The Diocesan Shrine and Parish of Our Lady of the Pillar, commonly known as Imus Cathedral, is a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

in the

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

Imus Imus (), officially the City of Imus (), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component city and ''de jure'' Capital city, capital of the Provinces of the Philippines, province of Cavite, Philippines. According to the 2020 cens ...

, in the

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

Cavite Cavite, officially the Province of Cavite (; Chavacano: ''Provincia de Cavite''), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province of the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region. On the southern shores of Manila Bay and southwest of Manila, i ...

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. The church serves as the seat of the

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of the

Diocese of Imus The Diocese of Imus (; Tagalog: ''Diyosesis ng Imus''; Spanish and Chavacano: ''Diócesis de Imus'') is a Catholic diocese in the Philippines that comprises the entire province of Cavite. By the virtue of the apostolic constitution ''Christi F ...

, the

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, prov ...

that has jurisdiction over the entire Civil Province of Cavite. Enshrined inside the cathedral is the canonically crowned image of Nuestra Senora del Pilar de Imus (Our Lady of the Pillar). The said title of the Blessed Virgin Mary serves as the titular patroness of the Diocese of Imus, Province of Cavite, as implied by then pope, now a saint, John XXIII.

John the Baptist John the Baptist ( – ) was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early first century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist ...

is also considered the secondary patron saint of the city. The current parish priest and rector of the cathedral is Reuel Castañeda, vicar general of the diocese. The church itself features the longest Holy Week procession in the province of Cavite, with at least 70 floats and the country's 5th longest overall (the other four being the St Augustine Parish, Baliuag, and San Isidro Labrador, Pulilan, both located in the province of Bulacan, with at least 110 floats per parish, The Our Lady Of the Abandoned in Marikina, with 82 floats, and The Our Lady of Aranzazu San Mateo, Rizal with 76 floats). Currently, the cathedral is being elevated into Cathedral Shrine.

History

Establishment

In 1616, the

Augustinian Recollects The Order of Augustinian Recollects (OAR) is a mendicant Catholic religious order of friars and nuns. It is a reformist offshoot from the Augustinian hermit friars and follows the same Rule of St. Augustine. They have also been known as the "D ...

arrived in Imus and established a convent. The

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

of Imus started as a

chapel-of-ease A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church architecture, church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently, generally due to trav ...

in Brgy. Toclong, a sub-parish (''visita'') of Cavite Viejo (now

Kawit Kawit, officially the Municipality of Kawit (), is an urban municipality of the Philippines, municipality in the Philippine Province, province of Cavite, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 107,535. It is one of ...

). Recollect Father Pedro de San Buenaventura petitioned the government to convert Imus into an independent municipality in 1774. Imus, though, did not become a separate town and parish until October 3, 1795. Its ''

poblacion ''Poblacion'' (from Spanish '' población'', meaning "population"), sometimes abbreviated as Pob., is a term used in the Philippines to refer to the administrative center, downtown, old town, or commercial area of a city or municipality. It ...

'' (town center) and a provisional church was first established in an area currently known as Brgy. Bayan Luma (Tagalog for 'Old Town'). The parish was under the order of the

with Francisco de Santiago,

O.A.R. O.A.R. (short for Of A Revolution) is an American rock band, founded in 1996 in Rockville, Maryland. The band consists of lead vocalist/guitarist Marc Roberge, drummer Chris Culos, guitarist Richard On, bassist Benj Gershman, and saxophonist/g ...

, its first assigned priest.

Construction of the present church

During the leadership of Fr. Nicolas Becerra, who served from 1821 to 1840, he advocated the move of the town center to Brgy. Balangon, its present location. The construction of the

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

of Imus on the new location was started in 1823 using forced labor. The structure was made from stone and bricks. Its facade was patterned after the fifth

Manila Cathedral The Minor Basilica and Metropolitan Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, commonly known as the Manila Cathedral, is a Roman Catholic basilica and cathedral church of the Archdiocese of Manila. It is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary of ...

by Fr. Juan de Uguccioni, which existed from 1760 to 1852.

Hacienda de San Juan de Imus

The early fathers were preoccupied with not just religious matters but also of economic concerns. The friars gradually bought parcels of land while some of these lands were donated by rich families. The Recollects were the first ones to buy parcels of land beginning in 1666 and their haciendas came to being in 1812. These areas, comprising the ''Hacienda de San Juan de Imus'' or the ''Hacienda de Imus'' (Imus Estate), grew to include the whole towns of

Dasmariñas Dasmariñas (), officially the City of Dasmariñas (), is a component city in the province of Cavite, Philippines. With a land area of and a population of 703,141 people according to the 2020 census, it is the largest city both in terms of ...

, and Brgy. Binakayan in

. The estate house of the

hacienda A ''hacienda'' ( or ; or ) is an estate (or '' finca''), similar to a Roman '' latifundium'', in Spain and the former Spanish Empire. With origins in Andalusia, ''haciendas'' were variously plantations (perhaps including animals or orchards ...

, or the house of the friars, was located along Imus River (at the present day ''Cuartel'') at the southern end of the Bridge of Isabel II, a Spanish bridge built by the priest-engineers of the Recollects.Bureau of Insular Affairs, War Dept. (1905)
"History of the Diocese of Imus"
Our Lady of the Pillar Cathedral Choir. Retrieved on May 6, 2013. Citizens of Imus were required to pay rent to live and tilled the lands of Imus.

Secularization

The ''Hacienda de Imus'' was sold by the Recollect Corporation on March 31, 1894, to the ''Fomento de la Agricultura de Filipinas'' (Promotion of Agriculture in the Philippines), a corporation in Madrid, for 4,000,000 pesetas. It was later sold to the British Manila Estates Company, which eventually sold it to the U.S. controlled Philippine government for $1,045,000 in U.S. currency for distribution to the

Filipinos Filipinos () are citizens or people identified with the country of the Philippines. Filipinos come from various Austronesian peoples, all typically speaking Filipino language, Filipino, Philippine English, English, or other Philippine language ...

, to win their favor, and to pacify the

revolutionaries A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates for, a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective to describe something producing a major and sudden impact on society. Definition The term—bot ...

. The Church of Imus became

secular Secularity, also the secular or secularness (from Latin , or or ), is the state of being unrelated or neutral in regards to religion. The origins of secularity can be traced to the Bible itself. The concept was fleshed out through Christian hi ...

in 1897.

Diocese of Imus

By virtue of the Apostolic Constitution Christi fidelium promulgated by

Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII (born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death on 3 June 1963. He is the most recent pope to take ...

on November 25, 1961, Cavite was created a separate bishopric from

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

after more than three hundred years. On April 26, 1962, the

was formally erected and established. The then parish church of Imus was chosen to become the cathedral of the diocese, the seat of the bishop of Cavite, with the Virgin Mary under her title ''Our Lady of the Pillar'', its titular patroness. The first leader of the diocese and bishop of Cavite is Artemio Casas, originally from

Meycauayan, Bulacan Meycauayan , officially the City of Meycauayan (), is a 1st class Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component city in the Provinces of the Philippines, province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a popu ...

Bishop of Imus

The current bishop of Imus is Reynaldo G. Evangelista, previously bishop of the Diocese of Boac and a native of Batangas, who was appointed by

Pope Francis Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...

on April 8, 2013, his first pontifical appointment in the Philippines. He replaced Bishop

Luis Antonio Tagle Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle ( , ; born June 21, 1957) is a Filipino prelate of the Catholic Church, and has been the Dicastery for Evangelization, Pro-Prefect for the Section for First Evangelization and New Particular Churches of the Dicastery fo ...

(whose paternal ancestry is from Imus) after his installation as the

Archbishop of Manila The Archdiocese of Manila (; ; ) is the archdiocese of the Latin Church, Latin Rite of the Catholic Church in the Philippines, Catholic Church in Metro Manila, Catholic Church in the Philippines, Philippines, encompassing the cities of Manila, ...

in December 12, 2011. Evangelista was installed as the fifth bishop of Imus on June 5, 2013.(2013-04-08)
"Pontifical Acts – 8 April"
. The Vatican Today. Retrieved on June 11, 2013.

Historical marker

The cathedral was declared a structure of historical significance with the placing of a historical marker by then

National Historical Institute The National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP; ) is a government agency of the Philippines. Its mission is "the promotion of history of the Philippines, Philippine history and culture of the Philippines, cultural heritage through ...

of the Philippines on November 13, 2006.

Coronation of the patroness of the Diocese of Imus

The image of the patroness of the Imus Cathedral, ''

Our Lady of the Pillar of Imus Our Lady of the Pillar of Imus (Spanish: ''Nuestra Señora del Pilar de Imus'') is a Roman Catholic Marian title of the Blessed Virgin Mary and venerated Marian image of the Madonna and Child atop of a pillar. The City of Imus in the province of ...

'', was canonically crowned on December 3, 2012, by Cardinal

. It was originally scheduled for November 26 but the elevation of Tagle into a

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to * Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae ***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...

Pope Benedict XVI Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...

necessitated the move.The Servants and Handmaids of Our Lady of the Pillar/Discuss
"100 days Countdown for the Canonical Coronation of Nuestra Señora del Pilar de Imus"
Flickr.com. Retrieved on May 17, 2013.

Vicariate of Our Lady of the Pillar

Vicariate of Our Lady of the Pillar (City of Imus) Vicar Forane: Rev Fr. Antonio Laureta

Parishes

*Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish – Bucandala (Parish Priest: Rev Fr. Honorato N. Naty) *Mary, Mother of God Parish – Malagasang II (Parish Priest: Rev Fr. Melencio Sandoval) *Our Lady of Fatima Parish – Anabu I (Parish Priest: Rev Fr. James Andes) *Our Lady of Fatima Parish – Anabu II (Parish Priest: Rev. Fr. Manuelito Villas) *Diocesan Shrine and Parish of Our Lady of the Pillar - Imus Cathedral – Poblacion (City Proper) Rector & Parish Priest: Rev. Msgr. Reuel Castañeda, Asst. Priests: Rev. Fr. Stephen Maraganas, TC & Rev Fr. Henry Yap, SVD *St. James the Greater Parish – Buhay na Tubig (Parish Priest: Rev. Fr. Antonio Laureta, Parochial Vicar: Rev. Fr. Rommel Lagata) *St. Martha Parish – Greengate, Malagasang II (Parish Priest: Rev Fr. Benjamin Francisco) *Holy Family Parish – Lancaster Estates ( Rev Fr. Alain Manalo) *

Our Lady of the Pillar Parish

Chapels

* Mary, Mother of the Good Shepherd Chapel (Palico) * Our Lady of the Pillar Chapel (Bayan Luma) * St. Peregrine Chapel (Toclong) * San Roque Chapel (Pag-asa) * San Juan Bautista Chapel (Tanzang Luma) * Our Lady of Fatima Chapel (Villa Leticia) * Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal (Southern City Subdivision) * San Lorenzo Ruiz Chapel (Narra Homes Subdivision)

Activities

Ministries

* Parish Youth Ministry * Ministry of Altar Servers * Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion * Lay Ministers of the Word *Our Lady of the Pillar Parish Music Ministry **includes: Tinig ng Katedral (est. 1980), Himig Batingaw (est. 1978), etc. *Ministry of Cantors

Radio station

89.5 FM frequency is used by the Parish to broadcast Parish activities such as the recitation of the Rosary for the traditional Good Friday procession. Daily Mass, Vigil and Sunday Masses, as well as Masses for holy days of obligation celebrated in the Cathedral are also transmitted live through the same frequency, broadcasting on a very low power output.

References

External links

* *
Diocese of Imus videos
{{Roman Catholic Diocese of Imus Roman Catholic cathedrals in the Philippines Roman Catholic churches in Cavite Buildings and structures in Imus Roman Catholic churches completed in 1853 1853 establishments in the Philippines Marked Historical Structures of the Philippines Spanish Colonial architecture in the Philippines Baroque Revival architecture Baroque church buildings in the Philippines 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the Philippines Neoclassical church buildings in the Philippines Churches in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Imus Jubilee churches in the Philippines