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One of Silay City's landmarks is a 20th century church formerly known as St. Didacus Parish in honor of its patron saint, Didacus of Alcala, a Franciscan saint more commonly known in the Philippines as San Diego de Alcala. This church is right across the plaza and beside the city hall.
This church was declared as pro-cathedral in 1994, the only pro-cathedral outside Metro Manila. It was renamed San Diego de Alcala Pro-Cathedral.
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The Silay parish was established in 1776. The first church was built with light materials of bamboo and nipa. With natural calamities such as typhoons, and insurrection against the Spanish, I'm sure the first church was destroyed and reconstructed a number of times. By 1841, the parish priest initiated construction of a more permanent structure made of stone and wood but it was never completed. During the Spanish-American war, parts of the stone church were destroyed and was left in a state of disrepair. The remnants of the old church are well-preserved behind this church. I remember spending summer afternoons in the courtyard of the old church when I was kid. My aunt was then living about half a block away.
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In 1925, construction of a bigger church started after one of Silay's wealthy sugar barons, Don Jose Ledesma, donated a substantial amount to build it. He even commissioned an Italian architect, Lucio Bernasconi, to design the church. Bernasconi lifted inspirations from his native Italy and designed the church in the shape of a Latin cross like most ecclesiastical Romanesque architecture in Europe. It has simple columns and a cupola rising 40 meters above the nave. Being the only church in the province with a cupola makes San Diego de Alcala Pro-Cathedral unique.
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I could still hear the echo of bells ringing at Angelus. We were usually by the fountain at the plaza across the church, and every 6 pm, the bells rang as a call to prayer. Then as dictated by tradition, children would then kiss the right hand of their elders.
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The feast of San Diego de Alcala is celebrated every November 13th.
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