Surigao Cathedral Explained

Surigao Cathedral
Fullname:San Nicolas de Tolentino Cathedral
Other Name:Saint Nicholas of Tolentino Cathedral Parish
Pushpin Map:Mindanao#Philippines
Pushpin Label Position:left
Map Caption:Location in Mindanao##Location in the Philippines
Coordinates:9.7897°N 125.4938°W
Location:Surigao City, Surigao del Norte
Country:Philippines
Denomination:Roman Catholic
Founded Date:1754
Dedication:Saint Nicholas of Tolentino
Consecrated Date:1763, 1939, 1988
Status:Cathedral
Functional Status:Active
Architectural Type:Church building
Style:Modern
Archdiocese:Cagayan de Oro
Diocese:Surigao
Bishop:Antonieto Cabajog

San Nicolas de Tolentino Cathedral (Filipino; Pilipino: Katedral ni San Nicolas de Tolentino), commonly known as the Surigao Cathedral (Filipino; Pilipino: Katedral ng Surigao), is a Roman Catholic cathedral located at Surigao City in the Philippines.[1] It is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Surigao.[2]

History

The present-day Surigao City traces its beginnings as an independent pueblo in June 1655.[3] Its parish, dedicated to Nicholas of Tolentino, was founded in 1754 by the Augustinian Recollects.[2] The center of the Catholic mission in the area was initially at Siargao island but was transferred to Surigao due to the Moro attacks in the island. To ease the administration of Mindanao, it was divided into six districts, one of which was the District of Surigao. The said district spanned from Caraga Bay to Butuan Bay. Its first capital was Tandag but was transferred to Surigao in 1751.[1] [4] The parish of Surigao was administered by the secular priests in the first half of the 19th-century while the century's latter half was divided among the Augustinian Recollects and the Jesuits. After the earlier two orders, the Benedictine fathers took over the area at the time when the Surigao provinnce was formally founded in 1901, with Surigao as the capital town. In 1939, the Diocese of Surigao was canonically erected from the Diocese of Cagayan de Oro's territory, with the Saint Nicholas of Tolentino Parish Church being consecrated as its diocesan seat.[2] [5] The bombings during the World War II destroyed the earlier cathedral church, including the adjacent Saint Paul University Surigao buildings, but was later rebuilt in 1988 under the supervision of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart.

Notes and References

  1. News: City of Surigao Comprehensive Land Use Plan (2011-2020) . December 18, 2021 . Surigao City Government.
  2. Web site: Cathedral of San Nicolas de Tolentino Surigao City, Surigao del Norte, Caraga, Philippines . December 18, 2021 . GCatholic . April 19, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180419214224/http://www.gcatholic.org/churches/asia/3022.htm . live .
  3. Web site: Brief History of City of Surigao . December 18, 2021 . Surigao City Government . November 18, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211118203204/http://www.surigaocity.gov.ph/content/brief-history-city-surigao . live.
  4. News: Creation of the Province of Surigao del Norte . December 18, 2021 . Surigao del Norte Provincial Government.
  5. News: Diocese of Surigao . December 18, 2021 . Claretian Communications.