I was delighted at the thought of sharing the van with Mr. Regalado “Ricky” Trota Jose, the author of Simbahan which was published by the Ayala foundation and considered as the bible of anyone interested in Philippine colonial church art and history. He is also the respected author of countless other books and publications, and an accomplished professor at the University of Sto. Tomas in Manila.

Together with a group of heritage advocates, we went to Oslob last May to check on the church and convent which was gutted by fire at the dawn of March 26, 2008. Continue Reading »

Above: One of the side altar retablos of the church.

I found some photos of the main and side altar retablos of the Recollect church in Cebu City which was demolished in 1965 to pave way for the expansion of the Colegio de San Jose-Recoletos, now a university. Continue Reading »

This is a follow-up to my previous ranting entitled “The Stupidity of Uninformed Modernization,” which tackled about the reckless moves of some priests in the 1960s resulting to the loss of some of Cebu’s beautiful stone churches. Continue Reading »

Uninformed renovators are the greatest enemies of heritage conservation. True, we modernize to keep pace with the times but not at the expense of our heritage and culture. There will always be a compromise and I believe that the past and the future will always go hand in hand together.

Here are some archival photos of two churches in Cebu that fell victim to the modernizing efforts of those who were supposed to be entrusted to take care of them. Continue Reading »

A heritage commission was recently organized in Dalaguete through the efforts of its parish priest and several parishioners who became the pioneering members. A mass was celebrated by Bishop Julito Cortes last May 18 to formally grace their installation. A day before their installation, members of the Cebu Archdiocesan Commission of the Cultural Heritage of the Church (CACCHC) conducted a seminar to the pioneering members regarding the importance of church patrimony and cultural heritage in general. Continue Reading »