Friday, August 21, 2009

St. Benedict Monastery, Our Lady of Manaoag - Carmen, Cebu

I had a chance to visit this religious place sometime in November 2006 when my company was having its annual year-end outreach/pilgrimage program. The place was located in a mountainous area some few kilometers from Carmen proper. We went there to extend some help to our less fortunate brothers and sisters in the mountainous barangays. It was such a great experience being able to help other people and looking at their happy faces upon receiving our gifts for them. We attended a Holy Mass celebrated by Indian OSB (Order of St. Benedict) monk priests who are also the founding priests of the monastery. The priests were so accommodating and we were able to visit other areas of the site such as the Rosary Center where you can see beautiful paintings depicting the mysteries of the Holy Rosary. We also had the chance to go to the monastery itself hoping to get a chance to see the monks. Unfortunately, we didn't get even just a glimpse of their hands which is the only one you would be seeing, as what people are saying. Here are some photos i was able to capture. It was such a worthy experience and I plan to pay visit again to the place sometime.

A huge statue of the image of Sto.Nino located just beside the church. Just imagine how huge it is by looking at the photo.


A beautiful site which seemed like a stairway to heaven. The staircase leads to the Sto.Nino statue.

I forgot to mention that since the place is situated in the local mountains of Carmen, you can't just get away with breath-taking views by the hills and mountains.

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