Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma has called for the “immediate return” to Boljoon, Cebu the pulpit panels that were donated to the National Museum of the Philippines (NMP).
In a statement released on the official Facebook page of the Cebu Archdiocese, Palma said the “long-lost” religious artifacts were removed nonconsensually from Boljoon heritage church, the Patrocinio de Maria Santisima Parish Church.
Palma said the artifacts were “removed without permission” a long time ago and while the church is elated to have finally learned they have resurfaced, the panels should be returned to Boljoon.
STATEMENT
The Archdiocese’s statement reads in full:
“We are gladdened that the four long-lost pulpit panels from the Archdiocesan Shrine of Patrocinio de Maria Santissima in Boljoon, Cebu have finally resurfaced and are now in the possession of the National Museum of the Philippines.
These panels were removed without permission from the Local Ordinary at the time, my predecessor, His Eminence Ricardo J. Cardinal Vidal.
No official record exists neither in the Archdiocesan Archives nor in the Chancery Office of any request from the Parish Priest at the time, Fr. Faustino Cortes, requesting approval to deconsecrate them for removal, much less conveyance to third parties in exchange for monetary purposes of the parish. The Code of Canon Law no. 1284 states that all administrators, referring to the Parish Priests, are bound to exercise vigilance so that the goods entrusted to their care are in a way not lost or suffer damage. Neither would this have been approved, knowing that these panels are sacred objects of the church, where for centuries, Augustinian friars delivered sermons to the faithful.
While we understand the National Museum's desire to exhibit the same to the general public, we have to assert the sacral nature of these panels. They are integral to the patrimony of the church as part of her missionary work and thus considered sacred. Their illegal removal constitutes a sacrilege. They should never have been treated, then or now, as mere artworks for exhibition in museums, much less for private appreciation by the collectors who purchased them. For these panels are considered in the ecclesial rite as tools of evangelization.
Given the foregoing, the Archdiocese of Cebu hereby asserts its ownership of these panels and requests their immediate return to Boljoon at the pulpit where they were surreptitiously removed.
It is also my ardent hope that a proper venue for constructive dialogue be provided so as to meet the befitting terms of the parties concerned.”
NMP STATEMENT
On February 19, 2024, five days after the panels were turned over to the museum officially, NMP released a statement explaining its position concerning the panels. According to the museum, it respects the greater historical backdrop against which the religious pieces exist.
It assured of a “constructive dialogue” and “exchange of technical assistance to facilitate sharing the four panels with the people of Cebu as soon as possible.”
NMP maintained, however, that the artifacts will remain in their possession, at least in the meantime, as they “continue to pursue preventive conservation measures necessary to prepare them for public display in due course.”
The statement came two days after Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia and Boljoon Mayor Jojie Derama appealed for a conversation on the possible return of the panels.
DONATION
The four 19th century pulpit panels whose provenance trace from a heritage church in Boljoon, Cebu were turned over to NMP by private collectors as part of a “Gift to the Nation.''
Netizens, especially those from Boljoon, however, were quick to point out that these artifacts were reportedly stolen some time in the 1980s from the Archdiocesan Shrine of Patrocinio de Maria Santissima, and therefore deserve to be brought back to where it originally belonged.
