The original Chapel was built in Ogtong as it was then called in late 1566 by Friar Martin Rada. It was subsequently destroyed by a Dutch Raiding Party in 1614. The Church was rebuilt several times until the Mid-1860s when the largest, most ornate Church was consecreated in Oton. It was a veritable treasure that survived the Revolution and World War II and was unfortunately destroyed by the Lady CayCay Earthquake in January 1948. The quake was measured at 9.0 on the Richter Scale and it destroyed or levelled most of the buildings in the area. The Church was eventually rebuilt and finally consecrated in late 1966. That is the Church we see today!

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photographed and written byphotographed and written by:: Fergus DucharmeFergus Ducharme,, assisted by:assisted by: JoemarieJoemarie AcallarAcallar andand NiloNilo JimenoJimeno..
proudly present:proudly present:
Another visit toAnother visit to
the Church of the Immaculate Conceptionthe Church of the Immaculate Conception
OgtongOgtong (Oton), Iloilo(Oton), Iloilo
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The driving distance from our jumping off point at the
SM City parking lot in Iloilo to Oton's Immaculate
Conception Church is approximately 11 kilometres.
Which translates into a driving time of about 20 to 30
minutes.

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This is one of only two 'modern churches' in our study.

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The Augustinian Friars first arrived in Oton as early as 1572 under Friar Martin
Rada from Dumangas where he had established 'the church' in southern Panay
having been sent there from the town of Pan-ay in Capiz in 1566, because of
his success in evangelizing the population and his ability in the languages of
the region.
According to history the first Church built by Friar Rada (date unknown) was
destroyed in 1614 when Oton was attacked by Dutch Privateers who razed the
church in one of their raids.
The on-going history of the church in Oton is very unclear with the next
reference to church construction, according to The Panublion, being in the mid
1800's.
It was under the stewardship of Friar Demetrio Cobos, the parish priest from
1844 to 1854, that construction of the 'new' church was started. Construction,
with interior decorations being made in 1882, was completed in 1883. It was
officially blessed in 1891.

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In early 1566 de Rada and his companion Friar
Juan de Alva were sent south by Governor Legaspi
as part of an exploratory group in search of a
reliable food sources under Captain Luis de Haya.
They arrived in the area of present day Dumangas.
Where the Augustinians began to evangelize the
natives and set up a chapel at Ermita, the ruin of
which can be visited today.
The expedition found what it was looking for – a
reliable source of food for the garrison in Cebu and
promptly returned north leaving Friar de Alva to
minister to the locals in the Dumangas area.
Later that year, accompanied by Fray Francisco de Orteza, he returned to Panay,
landing at Ogtong (present day Oton), where in 1572, he established the first parish in
Western Visayas dedicated to Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception.

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This was the largest church in the region at the time.
The original church was constructed in a blend of Greek and Gothic/Classical
elements. It was built in the shape of a Greek cross in which all arms of the cross are
of equal length. The massive and imposing altar was located at the centre of the
cross.
Unfortunately this fantastically beautiful church was completely destroyed on
January 24, 1948 by the Lady CayCay Earthquake which had a magnitude of 8.1 on
the Richter Scale.

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This report is based reports from the Manila Times on January 26th and 27th, 1948
following the Lady CayCay Earthquake which occurred at about 1:30AM on January
25th, 1948
The Oton Church crumbled.
In the town of Oton, the biggest and most beautiful church, in the region, which
was not destroyed during the war was so severely damaged that it had to be
demolished.
The earthquake also destroyed the tower leaving only two bells and stone
stumps (Gallende 1990). A boy was buried in the rubble. The earthquake was
measured at an Intensity of 9 in Oton and the surrounding areas. Generally
speaking, bridges, communication lines, public and private buildings all
sustained heavy damage.
After Lady CayCay.
We have found more photos of the Church of the Immaculate Conception in
Oton at and after the time of the Lady CayCay Earthquake.

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(photo from Mill Hill Missionaries Collection)

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(photo from Mill Hill Missionaries Collection)

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(photo from Mill Hill Missionaries Collection)

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(photo from Mill Hill Missionaries Collection)

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There are only a very few reminders of that edifice on the grounds of the present church.
One is the portion of wall which now forms part of the grotto to Our Lady of Fatima on
the northeast corner of the property. This is believed to have been part of one of the old
church's exterior walls.

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The other is a 'stack' of stone along the southwest edge of the property. This is likely
coral and is possibly the surviving part of another wall of the old church
If this is indeed the case, we have a clear indication of the monumental size of the
church – it would have almost entirely covered what is today a whole city block. It
would have been a truly impressive building.

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Today, the modern sanctuary is strikingly beautiful. The crucifix behind the altar is that of
Christ the King and is backlit in red, giving off a magnificent effect.

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The sanctuary itself if overlooked by huge stained glass windows depicting the 12
apostles, in groups of three at each end of the church. In fact six of these windows are in
the Choir Loft facing the Sanctuary.

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The remaining stained glasses of the 6
other Apostles in the Choir Loft

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At the front of the church is a full wall of stained glass which is quite stunning and which
frames the sanctuary.

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At the rear of the church is a small shrine to Santo Niño, at which many parishioners can
be seen offering prayers at all times of day or night.

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A very large crucifix, which is at least 8 feet tall, is displayed on the interior east wall of
the church.

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In addition, each of the church's side windows, as seen below, features a different
religious scene or theme also in stained glass. We’ve included four examples below.

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Each of the entryways is topped with a stained glass window – this one is over the door
on the northwest side of the main entrance and depicts Jesus, Mary and Joseph.

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The front of the church is graced by a statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus who stands
overlooking the town plaza and greeting parishioners as they arrive for masses and
services

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The parish in currently involved in major construction work in and around the church.
The spire/belfry is being repaired, a new parish activity centre and hall is being built, and
the school (Immaculate Conception Parochial School) attached to the church is also
being repaired and having renovations done.
In fact the statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary atop the church’s central spire was being
repaired when we visited. It was indicated to us during one of our visits, by Fr. Elmo
Montaño, that it was a wooden sculpture of the Blessed Virgin and was being re-touched
after almost 50 years in place. It had apparently been installed under the guidance of Fr.
Ernesto Calvo in the early 1960s.

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The construction of the new parish activity centre and hall is well underway as can be
seen from the photos below which also show the original 1960s convento.
The new activity centre is located between the 1960s era convento and the adoration
centre on the east side of the church.

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Next to the construction site is the parish Adoration Centre building.

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Just north of the Adoration Centre and next
to the Our Lady of Fatima grotto is a
meditation area dedicated to San Lorenzo
Ruiz, the first native born Filipino Saint.
Lorenzo Ruiz was a layman, married, and
had two sons and a daughter. Born in
Binondo, Manila, about 1600's, he was
educated in the school of the Dominicans
there. He left the Philippines in 1636 and
landed in Japan shortly thereafter. On
arrival in Japan he was arrested,
imprisoned and unspeakably tortured
refusing to renounce his faith.
He was hung by the feet and died a martyr
of his faith in September 1637. He and his
16 companions were beatified by Pope
John Paul II in Manila on February 18th,
1981 and subsequently canonized on
October 18th, 1987.

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Finally, we have come full circle, there is, next to the main entrance of the church, a
plaque commemorating the blessing of the church on Christmas Day 1972. The plaque
installed in 1988 is dedicated in memory of Monsignor Ernesto L. Calvo who was the
first Filipino Parish Priest of Oton.
He was elevated to Monsignor on December 30th, 1967 and had served in Oton, as the
Parish Priest from June 1960 to September 1980 when he was transferred to Dueñas .

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