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| Construction began in 1951 and later finished on 1954 in time of Rev. Conrad Blanchet |
December 12, 1948 marked the arrival of the Missionaries of Our Lady of La Salette to the Philippines in response to the call of Bishop Constance Jurgens, DDof Tuguegarao to meet the spiritual needs of Isabela.
The first La Salette Missionaries assigned in Santiago was Fr. Conrad Blanchet, MS. The first years of the La Salette Fathers were spent in the organization of the parish. In 1951, Fr. Blanchet, MS continued rebuilding the church and was later completed in 1954 by Fr. Maurice Cardinal, MS who later took over as the Parish Priest.
In the mid 1960’s, after the Vatican II, the thrust of the parish centered on catechesis with emphasis on liturgies. The Parish Pastoral Council was then organized like: The Family Life Program, Marriage Encounter organized by Fr. Maurice Cardinal, MS, the Cursillo Movement through the efforts of Fr. Emery Des Rochers, MS and the Cooperatives through the initiative of Fr. Efren L. Musngi, MS.
These programs were introduced in the other La Salette parishes with St. James as springboard. In the early 80’s, the parish council as an organization was extended through the establishment of the WEST (Worship, Evangelization, Services, and Temporalities) Commissions.
These Commissions were introduced by Fr. Orlando Sapuay, MS, strengthened by Fr. Constante Dannug, MS, and continued and activated by succeeding parish priests initiated the involvement of so many lay leaders and members. The WEST Commissions have been great help in the systematic functioning of an alive parish in its thrust of creating Basic Ecclesial Communities in the Barangays.
SOURCE: https://lasalettephilippines.org/early-parish-ministries
