San Isidro Labrador Church is a Roman Catholic Church in Binalbagan, a northwestern town in the province of Negros Occidental, Philippines. Also called Binalbagan Church, it is the first and the oldest Roman Catholic church founded in the entire island of Negros.
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History
Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, the Spanish explorer who colonized the Philippine archipelago starting in 1565, allocated Negros into encomienda to a select few Spanish colonizers in 1571.
In the olden times, the area known as Binalbagan was called Inabagan. It became the oldest town in Negros when it was established in 1572 and became one of the first Christian mission frontiers in the island.
The parish of San Isidro Labrador was founded by the Augustinians in 1575 with Fr. Jeronimo Marin, O.S.A. as the first parish priest. The mission faced much hardship and resistance by the natives that it was later abandoned and given to the secular clergy of Cebu several years later.
Then the Augustinian Recollects took over the parish from Fr. Francisco Rodriguez, the last of the diocesan priest, in 1626. Recollect priests who attended to the pastoral care of the townsfolk were Fr. Martin de San Nicolas, Fr. Lorenzo de San Facundo, Fr. Gaspar de Santa Mónica, Fr. Juan de San José, and Fr. Jacinto de San Fulgencio who built a convent.
In 1638, the Recollects turned over the parish back to Fr. Francisco Rodriguez and left for Romblon. Later the Jesuits started administering the parish in 1720. Towards the latter half of the 19th century, the Recollects came back until the outbreak of the Philippine revolution in 1898.
With a centuries-long history and under parochial administration of different religious orders, no stone church was built during the Spanish rule. There was a place of worship that stood in the town that was described to be made of hardwood and topped with nipa roof.
It was only in 1935 that the present-day Binalbagan Church was constructed within the term of Bishop Casimiro Lladoc, the first bishop of the Diocese of Bacolod under which the parish belonged until the creation of the Diocese of Kabankalan in 1987.
Architecture
Ornate furnishings are found in the church’s portico flanked by small gardens, and up above its hangs a chandelier. The pillars bear foliated capitals with bas relief of foliage, and the two pillars in front have midline grooves of stipple-textured drywall while the others in the back flanking the entrance are fluted pilasters.
There are inscriptions in the portico containing details of its construction. High above in the pediment reads, “La Primera Construida“; in the entablature, “Bajo del Obispado de Mon. C. Lladoc”; and above the piers’ capitals, “1934” (gospel side) and “1935” (epistle side). Taken together their rough translation is, “First built under the bishopric of Mons. C. Lladoc, 1934-1935.”
In the apex of portico’s pediment rises a cartouche capped by a foliage-decor and bears a seal that is enclosed by the words “Iglesia Catolica Binalbagan” (Catholic Church of Binalbagan).
Entrance is through a massive quadrilateral door. Above the doorway and the portico on the church wall are gabled windows and a rose window bearing the words, “Ego Sum Via, Veritas, Et Viva” (I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.) The pediment is embellished with cornices, decorative bands flanking a relief of a foliage, a broken gable with volutes, and a ringed cross.
Flanking the central section of the facade are paired pilasters of similar decorative texture as found in the front pillars of the portico. They bound a textured drywall sparsely decorated by slits with openwork (a pair above and another pair in the ground level). Flanking the pediment are steeples consisting of belfries with pilasters, arched openings, pyramidal ridged roofs, and spires.
The church’s main nave has been extended in both sides. In the church’s interior are colonnades supporting lintels and arches, and above them in the clerestory are rose windows of stained glass. By the lintels aligning the piers are pedestals containing images of holy figures. The ceiling is ribbed by trusses.
Celebration
The feast of St. Isidore the Worker is held every in a celebration called Balbagan Festival.
Services
The parish office is open from 8:00 in the morning until 5:00 in the evening every day.
Mass schedule
Below is the weekly mass schedule of San Isidro Labrador Church in Binalbagan, Negros Occidental from June 9, 2025 to June 15, 2025. Please reach out to the church for an updated schedule. Additionally, you may also want to view mass schedules of churches in Binalbagan.
Monday
- No mass schedule found.
Tuesday
- No mass schedule found.
Wednesday
- No mass schedule found.
Thursday
- No mass schedule found.
Friday
- No mass schedule found.
Saturday
- 5:00-6:00 PM (Anticipated Mass)
Sunday
- 6:00-7:00 AM
- 7:30-8:30 AM
- 9:00-10:00 AM
- 1:00-2:00 PM (Funeral Mass)
- 2:00-3:00 PM (Funeral Mass)
- 5:00-6:00 PM
Church information
| Details | |
|---|---|
| Name | San Isidro Labrador Church in Binalbagan, Negros Occidental |
| Other Names | Binalbagan Church |
| Address | Sto. Rosario, Binalbagan, Negros Occidental 6107 |
| Country | Philippines |
| Contact | 034-388 8346 |
| web.facebook.com | |
| Religion | |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Established | 1575 |
| Age | 450 years |
| Status | Parish |
| Archdiocese | Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Jaro |
| Diocese | Diocese of Kabankalan |
| Vicariate | Vicariate of Binalbagan |
| Patron | St. Isidore the Laborer |
| Architecture | |
| Completed | 1935 |
| Age since completed | 90 years |
| Builder | Casimiro Lladoc |
Nearby Churches
- Holy Family Chaplaincy in Carabalan, Himamaylan, Negros Occidental
- Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary Church in Aguisan, Himamaylan, Negros Occidental
- Our Lady of the Snows Church in Himamaylan, Negros Occidental
- San Ramon Nonato Church in Suay, Himamaylan, Negros Occidental
References
- History. Municipality of Binalbagan, GOV.PH. Retrieved July 17, 2022
- Avellanada, Miguel OAR (December 2020). The Creation of the Diocese of Bacolod in 1932. Translated by Emmanuel Luis A. Romanillo, Philippine Social Science Journal. Retrieved July 17, 2022
- Romanillos, Emmanuel Luis A. (December 31, 2020). Augustinian Recollect Legacy to the Church in Negros Island. Philippine Social Science Journal. Retrieved July 14, 2022
- Diocese of Bacolod. Union of Catholic Asian News. Retrieved July 14, 2022
- Diocese of Kabankalan. Union of Catholic Asian News. Retrieved July 21, 2022
- Balbagan Festival. Municipality of Binalbagan, GOV.PH. Retrieved July 17, 2022
- Diocese of San Carlos. Union of Catholic Asian News. Retrieved July 21, 2022
- National Heritage Month Feature : San Isidro Labrador Parish in Binalbagan. Negros Season of Culture. May 15, 2021. Retrieved September 22, 2022
- Binalbagan. National Historical Commission of the Philippines. October 2021. Retrieved December 24, 2022