Parañaque Cathedral

Formerly known as Saint Andrew’s Parish, the Cathedral Parish of Saint Andrew, also known as the Diocesan Shrine of Nuestra Señora del Buen Suceso and commonly known as Parañaque Cathedral, is one of the oldest Roman Catholic churches in the Philippines, located in the city of Parañaque in Metro Manila. Established on May 11, 1580 (1580-05-11) by the Spanish Order of Saint Augustine, it is, at present, the seat of the Diocese of Parañaque, which encompasses the cities of Parañaque, Las Piñas, and Muntinlupa. Early History Augustinian missionaries reached the shores of Manila Bay south of Intramuros, more than four hundred years ago at a fishing village (Tagalog: Bacladan), and heading further south along the shore sought to evangelize the fisherfolk natives. Elviro Jorde Perez, an Augustinian historian of the 19th century, wrote of an ancient seaside settlement named Palanyag — akin to paglayag (meaning, to sail). Saint Andrew Parish Heading inbound into the parang (meaning, grassland or meadow) the Augustinian missionary Fray Juan de Orto set out in 1575 to convert the natives of what afterwards became known as Parañaque (possibly a portmanteau of Parang and Palanyag). By 1580, Fray Diego de Espinal was appointed Superior of the convent they built — under the patronage of St. Andrew, Patron of Fishermen. — assisted by another Augustinian, Fray Francisco Campos, with spiritual jurisdiction reaching further south to the settlement of Cavite El Viejo. On May 11, 1580, the Parañaque parish of Saint Andrew the Apostle was established, and on August 10, 1625, a religious devotion to the Nuestra Señora del Buen Suceso (Our Lady of the Good Event), an image of the Virgin Mary enthroned, was presented. Our Lady of the Good Event (Portuguese: Nossa Senhora do Bom Sucesso; Spanish: Nuestra Señora del Buen Suceso) is a Catholic Marian title. The phrase "Good Event" refers to the Purification of Mary and the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple. It is often mistranslated as "Our Lady of Good Success" due to the superficial similarity between the Spanish word "suceso" (meaning "event") and its sound-alike English homograph, "success". During the 16th and 17th century, the inhabitants of St. Andrew Parish lived mostly along the Parañaque River and Manila Bay. In 1662, when a Chinese pirate Zheng Chenggong threatened to invade Manila, the Spanish Governor General Sabiniano Manrique de Lara ordered the demolition of all stone edifices including churches and convents located outside Intramuros, the fortified colonial city of Manila. The dismantled stones were transported and reused reinforce Manila as well as to prevent its use by the enemy as defenses. More than a dozen churches and convents, which included the only one in Parañaque, were torn down. The original convent of St. Andrew was demolished. The church was rebuilt in 1950 onwards through the Philippine War Damages Commission. Declaration as a diocesan shrine After four centuries of the Augustinians, the missionaries known as the Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary came to administer the parish. Between 2009–2010, Manuel G. Gabriel, the parish priest and rector of the cathedral parish undertook major renovations of the cathedral. On August 10, 2012, the Diocese of Parañaque sent a Decree No. 2012-005, officially declaring the Cathedral-Parish of St. Andrew as a diocesan shrine. After a congratulatory greeting during Mass, Bishop Jesse Mercado through Carmelo Estores, read the declaration of the Cathedral-Parish of St. Andrew as the diocesan shrine of Nuestra Señora del Buen Suceso. References Other websites Kärcher Monument Preservation Cathedral Parish of St. Andrew National Registry of Historic Sites