The Philippines will be marking in 2021 the fifth centenary of the arrival of Christianity, so in the run-up to that, the 11th Biennial Convention of Church Cultural Heritage Workers will tackle the historic milestone and its significance to the cultural patrimony of the Church on May 6-9 at Park Lane Hotel in Cebu City.

The biennial is primarily organized by the Episcopal Commission on Church Heritage of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, headed by Dumaguete Bishop Julito Cortes and Fr. Ted Torralba of the Diocese of Tagbilaran, with the University of Santo Tomas Graduate School Center for the Conservation of Cultural Property in the Tropics headed by Eric Zerrudo, and the Archdiocese of Cebu.

The Cebu conference is supported by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts and Defending Family Values Foundation Inc.

Theme is “The Importance of the Church’s Cultural Heritage at the Dawn of the 5th Centenary of the Arrival of Christianity in the Philippines.”

Scholarly papers, tour
Paper presentations will include:
“Kapanulundanan sa Cebu: The Church Heritage of the Archdiocese of Cebu” by Fr Brian Brigoli (AC) ; “Repair and Maintenance of Heritage Structures in the Philippines” by architect Melva Rodriguez Java (University of San Carlos);
“Placing Together Church Building History through a Detailed Roster of Parish Priests by Regalado Trota Jose (UST); “Inukit na Dambana: Wood Species in Catholic Churches in the Philippines’ by Cheek S. Fadriquela (University of the Philippines-Los Banos); “Chemical Analysis of Historic Mortars from Different Spanish Colonial Fortifications in the Philippines’ by John Michael C. Cayme (UST); “Conserving Argamaza Church Structures” by architect Michael F. Manalo (UST); “Conservation of Sacred Structures in India and Nepal” by Neel Kamal Chapagain; “Prinsa: The Dominican-built Dams in the Binan, Santa Rosa, and Calamba Haciendas” by Edgar Allan M. Sembrano (Far Eastern University);
“Church Heritage Mapping of the Diocese of Baguio (DB)” by Fr. Dexter L. Martin (DB); and “Conservation Management Plan of Bato Church in Catanduanes” by Fr. Roberto C. Sanchez (Diocese of Virac).
Participants will hold a heritage tour of Southwest Cebu (Samboan, Badian, Dumanjug, Carcar).

For announcements, e-mail [email protected].