Luminous Cross of Grace Sanctuary - Quezon
Located in the town of Agdangan in Quezon province, the Luminous Cross of Grace Sanctuary is a Catholic tower and sanctuary built beside the town's parish church.
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| Luminous Cross of Grace Sanctuary |
Luminous Cross of Grace Sanctuary History
Standing 120 feet tall, the Luminous Cross of Grace Sanctuary is the brainchild of Fr. Raul "Puti" Enriquez. The inspiration to build a sanctuary in Agdangan came to him sometime in 2003 during the time when jueteng (a local type of gambling) and excessive drinking plagued the small coastal town.
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| Luminous Cross of Grace Sanctuary - Agdangan, Quezon |
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| The sanctuary is just beside St. Isidore Parish Church |
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| Reminds me of Seattle Space Needle |
Collective visions and dreams of several people about the sanctuary brought together important people who played a big role in the movement to build the sanctuary in 2004. Construction took a few years and was finished in 2007. According to our guide Ms. Yam Maglaqui, the sanctuary was built through the Bayanihan Spirit of the collective effort of the locals who brought their own tools and helped with the construction of the sanctuary. The best part of it was those who were most active in the constructions were those who were addicted to gambling and alcohol. They sacrificed a lot of their time, effort, and even money to build the sanctuary.
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| The sanctuary is just a few meters away from the church. |
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| Listen carefully to the guide |
The Luminous Cross of Grace Sanctuary was designed to look like a monstrance complete with the Holy Eucharist in its center. Again, the sanctuary stands 120 feet tall or 12 stories high. Each floor shows life-size statues portraying different scenes in the bible complete with hand-painted backgrounds. The top floor (dome) gives out a portrayal of what heaven might look like. From there, visitors would also be able to see the panoramic view of Tayabas Bay, Mt. Banahaw, and the town of Agdangan. The sanctuary is best seen during the night when it is illuminated by beams of light from the spotlights at its foot.
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| The view of Agdangan from the top of the sanctuary |
I would like to thoroughly describe to you what you'd see on each floor but then again there are things that I should skip so that my readers would be intrigued to see and experience them for themselves. I'll just give you some tips and things to do when visiting the sanctuary.
- Entrance is free but you have to sign up in their visitor's logbook. (You may give monetary donations if you are willing though.)
- You should remove your footwear when entering the sanctuary.
- Flash photography is prohibited inside the sanctuary because it damages the paintings in it.
- Refrain from bringing food or beverages inside the sanctuary.
- Listen to the guide and remember, respect begets respect.
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| A little peek at what you can see at the top of the sanctuary |
I got to visit the San Isidro Labrador Parish of Agdangan and the Luminous Cross of Grace Sanctuary during our Batangas-Quezon 2017 Visita Iglesia. The place was worth visiting. The sanctuary guide, Ms. Yam, was admirably very good in explaining the history of the sanctuary plus she also gives moving testimonies and personal stories connected to the miracles attributed to the sanctuary.
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| Check out those cross-styled windows. |
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| Luminous Cross of Grace Sanctuary and St. Isidore Parish Church |
Luminous Cross of Grace Sanctuary Admission Fee:
The entrance to the Luminous Cross of Grace Sanctuary is FREE but you have to sign up in their visitor's logbook. (You may give monetary donations if you are willing though.)
Why visit the Luminous Cross of Grade Sanctuary?
Overall, Agdangan should be included in your pilgrimage sites to visit in Quezon on your next Visita Iglesia. It might be a town which is rarely visited by tourists and pilgrims but it is surely worth it.
Getting to Luminous Cross of Grace Sanctuary:
From Pasay City, ride a bus going to Lucena Grand Terminal.
Bus Fare: 300 -400 pesos
From there ride a bus going to Agdangan.
Bus Fare is usually around 60 -100 pesos.
Ratings:
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| Pilgrims |
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A sanctuary built by a community, now that is interesting. And it's amazing that those who were involved in the construction were once addicted to vices. It sounds like they were able to redeem themselves through this effort. Now I wonder how the view looks during the night. It's probably going to be packed this Lenten season.
ReplyDeleteHow this sanctuary was built was truly an amazing story. Regarding how it looks at night, you'd surely want to visit it during the town festival. The sanctuary is lit up which adds to the beauty of the town.
DeleteI've been there a couple of times already, since my mother is from Quezon. I remember buying uraro and budin (cassava cake) just before I head back to Manila. How nostalgic!
ReplyDeleteThe mere mention of uraro and budin made me miss my trip to Quezon.
Deletekailangan po ba magpasched. bago makavisit jan sa church? thanks
DeleteHi Meg. Nope. You can visit it walk in.
DeleteQuezon is a place I have not explored yet. But your blog is inspiring me to do so. I mean the history behind the building of Luminous Cross of Grace Sanctuary is really interesting. Plus loved the pictures, yes that building looks like Seattle Space Needle indeed.
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting my blog Shreya. =) Hope you could visit the Philippines too someday.
Deletekailangan pa po ba magpaschedule bago makavisit jan sa luminous cross?
ReplyDeleteHi Meg, hindi naman kailangan magpaschedule. Kaso minsan walang maggaguide sa inyo sa itaas. I highly suggest that you visit on a weekend dahil merong mga volunteers na magkukwento sa inyo ng history ng Luminous Cross. It's worth it.
DeleteKumusta po si Fr. Puti? In 2007, I used to attend his mass every Tuesday at Janssen Hall, Christ the King Seminary at E. Rodrigueaz Sr. Blvd., Quezon City....
ReplyDeleteHi, sorry, I don't have any news about Fr. Puti.
DeleteIs there a guide on weekdays since it is already 2023?
ReplyDeleteHello po! Di ko lang po sure if meron pong guide sa weekdays lalo na't after pandemic na. Baka po marami nang nagbago.
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