A few kilometers from the poblacion of Nasugbu, Batangas, in the town of Lumangbayan, aptly named as this translates to “old town” which is the original location of Nasugbu, is a Spanish colonial period church ruin that is still being used by devotees today. However, it was in this church that many of the townspeople were imprisoned and burned in 1896.

The interior of Caraga Church has been much renovated that there are no longer traces of the old, except for the hardwood posts and lateral walls. The old and dilapidated retablos were replaced with new ones during preparations for its centennial celebrations.

There are only three bells dated 1802, 1893 and 1895 remaining in the church of Caraga, Davao Oriental and these might have been placed at the top of the pediment. Now, all of these are just placed on the floor.

Caraga Church in Davao Oriental is a quadrilateral structure that is sparsely decorated. The lower level is made of mamposteria or rubble/stones with some parts finished with finely cut coral. There are only quite a few architectural details that might be interesting.

The town of Caraga in Davao Oriental has the distinction of having the oldest Catholic structure in the island of Mindanao. It was built by Fr. Pablo Pastells in 1884 when the Jesuits took charge of the spiritual administration of the town in 1871 from the Recollects.

After much blood, sweat and tears, so to speak, our book, Balaanong Bahandi: Sacred Treasures of the Archdiocese of Cebu will be launched formally today, 26 November 09, 1830H at the Cathedral Museum of Cebu. It is by invitation only.

During my revisit at the Oslob church, I was surprised that the unfinished cuartel was already cleaned up and light fixtures were already placed for spectacular lighting at night.

But what about these pink marble slabs used to patch up some gaps?

Nineteen months after the fire in Oslob Church, the second in its history, I visited the church again during a south Cebu trip and from what I have found, there is still so much to do.

Dan Rivers of CNN was on his way to Cagayan province chasing a typhoon and along the way, as they passed San Pablo, the Isabela/Tuguegarao (Cagayan) border town, they saw this once magnificent church ruins.

This is a wonderful short feature.

The first Dominicans to arrive in the Philippines in 1581 but it was only in 1587 that the first batch of religious arrived and established the Province of the Most Holy Rosary of the Philippines. The Order has evangelized in Pangasinan, Bataan, Cagayan Valley and the island groups of Babuyan and Batanes. To their credit, they have built many of the beautiful churches in the Philippines.

The town of Bogo is located near the northern end of Cebu Island and is a major economic hub in this part of the province. While the original church built by the Seculars is no longer standing at the main plaza (the present one was built after the war at an elevated area), there is one surprising find at the cemetery.