History
According to the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, the shrine and convent was originally dedicated to Saint Therese of Lisieux. A prominent statue of her in a grotto is featured in the balcony of the church honouring this proto-patronage. The Irish and Australian Redemptorists who came to Manila had two choices, both the Caloocan versus Baclaran area. The Redemptorist priests brought the icon of Our Mother of Perpetual Help to Baclaran in 1906. Wednesday has been known as Baclaran day since the first Baclaran Novena was conducted on June 23, 1948, a Wednesday. Contrary to popular belief, the Perpetual Novena did not start in Baclaran but in the province of Iloilo at the Redemptorist Church of San Clemente. After witnessing the devotion of the Ilonggos (Iloilo natives) to the Mother of Perpetual Help Novena, the Irish Redemptorist Father Gerard O'Donnell introduced the novena to Baclaran. Father Leo English conducted the first Baclaran Novena with 70 participants.
The icon and the church have undergone changes over time. In 1932, the Redemptorist priests replaced the Mother of Perpetual Help icon with a larger version to accommodate the growing number of devotees. The present church building of Modern Romanesque style is the third to be built on the same site. In December 1952, the National Shrine of Our Mother of Perpetual Help was completed.
Read more about this topic: National Shrine Of Our Mother Of Perpetual Help
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