It is both blessing and a gift if a town’s parish priest is well aware of its history and heritage, apart from, obviously, the spiritual needs of its people. It is likewise important that he establishes roots and creates legacies that do not negatively affect the church and the community he serves. Such is the case of Fr. Manuel Vicente Catral, the outgoing parish priest of the San Telmo Church in Aparri, Cagayan.

He did not only serve the parishioners well, but also studied the history of the church dedicated to Blessed Peter Gonzalez Telmo, also referred to Saint Elmo or San Telmo, (1190-1246), a Dominican priest who is the patron saint of sailors. This resulted to the publication of the book, Parokia San Telmo: Agayus ti Pammati iti Biag (Where Faith Flows into Life), authored by Diana Versoza Moraleda.

Pastoral activities

In his message, Catral said the book “offers a glimpse of its journey: the past, present and the foreseeable future [sic] and endeavors to capture the stories of conversion and how faith flows into life in the parish.”

The book is not only an account of the church but also the pastoral initiatives and activities done by the parish under Catral’s watch.

These are the formation program which include seminars and training, catechism module, block Rosary readings and liturgical celebrations; strengthening the basic ecclesial communities; and pastoral programs on worship, education, stewardship and social action.

On the latter, the most notable action by the parish was a mass protest on the black sand mining in Aparri in 2022. This was attended by around 1,700 protesters who walked from the municipal arch to the church.

These initiatives, Tuguegarao Archbishop Ricardo Baccay said in his message in the book, “led to the increase vibrancy, pastoral sensitivity and engagement within the parish.”

The church

Aparri was founded as a town by the Dominicans in 1680. Its church had to be reconstructed many times due to natural calamities with a typhoon in 1871 inflicting major damage not only on the church complex but also the town. Following the disaster, the town center with the new church complex of bricks relocated to its present site.

The church was badly damaged during World War II, reconstructed in concrete in the 1960s and renovated in 2009. Only the concrete bell tower which originally has three levels remain today from the American period, having been built in 1929 and spared with the façade during the war.

To order copies of the book, contact Joey Ayson at 0915-7650399.