prep talk

Being the only predominantly Christian country in the whole of Asia, with more than 80% of the population as Roman Catholics, a wedding in the Philippines would most likely be held in a church. Only our non-Catholic brethren have the luxury of marrying in a garden or by the beach as no Catholic priest would agree to officiate a wedding in a venue other than a church.

Yes, you could get married in any parish church but the fact is, with the hundreds of churches within Metro Manila alone, the options for a ceremony venue are not as varied as the gamut of choices for a reception location.  Narrowing it down, the very short list would only include the Manila Cathedral and San Agustin Church in Intramuros; San Sebastian Basilica, Malate Church and Paco Park in central Manila; Shrine of Jesus at the Reclamation Area in Parañaque;  Santuario de San Jose and Mary the Queen in the Greenhills/San Juan area;  Christ the King in Greenmeadows; St. James the Great in Alabang; Santuario de San Antonio in Forbes Park and Nuestra Señora de Gracia in Makati and maybe, Mount Carmel in QC.  That's just a little over a dozen choices!  Choosing a wedding planner or a photographer would be ten times harder.

The recent popularity of out-of-town weddings has given rise to other options.  Caleruega and the Chapel on the Hill have become the top choices in Tagaytay; St. Joseph Church and Baguio Cathedral in the summer capital; and Chapel 2 in Clarkfield, Pampanga.  The Holy Rosary Parish in Boracay is the only choice for Catholic couples who want the closest thing to a beach wedding.

We know there are those who wish to tie the knot in a church different from those mentioned above.  Whenever we get the chance to travel around the country and visit the must-see tourist spots, the itinerary would always include a tour of a century-old church.  For today's column, we've rounded up some majestic and historical places of worship chosen not just for their beauty as a place to solemnize a union, but also as a means of celebrating one's heritage.  If you're from Ilocos Norte, Bohol or Iloilo , or if you're seriously planning to have a destination wedding, then these churches may be worth considering. 

Paoay Church (Ilocos Norte)

photo by Madge Lejano for Imagine Nation Photography

Located in Ilocos Norte, the church's architecture is a unique combination of Baroque, Gothic and Oriental. Its construction started in 1704 and was completed in 1894.  It is one of the four Baroque churches in the Philippines included in UNESCO's World Heritage List.  According to Augusto Villalon, UNESCO commissioner for cultural heritage, Paoay church has already been ''internationally acknowledged as one of the most unique examples of Filipino architecture from the Spanish period.'' 

We first saw this church when we were still dating and we both imagined how cool it would be to get married there.  But back then, it would have been a logistical nightmare to bring everyone to Ilocos and that time, destination weddings were simply unheard of.

Baclayon Church ( Bohol )

photo by Joel Francisco Photography

This church is actually the second oldest in the country next to San Agustin in Intramuros.  In contrast with the red brick façade of Paoay, Baclayon is made of white coral stones collected from the sea, cut into square blocks, and piled on top of one another. 

Inside, one feels the structure is older than San Agustin. It is well-preserved without all the fuss.  It even has a tribuna, an elevated portion inside the church, covered with lattice work and with a full view of the altar.  According to our guide, this is where the VIPs of yesteryears stayed to pray without being seen by other churchgoers.  That just sounds too diva to us!

Miag-ao Church ( Iloilo )

photo by fung@firefly.ph for Imagine Nation Photography

If falling in love with a church is even possible, then that's exactly what happened when we first went Paoay, and happened again when we saw Miag-ao.  Despite having seen it in pictures prior to our Iloilo trip, we simply didn't expect to find a church as beautiful as this in our country.  This church has also been declared as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is regarded as "the most Filipino of all churches" because of its three-dimensional bas relief (stone-carved) façade of various Philippine tropical fruit trees (coconut, papaya and guava) with Saint Christopher dressed as a Filipino farmer carrying the young Christ on his shoulders.

We got there on a gloomy and drizzling afternoon but the church captivated us with its beautiful and glowing yellowish facade (they say the glow is because of sandstone stucco but we don't know exactly what that is) that we just had to get our sleepy butts out of the car and take a look around!

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