IMMACULATE CONCEPSCION PARISH (Brgy. Villamonte, Bacolod City)

IMMACULATE CONCEPSCION PARISH PROFILE:

I. Brgy. Villamonte Parish: Immaculate Conception Parish and Shrine (F. 1967)(1962)

II. Address: Margarita St., Brgy. Villamonte, Bacolod City 6100

III. Lot: 4,000 sq. m. Donated by Don Alfredo Montelibano Sr. and Family

IV. Titular: Immaculate Concepcion

V. Feast Day: December 8

VI. Vicariate: Bacolod North

VII. Chronology of Assigned Priests at Immaculate Conception Parish and Shrine (Brgy. Villamonte,):

           

As Part of the Community Area of San Sebastian parish:

       

      Chaplaincy (April 1, 1962):

1. Fr. Vicente Salgado                 1962-1969…

      Associate Priest:

      Fr. Gregorio Dompor(Oct. 27,1990)

      Fr. Vicente Pelobello(POM)      applied sabbatical.               

      Fr. Leopoldo Gargantiel

Parish (March 4, 1969):

     Fr. Vicente Salgado                  …1969-1971: was assigned as Parish Priest of                                                             Cadiz.

     

2. Fr. Wilfredo Saldajeno           1971-1975: was assigned as Parish Priest of  Bago                                                   City: St. John the Baptist Parish, Bago City..

      Parochial Vicar:

      Fr. Leopoldo Gargantiel

      Fr. Sol Puentespina (POM)                went into a sabbatical leave.

      Fr. Norberto Chavez               1973-1976: was assigned as Parochial vicar of                                                               Silay: San Diego Parish, Silay City.

      Parish Administrator:

3. Fr. Josefino Iledan                 1975-1976: was assigned as Rector of St.                                                                   Joseph Regional Seminary.

      Parochial Vicar:

      Fr. Norberto Chavez               1975-

      Fr. Felix Hernaez(POM)

      Fr. Roger Apurado                 1976-1977: was assigned to the parish of                                                                         Hinigaran.      

4. Fr. Rafael Arib                       1976-1985: was assigned to the Bakyas Area                                                             ministry.

      Parochial Vicar:

     

      Fr. Francis Garbanzos

      Fr. Dominador V. Dumagat   May 1979-June 1979: was assigned as Chaplain of                                                         Henrietta Village: St. Joseph Chaplaincy, Bacolod                                                                City.

      Fr. Dalmacio Sua-an(POM)

      Fr. Rolando Nueva                 May 1981-1982: was assigned as substitute to                                                                 Tabugon parish, Kabankalan.

5. Fr. Nicasio Melicor                June 29,1985-May 21, 1990: was transferred to                                                       Sum-ag parish.

      Parochial Vicar:

     

      Fr. Wilfredo Dejilla                 1987: was assigned parish priest of Cadiz City                                                                parish.

      Fr. Joevic Lemoncito              May 15, 1988-May 16,1991: was assigned as                                                                  Chaplain of Da-an Banwa Chaplaincy, Victorias                                                                  City.

6. Msgr. Andres Delfín               May 21, 1990-1995: was assigned as Chaplain of                                                     Mt. View Chaplaincy, Bacolod City.

Parochial Vicar:

      Fr. Joevic Lemoncito

      Fr. Alfredo Gamarcha            Aug. 6, 1992-Jan. 14, 1994: was assigned as                                                                   Chaplain of Central Ma-ao, Brgy. Jorge                                                                                Araneta, Bago City.

      Fr. Ivan Victor Intong             Apr. 25, 1994-Ja. 1995: was assigned as                                                                         Administratorilan: Most Holy Rosary Parish: Brgy.                                                               Alangilan, Bacolod City.

7. Parish administrator:

      Fr. Pedro Hiponia                  1995-May 20, 1996: was assigned as parish priest                                                          of Bago: St. John the Baptist Parish, Bago City.

8. Fr. Narciso de la Cruz    May 20, 1996-Sept. 17, 2001: was assigned as parish                                                      priest of  Tangub: St. Isidore Parish, Brgy. Tangub,                                                  Bacolod City.

      Parochial Vicar:

      Fr. Henryk Villanueva            April 1996-July 1996: was assigned as Chaplain of Central Ma-ao.

      Fr. Louis Mediodia

      Fr. Aniceto Buenafe                June 1996-1998: he stayed at candles.

      Assisting Deacon:

      Rev. Nitodel Soriano               Apr. 7,1998-

      Rev. Abner Gingos

      Associate Priest:

      Fr. Nitodel Soriano                 June 15,1998-

      Fr. Abner P. Gingos               1999-

      Fr. Angelo Ansula                   1996-              

                 

9. Fr. Genaro C. Demecais                    2001-2003: went to the U.S. and                                                                                continued his ministry there until                                                                                now (as of April 2009).

      Parochial Vicar:

      Rev. Alex Araneta                               2002-

10. Parish Administrador:

      Fr. Aniceto Buenafe Jr.                     Aug. 2003-2005: was             assigned      

                                                                  as Commission on Social Action director                                                                         based at Bishop’s House.

11.  Fr. Samson Mariano                                    2005- (as of March 2009)      

VIII. Religious Vocations of men and women from Immaculate Concepcion Parish                (Brgy. Villamonte):

Priest:

1. Fr. Rayman Asoy
2. Fr. Raymon Asoy
3. Fr. Philip Bonifacio,SSC(from Homsite)
4. Fr. Rayman Cornel
5. Fr. Angel Vinzon-Fidel (Bacolod-Murcia Milling Co.)
6. Msgr. Josefino Ilejay-Iledan(from Homsite)
7. Fr. Napoleon Ilejay-Iledan(POM)(from Homsite)
8. Fr. Robert Jaranilla
9. Fr. Jude Militante-Serfino
10. Fr. Ebenezer Guanizo-Samonte
11. Msgr. Rufino Belardo-Suplido Jr.

Brother:

1. Bro. Dennis Magabanua,FSC
2. Bro. Rey  Belardo-Suplido.FSC

Nun:

Sr. Josephine Mallorca-Sugon,HGS

Nota Bene:

The Catholic Directory of the Diocese of Bacolod 2008 indicated 1969 as the date of the erection as a parish but did state its foundation as a parish.  Basing from the first priest who was assigned and who stayed in the parish, the foundation date should be 1962 when Fr. Vicente Salgado started living with the community.

Introduction

            The history of the parish has gone a long way from five decades ago when the Catholic community was holding Sunday Masses at Ylac-PreSchool in Barrio Obrero.  Barrio Obrero was the old name of the place before the Village of Montelibano or Villa de Montelibano which was shortened to Villamonte came to being.

            The cabin-like-wooden church and galvanized roofing was made by the community for the holding of  sacred worship. The rich history of the faithful’s generosity with their time, talent and treasure was the most unique character of this magnificent parish community. The parish had its dark-nights of the soul to quote St. Therese of the Child Jesus and St. John of the Cross but were vanished by the God’s grace manifested through the honest and dedicated members and clerics.

The Phenomenological Church

            1962-1970. The makeshift chapel was already in place when Fr. Salgado was chaplain. The convent was at the back of the church but before this, the good father stayed at the chapel office which also served as his sleeping area. Legion of Mary was popularized by him. Cursillo page 13 & Brgy. Sang Virgen.

            1971-1980. Fr. Salgado was not a church builder. He was a simple priest. Fr. Arib succeeded Fr. Salgado and he was good in organizing church groups. He organized the community of believers according to Puroks. He was very down to earth, he went house to house and he was very popular among church workers and church members because he visited them at home to know them further personally.

           

            In the 1970s, the Barangay sang Virgen Movement  enjoyed great popularity in the parish during his time because he put focused on it and thus, it experienced massive expansion among different Puroks and community areas. He followed the manual of the Barangay Sang Virgen in establishing small Catholic communities. This small communities were  composed of forty five houses which were divided into three which were representing the Father, The Son and the Holy Spirit.  These three were again subdivided into three which were representing the three decade-mysteries of the Holy Rosary: the joyful mystery, the sorrowful mystery and the glorious mystery. These three subdivisions were further divided into fifteen families which were representing the fifteen mysteries of the three decades of the Rosary.

            In the 1980s, the Charismatic movement became popular among the parishioners. Fr. Arib at first was hesitant about this semi-pentecostal movement. But, according to believers of this movement, through the urging of the Spirit he joined the Catholic Charismatic Movement and even became its diocesan Spiritual Director. Fr. Arib was instrumental in further popularizing the movement among different parishes because being a member of the cloth his actions and actuations were not seen as suspect.

            1981-1990.  Fr. Arib, initiated the Life in the Spirit Seminars among willing parishioners and these parishioners were later commissioned to give the same seminars to other areas who requested for the Life in the Spirit Seminars. Fr. Arib left Villamonte Parish when he was assigned to a new Area ministry in Bakyas in 1985. Fr. Nicasio Melicor took over the spiritual care of the parish after Fr. Arib.  The Boholano priest was a competent musician. He organized different choirs which enliven the Eucharistic liturgies. Due to the growing number of parishioners, Fr. Nic expanded  the wing-side of the church. He was a bit strict in the impression of many of the parishioners.

            1991-2000. Msgr. Delfin Fr. Gamarcha. On May 20, 1996, Fr. Narciso de la Cruz took over the spiritual management of the parish from Msgr. Delfin. He was a personal friend of the Divinagracia family whose house was a wall away from the eastside of the parish church. Priests were known to have kidded him as not staying in the convento (convent two)  but in the convent one of the Divinagracia’s. The generosity of the Divinagracia had helped him in concentrating in his ministry, especially, as Spiritual Director of the Bukas Loob prayer group. His connection with a number of generous people encouraged him to build a new church building with the encouragement of the parish community. Thus, was the inauguration of the present (April2009) magnificent church of Vilamonte, the biggest ecclesiastical structure in the Vicariate of North Bacolod.  The strictness of Fr. Naring when it comes to church property and the sacredness of the Liturgies made him not popular among some members but was not felt by the greatest majority who had not encountered him close and personal.

            2001-2009. Fr. Genaro Demecais was given the tasked of completing the construction of the church when the general  shuffling was implemented in 2001. Fr. Gene was the third musically competent priest assigned in this parish, aligning on the genre of Msgr. Nic and Fr. Naring. The construction of the huge parish church for the increasing community was initiated by Fr. Gene and continued by Fr. Aniceto Buenafe Jr.. Today (May 2009) the final phase of the construction and finishing touches of the grand structure is being well-managed by Fr. Samson Mariano.

The Church of the Poor

      Bro. Gratian Murray put up a school for the economically poor and in tandem with Fr. Salgado they had made great impact to the community. The church that was built by Fr. Salgado with the help of the congregation was an effort of the whole ministry. The privileged and the economically challenged shared in the church construction. There was a big stone that was put as the base of the altar which symbolized the total effort of the faithful. This stone’s historical significance was unkempt in Fr. Naring’s time which made Msgr. Salgado poignant because for him that was a representation of the church of the poor.

      Priest assigned here did their share in uplifting the plight of the financially-challenged members through their individual charitable and livelihood projects.