Origins In the 19th century, several
anti-clerical governments in Spain took measures to suppress the many monasteries there. If they were not closed outright, communities were forbidden by the state to accept new candidates, with the goal of letting monastic communities die out. With time however, exceptions were made for monasteries that would operate in the far-flung regions still a part of Spain's once-mighty empire, primarily the Philippines. As a result of this incentive, the ancient Benedictine
Abbey of Our Lady of Montserrat near
Barcelona made the decision to establish a mission foundation in the area of Manila. The plan was for the community to follow the agrarian way of life which was part of the reform then under way by the recently formed Subiaco Congregation (forerunner of the present congregation) and provide
pastoral care for the local population. On September 12, 1895, eight choir monks and six
lay brothers, under the leadership of
Dom José Deas y Villar, arrived in Manila. After being hosted by the local
Jesuit community, the monks obtained property for themselves in
Surigao, which they occupied on April 25 of the following year. The pair worked on the abbey church from 1931 to 1939, leaving only the back wall of the
nave above the entrance blank. Dom Lesmes López's paintings on the vaulted ceiling of the nave include the 16 allegories on the virtues, theology, and the church.
The Apotheosis of the Holy Name of Jesus was painted over the
sanctuary, while on its walls are eight panels on the
Nativity of the Lord. Paintings of the
Stations of the Cross are also seen within the interior of the church.
Present condition By 1971, the monastic community had gone from a high point of some 100 monks to a membership of 30. ==List of abbots==