Boac, Marinduque, Philippines-Our Second Home

Chateau Du Mer Conference Hall dressed up for a Wedding Reception

The following video was tagged into my FaceBook timeline by Dr Roby Montellano and made by Bert Morelos of Vancouver, Canada. Thank you Roby and I am taking this opportunity to share this video with my blog readers from 152 countries all over the world.

Boac, Marinduque, is our second Home! The economy and tourism of the province is now being threatened by trimming of Zest Air flights from Manila to Boac after the end of October this year. I am hoping that another airline will take over air service to this beautiful island-known worldwide as the Heart of the Philippines. Boac is the Capital town of the Province of Marinduque in the Philippines. One of its barangay is Amoingon, where my beach resort Chateau Du Mer is located.

Short History of Boac:The name Boac is derived from the Tagalog word biak, which means "divided". The town had been divided into two areas by a river running from the Eastern hinterland to the Western plains down to the sea. The two areas were the Northern Area and the Southern Area.

In 1621, the Spanish Jesuit missionaries brought the 3-foot Marian image to Boac. So began the people's devotion to the image of the Virgin Mary. In the mid-seventeenth century, a group of Muslims within the Philippines called the Moro people felt threatened by the actions of the ruling Spanish government. So, they challenged the government by launching attacks on coastal Christian towns. This resulted in a raid along the shores of Barangay Laylay, near the Boac River.

During the siege, the neighborhood people fled in panic and took refuge inside the fortress church of Boac, which is now called Immaculate Conception Cathedral. In the meantime, all able-bodied men defended the outer walls of the church fortress against the attacks. Many Christians were killed and, by the third day of violence, those still alive began to run short on food. The capture of the fortress seemed imminent.

The survivors began to pray fervently at the throne of Mary, asking her to deliver them from their enemies. Legend says that suddenly there came a very strong storm, with torrential rain fall, thunder and lightning. At the very height of the storm, it is reported that the image of a beautiful lady with outstretched arms appeared standing on the top of the wall. Terror seized the Moros and they fled in confusion to their vinta boats. Thus, the Christians were saved from death by Mary.

Ever since this incident, the image of Mary has been honored and given the title “Biglang Awa.” In order to commemorate the miracle, a stone niche was built on the wall at the very spot where Mary appeared. The old image brought by the Jesuits in Boac was placed there. There is still a shrine at this location today.

Governor Carmencita Ongsiako Reyes built a larger-than-life-size image of the Virgin Mary in cement and placed in the seashore in Balanacan Port to welcome travelers to the island.(see photo on bottom of this page)

On May 10, 2008, the Diocese of Boac celebrated the thirtieth anniversary and the golden anniversary of the canonical coronation of Mahal na Birhen ng Biglang-Awa (1958–2008). Cardinal Ricardo Vidal of Mogpog, Marinduque, officiated at the consecrated mass.

In 1942, Boac was occupied by Japanese troops. In 1945, the Battle of Marinduque began and the American - Philippine Commonwealth troops landed in Boac. Boac is now the home of about 50,000 natives called the Boacaneous.