Mother of All Asia–Tower of Peace
The Mother of All Asia–Tower of Peace is a monument, sculpture and shrine dedicated to the Virgin Mary located inside the five-hectare pilgrimage site called Montemaria in Barangay Pagkilatan, Batangas City, Philippines. Currently under construction, it is set to become the world's tallest statue of the Virgin Mary at 96 m (315 ft).
 The statue as viewed on November 3, 2018 | |
| Coordinates | 13.6423°N 121.0433°E |
|---|---|
| Location | Montemaria, Barangay Pagkilatan, Batangas City, Philippines |
| Designer | Eduardo Castrillo |
| Type | Statue |
| Height | 96 m (315 ft) |
| Beginning date | 2014 |
| Opening date | 2021 (planned) |
| Dedicated to | Virgin Mary (Mother of All Asia) |
| Website | montemaria |
History
The construction of a statue of the Virgin Mary and pilgrimage site at the Montemaria development in Batangas City was originally planned and pursued by the Mary Mother of the Poor Foundation (MMP) led by Catholic priest Fernando Suarez.[1] Suarez got the idea of developing a pilgrimage site from Hermilando Mandanas, a local politician and acquaintance whom he met in 2006, where the priest could perform his faith healing work. Mandanas' company, Abacore Capital Holdings, Inc., donated the five-hectare land in Barangay Pagkilatan where the statue and the proposed pilgrimage site would stand, which would later be called Montemaria.[2]
Initially progress for the project was made in 2009 after Suarez's foundation was able to raise ₱200 million. But in the following year, the project was later put on hold after Suarez moved to Cavite, where San Miguel Corporation offered him a 33-hectare land in the town of Alfonso where he could set up a bigger pilgrimage site. Cited as the one responsible for building a statue of the Virgin Mary at Montemaria, Mandanas continued to project and established the Montemaria Asia Pilgrims Inc. (MAPI) to help him manage the project's development. The property where the statue would stand was later set for donation to MAPI but such plans were canceled and the land was donated to the Archdiocese of Lipa instead. At the time, the statue which had its face and hands already complete, became known as the "Mary Mother of All Asia".[2]
Construction work for the statue began in 2014 and is expected to be completed in 2021 marking the 500th anniversary of the introduction of Christianity in the Philippines.[3]
Design
The Mother of All Asia statue was designed by sculptor Eduardo Castrillo[4] and is made of concrete and steel. With the planned height of 96 m (315 ft),[1] the Marian statue will surpass the Virgin of Peace statue in Venezuela to become the tallest statue of the Virgin Mary in the world.[3]
The monument will have occupiable floors with a floor area of around 12,000 m2 (130,000 sq ft). A place of worship, the St. John Paul II Shrine, will be hosted in the ground floor of the monument. Other facilities to be hosted in the monument are reception halls and 12 Marian chapels on the third floor, a food hall on the fourth floor, two mini theaters on the fifth floor, conference rooms as well as a balcony featuring flags of the countries of Asia on the sixth floor, and a view deck situated on the 17th floor. The seventh to 10th floors will host commercial and residential spaces.[5]
See also
References
- "Shrine at Montemaria, Batangas, Philippines". The Philippine Reporter. 16 July 2009. Retrieved 4 November 2018.
- Tulfo, Ramon (8 March 2014). "Another Montemaria shrine rising in Batangas City". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
- "300 ft Virgin Mary statue stands tall in Batangas". The Filipino Times. 14 February 2018. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
- Dacer, Kaye (11 April 2017). "Monte Maria, a vacation to remember!". Abante Tonite (in Filipino). Retrieved 1 November 2018.
- Soriano, Jennifer (1 March 2018). "Montemaria and the Rise of Batangas' Religious Tourism". Balik Bayan Magazine. Retrieved 1 November 2018.