St. Francis Xavier Parish – Palompon

The parish of St. Francis Xavier of Palompon, which originally belonged to the parish of Hilongos was permanently established as a village in 1637 by the Jesuit missionaries. Due to the distance, few masses could be celebrated in the village chapel, which was razed to the ground during one of the raids made by the Moros. The missionaries afterwards constructed a bigger structure, a bigger church with massive walls made out of stone bricks. When the Jesuits left in 1708 and were replaced by the Agustinians, the construction continued under their tutelage. Some 300 conscripted workmen using crude tools labored for almost four decades under skilled masons as Alha, Bugto-Pasan, Balirasay and Tumbalasay. The construction was finally completed on November 12, 1784, and the structure is said today to be the oldest in Leyte. It was during this event that Palompon also earned its parroquial independence from Hilongos.

The townspeople adopated St. Francis Xavier as their patron saint in 1803, under the initiative of Fray Santiago Francisco. The tales of valor and heroism displayed by the Palomponganons during the Moro raids during those times must have been inspired by their devotion to this great Spanish missionary, whose miraculous image is still venerated in the parish church up to this day.

​Two centuries have passed since the erection of the Palompon parish, and it has been growing steadily all throughout this time. This could be observed in the upkeep, renovation and conservation of the parish church, the religious life of the Christian community, the organization of various religious programs and others. These efforts have been spearheaded by the town’s parish priests and his assistants.

Among these, the figure and accomplishments of the last five parish priests are worthy of mention, starting from Fr. Stephen Pesado, who served from 1988 to 1992. He was the one responsible for sustaining the BEC program inaugurated in the parish by his predecessor, Msgr. FilemonQuianzon, as well as having formulated the WESTY commissions with corresponding heads. Aside from improving the church grounds and some realizing some important repairs in the church structure, he launched the parish newsletter.

​His successor, Msgr. Isidro Arroyo is noted for having initiated the visitation of the image of St. Francis Xavier to the baranggays in preparation for the parish fiesta on December 3, as well as having organized the formulation of the parish vision-mission-goal statement in response to the Archdiocesan Pastoral Assembly held in 1996. During his tenure he constructed the Adoremus Chapel as well as submitting the Rectory and the

Parish Center under renovation. In 1999 he was replaced by Msgr. Manuel Damayo. He reconstructed various structures such as the church altar and the sacristy; he connected the old convent structure of the Parish Center by a bridge. During his mandate he sought to reach out to the different institutions and agencies by scheduling Masses at least once a month in their centers. He stayed there until 2001, when he was succeeded by Msgr. Cesar Petilla, who conducted a parish assembly in order to evaluate parish programs and the faith-life of the community. He gave emphasis on Christian formation by organizing formation teams to give seminars to the barangays; he also organized HUGPO, the result of the Kerygma and Basic Bible Seminar as a preliminary to the BEC. He recommended Palompon as one of the pilot areas of the NASSA, as a recipient of its programs and projects. He also revived the BEC, which was then beginning to be presented as the Archdiocesan thrust, within the parish. Among other things he renovated the façade of the parish church and constructed the Veneremus Chapel and restored the choir loft.

​At present the parish is administered by Rev. Fr. Albert T. Opiniano, appointed by the Archbishop Jose S. Palma in 2007. He is ably assisted by his assistants, Rev. Fr. Ramon Fian, Rev. Fr. Michael Arevalo, who also serves as the priest-in-charge of the San Miguel mission station, and Rev. Fr. Roy Villas.