The Old, Historic Church of Santo Tomas de Villanueva in Miagao, Iloilo was built between 1787 and 1797 in the Baroque style. It was constructed using forced labor from the local population, who were required to provide building materials. The church served both as a place of worship and a fortress against attacks. It has been damaged over the years by fires, earthquakes, and military conflicts but remains an impressive example of 18th century Philippine architecture and artistry.

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proudly presents:proudly presents:
The Old, Historic Church ofThe Old, Historic Church of
Santo Tomas de Villanueva,Santo Tomas de Villanueva,
Miagao, IloiloMiagao, Iloilo
written bywritten by:: Fergus DucharmeFergus Ducharme,, assisted by:assisted by: JoemarieJoemarie AcallarAcallar && NiloNilo JimenoJimeno
with photos by:with photos by: Historic Old PhilippinesHistoric Old Philippines

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The driving distance from our jumping
off point at the SM City parking lot in
Iloilo to Santo Tomas de Villanueva
Church in Miagao is approximately 41
kilometres. Which translates into a
driving time of from 1 to 1¼ hour.

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The church was built between 1787 and 1797 under the guidance of the
Augustinian Friar and parish priest Friar Francisco M. Gonzales, OSA and the
mayor or head man of the village (Gobernadorcillo) Domingo Libo.
It is built in the Baroque style; in fact, it is one of four churches in the
Philippines which were built in an imitation of the European Baroque-
Romanesque Style by the Chinese and Pilipino workers of the time. It was
declared a Philippines National Historic Treasure in 1963. In addition, along
with the three other churches in this style in the Philippines it was inscribed in
the listing of World Heritage Sites by UNESCO in 1993. (This church is actually
the third church built in Miagao).
The first was sacked and burned to the ground by Muslim/Moro pirates in 1741
and was subsequently rebuilt by the faithful. The newly constructed church
suffered the same fate as the first, in 1754. It subsequently took 30 years
before the residents felt confident enough to rebuild and the current church is
the result.

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The building was completed with forced labour (folio). The entire population for
several kilometres around was required to pay a tax to help build the church. They
were required bring a block of limestone and coral as well as an egg to the site
once per week to be used in the construction.
The blocks of limestone were quarried in the mountains surrounding both San
Joachim (to the west and north) and Igbaras (to the south and east) a distance of
between 30 and 35 kilometres from the construction site. Those who failed to
comply with this ‘tax’ were subjected to a severe flogging by the priest and his
overseers; the standard was 25 lashes.
The eggs were mixed with crushed limestone to be used as mortar for the joints
during construction. Experts today point out that if you inspect the stone work of the
church closely you will note a definite yellowish tinge to the mortar used. That, they
say is proof that the eggs required to be brought by the surrounding population were
in fact used in the mortar mixture. That mortar has now become unstable and has
been or is in the process of being replaced in various areas.
The church also served as a fortress to protect the area against Muslim/Moro slave
traders and marauders who were active in the region from the late 17th to the early
19th centuries. It occupies the highest point of land in the town and was situated in
this location to overlook the land, sea and river approaches to the town.

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The towers are of different styles because they were commissioned by two
different parish priests in the 'early years'. The tallest west belfry, on the left, is the
older of the two. The original east tower had originally been constructed two levels
shorter than its western counterpart.
In 1830 therefore, the then parish priest, Friar Francisco Perez, OSA had one story
added to the east tower which left it as it stands today, still one story shorter than
the west tower.

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This oldest, west belfry was part of a 'chain' of five such towers called Bantayans,
which were located along the Miagao shoreline. They functioned as watchtowers
to help the locals protect themselves against attack by Muslim/Moro slavers and
marauders, who would kidnap them and sell them into slavery in Mindanao.
Another tower similar to the west belfry of the church, which is located next to the
Bantayan Resort just a few kilometres (about 10) south of town at Guimbal on the
National Highway towards Oton and Iloilo City, has been faithfully restored. These
two towers are the sole survivors of the original five.

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View of Bantayan Tower from the beach outside Miagao.

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View out to sea from inside the Bantayan Tower outside Miagao

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The bells in the west tower, of the church, raised the alarm when the watchmen saw the 'invaders'
approaching. On hearing it, the villagers would rush to the church for protection until the threat dissipated.

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The buttresses on either side of the
building, suggest its early beginnings
as both a church and fort. The walls of
the main church are 1.5 meters thick
and at the buttresses they are 3
meters thick.

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The artwork of the building is impressive considering when it was built. The front is
adorned with intricate carvings or sculptures depicting St. Christopher crossing a river
while carrying the child Jesus on his shoulder and holding onto a palm tree. In addition,
papaya and guava tree sculptures complete the upper portions of the main portico.

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In the alcove just below the depiction of Saint Christopher is a statue of Santo
Tomas de Villanueva the patron Saint of the parish.

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Santo Tomas was the Augustinian Archbishop of Valencia in Spain a see that had
not had a bishop for more than 75 years when he was appointed. He grew up in
what would today be considered a ‘lower middle class family’, the son of a miller.
His parents inculcated in him the practices of their religion and of charity.
He was an educator, a prolific preacher becoming the Provincial of the Augustinians
in Andalusia and Castile. As Prior in Castile he dispatched the first missionary friars
to evangelize Mexico.
During his tenure as Archbishop he gave to the poor so much so that it is reported
that up to 500 people would line up every morning to receive donations of food and
money from him. He refused to use the trappings and luxuries of his high office
preferring to live his life in true poverty giving to the poor and indigent.
He rebuilt churches and hospitals and founded schools for the poor of his region.
Many ‘miracles’ are attributed to him including the healing of the sick, multiplication
of food, instances of visions of the holy family and especially the Virgin Mary and
his conversion of sinners. He was also known for his work with converts to
Catholicism from the Muslim faith.

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Finally, flanking the main doors on the left
is a statue of Saint Henry of Bavaria (also
know as Henry the Pious or Henry the
Lame) who reigned as King of Germany
between 995 and 1024. Henry and his
wife, Cunegundes, both took vows of
chastity and dedicated their lives to the
betterment of their subjects and to the
greater glory of God.
When ‘pagan’ Slavs were rampaging
through and pillaging the Holy Roman
Empire, Henry took up the challenge of
restoring the empire. He was able to
successfully drive out the invaders, restore
the Empire and remove the antipope who
had been installed. He reinstated the
legitimate papacy of Benedict VIII and as a
result in 1014 he was crowned Holy
Roman Emperor by Benedict. Henry died
10 years later in 1024 at the young age of
52 following a productive and saintly life.

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To Henry’s right is a statue of Pope Pius
VI, who reigned as Pope from 1775 to
1799 during the period of the
construction of the church and a most
interesting time in Church and world
history.
Note the intricately carved coats of arms
of both Saint Henry and Pius VI over
their respective statues, further
testament to the incredible skills of the
eighteenth century artisans working on
the construction site.

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The exterior ‘window treatments’ are
very interesting and took the Chinese
and Pilipino artisans many months to
complete. Some are currently in serious
disrepair, but plans are in the works to
restore them to their original splendour.

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On entering the church through the massive carved wooden main doors, we find that it is
barrel shaped and is huge; it is capable of seating some 1,200 people for masses or special
celebrations.

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Surprisingly, very ordinary stained glass adorns all of the windows on the interior as
shown in the example below. The interior windows are protected by metal grates
covering the openings to prevent unwanted intruders from penetrating the church area.

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The interior is dominated by its magnificent and imposing sanctuary, most of which is
finished in gold leaf. The altar, presently in use, is the original altar from the late 1700s
which had been 'lost' and was discovered during repair excavations made on the site in
1982. In addition to the altar, a statue of the Birhen ng Barangay carved in limestone
and dressed in traditional Pilipino clothing of the period was also found in the dig and is
currently on public display next to the baptistery at the rear of the church.

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In the close-up view of the altar above,
we see, to the left of the crucifix on the
altar are statues of Santo Tomas and San
Jose. The tabernacle is finished in gold
and silver – 98% pure. The altar here is
the original altar that was lost in 1910 and
rediscovered in the 1982 excavations on
the site.

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To the left and right at the base of the sanctuary where the altar rail would have
originally been placed are two statues, one of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the other
of the Blessed Virgin Mary. These statues date to the 1780’s.

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As mentioned earlier during the
excavations made in 1982, as part of
some restorations undertaken in the
church, the original altar and a limestone
statue of the Birhen ng Barangay (The
Virgin of the Barangay) both of which
had been believed lost as a result of the
Fire of 1910, were found during the dig.
The Virgin of the Barangay now stands
in the Baptistery at the rear of the
church.

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This is a photo of the original statue of
Santo Tomas de Villanueva which was
sculpted in the late 1790’s and is
currently on display in a secured glass
case at the rear of the church.

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It is indeed a fitting testament to the people and the construction methods used to
build the church is that during it’s lifetime it has been damaged and restored several
times as a result of some of the most serious events in Philippines history, those
events being:
In the period of 1896 to 1913, during the Revolution of 1896 to 1898 against Spain,
the subsequent Philippine-American War (1898-1902) and followed by on-going
popular revolts until 1913 the church was seriously damaged.
It was especially seriously damaged in a major 1910 Fire during the aforementioned
revolts which involved many indigenous tribes as well as Muslim Moros in the south.
During the Second World War, the church and convent were used as an area
headquarters and barracks by the Japanese occupation forces. Both buildings were
seriously damaged by the occupiers during this period and they were subsequently
repaired or re-constructed following the war.
Finally, the massive earthquake of 1948 damaged the East belfry. Belfry repairs
started in 1960 and were completed in 1962. The 8.1 intensity earthquake not only
seriously damaged the belfry, here in Miagao but it also toppled and completely
destroyed the main belfry at the Jaro Cathedral in Iloilo City and it also completely
destroyed on of the regions most historic churches, the Church of the Immaculate
Conception in nearby Oton.

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We want to thank the following for their contributions to this article:
Photos provided by: Historic Old Philippines
Other materials and some photos provided by: www.wikipedia.org
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons
Attribution - ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License

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