San Agustin Church: Beauty Ever Ancient and New

article written by Kat Buenaflor 

Last Sunday, November 27, 2011, I escaped the reins of my parents and rode a bus going to Manila (kids, do NOT do this at home :p ). It’s MUKHA AD’s 2nd session for the second semester, and for that afternoon, we were going to tour around San Agustin Church in Intramuros. At this point I will be honest enough to admit that initially, I wasn’t keen on going there to go sight-seeing. I have visited the church a couple of Christmases ago and I thought I’ve already seen what has to be seen on that place.  The real reason to my long overdue escapade was the fact that I have not seen my much-loved Sunday barkada for almost two months, I miss the sessions so badly, and it’s already clinically proven that these people could magically turn my sadness into happiness.

I went ahead to San Agustin Church and waited for them to arrive. I stood beside a white Jaguar car - at the time, there was a wedding ceremony going on inside. A tourist driver standing beside me asked me if I was one of the guests. I said no, telling him that I was waiting for my friends. He then told me that he pities the children who, despite the hot and humid weather, wore tuxedoes for the event instead of the more traditional and more climate-forgiving Barong Tagalog. I nodded in agreement, but then I can’t blame the wedding planner for having them wear such – the church has this “Royal” and very imposing aura, especially inside – owing to the fact that it’s a Baroque church. It’s elaborately yet elegantly decorated; its beauty ancient yet new – especially to us living in the modern times.

Minutes later I saw the MAD people arrive. I was so glad to finally meet everyone once again – I even hugged my batchmate Carol in the joy of seeing her once again. I wanted to say hi to everyone, but doing so would interrupt the tour that has already started. I also realized that I have forgotten the names of some of them that I’ve already talked to before. Nonetheless, I felt a sense of belonging, as if I haven’t gone that long. And it’s nice that some of them still remember my name. Hehehe. :p

So the guided tour began, courtesy of an archivist working in UST (I forgot his name…sorry.). We first entered the museum beside the church. Oh boy, why did I ever underestimate the Augustinian property?! At a glance, the adjacent building is small, but as we went in, I found out that it was a huge building housing an unimaginable number of antique art collected during the 440 years of the order’s presence in the country. It was a haven for art lovers, history geeks, and suckers for all things classical – like me.

There was a visual information overload – there were too much to see! Paintings and sculptures of various friars and images of Saint Augustine were all around the building. One particular painting that caught my attention was the painting of Saint Augustine with Jesus to his right, and Mama Mary to his left. When I saw the image of Nuestra Señora de Leche y Buen Parto a few years back, I thought it was unusual, because an image wherein she breastfed Jesus is, in my opinion, quite intimate for one to make a statue of. But on this particular painting of Saint Augustine, the artist portrayed Mary at its most unusual. I suppose it's a rare rendition.

There was this room full of religious images that I really, really enjoyed looking at. The hall, which was previously used as a place for the conventual chapter of the Augustinian friars, virtually reeked of gold because of the different images of Our Lady (smaller versions of the images of La Naval de Manila and Remedios were there), and other saints.

The church’s choirloft was another place that I liked. Perhaps a modern church’s choirloft is nothing but chairs with an electric keyboard or guitar on the side – but this one’s Baroque, and in the Baroque period, it’s all about excess! It’s the ancient times’ 1980s! The wooden chairs had very intricate wood carvings on them; the ceiling had these paintings that looked like they were bas relief sculptures. In the middle of the choirloft was a giant song book – perhaps the equivalent of the modern times’ overhead projector. Lastly, the modern times’ keyboard and guitar is no match to this church’s colossal pipe organ! How I wish I could hear how a pipe organ actually sounds. I also wish Sto Domingo’s pipe organ would be restored soon. Whether on its own or along with the voice of the Tiples…the music it will make must be grand.

There were so much to see (I think I said this already...didn't I? :p), and really, one afternoon is just not enough if you really want to fully appreciate what this place has in store. Here, you’d appreciate the church’s role besides being the mediator between man and God. In this case, it’s a preserver of art and history, an institution that has definitely withstood the test of time. 

I hope that after one sees the beauty within its walls, he or she shall remember San Agustin Church not as a tourist spot, or a sanctuary made for couples to have their grand weddings in the coming years. It's an institution that showcases the depths of human creativity and unsurpassed intellect, and ultimately, the greatness of its Creator. It's an institution attesting the Augustinians’ love for God.

Ain’t love grand? ♥