The St. Augustine of Hippo Parish Church in Bacong, Negros Oriental, needs millions of pesos for its restoration after sections of the church have been found to have deteriorated.
Msgr. Julius Perpetuo Heruela, who heads the Committee on Church Cultural Heritage of the Diocese of Dumaguete, said on Wednesday, Feb. 25, that efforts are ongoing to raise funds for the restoration and preservation, with help from the municipal government of Bacong.
“We need a huge amount of money to restore the church’s deteriorating sections, and the priority now is the roof, trusses, and ceilings that need urgent repair,” Heruela said.
The St. Augustine of Hippo Church is the only designated National Cultural Treasure on Negros Island, as declared by the National Museum of the Philippines.
Aside from its historical significance, it is touted as having a “rare” centuries-old pipe organ, which was restored in recent years.
On Tuesday evening, a fund-raising concert was held in the church, with world-renowned Spanish organist Andres Cea Galan playing on the pipe organ classical and modern piano pieces.
He was joined by soprano singer Katrina Saga, violinist Dylan Abejero, and Japanese organists Mika Noda and Mineko Koijima.
Heruela said concert proceeds will be used for the repair of the roof system.
A few months ago, a piece of its ceiling fell off, which led to a temporary stoppage of masses in the church.
An inspection later showed that water leakage from the roof destroyed the trusses and ceiling, Heruela said.
To avoid accidents, portions of the ceiling were removed, and netting was placed to cover the damaged areas.
Heruela said they have reached out to the National Museum of the Philippines for possible technical assistance and hope that the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) can also provide funding for the heritage church’s restoration.*
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