Republic of the Philppines

TARANGNAN

Province of Samar

𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐍𝐀𝐍: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐒𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐫’𝐬 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲

Tarangnan in its annals is always linked to the origin of Samar’s Christianity where the first Jesuits planted the first seeds of the Catholic faith. Today it is now a bustling town, although ranked as 4th class municipality in the province of Samar. It is also the home of the miraculous image of Señor San Francisco de Asis, the perennial protector and patron of the town which originated in the old poblacion of Dapdap and now enshrined and venerated by the devotees of the new poblacion of Tarangnan.

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝘾𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙁𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 𝙅𝙚𝙨𝙪𝙞𝙩 𝙈𝙞𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙨

While Christianity in Leyte was actively planting by the Jesuits, it was on October 15, 1596, Fr. Francisco de Otazo, Fr. Bartolome Martes and Brother Domingo Alonso of the Jesuit Order arrived in Tinago. This village is found along the big Japitan River of Gandara.

The word “Tinago” is derived from the verb pagtago meaning "to hide." Tinago means "out of view" or simply as hidden. Geographically, the settlement of Tinago was out of view on the coast because an islet was fronting it.

These three Jesuits directly planted the first central mission known as the residencia. They also taught the natives the doctrina, baptized the children and the old and healed the sick people. The Christian faith quickly flourished and spread to the interiors and coastal settlements thus founded the first visitas and built the first churches under their spiritual care.

The year after, Fr. Francisco de Otazo was sent to Leyte for another mission and Tinago was given to the rectorship of Fr. Juan de San Lucar in 1599. In 1601, Fr. San Lucar was succeded by Fr. Alonso de Humanes. From 1601 until 1616, the Tinago Mission have accomplished a huge task in propagating the Christian faith to the settlements of Samar Island when another cabecera was founded in Palapag.

𝙀𝙣𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙏𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙜𝙤 𝙈𝙞𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣

In 1616, the residencia and cabecera of the Jesuit missionaries in Tinago was burned by the Moro pirates. The Jesuits decided to transfer it to the fishing village of Catbalogan situated near the mouth of the Antiao River facing the beautiful Maqueda Bay. The visitas of Cotay, Canhawan, Cawayan and others were merged into the new pueblo. Thus, Catbalogan became the new residencia and cabecera of Samar with a jurisdiction over six principal stations.

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙝𝙤𝙧𝙩-𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙏𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙜𝙤

Around 1725, the town of Tinago came back to life and was under the administration of the Jesuits of Bangahon (now Gandara). But it would only disappear by 1749 when Calbayog was made a town in 1739. Tinago was seemingly fused to Bangahon and was reduced into a component visita until the coming of the Franciscans. The following are the Jesuit missionaries of Tinago from 1724 to 1749:

1724 – Fr. Ignacio de Echevarria with Bangahon

1725 – Fr. Antonio Diaz with Bangahon

1727 – Fr. Emmanuel Miguel Catarroja with Bangahon

1728 – Fr. Bernardino Ortiz with Bangahon

1735 – Fr. Jose Chacon

1737-1739 – Fr. Pedro Bulos with Bangahon

1747-1749 – Fr. Emmanuel Miguel Catarroja with Bangahon

𝘿𝙖𝙥𝙙𝙖𝙥: 𝙁𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙑𝙞𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙖 𝙩𝙤 𝙖 𝙋𝙪𝙚𝙗𝙡𝙤

In 1768, the Franciscan missionaries came to administer the Samar parishes which were left by the expelled Jesuits. In 1769, the parishes priest of Bangahon, Fray Juan Salguero re-founded a new town on the same site or just near it the forgotten village of Tinago and renamed it Dapdap after the thriving Dapdap trees near its location. A church was built and placed it under the patronage of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron of founder of the Franciscans. The pueblo of Dapdap remained under the administration of the cura parroco of Bangahon until on August 4, 1863 by virtue of the decree issued by the Superior Gobierno signed by Governor General Rafael Echague, Dapdap was separated from its matriz (mother parish) and was given the status as an independent pueblo and parish with Fray Ildefonso Dominguez as the first assigned Franciscan parish priest of the town. Under the new pueblo of Dapdap were the visitas of Pagsanjan, Bangon, Mancares and Majacob. In another decree, the Bishop of Cebu also confirmed the parochial erection of Dapdap on June 15, 1866.

𝘿𝙚𝙫𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙖 𝙎𝙖𝙣 𝙁𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙞𝙨𝙘𝙤 𝙙𝙚 𝘼𝙨𝙞𝙨

The devotion to San Francisco de Asis began when Fray Juan Salguero, the Franciscan parish priest of Bangahon (now Gandara) re-founded the site in 1769 built a church in the actual site of the new pueblo and dedicate it to the Seraphic, Saint Francis of Assisi (Serafin de Asis), the founder of the Franciscan Order.

As early as in the 1800’s, the town of Dapdap is famously known for the miraculous intercession of their patron saint, San Francisco de Asis. It can be testified in the account of Fray Felix de Huerta, a Franciscan priest-historian where he wrote on his book: “el dia cuatro de Octubre, escede la concurrencia de personas á las romerías de mas nombradla en Filipinas.” A great multitude of Samareño faithful coming from different pueblos around Samar and as far as in Leyte gathered every 4th of October during the feast of Saint Francis of Assisi, the Lord Patriarch of the Franciscans to do a pilgrimage, to say a novena and to express their strong devotion and veneration in exchange for the blessings, granted petitions and intercessions made by St. Francis to them. It was said that the pilgrimage to San Francisco de Asis of Dapdap was one of the most distinguished in Samar and renowned in the whole Philippines.

It can also be noted from the letter of Spanish Governor of Samar dated in the year 1823 that among all the towns in Samar, the pueblo of Dapdap was the only town spared from the cholera epidemic. The Spanish Governor testified that without disbelief, it was through the intercession of San Francisco de Asis, the town’s protector of Dapdap who miraculously released the town.

𝘼 𝙋𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙤𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙛𝙡𝙞𝙘𝙩

More than one hundred years later of its establishment as a pueblo, the Spanish Politico-Military Governor of Samar, Don Enrique Chacon y Lopez wrote to his superiors proposing the transfer of the poblacion (town center) from Dapdap to the visita of Tarangnan. According to him, that Dapdap was continually plundered by Moro pirates, unhygienic and unclean conditions because of the stagnant water (Dapdap geographically is surrounded by mangrove swamps), its inaccessible location and lack of existing lands for the town’s expansion because of the growing number of people writing in 1881. 

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙏𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙨𝙛𝙚𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙋𝙤𝙗𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙞𝙤𝙣

Señor Chacon ordered the transfer of the poblacion on June 20, 1881 through the recommendation and approval of Fray Angel Pulido, then the parish priest of Dapdap. In spite of the intense disproval and opposition of Don Villanueva Perez, the then Gobernadorcillo of Dapdap and the pueblo officials, the parish priest forcedly mandated the transfer of the altar together with the miraculous image of San Francisco de Asis from the church of Dapdap to Tarangnan.

It was only on October 9, 1883 when Governor General Joaquín Jovellar y Soler officially promulgated the transfer of the poblacion site to Tarangnan from Dapdap and was confirmed by a Royal Order by King Alfonso XII, King of Spain on April 1, 1884.

𝙏𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙣𝙖𝙣: 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝙋𝙤𝙗𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙞𝙤𝙣

After the controversial issue of the transfer of the town center, a native secular priest, Don Fernando Pacoli was assigned as cura interino in 1884. In 1885, the administration of the parish church of Tarangnan was left to the spiritual care of the Franciscan provincial (Ad libitum period). Assigned were Fray Melchor Tomista, Fray Canuto Diego and Fray Eduardo Alceron.

In 1888, Fray Manuel Benavente, parish priest of Gandara and Fray Policarpo Nadador, parish priest of Calbayog constructed a road from Tarangnan passing through Oquendo and Calbayog and as far as Barrio Lopez. They paid the labors and expenses to the workers by providing necessary supplies like rice, carabaos, etc.

In 1894, Fray Venancio Palencia erected for the first time a stone church which was completed in the year 1897. The convent was of mestiza type, and there were two primary schools constructed. Fray Venancio Palencia was the last Franciscan parish priest of Tarangnan when the Spanish Colonial Government ended in 1898. A barrio in Tarangnan is named in his honor.

By 1914, Tarangnan has 5,687 people from 10 visitas namely Bangon, Bunga, Cambatutay, Dapdap, Libucan, Mahacob, Mancares, Pagsanhan, Pangi, and San Luis (o Barugo).

𝙀𝙥𝙞𝙡𝙤𝙜𝙪𝙚

Today, the pilgrimage and devotion to San Francisco de Asis continues to draw more devotees around the province and from different towns of Samar, Leyte and neighboring provinces seeking for miracle and divine intercession. It is truly fitting that Tarangnan have St. Francis of Assisi as the mediator of the town as it was the birthplace of Samar’s Christianity. Up to present, Tarangnan is still a place of pilgrimage under the perennial protector and divine intercessor, St. Francis of Assisi.