Bantay Church
Bantay, Philippines
The Parish of Saint Augustine of Hippo, also known as the Archdiocesan Shrine of Our Lady of Charity colloquially known as Bantay Church is a Roman Catholic church in Bantay, Ilocos Sur in the Philippines. Dedicated to Saint Augustine of Hippo, the church is under the jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Nueva Segovia. It houses enshrined an image of the Blessed Virgin Mary venerated under the title of Our Lady of Charity. Pope Pius XII issued a pontifical decree of coronation titled Quas Tuas Optime on 3 August 1955, towards the venerated image of Our Lady of Charity, being granted to the Archbishop of Nueva Segovia, Santiago Caragnan y Sancho. The decree was signed by the Secretary Deacon Giulio Rossi and notarized by the Grand Chancellor, Girolamo Ricci. The rite of coronation was executed on 12 January 1956 by the Apostolic Nuncio to the country, Cardinal Egidio Vagnozzi and named as "Patroness of Ilocandia". The old historic bell tower of the church known as the Bantay Tower, which served as a watchtower for pirates during the Spanish colonial era, gave the town its name – bantay (meaning "to guard"). Another interpretation claims the word as “Mountain” held to be a sacred place by its Marian devotees.
Church data from Wikidata (CC0). Summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).