San Bartolome Parish de Malabon @400

I grew up in the fishing town of Malabon which used to be part of Rizal province. Our house which was beside the river, at the foot of the  bridge, was just a few minutes walk to the parish church. Beside the parish church is St. James Academy, which was founded by the Maryknoll sisters in the early 1900s. A few meters away from the parish church is the municipal hall building of Malabon, and at the back of the building is the public  market. The vicinity of the parish church, school, municipal hall and  market is called “bayan” or the center of the town.

It was at San Bartolome Parish church where I was baptized and where I also received my first holy communion. Growing up as an elementary and high school student of a Catholic school, I would attend school masses, like feast day and first Friday masses, at San Bartolome Parish Church. It was in this church that I celebrated my thanksgiving mass after I was ordained as a Dominican priest.  The church edifice was old, and I can still remember that bats and birds used to fly in and out of it. The church bells would ring from the bellfry to call parishioners to gather for mass. From the sound that  it made, one can tell that those bells are big and old.

Last May 17, 2014, San Bartolome Parish de Malabon celebrated its quadricentennial. Fr. Ric Torrefiel, the 101st pastor of the parish and who has been serving the parish  for the past 13 years now, was the lead organizer of the celebration. A civil engineer and a convert  to Catholicism before he became a priest in the Archdiocese of Manila,  Fr. Torrefiel endeavored to improve the church edifice since he became the pastor of the parish.

A quadricentinnial arch was constructed at the entrance of the patio, where a fountain is now at its center, in front of the church building. The massive pillars on its facade is the distinctive mark of the parish church, as viewed  from the main street. As one enters the church, he or she will not miss the jubilee door which is decorated with wood carvings. The interiors will give a sense of awe to anyone who is visiting the parish church for the first time. The ceiling is adorned with numerous paintings framed with  gold leaf.  The retablo in the sanctuary is simple yet elegant. At the  center  is the image of the patron of the parish,  St. Bartholomew the Apostle. Above the image of the patron saint is the image of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and below it is the tabernacle. On both sides of the retablo are St. Augustine and St. Anthony of Padua.  Two lines of chandeliers hang above the pews  at the center aisle of the church.   Big,  massive pillars also support the roof on the left side and right side of the church.

About 120 diocesan and religious priests, and 7 bishops joined in the concelebrated mass,  with Archbishop Socrates Villegas,DD as the main  presider. The  grand choir, which was composed of selected choir members  from various parishes in the Diocese of Kalookan, provided majestic liturgical music. It was accompanied by live string instruments and  electronic organs with the sound of pipe organ. Parish organizations, parishioners, and local government officials, which included the mayor, attended the quadricentennial mass. After  the mass, lunch was served at the new parish center building.  The Philippine Postal  Service launched commemorative stamps on  the occasion of the 400 years of existence of San Bartolome Parish de Malabon.