dios de Villayos rebuilt the church roof and bell tower after it was damaged by an earthquake in 1881, and the church was rebuilt again in 1883 by Father Paulino Camba. Damaged by the earthquake of 1937, it was repaired again by Father Federico Diaz Pines with the help of the Confederation of United Catholics (''Kapisanang Unidad Catolica''). During World War II, the church suffered damage and was later renovated. A major repair was done from 1980 to 1984, when a story of the bell tower was rebuilt and the ceiling was renovated under the Parish Council of the Laity.

Affiliation with St. Mary Major in Rome

The Chancery of the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Pablo confirmed that the diocese received a letter from Santos Cardinal Abril, Archpriest of the Papal Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome. The letter conferred a Spiritual Bond of Affinity between the basilica and the church of Pakil.

Architecture

The church forms a cruciform and has a measurement of . It is constructed in the Corinthian and Ionic architectural orders. Its facade has classical Corinthian columns and cornices across a floral stone relief. The church's side entrance is elaborately designed which is typical of churches in Laguna. To one side of the facade is a belfry housing four small bells and one huge bell.

The main retablo is painted in white and has a pantheon of 14 saints housed in an elaborately carved niche with the Archangel Michael towering above. There are two smaller retablos on either side. Father Ronald Reagan constructed an altar marble consecrated by Archbishop Alejandro Olalia in 1959 where the image of the Nuestra Señora de los Dolores was enshrined. A pulpit and a large painting depicting the concept of Heaven, Earth, Hell, and ''Judicium Finale'' (Final Judgement), created by Jose Dans, a 19th-century artist from Paete, can also be found. A life-sized figure of a crucified Christ is found in a smaller retablo near the church entrance. The church's Stations of the Cross were made by local artists.

Inside the church, there are original century-old images and church ornaments. Adjoining the church are a convent, sacristy, adoration room/chapel, and an ecclesiastical