Cabanatuan Cathedral

Cabanatuan Cathedral (Filipino: Katedral ng Cabanatuan), officially known as the Saint Nicholas of Tolentino Parish Cathedral (Filipino: Parokyang Katedral ni San Nikolas ng Tolentino), is the ecclesiastical seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Cabanatuan in the Philippines. It is located at Del Pilar Street, Barangay General Luna, in downtown Cabanatuan, Nueva Ecija province.[1]

Cabanatuan Cathedral
Saint Nicholas of Tolentino Parish Cathedral
Parokyang Katedral ni San Nikolas ng Tolentino Tagalog
Parroquia Catedral de San Nicolás de Tolentino Latin
The newly renovated, Cabanatuan Cathedral.
Cabanatuan Cathedral is located in Nueva Ecija
Cabanatuan Cathedral
Cabanatuan Cathedral
Location in Nueva Ecija
Cabanatuan Cathedral is located in Luzon
Cabanatuan Cathedral
Cabanatuan Cathedral
Location in Luzon
Cabanatuan Cathedral is located in Philippines
Cabanatuan Cathedral
Cabanatuan Cathedral
Location in Philippines
15°29′21″N 120°57′51″E
LocationCabanatuan, Nueva Ecija
CountryPhilippines
DenominationRoman Catholic
Websitehttps://www.facebook.com/CabanatuanCathedral?mibextid=ZbWKwL (Facebook) https://youtube.com/@CABANATUANCATHEDRAL (YouTube)
History
StatusCathedral
Founded1700
DedicationSaint Nicholas of Tolentino
Architecture
Functional statusActive
Architectural typeChurch
StyleNeoclassical (2019)
Completed1866, 1891, 1975
Demolished1880, 1934, 1972
Administration
ArchdioceseLingayen-Dagupan
DioceseCabanatuan
Clergy
Bishop(s)Sofronio Aguirre Bancud
Vicar(s)Miguel Condes Ocarm, Marlon Baredo Ocarm, Rev.Fr. Ramil D. Tapang, SSP, Rev.Fr. Valentin Sortero, Jr, PACEM and Rev.Fr Alfonso S. Saulo
Priest(s)Rev.Fr. Reynold H. Oliveros, J.C.D

The cathedral and the Plaza Lucero at its front, is nationally and historically known as the death place of Filipino general Antonio Luna.[2][3]

History

After the parishes of Gapan in 1595 and Santor in 1636, the Augustinian priests founded the Cabanatuan church in 1700 as a visita of Gapan. By 1732, it only had 700 parishioners. The parish administration was transferred to secular priests in 1866, and in the same year, the first stone church and convent buildings were constructed under the leadership of Jose de la Fuente. The said buildings were destroyed by the earthquake of July 18, 1880 and were reconstructed under the helm of Mariano Rivas in 1891.[4]

During the Philippine–American War, the cathedral's convent, shortly served as the seat of the capital of the Philippines[5] where Antonio Luna and his aide-de-camp, Francisco Román, were killed by the members of the Kawit Battalion on June 5, 1899.[1][6] In 1934, the church was razed by fire wherein only its lateral walls were spared. Nine years after the canonical foundation of the Diocese of Cabanatuan, the cathedral, and its adjacent former College of the Immaculate Conception building, was charred again on September 28, 1972. Three years later, on November 22, 1975, the church reconstruction was finished under Pacifico Araullo. It was dedicated by then Cabanatuan Bishop Vicente Reyes and then Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines, Bruno Torpigliani.[4]

A new cathedral, locally called as crypta, is being constructed since 1999 in Sumacab Este, Cabanatuan that can accommodate 3,000 people.[7]

  • Close-up of the cathedral's facade
    Close-up of the cathedral's facade
  • The bishop's cathedra
    The bishop's cathedra
  • Stained glass at the cathedral facade featuring Nicholas of Tolentino
    Stained glass at the cathedral facade featuring Nicholas of Tolentino
  • Stained glass depicting Holy Spirit on the ceiling above the altar
    Stained glass depicting Holy Spirit on the ceiling above the altar
  • Cathedral sanctuary in 2015
    Cathedral sanctuary in 2015
  • The nave of the cathedral in 2015
    The nave of the cathedral in 2015
  • Image of the Santo Niño of Cabanatuan
    Image of the Santo Niño of Cabanatuan
  • Cathedral sanctuary in 2012
    Cathedral sanctuary in 2012
  • Cathedral patio
    Cathedral patio
  • Parish office
    Parish office
  • A statue at the cathedral
    A statue at the cathedral
  • Cathedral at night
    Cathedral at night

References
  1. "In Nueva Ecija, Antonio Luna remembered sans fanfare". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
  2. "Where to go in Cabanatuan when you hardly know the place". Inquirer Lifestyle. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
  3. "Cabanatuan City". League of Cities of the Philippines. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
  4. "St. Nicholas Of Tolentine Parish Cathedral / Historic Cabanatuan Cathedral". Facebook. Diocese of Cabanatuan. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
  5. "The First Philippine Republic". National Historical Commission of the Philippines. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
  6. Jose, Vivencio (1991). The Rise and Fall of Antonio Luna (reprint ed.). Solar Publishing Corporation. p. 377. ISBN 9711707004.
  7. "History of the Diocese of Cabanatuan". Diocese of Cabanatuan. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
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