TO PRESERVE THE OLD, start ?em young. That seems to be the philosophy behind Angat Kabataan, the unique heritage-conservation program by the Society of Ecclesiastical Archivists of the Philippines, Inc., the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines? Committee on Cultural Heritage, the Filipino Heritage Festival and the National Commission for Culture and the Arts. The summer camp for the youth is part of the National Heritage Month going on across the country. (The celebration is mandated by Presidential Proclamation 439.) Fittingly enough, the 2010 Heritage Month theme is ?Preserving the Gift of Faith.?

Last year, Angat Kabataan brought youth delegates to Cebu via sea travel from Manila, then from Cebu to Bohol, by ferry: It was an inter-island heritage tour, if there was one. In the process, the youth delegates came to appreciate the fortresses of faith dotting the Philippine coastline?the centuries-old colonial stone churches built by the Spanish missionaries which embody the impregnable Christian faith of the Filipinos, as well as characterize their tropical Baroque spirit, their unique zest for life and celebration.

For this year, Angat Kabataan focused on the 33 churches declared either by the Unesco as World Heritage Sites (such as Santo Tomás de Villanueva in Miag-ao, Iloilo; San Agustín in Paoay, Ilocos Norte; Santa María de la Asunción in Sta. Maria, Ilocos Sur; and San Agustín in Intramuros, Manila), or by the National Museum.

Parish-based youth from the 33 churches were invited to Albay, Bicol. They attended a seminar-workshop where they themselves oriented other participants on the respective history of their churches and the efforts being undertaken to conserve them. (See related story: ?Youth Urged to Help in Conserving Church?s Patrimony.?)

The annual youth camp is the brainchild of Augustinian priest Fr. Harold Ll. Rentoria, NCCA commissioner for cultural heritage. Also this year?s chairman of the steering committee of the National Heritage Month celebration, Father Rentoria urged the youth to join in the Church?s effort to preserve the sacred cultural patrimony as a way of deepening and practicing one?s faith. He said the Church, an ancient institution, looks to the youth to safeguard and preserve the heritage of faith for the next generations of Christians

Inspired choice

The choice of Albay was inspired. The province holds two of the declared 33 National Cultural Treasures?the churches of Daraga and Tabaco. One frequently visited tourist site of the province is Cagsawa, site of the ruins of an old church buried by the eruption of Mayon Volcano in the early 19th century.

The Cagsawa ruins are a testament to nature?s fury, its capacity to destroy and obliterate cultural landmarks. But Angat Kabataan seemed to say: More destructive is man?s ignorance, which may level veritable shrines of a people?s culture to the ground, depriving the next generations of their right to appreciate and enjoy them, all in one sweeping fillip of the ignorant mind!

But the heritage movement is making progress. It helps Angat Kabataan that the Diocese of Legazpi and the parish leadership of the Daraga and Tabaco churches are very conscious of the need to preserve the cultural patrimony of the Church.

In Daraga, Fr. Jose Victor Lobrigo, the parish priest, rolled out the red carpet for the youth delegates. It was Lobrigo who sought the assistance of local architect, Anna Lorilla, for the conservation of the church, the Nuestra Señora de la Porteria (Our Lady of the Gate).

Built in 1772, it is the oldest church in Albay, noted for its vibrant baroque façade with intricate designs carved from volcanic rocks.

Lorilla recalled that she cried when Lobrigo asked for her assistance, because she had all along wanted to contribute to the conservation of the old churches of Albay, but had felt reluctant to offer her help because church authorities were not perceived to be enthusiastic or knowledgeable about conservation. Happy to be of help, she assembled experts from around Albay and the committee that has been constituted has been doing the conservation phase by phase, with funding and technical assistance from the NHI, National Museum and NCCA.

In 2008, as a result of the extensive research and conservation work, the church of Daraga was declared by the National Museum as a National Cultural Treasure. (The declaration is governed by Republic Act 4846 as amended by Presidential Decree 374 and Republic Act 8492.) Specifically cited by the declaration were the Eastern and Western façades of the church, as well as the bell tower and baptistery.

The opening Mass was held in Daraga with Legazpi Bishop Joel Baylon and Fr. Lobrigo concelebrating. In his homily, the youthful-looking prelate said that the Christian community is animated by a sense of ?mystery? in plumbing the meaning of the Christian revelation; as well ?community? so that the riches of the faith could be shared with others. He indicated that sacred heritage must be conserved and shared with the next generations in the spirit of Christian community-building.

Tabaco church

Even earlier, in 2001, the church of Tabaco, Albay, had been included by the NCCA in the initial list of 26 churches as National Cultural Treasures that would receive state support for their conservation and preservation. The church was built in the 19th century by the secular clergy. Specifically cited in the declaration was the bell tower with rocaille (shell-like motifs) elements, which seems to stylistically date from an earlier time. The church has an unusual floor plan with compartments that remain inexplicable. The stones on the walls bear masons? marks, something rarely seen in the country.

(The other 25 churches are: Bacong, Negros Oriental?Parish church of San Agustin, built in the second half of the 19th century by the Agustinian Recollects; Balayan, Batangas?Parish church of the Immaculate Conception, built in the early 19th century by the secular clergy, with later additions by the Augustinian Recollects; Betis, Pampanga?Parish church of Santiago Apostol, built in the 18th century by the Augustinians; Boljo-on, Cebu?Parish church of Patrocinio de Maria, built in the late 18th to the early 19th centuries under the direction of the Augustinians; Calasiao, Pangasinan?Parish church of Saints Peter and Paul, built from the 17th to the 19th centuries by the Dominicans; Dupax, Nueva Vizcaya?Parish church of San Vicente Ferrer, built in the second half of the 18th century by the Dominicans; Guiuan, Eastern Samar?Parish church of the Immaculate Conception, built by the Jesuits in the early 18th century and further decorated by the Franciscans in the 19th century; Jasa-an, Misamis Oriental?Parish church of the Immaculate Conception, built in the late 19th to the early 20th centuries by the Jesuits; Jimenez, Misamis Occidental?Parish church of San Juan Bautista, built in the second half of the 19th century by the Augustinian Recollects; Lazi, Siquijor?Parish church of San Isidro Labrador, built in the second half of the 19th century under the Augustinian Recollects; Loboc, Bohol?Parish Church of San Pedro and San Pablo, built in the 17th and 18th centuries by the Jesuits, enlarged in the 18th and 19th centuries by the Augustinian Recollects; Luna, La Union?Paris Church of Santa Catalina de Alejandria, built in the 18th-19th centuries by the Augustinians; Mahatao, Batanes?Parish church of San Carlos Borromeo, built in the 19th-century by the Dominicans; Magsingal, Ilocos Sur?Parish church of San Guillermo de Aquitania, built in the 18th-19th centuries by the Augustinians; Majayjay, Laguna?Parish church of San Gregorio Magno, built in the early 18th century by the Franciscans; Maragondon, Cavite?Parish church of the Assumption of Our Lady, built in the early 18th century by the Jesuits, with later additions by the Seculars and the Augustinian Recollects; Masinloc, Zambales?Parish church of San Andres, built in the 18th-19th centuries by the Augustinian Recollects; Pan-ay, Capiz?Parish church of Santa Monica, built in the 18th-19th centuries by the Augustinians; Romblon, Romblon?Cathedral of San José, built in the 18th-19th centuries by the Augustinian Recollects; Rizal (formerly Malaueg), Cagayan?Parish church of San Raymundo de Peñafort, built in the 1600s by the Dominicans in the foothills of the Cordilleras; San Joaquin, Iloilo?Parish church of San Joaquin, built in the 19th century by the Augustinians; Tanay, Rizal?Parish church of San Ildefonso, built in the second half of the 18th century by the Franciscans; Tayabas, Quezon?Basilica of Saint Michael, built in the 18th-19th centuries by the Franciscans; Tayum, Abra?Parish church of Santa Catalina de Alejandria, built in the 19th century by the secular clergy; and Tumauini, Isabela?Parish church of San Matias, built in the 1780s by the Dominicans.)

Beautiful legacy

It was at Tabaco church where Angat Kabataan held its closing ceremony, highlighted by a Mass officiated by Legazpi Bishop Emeritus Jose Sorra, who evoked the beauty of the faith as expressed in its iconography, churches and liturgy. The prelate urged the youth to help the ?beautiful? legacy of the faith for future generations.

Bishop Sorra?s homily reminded many of the remarks of Cardinal Francesco Marchisano, the president of the Permanent Commission for Care of the Historical and Cultural Monuments of the Holy See, who came to the Philippines in 2004 and admired the Philippine Church?s efforts to preserve its cultural heritage: ?A language that all understands is the language of beauty. And for this reason, I am convinced that, through beauty, we can have extraordinary means of evangelization.?

In the end, Angat Kabataan did not only celebrate the Church?s vast and priceless cultural patrimony; it also celebrated the Church?s capacity to embrace the future, to be ever green, ever young?through the energy of its young members.