Part 4 of a series.
DAY 1.
2:56pm. After our brief visit to the Naga Metropolitan Cathedral, we immediately headed to the Basilica of Our Lady of Peñafrancia nearby.
The Basilica Minore del Peñafrancia is located at the outskirts of Naga City. The “Our Lady of Peñafrancia” is the Patroness of the entire Bicol Region and because the number of devotees continues to grow and multiply, a new and bigger church was built to house the Lady.
Photo taken as we entered the Basilica grounds
The concept for the building came from Archbishop Pedro P. Santos in 1960. Construction began on April 18, 1976, but was delayed for a number of years due to finance problems and was not completed until September 1981.
The Basilica of Our Lady of Peñafrancia
Like its Cathedral counterpart, the pavilion in front of the Basilica serves as shelter for the image of the Lady after the major processions – the Traslacion (First Friday of September from Basilica to Naga Cathedral along the streets of Naga City) and the Fluvial procession (8th day of the devotion, from Naga Cathedral to Basilica along the Bicol River).
On May 22, 1982 it was dedicated as The Church of Nuestra Señora de Peña de Francia and it wasn’t until May 22, 1985 that the Church was given the title of “Basilica Minore” from Rome after a request from the third Archbishop of Caceres, Leonardo Z. Legaspi.
The right side of the Basilica.
The convent located at the back of the church.
The Interiors.
The old lady on the photo is among those ladies who “pray for pay”. They bring a “logbook” where one can write his/her petitions and they promise to pray regularly for the petition to be granted by INA (Our Lady of Peñafrancia). I talked to her for a while and learned that she has been a devotee of Ina for 19 years already. Wow!
The ceiling of the church. As you can see, works are being done to enhance the interiors of the church.
Interior works ongoing.
The square dome.
Unfortunately, the stained glasses window set at the main entrance of the church was removed for “regular clean-up”.
The Basilica of Our Lady of Peñafrancia houses an image of the virgin Mary that was sculpted in 1710. It was commissioned by Miguel de Cobarrubias who moved to the Philippines from Spain with his family and believed that the Virgin Mary had helped him numerous times in his life. The image was housed in a small chapel until the Basilica Minore was constructed.
Every September, Bicol celebrates its largest Catholic festival, the Peñafrancia Festival.
(…to be continued)
