st lawrence the deacon church, panitan, capiz, episode 2

17 March 2015 Creative Commons License: Attribution, Non-Commercial, No-Derivatives, 4.0 International License 1

written & photographed by: fergus jm ducharme

On the Road Again!we’re on the road to explore parts of Capiz Province

Episode 2 of 4 St Lawrence the Deacon Church, Panitan, Capiz


St Lawrence the Deacon ParishPanitan, Capiz. Founded in 1802


Panitan was officially established as a full fledged town in 1800 and itsubsequently was granted full parish status by the local ecclesiastical authoritiesin 1806 with the approval of Pope Pius VI and it was under the sponsorship ofSan Lorenzo (St Lawrence the Deacon) with Augustinian Friar Luis Ortega beingappointed the first parish priest in 1807.

The parish was founded by Augustinian Friar Juan Fernandez 1802

However, the story really starts much earlier in about 1572 when Panitan,then known as Ipion, was established as a visita of Panay and was served byitinerant priests who would travel to the various chapels throughout the areafrom their main base at Santa Monica Church in Panay (about 13.5 kilometers)from the settlement .


The parish was run by the Augustinians until 1898 with the help of some nativeborn secular priests such as: Father Jose Ubaldo del Rosario who served theparish from 1818 to 1832 and again from 1850 to 1851. He was followed byFather Timoteo de la Consolacion from 1832 to 1841.

The construction of the actual stone church was started in 1841 under theguidance of Friar Jose Veloso who worked on the construction project until1844 when he was posted elsewhere and replaced by Friar Jose Aparicio.

The church structure was made of rough stone and mortar as with mostchurches in the region. The convent was wood with slate and lime floors.


The Augustinians left the region during the Revolution in 1898 and werereplaced by Secular Priests who have served the parish and the province eversince.

Before continuing with our story we need to explore who St Lawrence theDeacon was and what the relationship is between that particular Saint and thisparish in far, far away Panitan, Philippines.

Lawrence of Rome (225–258) was one of the seven deacons of ancient Romeunder Pope Sixtus II that were martyred during the persecution of EmperorValerian in 258.

St Lawrence is thought to have been born in Spain, at Huesca, a town in theAragon region. Here he encountered the future Pope Sixtus II, who was of Greekorigin, one of the most famous and highly esteemed teachers in Zaragoza, whichwas one of the empire's most renowned centers of learning.


Eventually, both left Spain for Rome.

When Sixtus became the Pope in 257,he ordained St Lawrence as a deacon,and though still young appointed himfirst among the seven deacons whoserved in the patriarchal church.

He is called Archdeacon of Rome, aposition of great trust that includedthe care of the treasury and riches ofthe church and distribution of almsamong the poor.

Lawrence appearing before Emperor Valerian


St. Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage, notes that Roman authorities had established anorm according to which all Christians who had been denounced must beexecuted and their goods confiscated by the Imperial treasury. At the beginningof August 258, the emperor Valerian issued an edict that all bishops, priests,and deacons should immediately be put to death. Sixtus was captured on 6August 258, at the cemetery of St. Callixtus while celebrating the liturgy andexecuted forthwith.

After the death of Sixtus, the prefect of Rome demanded that St Lawrence turnover the riches of the Church. St. Ambrose is the earliest source for the tale thatSt Lawrence asked for three days to gather together the wealth. He workedswiftly to distribute as much Church property to the poor as possible, so as toprevent its being seized by the prefect.

On the third day, at the head of a small delegation, he presented himself to theprefect, and when ordered to give up the treasures of the Church he presentedthe poor, the crippled, the blind and the suffering, and said these were the truetreasures of the Church.


One account records him declaring to the prefect,"The Church is truly rich, far richer than youremperor." This act of defiance led directly to hismartyrdom and can be compared to the parallelRoman tale of the jewels of Cornelia

On 10 August, St Lawrence, the last of the sevendeacons, suffered a martyr's death. By tradition, StLawrence was sentenced at San Lorenzo in Miranda,imprisoned in San Lorenzo in Fonte, and martyred atSan Lorenzo in Panisperna.

The Almanac of Philocalus for the year 354 mentionsthat he was buried in the Via Tiburtina in theCatacomb of Cyriaca by Hippolytus and Justin theConfessor, a presbyter. One of the early sources for themartyrdom was the description by Aurelius PrudentiusClemens in his Peristephanon, Hymn II.

A well-known legend has persisted from earliest times.As deacon in Rome, St Lawrence was charged withthe responsibility for the material goods of the Churchand the distribution of alms to the poor.


St Ambrose of Milan relates that when StLawrence was asked for the treasures ofthe Church he brought forward the poor,among whom he had divided the treasureas alms.

"Behold in these poor persons the treasureswhich I promised to show you; to which Iwill add pearls and precious stones, thosewidows and consecrated virgins, which arethe church’s crown." The prefect was soangry that he had a great gridironprepared, with coals beneath it, and hadLawrence’s body placed on it (hence StLawrence's association with the gridiron).

After the martyr had suffered the pain fora long time, the legend concludes, he madehis famous cheerful remark, "I'm well done.Turn me over!” From this derives hispatronage of cooks and chefs.


Constantine I is said to have built a small oratory in honour of St Lawrence, whichwas a station on the itineraries of the graves of the Roman martyrs by the seventhcentury.Pope Damasus I rebuilt or repaired the church, now San Lorenzo fuori le Mura, whilethe minor basilica of San Lorenzo in Panisperna was built over the place of hismartyrdom.The gridiron of the martyrdom was placed by Pope Paschal II in the Church of SanLorenzo in Lucina.

Martyrdom of St Lawrence by Agnolo di Cosimo


The Martyrdom of St Lawrence, Tintoretto, oil on canvas, (Christ Church, Oxford)


The shrine in Rome containing the gridiron said to have been used to grill St Lawrence to death


The stone on which St Lawrence's body was laid after death, in San Lorenzo fuori le mura.


The estate upon which the Basilica sits was oncehome to a small oratory built by EmperorConstantine I. The Emperor built it over the siteon which it was believed that Saint Lawrence wasexecuted.In the 580s, Pope Pelagius II commissioned theconstruction of a church over the site, in honor ofthe martyr.In the 13th century, Pope Honorius IIIcommissioned the construction of another churchin front of the older structure. It was adornedwith frescoes depicting the lives of Saint Lawrence,and the first martyred deacon Saint Stephen, whois interred with Lawrence in the confessio underthe high altar.The two structures were united as part of aprogram of urban renewal. Excavations haverevealed several other crypts of various people,buried below street level. Saint Hilarius is buriedhere.


The portico, c. 1220, hasCosmatesque decoration by theVassaletti family of craftsmen.

The 13th-century frescoes, whichhave been recently reconstructed,depict scenes from the lives of StStephen and St Lawrence, bothdeacons and martyrs.

There are two ancient sarcophagi inthe portico. A Christian one, possiblydecorated in the 7th century on anolder sarcophagus, has a reliefdepicting putti picking grapes. Whilevines and grapes are symbols of theEucharist, this is not likely here.

Two Romanesque stone lions weremoved here from the old entrance.

Relics of St Stephen laidto rest in the tomb of StLawrence by Lorenzo diNiccolò, ca. 1412

Some of the frescoes in the Basilica


The martyrdom of Saint Lawrence from several late 13th-century frescoes on the walls of the Sancta Sanctorum. Emperor Decius appears on the left.


We now know who St Lawrence was as well as how and why he was martyred.

Let’s now get back to our visit of the Church in his name in Panitan, Capiz


This beautiful church is situated in a verynice area bordering Panitan’s Town Plaza.At one end of the Plaza is the Town Halland facing it is a great looking gazebowhere towns people and visitors can sitand enjoy the peaceful atmosphere or justsit and watch the world go by.

Next to the Church and between it andthe town hall is a ‘recreation area’ whichincludes a basketball court and a largecovered meeting area sort of like a towngym.


Panitan Municipal Town Hall faces the Town Plaza with the mandatory statue of José Rizal

The lovely gazebo located in the Town Plaza facing the Municipal Fall and next to St

Lawrence Church


The church’s right hand side facade contains the bell tower & each side has a statue: on the left is the Sacred Heart of Jesus and on the right the Blessed Virgin Mary.


above the central portico and I haven’tan individual picture of it is as dove inflight which I believe to be a depiction ofthe Holy Spirit. Just above the Dove is aLabarum which is the Christian symbolrepresenting Jesus Christ. On the left sideabove the statue of the Greek letterAlpha (A) and on the right tower we seethe Greek letter Omega (Ω). Thesesymbols in Christianity represent theeternal nature of Jesus Christ.

The Labarum symbolizes

Jesus Christ

The Alpha & the Omega represent the eternal nature of Jesus Christ


As we enter the Church we note that it is a three aisle church & itsspaciousness is impressive. It is also quite bright and makes you feel welcome.The major variance in this Church is the fact that it has two galleries alongeach side of the church accessible from the choir loft likely to accommodateadditional people for services.


as we move up the central aisle and approach the sanctuary, we are impressedby how big the church appears to be. It is plain but very large and airy, largedoors are spaced at regular intervals along both side aisles.


As we reach the sanctuary we look back and the sight, as mentioned earlier, is quite impressive…


On each side of the sanctuary there are two plaques representing the writers of the bible, Mathew, March, Luke & John


As we head back to the main entrance,along one of the side aisles, we come tothe only confessional in the church, onceagain the simplicity is striking.

Once we get to the entrance, we see three statues we some how missed when we came in.

St Pope Pius X Our Lady


As we leave the church and walk into the courtyard located to the side of theChurch around which are the Parish Centre, a Private Prayer area and theConvent.


The Gridiron Hall is the Parish Centrewhich houses the Parish Offices andmeeting hall. It is so named after theGridiron on which St Lawrence wasMartyred. Also not the paving stonearea immediately in front of the Hallwhich is done to also recall the gridiron.

Around the ‘corner’ from the GridironHall and across the courtyard is theParish Convento and facing it next tothe church is a roofed area where theparish vehicules are parked.


As we leave the grounds we pass the Adoration Centre down a path betweenthe statues of the Sacred Heart of Jesus as well as the Sacred Heart of Mary.


We’ll be back in about a week or so with another Episode in ourexploration of this part of Capiz Province.

We hope that you’ll join us then.


we thank you for being with us today and our teammembers for their efforts in bringing you this story.

[email protected]

Roselyn J Parrenas: She Who Must be Obeyed

Nilo Jimeno: pilot, facilitator & assistant discoverer

Jomarie Acallar: navigator, facilitator, assistant discoverer & photographer

Amy Bailo: driver

st lawrence the deacon church, panitan, capiz, episode 2

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