August 15, 1733 - Fr. Olalde is Assigned to Argao

(The church of Argao as it may have appeared in the late 1800s)

August 15 is the the 277th anniversary of Fr. Ignacio de Olalde's appointment as the first Cura Parroco of the parish of Argao, Cebu.

To this very day, Fr. de Olalde remains almost a mystery. Local historians cannot even agree on his very name: was he surname OLALDE or OLAVE? Both are Spanish surnames, although Olalde has a much better claim as it is an old Basque family name. Olalde means "side" or the "cabin area", where ola refers to foundry or cabin while alde stands for side or region. The surname first appeared in the Arrasate-Mondragon region of Guipuzcoa, Spain in the fifteenth century.

On the other hand, Olave as a surname has a more difficult history to trace. Although is believed to also be of Basque origin, its meaning and origin remains a mystery to this day. As Olalde appears more frequently compared to Olave, it is very highly probable that Argao's first parish priest was an Olalde.

Before Fr. de Olalde was appointed as Argao's founding spiritual father, he was probably one of the priests assigned to the Carcar mission tasked to minister to the various vicarias or vice-parishes of the parish of Carcar, Argao being one of them. Although Argao was established as a separate town in 1608, it remained a vice-parish until 1733, a scenario that is not clearly explained in old Spanish records. However, in 1733, the prominent men of Carcar petitioned the Augustinian fathers of Cebu to return the priests assigned to Carcar who were, apparently, spending more time in Argao than in their mother parish. And so, on August 15, 1733, Fr. Ignacio de Olalde was appointed to take control of the newly created parish of St. Michael the Archangel. However, from 1733 until about October of 1735, Fr. Olalde did not stay for long in Argao.

This was, of course, understandable as there was no church in Argao yet. So Fr. Olalde probably stayed in the house of one of the principalia of Argao while overseeing the construction of the church. Stories passed from generation to generation state that the making of the Argawanon delicacy torta dates to this time, when the demand for eggs was high due to the need for a cement-type of component that the white in the egg produced. It is most probable that Fr. Olalde was the one who insisted that the yolk from the eggs not be thrown away and instead be used as an ingredient for the new pastry, torta de Argao.

Other stories from the time of Fr. Ignacio de Olalde include the carving of the first ever San Miguel statue from one of the older trunks of the Sali-Argaw tree, which remained in the possession of the people of Argao until the 1970s when it was allegedly stolen by the goons of Imelda Marcos. Another story states that before the Argawanon natives were allowed to hear mass, they first had to present a block of coral stone to be used as a building material for the church.

It is not known when Fr. Olalde died, but his term of office was listed as having ended on June 22, 1737, barely four years after he was assigned to Argao. As most parish priests in those times served for life, it is very possible that he died in the town of Argao.

Death of a Principalia

En veinti ocho de Marzo de dos mil dies años: fue sepultado en el cementerio de esta parroquia el cadaver de Teodoro Gumila Villarimo mestizo Español, soltero, hijo de Primitivo Villarimo, natural del pueblo de Carcar vecino de este pueblo y Felisa Lucero Gumila mestizo Española de este pueblo de Argao, ambos ya difuntos. Abuelos paternos nombres cuyos ignorantes. Abuelos maternos Don Teodoro Gumila Cabrera mestizo Español y Doña Trinidad Lucero Vismanos india natural de este pueblo ambos ya difuntos. Fallecio de muerte natural (asmatico).

The above narrative would be more or less how the burial of one of my closest friends and relatives, Theodore Gumila Villarimo, would appear had he died in the Spanish period Philippines. Kuya Ted, or to his very close friends in Argao Tudengga Virus, or Myrna, or Denggay, was a proud aristocrat. It was only fitting that his wake and funeral was very historic and dramatic. The family came in almost full attendance: descendants of Don Cayetano Gumila Santana, an Inspector de Obras in the south of Cebu during the Spanish period and Doña Maria Cabrera Lucero. Luceros and Kintanars, both families very close friends and relatives of Ted, came in full force. Escarios from Bantayan, Solons from Cebu, a Reynes of the Reyneses of San Fernando, and an Estrada of Barili, were some of the people who showed up for Teddy's memorial and funeral, all of whom, Ted would have been happy to know, would have been listed in the Spanish period as "todos los principales de este pueblos de Argao, Bantayan, Cebu, San Fernando y Barili".

His wake was held at the more than 250-year old capilla mortuario, whose centermost relief, a skull perched atop a globe with an hourglass above it, is a constant reminder that death comes to all at any time. The effect of his wake being held there, with candles and white flowers around, was pure drama.

On the day of interment, his body was paraded around the walled complex of Argao, past the Casa Real where many of Ted's ancestors served as gobernadorcillo and other members of the ayutamiento. Then the hearse passed by the Hall of Justice, where many of Ted's male ancestors were educated during the Spanish period when it was still the Colegio de los Niños, or the school for boys. Slowly, the hearse passed through the street where Ted used toi walk by everyday until it passed by his office, the place he spent more waking hours than his own home and where he spent his weekends in without any overtime pay. Finally, the hearse and those following it entered the walled complex again through the Puerta del Sur or the South Gate, and then finally came to a stop at the entrance of the Archdiocesan Shrine of St. Michael the Archangel Church where many of Ted's ancestors and relatives were baptized, confirmed, wedded, and received their last rites.

As the casket was being carried out of the hearse, dozens of angel relief gazed down on the body. Carvings of Pelicans, symbols of self-sacrifice, adorn the church that Ted was so proud of. Finally, it made a slow procession into the vast church, 28 cherubs lined above and gazing down on the slow movement of the casket. Then, the melodic voice of Dwight Chavez, a descendant of the principalia Chavezes of Argao, broke through the silence as he sang Josh Groban's "You Raise Me Up".

The last rites were exactly what Ted would have wanted. The murals of Canuto Avila and Raymundo Francia above his casket, with all 42 cherubs of the church looking down from their perch. The church choir, led by Baby Calledo Sarchez, also a member of principalia families, conducted the singing of various English, Cebuano, and most especially Latin songs which surely made Ted smile.

Then, after the ceremony, Ted his final journey. The funeral cortege passed by Rizal street, perhaps the second oldest street in Argao, passing by many old houses of de la Peñas, Luceros, Kintanars, and many more, until finally entering the church cemetery. Surrounded by his Lola Eding, Lola Sabel, and many more relations, Ted was finally interred together with his father's remains.

Truly, Ted's life, though cut tragically short, was how he would have lived it again if he were given a chance to live once more. He lived an unabashed, almost shameless, life of an aristocrat, a real mestizo Español who was proud to call himself a principalia. All the time we spent together I would always cringe when he would declare proudly that he was a real principalia in Argao even when there were many people around us.

But yesterday, and forevermore, he was and will always be a principalia. With that note, I now bid my prima, my amiga, adios! Vaya con Dios, mi prima principalia!