St. Francis Xavier Parish Church is a colonial-era church located in the town of Palompon, Leyte, Philippines. It is also called Palompon Church after the name of the town. Its construction was finished in 1784 and it is considered the oldest Roman Catholic church built in the entire province of Leyte.
Table of Contents
History
Palompon was organized by the Jesuit friars in 1737 as a visita of the parish of Hilongos. The friars had difficulty administering the sacraments to its villagers because it was remote from their nearest mission station. Nonetheless, a church was successfully erected there. However it did not last long because, as the town is located in the western seaboard of the island, it was destroyed by Moro raiders that were infesting the coasts of Visayas and southern Luzon.
The Jesuits then built a place of worship of fortified structure. Its construction continued despite their expulsion in 1768 by the Augustinians who replaced them and who carried out the church-building. Three hundred workers toiled daily through forced labor in the succeeding decades.
On November 12, 1784, the church was completed. At the same time, it ceded from Hilongos and was declared an independent parish. It is the oldest church built during the Spanish colonial era in Leyte.
Further reconstructions occurred in the next following centuries. In the 21st century, the artist group called Dibuho Kisame was commissioned by Fr. Jaime Villanueva to create paintings in the interiors of the church, the first of which was unveiled on November 22, 2019. Its members were from Palompon and three were from Cebu, and they previously rendered the paintings found in Sts. Peter and Paul Parish Church in Bantayan Island, Cebu.
Architecture
The church’s facade features stepped, tapered cornice and row of dentil in the frieze, a motif found in the portico, pediment, and the belfry. Its portico is supported by columns of the Tuscan order. In its balustraded front is written “1784”, the year it became a parish and it was completed. Entrance is through a quadrangular door flanked by arch apertures. Its facade retains the textured rubblework typical of colonial churches. In this case, it is pierced with three arch slit windows whose glasses contain rendition of holy figures. Meanwhile, the pediment contains a blind round window and it is topped with an acroterion bearing a budded cross.
The belfry is found in the gospel flank on the rooftop. It is crowned with an onion roof and a quadrangular spire.
Celebration
The feast day of St. Francis Xavier falls on the third of December in a celebration that the town mounts and named Lawig Festival.
Services
The parish office is open from 8:00 in the morning to 5:00 in the afternoon from Wednesdays to Mondays. It is closed on Tuesdays.
Baptism is scheduled at 11:00 in the morning every Saturday.
Confirmation is set at 10:00 in the morning every fourth Friday.
Confession is heard after the celebration of the Holy Eucharist on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.
Weddings are scheduled at 8:00 in the morning every Saturday.
‘Live streaming schedule is as follows: Friday at 12:00 noon (Cebuano), Saturday at 5:00 PM (English), Sunday at 8:00 AM (Cebuano) and 4:30 PM (English).
Mass schedule
Below is the weekly mass schedule of St. Francis Xavier Parish Church in Palompon, Leyte from May 5, 2025 to May 11, 2025. Please reach out to the church for an updated schedule. Additionally, you may also want to view mass schedules of churches in Palompon.
Monday
- 5:30-6:30 AM (Cebuano)
- 5:00-6:00 PM (Cemetery Mass)
Tuesday
- 5:30-6:30 AM (Cebuano)
Wednesday
- 5:30-6:30 AM (Cebuano)
- 5:30-6:30 PM (English)
Thursday
- 5:30-6:30 AM (Cebuano)
- 5:30-6:30 PM (English)
Friday
- 5:30-6:30 AM (Cebuano)
- 12:00-1:00 PM (Cebuano)
- 5:30-6:30 PM (English)
Saturday
- 5:30-6:30 AM (Cebuano)
- 5:00-6:00 PM (English - Anticipated Mass)
Sunday
- 6:00-7:00 AM (Cebuano)
- 8:00-9:00 AM (Cebuano)
- 4:30-5:30 PM (English)
- 6:30-7:30 PM (English)
Church information
| Details | |
|---|---|
| Name | St. Francis Xavier Parish Church in Palompon, Leyte |
| Other Names | Palompon Church |
| Address | Rizal St., Brgy. Ipil I, Palompon, Leyte 6538 |
| Country | Philippines |
| Contact | +63 975 314 8199, +63 932 293 2039 |
| st.francisxavierparishofficial@gmail.com | |
| www.facebook.com | |
| Religion | |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Founder | Society of Jesus |
| Established | 1637 |
| Age | 388 years |
| Status | Parish |
| Declared as parish | November 12, 1784 |
| Age as parish | 241 years |
| Archdiocese | Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Palo |
| District | Western District |
| Vicariate | Vicariate of Palompon |
| Patron | St. Francis Xavier |
| Architecture | |
| Completed | November 12, 1784 |
| Age since completed | 241 years |
| Belfry | 1 |
| Spire | 1 |
Nearby Churches
- Holy Child Church in Isabel, Leyte
- Holy Child Church in Villaba, Leyte
- Holy Spirit Chaplaincy in Lide, Isabel, Leyte
- St. Andrew the Apostle Church in Tagbubunga, Villaba, Leyte
- St. Anthony of Padua Church in Matag-ob, Leyte
- St. Augustine Church in Matlang, Isabel, Leyte
- St. Joseph the Worker Church in Cantuhaon, Palompon, Leyte
- St. Michael the Archangel Church in San Miguel, Palompon, Leyte
References
- St. Francis Xavier Parish. Archdiocese of Palo. Retrieved December 24, 2022
- Kate Denolang. Dibuho Kisame goes to Palompon. Sunstar. November 26, 2019. Retrieved December 24, 2022
- History of Palompon. Municipal Government of Palompon. Retrieved December 24, 2022