Having seen many photos of the church of the Monastery of Transfiguration in Flickr, I secretly wished to explore and spend at least a day in this place sometime in my lifetime. Out of the blue, it came like an answered prayer. God must have granted this secret wish to visit His Church, and perhaps, He knows that I have a penchant for photographing churches wherever I go. In fact, it just dawned on me while I write this article, and I thank God for that opportunity.

We did not have much time to spare though. It was just a quick stop, and I had to act a la guerilla—quick and suave. Of course, I did not put prayer on the side. After my prayer, admiring the place came next.

With a little time allotted, the whole complex was too big and wide to be explored, so I focused on the entire church itself—leaving out the architectural details like the altar, which I found out later to be actually a boulder that was specially chosen and transported from the river near the church. They polished rough edges to be usable as an altar. Now I regret having missed the details.


Be that as it may, the short jaunt was not short at all, for it gave me that lasting memory for having visited a holy place. While researching on this place for this blog, I noted some interesting facts:

1. It was designed by our National Artist for Architecture, Leandro Locsin;
2. Its pyramid-like structure represents religious symbols: the triangular roof means The Triune God, and its square base represents mankind’s equality in the eyes of God;
3. The Monastery was inaugurated on August 6, 1983, and is now on its 29th year;
4. The new complex that we see now was built 10 years later, that started during the laying of its cornerstone on August 6, 1993; The new complex was blessed on March 21, 2002;
5. It is a home to one of the most loved “Monks’ Blend” coffee;

Sitting on the top of the hill, where one can enjoy profound serenity in the midst of nature’s beauty, the church complex is perfect for living a monastic life, or spending several days for spiritual retreats by both the religious and the lay people—where human nature meets God—where Jesus acts as channel between temporal and eternal existence.



Read more about transfiguration, HERE.
For more historical facts, click this link to the website of the Monastery of Transfiguration
For more photos, visit my Flickr Photo Stream.





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