Travel Spain: La Basilica de La Sagrada Familia on the Feast of the Holy Family

(Basilica de La Sagrada Familia)

I was finally standing on the Plaza de Sagrada Familia after walking for 1.3 kilometers to Carrer de Mallorca from Passeig de Gracia just to make it to the schedule in my ticket reservation to enter the Basilica de La Sagrada Familia.

Towering above Barcelona at 566 feet, the Basilica de  La Sagrada Familia is one of the most visited sites in all of Europe, drawing both tourists and pilgrims. That day, I was both.

Designed by a Catalan architect, Antoni Gaudi, also known as “God’s architect” because of his vision and work on this magnificent place of worship, the Basilica de La Sagrada Familia is one of the most beautiful buildings in the world. Gaudi died in 1926 after being hit by a tram in the streets of Barcelona.

While admiring Gaudi’s work from the ground up, one reflects the passages of the Bible as they are depicted by one man’s work that started in 1894 and was a hundred years from being completed when he died.

As the architecture and design of the Basilica are based on the Bible and the Life of Jesus, the three monumental faćades of the Basilica, namely, the Nativity, the Passion, and the Glory faćades, are being completed to educate a tourist and evangelize a pilgrim.

The Nativity faćade shows the sculptures of the birth of Jesus in a scene that is most familiar to Catholics, the Nativity scene. I realized the ‘belen’ is the most popular Bible story we bring to life:  Saint Joseph and the Virgin celebrating the birth of the Son of God surrounded by shepherds and the Wise Men. This is the Holy Family, the Sagrada Familia.

(The sculpture of an angel guiding the donkey 

that carries Mary and the Baby Jesus with 

Joseph walking after them as they are 

fleeing to Egypt)

And in our celebration of the Feast of the Holy Family, not only do we honor and celebrate our mother and father, but we also should honor our grandparents.

According to Pope Francis, grandparents “are a treasure” and that their wisdom “is something we must welcome as an inheritance because a society or community that does not value, respect and care for its elderly members doesn’t have a future because it has no memory; it has lost its memory.”  After all, when we Filipinos say ‘family’, it includes everyone – from grandparents to grandchildren.

And remembering the meaning of the Basilica’s Nativity faćade that symbolically faces east as the rising sun gives birth to life – life that should revolve around the Christian values of faith, hope, and charity.

On the Feast of the Holy Family and in these times, we should pray for families that are being torn apart, are incomplete, and are facing challenges. We should look up to the Holy Family, the Sagrada Familia, as an inspiration of hope, harmony, and understanding among the family members.💖

As a tourist, it was easy for me to see this Basilica of Sagrada Familia as a monument of man’s devotion to his Creator. But as a pilgrim, it is a reminder of my role – our roles in my own families to look up to the Holy Family as a model Christian family that loves, respects and honors one another.🙏

Philippine History: Chapter 23 - The First Victoriahanon Casualties of WW II

Chapter 23 - The First Victoriahanon

Casualties of WW II

On Chapter 17, I wrote about how the life and landscape of Victorias town (in Negros Occidental, Philippines) changed after the Japanese Imperial Army arrived in Victorias on May 27, 1942, a Wednesday (read blog here).

From that day until April 26, 1945, a Thursday, when American soldiers crossed into Victorias, the way of living of Victoriahanons was severely disrupted and ruined, lives were lost, their freedoms taken away, and homes, mansions and structures in the town were destroyed and burned down.

But even before the Japanese arrived in Victorias, there were already Victoriahanons who died in December 1941, and were probably the first Victoriahanon casualties of World War II.😭

On December 8, 1941, in the Philippines, about nine hours after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, Japanese war planes were already doing bombing runs over Luzon, specifically, on Tuguegarao, Baguio, and Clark Air Fields. It was a Monday.

World War II finally arrived that day in the islands.

Even before the war, many Negrense families, including those in Victorias, had family members studying at universities and schools in Manila. 

That time in 1941, with his term ending a year before, former mayor Don Felix Montinola had a son, two granddaughters, and two grandsons in Manila studying. His granddaughters were studying at Assumption Convent in Manila. But when the war broke out, he immediately summoned them back home.

And with everyone trying to flee Manila, just getting a ticket on a boat going south was an impossible challenge as movements of the ships and other maritime vessels were restricted so as to avoid being targeted by the enemy.

But one ship, the S.S. Corregidor, known to be one of the best inter-island vessels owned by the Compañia Maritima, was given permission to sail to the south. It was probably given permission as it carried military personnel and ammunitions bound for the Visayas and Mindanao. 

On December 16, 1941, a Tuesday, and a week after the declaration of war against Japan, desperate passengers boarded the S.S. Corregidor as it docked on Manila's South Harbor. Other than the military personnel, students, congressmen, and families from prominent clans of the South were also on board. In the chaos and overloading, there was no official list but it was estimated the passengers totaled about 600 to 1,000.

Although all the passengers who made it to the S.S. Corregidor would have been thought as lucky to have been able to secure a ride home, this, as it turned out, was one voyage that made them one of the first casualties of war. And the son and grandchildren of Don Felix were among its passengers.

That day, the ship had to wait until it was dark before it could sail. So, just before midnight, it was allowed to.

As it was wartime, the US military took every precaution to defend the Philippines, and as part of the defense against Japanese ships, naval minefields were set up by the Harbor Defense and Torpedo Boat Squadron 3 in the waters near Corregidor Island, and ships that were allowed to pass through Manila Bay had to be guided properly to avoid hitting the mines. 

(The map of the waters around Corregidor 

Island and waters of Manila Bay showing 

the field of defensive naval mines. 

S.S. Corregidor hit at least one of those mines.)

That night, under the cloak of darkness, S.S. Corregidor treaded the dangerous waters with the guidance of "PT 41", a patrol torpedo boat commanded by Ensign George Cox, who, as he was guiding the commercial vessel, noticed that the ship suddenly "veered towards the minefields and efforts to stop her were to no avail". The "efforts" Ens. Cox was talking about included signaling the ship with lights that were seen by the passengers on deck.

The mine fields straddled around Corregidor Island and the islets named Caballo, Fraile, and Carabao, creating a net of underwater explosives blocking the entrance into Manila Bay and stretching from Bataan at the north and to Cavite at the south.

The type of naval mines the S.S. Corregidor was trying to avoid was the dreaded contact mines that exploded upon contact and the laying of this particular field of 532 mines from the western point of Corregidor Island to Cavite started on July 15, 1941 and was completed on September 30, 1941. And each mine weighed from 700 to 800 lbs., excluding the weight of the trinitrotoluene, or TNT, of another 300 lbs. 

Upon hitting the mine, there was a loud 'thud' followed by an explosion. According to Ensign Cox, "the ship sank so fast virtually all aboard went with her including the ship captain. There were very few survivors".

Don Felix Montinola's son, Guillermo, a medical student at the University of Santo Tomas, was with Rolando Fermin, Don Felix's grandson, and Agustin Magcal, a family friend, on the main deck.

But when the ship hit the mine, Guillermo, also known as 'Willy' to the family, rushed down to their cabin to get his two nieces, Estela and Ester, and nephew, Hernan. Estela, Ester and Hernan were the children of Doña Quintina Montinola y Fermin, the eldest of Don Felix's children.

As most of the passengers were either resting or sleeping since it was close to midnight when the accident happened, they were trapped inside their cabin below. 

Adding to the fact that in total darkness, it was difficult to save those who were able to swim but were covered with oil floating along with the strong currents in waters where the presence of naval mines was preventing other ships from freely navigating to help.

Guillermo, his nieces and nephew never made it back to the deck. But amidst the pandemonium, and screams and cries for help heard that dreadful night at sea, it was Agustin who helped save Rolando. They were among the few who survived. 

They were brought first to Corregidor Island where they received medical attention at the military-run hospital and were later brought to the mainland. Rolando Fermin stayed at the home of Pancho Magalona, a second cousin of his mother, in Manila while he came to terms with the tragedy before making arrangements of going home.

The original plan of S.S. Corregidor was to land on any major island in the south upon daybreak. From there, the passengers could take other boats to their final destination. Sadly, most of the passengers of S.S. Corregidor and its captain didn't make it home for Christmas. 

Under the dark Philippine skies and in a voyage imperiled by war, they finally rested in their graves in the waters of a bay whose city would fall into enemy hands months later.  

The S.S. Corregidor left Manila on December 16 and must have sunk around or past midnight -- early hours of December 17, 1941. The news of the tragedy reached Victorias on December 18, a Thursday. 

That day, during the early days of World War II, Doña Quintina, or Inday Tinay to her friends and Lola Tinay to her grandchildren, lost two daughters, a son, and a brother as casualties of a war that would set foot in their hometown five months later. One can only imagine the anguish and sorrow she, as a mother, had to go through that time.

That Christmas of 1941 was the saddest for her and her family. 😭

Estela was 20, while Ester was just 18. Hernan  turned 15 just four days before the tragedy, and Guillermo, who was preparing to be a doctor, was about 27. 😭

(The S.S. Corregidor sank on December 16 

or 17, 1941 along with the first 

Victoriahanon casualties of WW2) 

Weeks after the tragedy, Rolando Fermin, just 16 at that time, was able to come home via land and sea transports, finally arriving at the port of Bacolod and taking horse-drawn calesa to the family's Hacienda Malogo in the former Saravia for a short rest, and then headed north to the family's Hacienda Dapdap in Manapla to join his family that already made arrangements of gradually vacating the stone mansion along Calle Real in front of the public plaza of Victorias.

Rolando's two brothers later became mayors of Victorias: Jesus Fermin (mayor from 1964 to 1986) and Renato Fermin (mayor from 1988 to 1992). 

Mr. Agustin Magcal became the first barangay captain of Barangay 3 of Victorias when then President Ferdinand Marcos approved the creation of the barangay system in 1975.

Don Pedro Ardosa, also from a prominent family of Manapla, was on the same boat but survived.

                                  *  *  *  *

Sources:

The Philippine Diary Project

Manolo Quezon's Facebook Page

The Fall of the Philippines by Louis Morton

The diary of Fr. Juan Labrador, OP

Mrs. Aurora L. Delgado

At Close Quarters: PT Boats in the United States Navy by Captain Robert J. Bulkley, Jr.
The diary of Teodoro Locsin, Sr.

Photo credits: Philippine Diary Project


Chapter 24 - The women of Victorias: Capitana Tutang, Paz Gonzaga, and Salud Montinola


Complete history blog: "Ang Kasaysayan sang                                                  Victorias"

The Vatican and The Treasures of the Church

It has been two hours since I entered the Vatican Museums, tracing the suggested path of discovering the priceless works of art collected over the centuries by the popes since the earliest years of the Catholic Church.  

Earlier during the day, after two bus rides from the home of Maurizio and Margarita, my hosts, in the Monte Sacro area in Rome, I was at the entrance of the Vatican Museums with my prepaid ticket and fresh legs, ready to discover the ‘treasures’ of the Vatican.  

And with my camera and the Museum’s brochure, I stepped into a different world, one that showcased the Church’s acquisitions that were gathered in one place and have been on display since 1506.

(Priceless marble statues from the antiquities 

on display at the Vatican Museums)

One by one, these bigger-than-life marble sculptures showcased in different galleries fascinated me knowing that each was one-of-a-kind and must have been created by the hands of Renaissance masters I only read about in history books, and that each painting and fresco hanging on the wall or decorating a ceiling was a priceless masterpiece created by the brush strokes of the world’s greatest painters from images and colors of centuries past.

But other than these statues of Roman and Greek gods like the Apollo of the Belvedere, believed to be 1,800 years old and sculpted from one solid marble;  the bejeweled candelabras, ancient maps and priceless tapestries; or the Egyptian monuments and artifacts that outlived the dynasties that created them, there are more artifacts, manuscripts, letters, and books that are kept away and hidden from public view. 

Of all the 70,000 items in the Vatican collection, only 20,000 are on display and I think one could not even digest the enormity and importance of each masterpiece.

Being one of the biggest museums in the world, the collections of the Vatican Museums are in itself an exhibition of humanity; a display of man’s creations over the past millennia.

But after walking more than seven kilometers through the corridors of time, art and intellect, I realized I overlooked the lesson I should learn from this visit. The works of art owned by the Vatican were all physical creations, things that were created by man as an expression of his humanity. They are ‘treasures of a museum’. 

     (The Bramante spiral staircase at the Vatican)

But as I continued to ponder while walking down the famous ‘Bramante’, a spiral staircase designed in 1932, at the end of my visit to the Vatican Museums, a question came to mind. And with both my train of thought and path going in circles, literally and figuratively, I asked myself this: what are the real treasures of the Church?

And I had to turn to a pope for an answer.

I found it, of all places, in a movie.

In the classic 1983 film, The Scarlet and The Black, which was based on a true story and voted as one of the best Catholic films ever made, Pope Pius XII tells Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty that “The real treasures of the church, what makes it imperishable is that every once in a while, someone comes to it … like you.” The Pope was referring to the monsignor’s heroic deeds during World War II.

But that line, though, was from a movie and its setting was a century ago.

Nevertheless, taking a hint from the Pope, I think the real treasures of the church are not the cold, white marbles sculpted into human forms by Renaissance artists. They are not the ones hidden in guarded museums, kept in cold halls and are lifeless.

The treasures of the Vatican are spread all over the world and you don’t even have to travel to Rome to discover them. They are right there in your own parish and you only need to look beyond what you actually see.

It is us.

We, who uplift the souls and lives of our parishioners; we, who help spread the Word as modern-day evangelists; and we, as useful part of Christ’s body, who preserve and practice Catholic values and traditions as they have been kept during past millennia - are the real treasures of the Church.

(The apostles guarding the Saint Peter's 

Basilica in Rome)

So, someday, after you visit the Vatican Museums, you can ask yourself the same question, and I hope you'll arrive at the same answer. 🙏

(December 15, 2019 ADSUM Newsletter edition)

Philippine History: Chapter 22 - Victorias City was almost Toreno City

Chapter 22 - Victorias City was almost Toreno City

The first time I heard 'Toreno' as a name of an area in Victorias City (in the Philippines) was years ago when someone I knew moved there.

I thought then that the correct spelling was 'Torino', an Italian city which I visited as a Bosconian pilgrim to the magnificent Basilica de Maria Ausiliatrice or the Basilica of Mary the Help of Christians located at Torino's Don Bosco Valdocco area.  

Why did I think it was 'Torino'? Because Negrenses, as Hiligaynon speakers, would pronounce a hard 'e' as soft 'e', thereby turning 'to-ree-no' into 'to-reh-no'.

But it turned out it was indeed 'Toreno' afte I did a little digging for Chapter 7 and Chapter 8 of this Victorias history blog.

Toreno was the name of the hacienda owned by Don Teodoro Benedicto way back in the latter part of the 19th century when one of his heirs, Don Leon Montinola, threatened to uproot the houses of the people who built them on his hacienda and who sued the town officials in 1906 for creating roads on the same land. This hacienda is now Toreno Heights Subdivision and is part of Barangay 9 of Victorias City.

But do you know that 'Toreno' was Victorias City's old name after 'Malihao'? And it was named so sometime in 1849?

According to Negrense historian, Mr. Modesto Sa-onoy, it was the alcalde-mayor of the Negros island in 1849 who gave it this name.

On May 5, 1837, Negros island, still a poor backwater, was elevated to an alcaldia-mayor by a royal decree as part of the reforms decided by the Spanish government for their colony, Islas Filipinas. 

Before that time, Negros island was classified as 'corregimiento' and its leader a 'corregidor', which probably was the origin of the Hiligaynon word 'koridor' that means a person collecting bets for small-town lottery gambling.

But in 1849, when Bacolod became the new capital of the province, taking over Himamaylan, a new alcalde-mayor arrived from Spain.

                           (Old Negros map)


He was Don Manuel Valdivieso y Morcheso, a Spanish lawyer who arrived in May 1849. Had he not been sick, Don Manuel would have had settled in the island two years earlier. His doctor did not give him the go-signal to travel for months at sea to the Philippines in 1847. Imagine, he was sick, and sailing across the oceans feasting only on jamón iberico and other preserved meat and fish would not have been a healthy diet for a not-so-healthy person.

As some names of towns in the Philippines were named after places in Spain, these were given by the Spanish alcáldes and governors as an homage to their hometowns and to probably alleviate some of their homesickness being thousands of miles from home.

And as a governor, Don Manuel certainly exercised such privilege.

One of his legacies was naming one settlement, a very familiar one, after his hometown in Spain, Cadiz. Yes, Cadiz is now Cadiz City because of him.

Although it was just a barangay then, Cadiz City was named Valdivieso and later on, Cadiz.

Saravia, the old name of E. B.Magalona, was named after Emilio Saravia, the governor of Negros from 1855 to 1857. Saravia, who turned out to be a ruthless governor, was Don Manuel's successor.

Other than naming Cadiz after his hometown, Don Manuel, during his six-year term as governor, created the towns of Valladolid in 1850 and in 1854, Murcia and Granada; all named after cities in Spain.

After Cadiz, he also named Madrigal (now San Enrique), Simancas (now La Carlota), Isabela (formerly Tinungan), Nueva Valencia (now Escalante), Magallanes (now Sagay), and what do you know, Toreno, which is now Victorias City!

Except for Isabela, the queen's name, and Magellan, these are all places in Spain.

Yes, who would have thought my hometown had an early Spanish name before it was christened 'Victorias', the approved shortened version of 'Nuestra Señora de Las Victorias', after the apparition of the Virgin in the old Victorias during the late 19th century.

And while I was looking these places up in the map of Spain, I found out that I was actually about 10 kilometers off from the municipality of Toreno when my Renfe train passed through the province of León on my way to Santiago de Compostela. 

Well, had I known then that my hometown of Victorias was formerly named Toreno, I could have made a side trip to find out what was so interesting about that place that made Don Manuel name this settlement by the Malihao River.

And so, it turned out Hacienda Toreno in Daan Banwa of Victorias City is the remaining witness to one of the city's early names, a legacy of a Spanish governor who replaced the name of 'Malihao' until the town was renamed 'Victorias' in the 1880s. The next time I pass by that area, I should remember this piece of Victorias history.

Well, could our city have been called Toreno City if it were not for the apparition of the Virgin accompanied by Archangel Michael? 😏


Chapter 23 - The First Victoriahanons Casualties of WWII


Complete history blog:  "Ang Kasaysayan sang Victorias"

(Map credit: Murillo-Velarde map of 1734)

The Church and Social Media: The Bible is a book, Facebook is not

The Philippines being the 6th country in the world with the most Facebook users of 68 million, almost all people we know in our lives have a Facebook account. 

Some users even have multiple accounts for reasons that involve regulating privacy (some teachers have an account for their students and a separate one for family), relationships gone bad (hiding from a possessive ‘ex’), inability to honor financial commitments (hiding from creditors), and for the most notorious reason to bash, attack and spread falsehoods under the cloak of anonymity.

In our use of personal Facebook accounts, have you ever observed how your behavior as a virtual personality in Facebook affects how you behave as a person in the physical world? 

Do you post a status, photo or video to reflect the real you, or are you just posting just to project an image on how you want people to think about who you are?

In our online communities, do you post to impress in order to earn ‘Likes’ and praises in the ‘Comments’ section? In short, do you post in order to boost your self-esteem and inflate your ego?  

Shouldn’t we be using the social media, not just for amusement, entertainment or to improve our self-worth, but as a tool to lift our communities just like we are obligated to do in the physical world?

At the start of this year, to commemorate the 53^rd World Communications Day, Pope Francis delivered a message, one that specifically reminds us about how we should behave around social network communities. 

In his message, Pope Francis reminds us that in the virtual world we “remain simply as groups of individuals who recognize one another through common interests or concerns characterized by weak bonds.”  Simply put, the Pope is saying that our virtual relationships in social media start and end with  “common interests” and anything outside of those interests may not be a truthful relationship.

To find out, check the Facebook groups you are a member of. Aren’t these groups categorized by “common interests” like hobbies, commerce, sports, religion, culture, your hometown, and even celebrities you follow?

Are you just a quiet observer or do you actively interact?

Are you a member who helps lift the community?  

In my case, I used to be just an observer in an online community created by people from my hometown. But when I realized that falsehoods were being propagated as truth by people with deceitful agenda, I decided it was time to counter it with the truth. Using my modest professional experience and skills, I was able to uncover the truth and shared it, using my voice both in the virtual and physical worlds in order to counter the falsehoods created by greed. I also made a point to educate the young, whose minds are easily swayed with what they see, hear, read and experience online. I felt it was my duty to protect the truth and the knowledge from the malicious attacks by those who use the platform for their own selfish agenda.

According to Pope Francis, we should use and engage our social network communities in a meaningful purpose: that to make a community stronger that involves “mutual listening and dialogue based on the responsible use of language.”  After all, Saint Paul, the Apostle, in his Letter to the Ephesians, said, “Therefore, putting away falsehood, speak the truth, each to his neighbor, for we are members of another” (Eph. 4:25).

Yes, more than 2,000 years before the invention of social media, Saint Paul already had a reminder on how we, as members of these online communities, should behave, which should further remind us that these social media communities in Facebook or in any other online platform should not dictate on how we live our daily lives. We should always return to where everything started: the Bible, the only book we really need to be our daily guide in both our physical and online worlds.

Pope Francis recognizes that social media are a source of knowledge and relationships but using it entails responsibility and duty as Christians. Though social media may have improved the way we live, we should always be guided by the lessons of the Bible about goodness, truth, and righteousness.

(Credit first photo: Vatican News website)
(Article reposted from ADSUM Newsletter, December 8, 2019)