The Official Website of Our Lady of La Paz Parish

OUR LADY OF LA PAZ HISTORY

  From five families to a full-grown parish community in the early 1950's, what is now     known as Barangay La Paz was opened by the Ayala Corporation as its post war residential subdivision. It used to be part of Barrio Palanan. By May 1949, no more than five families had built their modest homes in this part of Makati. 

When the number of families grew, the community residents felt the need to become independent from Palanan. Hence, the birth of Barrio La Paz. In January 1954, the La Paz Civic Club was organized and was subsequently followed by the La Paz Women's Club. To provide for the spiritual needs of the faithful, makeshift altars in privately owned garages served as temporary weekend chapels. On May 2, 1954, the La Paz Civic Club sponsored the first barrio fiesta while the La Paz Women's Club spearheaded the move to built a permanent church. In October 1954, they were able to acquire a church site, and in May 1967, Our Lady of La Paz  chapel was constructed. The chapel was initially under the of Sts. Peter and Paul but was later made into sub-parish of the Sacred Heart.

In February 1976, archbishop Jaime L. Sin, D. D., canonically erected the Parish of Our lady of La Paz and declared its boundaries. It was formally inaugurated with the installation of the first Pastor, Fr. Alberto Roman, OSC, on March 14, 1976. The cornerstone for the construction of a bigger church was laid on December 12, 1981 by His Eminence Jaime Cardinal Sin.

 It was after the appointment of the first pastor that the faithful worked for the acquisition of the lot where the little chapel squatted. Representations were made with Traders Royal Bank which eventually donated the lot for the Parish. Subsequently, three other lots were obtained. This allowed the construction of a bigger House of God. The two front lots that now constitute the St. Camillus Plaza were later acquired by Fr. Alberto from its owner while the present church was under construction.

 In August of 1995, Fr. Ivo Z. Anselmi, OSC was installed as the new Parish Priest succeeding Fr. Mario Didone, OSC. Some repairs and renovations were carried on to lift the aesthetic beauty of the church. The unfinished façade of the church was completed in cooperation with the new Parish Pastoral Council through its Temporalities Committee via a project "Donate a Church Tile Fund Drive". Today, the towering majestic white-tiled cross stand out in the village alongside with the skycrapers of the prime city of Makati.