(Last of a series)
I WAS supposed to submit this article last week to complete the series, but a health issue bothered me, and I had to deal with it. When it comes to health, I’m easily scared. So true. So, here’s the final story to close the series.
Calape Church
From Tubigon, we drove to Calape for our second church exploration. I’ve always been drawn to the Calape Church. It looks noticeably distinctive compared to other centuries-old churches in Bohol because of its unique architectural style. It captures the imagination! And, I haven’t been there ever since. So, it was really a treat to visit and stepped inside the church building.
According to an article written by Paterno R. Esmaquel II, the Church of Saint Vincent Ferrer “was established in 1802, the same year the town of Calape was founded.” That’s two hundred twenty-two years to this day!
What I found intriguing inside is the zigzag stairway going to the choir loft. I have been to several churches, but Calape church’s zigzag staircase undeniably stands out! In fact, I wanted to climb—me and my undying penchant for stairs—but a padlock was installed for safety purposes, and maybe for the curious, too.
I wonder in hundred years past if the staircase was open to parishioners, and how the loft provided comfort to many aching, broken souls. Brokenness can come in many forms. Perhaps in that era, one’s heart is broken because of a forbidden love; a death; a defeat; the loss of possessions, status, and one’s sense of security; a failing health; of enslavement; of ignorance; of powerlessness. If you think of it, all of these are the same losses we experience today. And they still break our hearts. The choir loft is a good place to weep because of its location making you invisible to the world.
Thematic lancet arches characterize the interior including the windows, and doors. It’s just stunning for my regular eyes.
During our visit, church workers were cleaning for the upcoming holy week commemoration, and we tried not to disturb them. After indulging our senses, photographed, and recorded for posterity, we went out under the glaring heat of the sun to appreciate the façade.
Loon Church
I have written about Loon Church in September 2022, a year after it opened for the town fiesta (www.panaynews.net/fiesta-in-loon/). I was astonished by how it was reconstructed then; I’m still amazed up until now! It’s just so celestial, otherworldly.
In an article written by Noel Pabalate, the original Loon church was “built through stone masonry construction between 1855 to 1864 under the Augustinian Recollect,” and was “considered as the ‘crowning glory’ of Recollect architecture in Bohol and one of the grandest churches in the Visayas.” I agree! Moreover, Leo Udtohan wrote that the Church of Our Lady of Light, is considered the largest in Bohol, with a floor area spanning 2,245.28 square meters. That’s huge!
At the back of the church is a completed building which is still unoccupied until now. I believe before the October 2013 earthquake struck it was the building that served the Sacred Heart Academy.
We saw that a construction is ongoing to build a fence in front and possibly around the church area. Since the lawn fronting the church is immensely wide, it will be a long and extensive border and will be costly.
But my most prized discovery is the old staircase that leads out to the sea. It whisked me away thinking how the natives carried loads of precious items directly from the ships moored below. There must have been a quay in centuries past or the flight of steps wouldn’t be built. I wonder how many natives constructed the stairway; was it built simultaneously with the church or ahead of the church if the construction materials were transported through the same staircase.
It was intensely hot as we explored the area so I couldn’t climb the entire steps, but I promised myself I will return soon, and will climb the centuries-old stairs.
Being an old, sentimental soul, anything as elegantly created as these incredible structures, whose incandescence radiates notwithstanding the passage of time, and still assuages the pains and aches of many broken people, deserve my utmost respect.
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The writer is on leave from her talk show, Woman Talk with Belinda Sales. She can be reached at belindabelsales@gmail.com. Twitter @ShilohRuthie./PN
