Parish Church of Saint Francis of Assisi of Alegria

Official Name: Parish Church of Saint Francis of Assisi of Alegria[1]

Classification Status: Classified Historic Structures (covering all Colonial Churches and other Houses of Worship, per NHCP Res. No. 3, s. 1991)[1]

Town or City: Alegria

Description:
San Francisco Javier Church, also known as Alegria Church, is a Roman Catholic church located in Alegria, a southwestern town on Cebu Island.[2]

History
Alegria, once part of Samboan, was formerly known as Tubod due to a popular spring. Its name, meaning "happy" in Spanish, reflects its cheerful nature. In 1857, Alegria became an official town, and on March 4 of that year, San Francisco Javier Church was designated as a parish.[2]

Architecture
The church, dedicated to St. Francis Xavier, is constructed from stone and cement. Its bell tower, situated one story higher than the church, resembles San Rafael Arcangel Church in Aloguinsan. The tower's base features an open-arched portico with rectilinear Tuscan pilasters, and above them, reliefs of foliage blend subtly into the structure. A round window is located above the arch, flanked by ornate blind arches within the pilasters.

The belfry on the second level overlooks the courtyard and the church's roof. It has open arches with a balustrade, flanked by slender fluted pilasters. An entablature divided into three sections, featuring icons, tops the belfry, with a monstrance as the central image. The roof is pyramidal with a balustraded parapet.

The main entrance, or puerta mayor, is an open arch flanked by pilasters adorned with foliage reliefs, similar to those on the bell tower, and a rose window. The church is wider than the bell tower, with extensions of the facade on either side, characterized by arched windows with metal tracery and crosses, flanked by pilasters ending in peaks. Above this is a smaller open arch window with decorative pilaster relief. The wall extends above the roof level, featuring a relief and a triangular gable with a blind quatrefoil window.

The interior is simply adorned, with colored rose windows and an arcade on the nave's walls, interrupted only by a side entrance.[2]

Source:
1. https://ncca.gov.ph/philippine-registry-cultural-property-precup/
2. https://www.theoldchurches.com/philippines/cebu/alegria/san-francisco-javier-church-in-alegria-cebu/