Intramuros revives Visita Iglesia

By Ma. Stella f. Arnaldo / Special to the BusinessMirror

THE Visita Iglesia tradition returns to Intramuros, Manila, more than 70 years after World War II totaled many of its historic churches. This was the announcement made by Tourism Secretary Wanda Corazon T. Teo at a news briefing on Thursday at the Ilustrado Restaurant, one of the pioneering establishments in the walled city.

“We will revive this Intramuros tradition during Holy Week and make it, once more, the center of the Visita Iglesia,” she said. The Visita Iglesia is an annual Catholic tradition during Maundy Thursday, where the faithful visit seven churches in the evening. The tradition traces its roots to Rome, where early Christian pilgrims were supposed to have visited seven basilicas as penance.

Intramuros Administrator Guiller Asido said the seven stops for Visita Iglesia on March 29 will include the Manila Cathedral, the San Agustin Church, the San Ignacio Church site, the Guadalupe Shrine in Fort Santiago, the Knights of Columbus Fr. Willman Chapel, the Lyceum of the Philippines University Chapel and the Mapua University Chapel.

He added that the Holy Week activities will include the Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) with stations installed along the General Luna Street from Beaterio to Muralla Streets for three days from March 29 to 31. The Via Crucis images, he noted, will be supplied by the San Agustin Museum and will follow the Vatican II-sanctioned New Way of the Cross.

Also on Maundy Thursday, March 29, there will be a staging of a senakulo-inspired Martir sa Golgota Musical by the Tanghalang Santa Ana, along General Luna Street, with the primary performance to be held at the Palacio del Gobernador. The musical is top billed by singer Ivy Violan as Mother Mary and Lance Raymundo as Jesus Christ. Veteran theater and film actor Lou Veloso, who founded the Tanghalang Santa Ana, directs the musical.

The Holy Week activities in Intramuros are being held in partnership with the Department of Tourism (DOT), the Manila Cathedral, the San Agustin Church and the Cultural Center of the Philippines. Asido also announced that the entire stretch of General Luna will be closed to vehicular traffic on  March 29 and 30.

Teo said the revival of the Lenten traditions in Intramuros is part of the DOT’s thrust to promote “faith-based tourism in the Philippines.” She noted that in her trips abroad, she was constantly asked by tour-operators about pilgrimage tours to the Philippines, being the largest Catholic nation in Asia, with numerous heritage churches built as early as the Spanish period.

With the creation of the Faith and Farm Tourism sector, “the DOT is poised to go full swing on piloting emerging faith tourism destinations this year, highlighting festivals and various Filipino traditions that will encompass a holistic pilgrimage experience.”

Other than Intramuros, she cited other faith tourism destinations such as the shrines of Ilocos Norte, Ilocos, La Union and Pangasinan in Region 1. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, for instance, list the Nuestra Señora de  la Asuncion Church in Santa Maria, Ilocos Sur, as a World Heritage Site.

The Mimaropa region, which is comprised of the provinces of Mindoro Occidental, Mindoro Oriental, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan, is also well-known for its annual Moriones Festival in Marinduque, she noted.

She, likewise, invited pilgrims to Holy Week commemorations in Bacolod City (Kalbaryo Sang Krus) and other Western Visayas provinces, as well as in Mindanao. “The Sunken Cemetery of Camiguin is a must-see for tourists and pilgrims alike, as well as the Saint John the Baptist Church, a popular heritage site in Misamis Occidental,” Teo said.

For his part, Faith and Farm Undersecretary Marco Bautista said he will help “enhance the promotions of the country’s rich cultural heritage embodied in the historical, architectural and religious significance of numerous churches and age-old traditions.”

DOT Director for Faith Tourism Rebecca Labit said the establishment of the faith tourism program is timely as this responds to the other needs of tourists for “soul-spirit” connections. “This closes the loop of significant interests that tourists are looking for,” she explained, aside from the farm, ecotourism and now faith-based activities.