Binondo Church

Even before the arrival of the Spanish to the Philippines there was already a community of Chinese traders living in Manila. The population of Chinese traders increased with the advent of Spanish colonization of the Philippines, due to increased trade between the islands. The upsurge in their population prompted the Catholic Missionaries to manage the conversion of the Chinese population to the Christian faith. In 1596, Dominican priests founded Binondo church to serve their Chinese converts to Christianity as well as to the native Filipinos. A church was constructed before 1614. When transferred to its present site in the 18th century, a new church was built to accommodate new churchgoers. In 1778, the roof was replaced with nipa as the wood was destroyed by termites. In 1863, the church was slightly damaged by an earthquake. The original structure has sustained damages during wars and various natural disasters. Chinese martyr John Alcober served as a priest in the church in the 18th century. Domingo Cruz y Gonzales supervised the construction of the dome in 1781. On September 22, 2024, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines elevated the Binondo Church into a national shrine. ==Architecture==

The current granite church completed in 1852 and features an octagonal pagoda-like bell tower which suggests the Chinese culture of the parishioners. The church was burned during the British invasion of 1762. Another one was quickly built following the occupation. Improvements were made in the 18th century but the edifice was again destroyed in the 1863 earthquake. It was rebuilt in the grandeur the remains on which we see today. Before the war, it was considered as one of the most beautiful churches in the country. Its bell tower was composed of five stories, octagonal in shape. At its top was a mirador (viewing window). This roof was destroyed during the 1863 earthquake. The roof behind the pediment and the walls at the left of the façade are additions in the past years. The original façade, with some few renovations, is similar to that of the Italian High Renaissance churches. The façade is buttressed on the sides by pilaster mass terminated by urn-like decorations. A tower is found at the apex of the pediment. At the base of the pediment, along its central axis, is a small circular window framed by smaller columns and pediment which are framed by a foliated scroll. At the right is the huge, octagonal tower characterized by cantons at its angles and pedimented window openings. File:Minor Basilica of St Lorenzo Ruiz.jpg|Dominican saint statue on the eastern flank File:Binondo Church Dome.jpg|Dome of church, surmounted by a papal tiara and keys to denote its status as a basilica File:Binondo Church False Window.jpg|False window on the base of the belfry File:BinondoChurch HistoricalMarker Manila.jpg|Church NHC historical marker installed in 1972 File:Binondo Church Marker.jpg|Marble plaque in front of the building File:Binondo Church Interior, Manila, May 2025 (2).jpg|The church's nterior File:Binondo Church interior 2024-02-10.jpg|Viewing the nave from the narthex File:Binondo Church Balcony.jpg|Choir loft and narthex, viewed from the nave File:Binondo Church Altar.jpg|View of the apse and main altar, modeled after the façade of Saint Peter's Basilica File:Binondo Church Circular Configuration.jpg|Arches, pendentives and inner dome File:Binondo Church Dome and Pendentives.jpg|Dome detail with the Holy Ghost and angels, and small medallions of the Four Evangelists in the pendentives ==Trivia==

• The current main altar of the church is loosely modeled after the façade of St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City. • The basilica has been reconstructed many times due to natural calamities and only the belfry is what remains of the original 16th century structure. • Andrés Bonifacio and his second wife Gregoria de Jesús were wed in Catholic rites in the church in March 1893 or 1894. The couple had also undergone a marriage ceremony under the Katipunan, the secret society that Bonifacio headed as part of the Philippine Revolution against the Spanish Empire. ==References==