The New St. Alphonsus Church: The Presiders Chair

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     There are three symbolic fixtures that must be present and prominently seen on the altar; the main altar (Body and blood of Christ), the lectern (The Word of God), and the presider's chair (alter Christus). All of them represents the Lord Jesus in different ways and levels. The new St. Alphonsus parish church has the base of the presider's chair patterned after the buttresses. It was designed to obtain a dignity worthy of the Lord Jesus whom it represents. The presider's chair reminds us that it is not the priest who is celebrating but the Lord Jesus. Every Eucharistic celebration is a remembrance and a CONTINUATION of the saving action made by the Lord when He died on the cross. His death was a once and for all act that is continued in every mass.

The New St. Alphonsus Church Altar BackGround:The Burning Bush Experience!

The original design for the altar background was a canopy hovering over the altar. The complexity of the design and the difficulty of construction made us settle for a simple structure. What we came up with was a Krautz masterpiece of the burning bush (Moses). The base of the background was made of wood showing the trunk of the bush. On top was the stained glass representation of the burning branches.

The choice of the theme of the burning bush helps the faithful experience the pervading presence of God in the church. It immediately presents itself as soon as one enters The Door of the life and death of Jesus. And immediately too, one enters into the realm and experience of the sacred. One becomes aware that he has walked on holy grounds. It was in the burning bush experience that God introduced Himself as "I AM." It means God is always present, always in action, always alive, always BEING GOD. There is never any moment when God ceases to exist and work. In the same way that Moses was assured of Gods presence throughout his mission to free Israel from the bondage of Pharaoh, when we approach the altar of the burning bush, we are are being freed from the bondage of sin.

The New St. Alphonsus Church: The Door

The Door of the new St. Alphonsus has certain qualities that are considered unique. Instead of being attached to the walls, it is equipped with two pivots attached to the ceiling. When the door is opened, it provides three entrances (center and two sides). Made of narra by the famous carvers of Betis, Pampanga, its front show carvings of the life (left side) and death (right side) of the Lord. From inside the church are panels showing the back side of the carving in front.

The importance of the Door of the church is one that has been forgotten. In the tradition of the church, The Door serves as the symbol of the beginning or entrance to a new event, for example, the school year of a Catholic school, a parish, or any Catholic institution. The liturgy usually begins outside The closed Door. Then, The Door will be tapped twice by the toe of The Cross and then The Door will be opened formally inaugurating a new season or year. In can also be a symbol of being welcomed to the House of God.

In our parish, we had begun the tradition of closing The main Door as soon as the Sunday masses begin. Those who come late will suffer the humiliation of entering via the side door. It is therefore encouraged that everyone who will come to worship be inside the church on time.

The New St. Alphonsus Church: The Miraculous Cross

The Cross is made of hard wood and was located at the front door of the old church. After the fire, The Cross was only partially charred and was the last one standing dignifiedly after the fire. Many considered its survival as a miracle. When the parish temporarily held its mass in the "bahay kubo, The Cross was prominently laced there to serve as a symbol of God's presence in the Eucharistic celebration. There, it received the people's reverence and adoration. When the new church was done, its place was not easily determined. Finally, it found its place at the back of one of the side doors where people can again touch it and express their adoration to the crucified Lord. Will it be its final place? It is not certain. But what is certain is, it is a strong figure in the new church because of its attractive presence and effective object of devotion to many parishioners. 

In the recent celebration of Good Friday, The Cross was used in the adoration. It greatly added to the solemnity of the adoration specially during its kissing by the faithful.

The New St. Alphonsus Church: LECTERN AND ALTAR

The Lectern (where the Word of God is read) and the Altar (where the bread and wine becomes the body and blood) were made from the altar of the old church. The stone was subjected to the fire but it had endured the heat. Because it was hard to move it, I ordered it cut into pieces. After it was cut into two, we thought it can be of use in the new church. Later, we saw it as a good base for the lectern and the altar in the new church. Again, that was consistent with the now emerging theme of the"old and the new"! As it happened, the stone fit perfectly in the altar. They were good remembrances of the old altar. Incidentally, the Eucharist is actually a "remembering" of what Jesus did in Calvary and the Word of God is a remembering of what Jesus said and did in His ministry.