From Culasi, we all boarded our van for the 19-km. drive to the next town of Sebaste where we paid a courtesy call on Mayor Jose Christopher A. Varona at the town’s municipal hall.  After our courtesy call, we again boarded our van and made a stopover at the nearby Church of St. Blaise, a pilgrimage site.  There is nothing outstanding about the church, which is of modern design. It’s what’s inside that matters – the venerated image of St. Blaise (locally called Señor San Blas).

The Church of St. Blaise

The church altar

The statue was sent as a gift to Fr. Mariano Vicente Zapanta, then the assigned parish priest of Pandan, by his mother Doña Matilde Zapanta, wife of the Duke of Seville. When Fr. Zapanta was transferred to Ipayo (the former name of Sebaste), he brought along with him the statue of St. Blaise and installed him in the church. Not long after, St. Blaise was made the patron saint of Ipayo and the town’s name was changed to Sebaste to honor the town, somewhere in Armenia or Capadoccia, where St. Blaise, then a bishop, had a see.

The widely venerated statue of St. Blaise

Jandy placing his head underneath the statue

Aside from being a bishop, St. Blaise was also a Doctor of Medicine and a throat specialist. Miracles, attributed to him, claim that he not only prevented calamities, but also healed the sick. The news of his miracles spread throughout the length and breadth of the region. Thus, every 3rd of February, his feast day, countless number of people from Antique, Aklan, Iloilo, Capiz, Negros, Mindanao, Mindoro and many other places, visit the church for healing.

The prayer to St. Blaise

The statue of St. Blaise is carried over to touch the head, the back and up to the ankle of devotees, from different places and from all walks of life, but especially the poor and the simple, who flock to the church and line up, seeking the miracle of healing or his intercession.  Though it was already past his feast day, we were given the privilege to do just that, albeit in a shorter queue.  I prayed to him for healing, not just for myself, but also for my autistic son Jandy. We also recited the prayer to the saint.

How To Get There: Sebaste is located 108.9 kms. from San Jose de Buenavista, 206 kms. from Iloilo City (Iloilo) and 69 kms. from Kalibo (Aklan).