St. James the Greater Parish is an old Roman Catholic church in Tanjay, a southeastern city in Negros Oriental, Philippines. It is the first and oldest parish established in Negros Oriental and in the Diocese of Dumaguete. It is also referred to as Señor Santiago Apostol Parish Church or Tanjay Church.
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History
In 1571 Miguel Lopez de Legazpi instituted in Negros the encomienda system, a means of civil and religious governance where encomienderos collected tributes from, implemented forced labor of, and worked towards conversion of the inhabitants including erecting temporary chapels.
St. James the Greater Church was founded by Augustinian friars on June 11, 1580, installing Fr. Diego Ferreira as its first parish priest.
It was one of the few places in Negros where the first mission stations in the island were established such as the settlements in Bago (1575), Binalbagan (1575), and Ilog (1584).
However it was later abandoned due to a lack of priests for parochial administration in 1583, only to be sporadically attended to by the Jesuits from Bohol.
It was turned over to the secular clergy and then to the Augustinian Recollects starting in 1866 until the end of the Spanish rule.
Museo Ecclesiastico de Tanjay
Museo Ecclesiastico de Tanjay was inaugurated by Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines, Archbishop Gabriele Giordano Caccia, in October 2019. The first ecclesiastical museum in the province, it is a repository of various historical artifacts.
Architecture
Tanjay Church is contemporary in appearance. Its facade is dominated by four columns that support the pediment and creates a space for a portico. An archway serves as portal to the interiors, the doorway occupying up to half of the arch while the rest is a blind tympanum.
On the church wall is a relief depiction of the Annunciation, the rapt Blessed Virgin beholding an angel aloft a puff of cloud and a dove looking down on them.
Flanking the scene are paired rectilinear windows of slatted louvres topped with blind arches. The pediment is sparse of embellishments and contains a high relief of a holy figure.
Flanking the facade are foregrounded niches each with a crown attached to the wall, in the gospel side is the bust of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and in the other side the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Atop are balconies with balustrade that overlook the courtyard, and by the church walls are ornamental twin blind aches partitioned by three pilasters.
One of church’s arresting details is a huge equestrian sculpture portraying the patron on horseback in the gospel flank of the roof. In the other side is a three-bodied octagonal belfry, the lower two levels pierced with arch openings and the pyramidal roof decorated by triangular peaks.
Celebration
The feast of St. James is held every 25th of July in a celebration called Sinulog de Tanjay Festival.
Mass schedule
Below is the weekly mass schedule of St. James the Greater Church in Tanjay City, Negros Oriental 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 Tanjay City.
Monday
- 6:00-7:00 AM
- 5:15-6:15 PM
Tuesday
- 6:00-7:00 AM
- 5:15-6:15 PM
Wednesday
- 6:00-7:00 AM
- 5:15-6:15 PM
Thursday
- 6:00-7:00 AM
- 5:15-6:15 PM
Friday
- 6:00-7:00 AM
- 5:15-6:15 PM
Saturday
- 6:00-7:00 AM
- 5:15-6:15 PM (Anticipated mass)
Sunday
- 5:00-6:00 AM
- 8:00-9:00 AM
- 10:00-11:00 AM
- 5:00-6:00 PM
- 6:30-7:30 PM
Church information
| Details | |
|---|---|
| Name | St. James the Greater Church in Tanjay City, Negros Oriental |
| Other Names | Señor Santiago Parish Church, Tanjay Church |
| Address | Rizal St., Tanjay City, Negros Oriental 6204 |
| Country | Philippines |
| Contact | (035) 541 0937 |
| stjamestanjay@gmail.com | |
| www.facebook.com | |
| Religion | |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Established | June 11, 1580 |
| Age | 445 years |
| Status | Parish |
| Archdiocese | Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cebu |
| Diocese | Diocese of Dumaguete |
| Vicariate | Vicariate of St. Philip |
| Patron | St. James the Greater |
| Feast day | July 25 |
Nearby Churches
- Holy Cross Church in Sta. Cruz Viejo, Tanjay City, Negros Oriental
- Our Lady of the Pillar Church in Pamplona, Negros Oriental
- Saint Joseph the Worker Church in San Jose, Negros Oriental
- St. Andrew the Apostle Church in Amlan, Negros Oriental
- St. Anthony of Padua Church in Sibulan, Negros Oriental
- Sta. Agueda Church in Santa Agueda, Pamplona, Negros Oriental
References
- Sorote, Ryan Christopher (December 4, 2019). One of the Philippines’ oldest parishes gathers religious artifacts. LICS News. Retrieved July 14, 2022
- Concert helps build Tanjay Church Museum. Negros Chronicle. September 22, 2019. Retrieved July 14, 2022
- Sagun, Roman C. Jr. (April 17, 2022). Beginnings of Christianity in Tanjay. Negros Chronicle. Retrieved July 14, 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
- Larena, Penn (October 4, 2019). Fundraising dinner for Tanjay Church Museum. Manila Standard. Retrieved July 14, 2022
- Partlow, Mary Judaline (April 6, 2021). Dumaguete diocese ready for ‘call of faith’ amid health crisis. Philippine News Agency. Retrieved July 14, 2022
- Diocese of Dumaguete. Union of Catholic Asian News. Retrieved July 14, 2022
- Political History and Cultural History. Provincial Government of Negros Oriental. Retrieved July 14, 2022
- Partlow, Mary Judaline (October 29, 2019). Papal Nuncio shows solidarity with NegOr people amid killings. Philippine News Agency. Retrieved July 14, 2022
- Sinulog de Tanjay Festival. Tourism Promotions Board. Retrieved July 14, 2022