A Piece of Korea in Bulacan: St. Andrew Kim Taegon Shrine

During our visit to the Philippines a few months ago, my sister-in-law brought me and my kids to this very popular Korean Temple in Bulacan.   As soon as we got back from our trip, I thought of featuring this place in my blog but unfortunately when I was looking at the pictures that I took, I was not satisfied with the photos that I got.  I used my smartphone in taking pictures, have I known that there’s this amazing place in Bulacan, I should have brought my husband’s DLSR with me.   

Situated in the serene city of Lolomboy, Bulacan is the Korean Shrine of Saint Andrew Kim Taegon, your ultimate destination to experience a piece of Korea.  As soon as you see the intricate design of the temple, you can already say that these are the structure that you can see in your favorite K-Pop series or movies.

The temple is dedicated to the Korean Saint – Saint Andrew Kim-Taegon, the Korean Catholic priest and the patron saint of the Roman Catholic clergy in Korea.  It was said that Saint Andrew Kim-Taegon stayed in the Philippines in the 18th century, the saint’s diary revealed that in 1830s to 1841 he sought refuge and studied in a place in Bulacan owned by the Dominican friars called “Hacienda de Lolomboy.” He left Lolomboy for China where he was ordained as deacon and became a priest the following year.  In 1845, he returned to Korea and led a group of French missionaries and started his mission to evangelize.  Because of these missionary activities, he was arrested and was sent to prison in Seoul until he was sentenced to death and was beheaded on Sept. 16, 1846.

Saint Andrew Kim -Taegon was beatified by Pope Pius XI in 1925, and canonized by Pope John Paul II in May 1984.

Saint Andrew Kim Taegon is the secondary patron saint of Lolomboy Parish, thus, the rise of the amazing Shrine of Saint Andrew Kim Tae-gon.  The Shrine overlooks a river to its right side facing the courtyard.  Inside the Shrine compound is a church, a chapel and a meditation room as well as gardens and monastic quarters for the Korean Catholic missionaries who are managing the entire place. This place is truly a sanctuary where you can experience tranquility.

The Shrine is about two hours away from Manila, it is a great place to visit when you want to pray, meditate and relax.  There are a few rules imposed by the Korean nuns who runs the place but there is no entrance fee to visit the place.