MANILA, Philippines - More than 450 years ago – the 27th of April 1565, to be exact – Fr. Andrés de Urdaneta and four other Augustinian friars arrived in the Philippines at Cebu. There was found the image of the Sto. Niño that was a gift from Magellan to Queen Juana 44 years before, when she and other people from Cebu were baptized.
Since 1565, Christ’s message was preached in Luzon and Cebu, in Panay and Negros, in Samar and Leyte and even farther in China where Fr. Martin de Rada traveled in 1575, in Japan where they went in 1602, and later in India, America…
The Augustinian friars were “lovers of God”. And for the glory of God, they were the main church builders in the Philippines. Among the several hundred built by them, 160 still survive today. Four of them had been declared World Heritage sites. Along with the churches, they also built convents and schools, bridges and streets, and promoted agriculture and development in different fields.
The Augustinian friars were also “lovers of art and beauty”, “lovers of wisdom”, “lovers of song and music” and “lovers of culture and education”. All these and much more you can see at the San Agustin Museum. – Father Blas Sierra de la Calle, OSA