Mission CompoundMission Compound is a Local Cultural Property - Heritage Zone (per Joint Resolution No. 1, Series 2017) located at Sagada, Mountain Province, CAR.
JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 1, Series 2017
A JOINT RESOLUTION OF THE EDNP STANDING COMMITTEE AND THE SAGADA SANGGUNIANG BAYAN DECLARING THE MISSION COMPOUND AS A HERITAGE ZONE AND ORGANIZING A TECHNICAL WORKING GROUP TO WORK FOR ITS RECOGNITION UNDER THE NATIONAL COMMISSION [FOR CULTURE AND THE ARTS]
WHEREAS, in 1904 the Rev. John A Staunton, Jr., pioneer missionary of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America (ECUSA), acquired parcels of land for the mission center in Sagada Poblacion after negotiating with Sagada elders who designated the denuded hilly area east of the community in exchange for Fr. Staunton's offer to build a church, educate their children and provide employment for them; and to serve as a buffer against tribal enemies from Bontoc villages who attacked them on July 11, 1898 under Spanish commandant Eduardo Xandaro due to reports of Katipunan sympathizers and activities in Sagada during the last days of the Philippine Revolution against Spain;
WHEREAS, Fr. Staunton had the bulk of this mission land titled in 1915 and registered in the name of ECUSA which in 1994 conveyed by way of donation the mission land to its successor, the Episcopal Church in the Philippines (ECP) from which the Episcopal Diocese of Northern Philippines (EDNP), as a constituent diocese of ECP, derives its jurisdiction and stewardship of the Mission Compound with the Parish of St. Mary the Virgin in Sagada;
WHEREAS, Fr. Staunton established the Mission Compound as the mission center for the Christianization and development of Sagada and its neighboring communities. Using his engineering background with the help of skilled workers from Manila and laborers in Sagada, Fr. Staunton had the area landscaped and transformed into an industrial mission center which became known as “one of the outstanding achievements of the American occupation of the Philippines” by 1915. The Mission Compound by then had four stone quarries, two lime kilns, planning mill, machine shops, printing press, carpentry shops, vegetable gardens, herd of cows, carabaos and horses; and 20 buildings which housed the shops, stores, and supplies, as well as the school, dormitories, clinic and missionaries’ quarters connected by telephone, with electric lighting, and spring water piped into the whole compound; and where “fifty apprentices were under industrial training and 150 others on the payroll and 150 children were under instruction;”
WHEREAS, during World War II most of the original mission buildings including the stone church were destroyed and then rebuilt after the war, but four original buildings survived the war and the ravages of time and are still existing at present albeit in dilapidated conditions and in dire need of rehabilitation, as follows:
1. Girls’ School, built in 1912, two floors with walls of pine shingles and GI roof; later named as Girls’ Dormitory;
2. Lyceum, finished in. 1920, 2 floors with walls of pine shingles and GI roof; used as Boy’s Dormitory;
3. Mission Office/lgorot Exchange Store, finished in 1915, two floors with walls of pine shingles and GI roof; front section later became SMS principal’s residence and priest’s quarters in the 1950s to 1990s;
4. Printing Shop/Machine Shop, finished in 1915, one floor with walls of pine shingles and GI roof; partitioned later and one section now houses the WH Scott Library.
WHEREAS, while the industrial aspect of the Mission Compound gradually phased out by the 1930s after serving its purpose of providing employment and introducing new livelihood skills, technology and agricultural crops under a cash economy that advanced Sagada’s development ahead of the times, the three original mission arms established by Fr. Staunton and enhanced by succeeding missionaries and local mission workers have remained as the pillars of the mission center today as in the past decades, as follows:
1. The Church of St. Mary the Virgin that transformed the ancient culture of “an eye for an eye; a tooth for a tooth” to Christian brotherhood/sisterhood of all people under one Creator God; and liberated the lgorot psyche from the oppressive fear of anitos who controlled every aspect of his life, and must be placated by the blood of animal sacrifices; held its first centennial celebration in 2004.
2. St. Mary’s School that transformed the pre-literate Sagada society in the early 1900s to a community with a high literacy rate and highly literate at that as shown by the performance of St. Mary’s School students in the national examinations for secondary schools wherein SMS ranked 49th overall in 1959, 23rd overall in 1960, and 9th overall in the last national exams in 1961. it started primary classes in 1904 and first year high school classes in 1922, attained full high school status in 1927 - becoming the first private secondary school in the old Mountain Province. Through its Subprovincial Scholarship Program that brought together poor but deserving students from all over the Cordillera region, SMS contributed its fair share of promoting unity and understanding among the future leaders of the Cordillera region. Its more than 3,500 graduates include 5 who became bishops of the Episcopal Church and generations of priests, doctors, lawyers, engineers, teachers, technicians, military officers, and other professionals; held its first centennial celebration in 2012.
3. St. Theodore’s Hospital that transformed the old practice of healing diseases by appeasing anitos through animal sacrifices to the scientific treatment of diseases through medication and sanitary practices that saved thousands of lives from epidemics and improved the community health in general. St. Theodore’s Hospital started as a clinic in 1904 and in 1930 became the first private hospital in the old Mountain Province and still remains as the only private hospital in the new Mountain Province. It has been serving patients not only from the Sagada community but also other towns of Mountain Province and Kalinga. STH marked its diamond jubilee in 2005.
WHEREAS, the Mission Compound, originally a denuded area intended as a buffer zone against tribal enemies, was deveIoped and preserved by generations of Church stewards into a “green zone” that gives Sagada poblacion its refreshing environment and cool atmosphere; and has maintained its institutions and facilities for the benefit of the community wherein, today, the descendants of former tribal enemies come together for academic pursuits in the school and athletic competitions at the playgrounds; where games, ground demonstrations, cultural presentations, concerts and other public activities are held during town fiestas, church occasions and other community-wide events; where baptisms, weddings and other Christian rites are held in the iconic stone church; where the sick and the weary seek healing and wellness at the hospital; where guests and visitors seek quietude and commune with nature among the pines and limestones dotting the compound; and where Christian burials are performed in the cemetery on Calvary hill, while traditional burials are conducted on the limestone cliffs and caves in Bao-eng and Paytokan below Calvary hill;
WHEREAS, the Mission Compound also includes the Convent (built 1950s, now Parish Office) of the Sisters of St. Mary the Virgin who operated the Holy Child Orphanage (until the early 1970s) which was converted into St. Joseph Resthouse (1980s); old Rectory building (1950s); Doctors’ Residence building (1950s), Nurses Home building (1950s); Novitiate building (built 1970s, now rectors residence); building of the Sagada Community Consumers’ Cooperative, the first cooperative in Sagada established in the late 19603 and still operating; Montanosa Research and Development Center building (formerly Cabalda residence) constructed in the 1950s and renovated in the 1990s; Stapleton Hall building (1960s, now dormitory); Kindergarten building (1960s); and lately, Bishop Edward Longid Centrum; Senior Citizens’ building, Seismic Vaulthouse/Pier (in Tangeb) to monitor seismic movements for the PHlLVOCS center in Quezon City, and the Municipal Fire Station building (under construction);
WHEREAS, in recognition of the immense contribution of the Church through its mission center in the Mission Compound to the cultural and spiritual transformation and socioeconomic development of Sagada, and its invaluable impact on the town’s tourism industry, the Municipal Mayor and Sangguniang Bayan of Sagada have requested the Standing Committee of EDNP for a joint resolution to declare the Mission Compound as a Heritage Zone for posterity;
WHEREAS, the EDNP Standing Committee has deemed it beneficial to declare the Mission Compound as a Heritage Zone of the Church and the Sagada community considering the need for partners in the restoration and preservation of the existing original buildings which are in a state of dilapidation; the protection and preservation of the “green zone” from degradation, and the protection of the whole Mission Compound from encroachment.
RESOLVED, therefore, that the EDNP Standing Committee and the Sangguniang Bayan of Sagada hereby approve this Joint Resolution declaring the Mission Compound of the Parish of St. Mary the Virgin in Sagada Poblacion as a Heritage Zone to ensure its protection and preservation by both parties so that it will continue to benefit the whole community for generations to come; provided, that this declaration shall not alienate in whole or in part the Mission Compound as Church property; and that development projects to enhance the status of the Mission Compound as a heritage zone shall be undertaken in consultation with the Parish Vestry, with the consent of the EDNP Standing Committee, and the approval of the EDNP Ecclesiastical Authority.
RESOLVED, further, that a technical working group composed of representatives of the Church and the Sangguniang Bayan be organized to work out the recognition of this Heritage Zone by the appropriate agency under the National Commission [for Culture and the Arts.]
SIGNED this 30th day of October, 2017 at Sagada, Mountain Province, Philippines.
SANGGUNIANG BAYAN OF SAGADA:
HON. JOSEPH P. ACLOPEN
SB Member
HON. DAVID B. CUYUGAN
SB Member
HON. FELICITO O. DULA
SB Member
HON. DAVE A. GULIAN
SB Member
HON. PETER O. TAULI
SB Member
HON. MILTON W. TAWALI
SB Member
HON. JERRY P. TICAG
SB Member
HON. EZRA C. WADINGAN
SB Member
HON. JAIME G. DUGAO
SB Member – IPMR
HON. FERMIN S. LUMBAYA
SB Member
ENDP STANDING COMMITTEE:
FR. EZRA T. CALITONG
SC Member
FR. GREGORIO L. NACATAB, JR.
SC Member
MR. ROBERT BEKE
SC Member
MR. MODESTO D. GAAB
SC Member
MRS. ELSIE B. LOMONG-OY
SC Member (on leave)
MRS. NELLIE A. PIT-OG
SC Member
PARISH REPRESENTATIVES
(Witness)
MS. MARY G. UMAMIG
Senior Warden
ENGR. JOSEPH G. LACBAWAN
Junior Warden
REV. CONSTANCIO C. NA-OY
Rector, Parish of SMV
Attested:
MR. IRENIUS O. TAULI
Secretary, Sangguniang Bayan
FR. DANIEL K. LONGATAN
Secretary & Member, Standing Committee
We hereby certify that this Joint Resolution was approved by a majority of the EDNP Standing Committee and the Sangguniang Bayan of Sagada in its joint meeting on October 30, 2017 at Sagada, Mountain Province, Philippines.
HON. BENJAMIN C. CAPUYAN
Vice Mayor and SB Presiding Officer
FR. PRINCEL T. BALITOG
President, Standing Committee
Approved:
HON. JAMES B. POOTEN, JR.
Municipal Mayor
Municipality of Sagada
RT. REV. BRENT HW ALAWAS
Diocesan Bishop
Episcopal Diocese of Northern Philippines