This is not being advertised, but the Vatican earns approximately over €217 million annually from tourism sector. Halimbawa, Vatican museums, Sistine Chapel and others welcome around 7 million visitors every year, with ticket and souvenir sales reaching around $100 million. This is faith tourism, or religious tourism, in action for you.
Now… in Santo Tomas City in the Province of Batangas, there’s a shrine – which is also a parish – that sort of approaches faith the way Vatican does: not just as a location to observe faith, but as a tourist destination. Welcome to the National Shrine and Parish of Saint Padre Pio (or Padre Pio Shrine).
@outragemag #Faith #tourism via the #SaintPadrePio Shrine that we #LGBT checked in #SantoTomas, #Batangas ♬ original sound – Outrage Magazine
Una, this place is easy to find for those with private vehicles; Google-able and Waze-able naman siya. But this is a venue na dadayuhin, as it’s out of the way of public transport.
Ikalawa, just to emphasize: this is a holy place. Consecrated to the Italian Saint Pio of Pietrelcina, the church is the first in the province of Batangas to be designated a national shrine by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines.
Ikatlo, this place is huge, with different structures serving different purposes – e.g. there’s the salakot-shaped main church that has a replica of the Glorious Cross derived from the design used for the Archdiocese of Lipa during the Jubilee Year 2000; the Fountain of Hope; Stations of the Cross; the merch store; and a building housing relics of Saint Pio… among others.
Ika-apat, it has numerous first-class relics of Saint Pio – e.g. fabrics with drops of his blood. For the faithful, this matters a lot, symbolizing the very humanity of the saint, and how he was touched by God.
And ika-lima, the shrine also traces the history of faith in these parts of the country. It started as a small chapel along Maharlika Highway in Barangay San Pedro, prior to the establishment of the parish in 2003. Eventually, Ernesto and Adelaida Gonzaga donated a 1.6-hectare agricultural land also in Barangay San Pedro where a new and larger church would be built. By 2015, it was declared a national shrine.
Okay… typical of religious venues, this isn’t going to be for everyone, perhaps particularly among those who don’t agree with profiting off faith. But this is a must-check for devotees of Saint Pio. Or those wanting to check not-yet-antiquated churches in the area, whatever their reason may be. So drop by if or when able, even as we – ourselves – head out for more LGBTQIA+ rampa…
The National Shrine and Parish of Saint Padre Pio is located at Governor Antonio Carpio Avenue, Barangay San Pedro, Santo Tomas City, Province of Batangas.
