Palo Archbishop John F. Du during the canonical possession and blessing of the St. Anthony of Padua Archdiocesan Shrine in Tabontabon, Leyte on June 6, 2016. At far right is Fr. Ebert “Concon” Trinchera, the rector. NESTOR ABREMATEA
Posted by Nestor Abrematea | UCANews| Jan 31, 2018 |
TABONTABON, Leyte – Devotees of St. Anthony of Padua are now flocking to the St. Anthony Archdiocesan Shrine in devotion to the miraculous saint and in thanksgiving for graces received.
St. Anthony of Padua Archdiocesan Shrine rector Fr. Ebert “Concon” Trinchera said the church has had to make changes to cope with the hordes of devotees that visit the archdiocesan shrine.
4:00 p.m. Mass is now being held every 13th day of the month, aside from a healing Mass every Tuesday, 9:00 a.m., at the archdiocesan shrine.
The devotion of Leyteños to the St. Anthony of Padua is “so strong,” noted the priest.
The devotees to the miraculous saint came from various parts of the Archdiocese of Palo in Leyte, he added.
Palo Archbishop John F. Du blessed and inaugurated the St. Anthony of Padua Archdiocesan Shrine on June 11, 2016 with former Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) president and Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas as pontifical Mass celebrant.
The Php88-million church building with a capacity of 1,800 people was constructed with funding from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops to replace the old St. Anthony of Padua Parish Church which was devastated by Super Typhoon Yolanda that struck Leyte and Samar on Nov. 8, 2013.
The shrine gained public attention when the relic of Saint Anthony of Padua was brought here in 2017 by Franciscan priests from Quezon City.
It was also brought to the St.Anthony of Padua Shrine in Sulangan, Guiuan, Eastern Samar, which is also a popular pilgrim shrine in Eastern Samar. CBCPNews
