Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario - The Queen and Patroness of the Royal and Pontifical University of Santo Tomas

Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario de Universidad de Santo Tomas

The historic and scenic University of Santo Tomas, located in its present campus in España Boulevard in Sampaloc, Manila, is known to be the oldest University in the country and in Asia circa 1611. This Dominican University played a significant role on building our nation by honing the minds of our future heroes, leaders and most importantly, its beatified and canonized saints. These feats and great contribution of the University will not be possible if wasn't for the guidance and protection of its beloved patroness since its founding - Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario.

Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario
de Universidad de Santo Tomas

The Image

The beautiful image of Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario of the University of Santo Tomas is a de tallado image of Our Lady of the Rosary that is vested with a cape, a lace veil, wears a pair of wigs and crowns for both Mother and Child.

The Virgin sports the diagnostic doce estrellas and holding a rosary. The image has a wooden de tallado body consists of a white robe and blue cape for the Virgin and a red robe for the Child Jesus and the heads and hands of the Mother and Child were made of ivory. The image stands on a cloud base and was presented as the Virgin handing over her rosary to the beholder while the Child Jesus looking at the side imparting His blessing.

The image at present is enshrined at the side altar of the Parish/University Chapel yet it on her novena and fiesta, she is transferred to a specially decorated main altar.

The Royal and Pontifical University

To understand the history of the patronage of Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario of the University of Santo Tomas, here is a brief history of the university itself. The history of the university dates back on April 28, 1611 in its original site in Intramuros (a few blocks away from old Santo Domingo Church) when Archbishop Miguel de Benavides, OP wanted to establish a "seminary-college" to prepare young men for the priesthood. The funds were bequeathed as early as 1605, including his personal library, became the nucleus for the start of UST and its library. The college was first named "Colegio de Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario" in honor of Our Lady of the Rosary then it was later changed to "Colegio de Santo Tomas" in honor of the Dominican Order's foremost theologian and Doctor of the Church, St. Thomas Aquinas.

The original UST Campus in Intramuros that was destroyed
during the Second World War

On July 29, 1619 the Colegio was authorized to confer academic degrees in theology and philosophy. By November 20, 1645, Pope Innocent X elevated the college to a "University". In 1680, it was subsequently placed under the royal patronage of the Spanish monarchy. In 1681, Pope Innocent XI declared it a Public University of General Studies allowing it to confer other degrees. In 1734 Pope Clement XII authorized the University to confer degrees in all existing faculties as well as in all others that might be introduced in the future. The Pope also approved the curriculum in the entire field of jurisprudence.

During the British invasion of Manila in 1762, the University raised four companies of students and professors numbering 400 men each. These saw action in battles against the British until 1764. In 1785 in recognition of the role of the students and faculty in resisting the British, King Charles III conferred the title of “Royal” to the university and formally granted it the status of a royal university.

On May 20, 1865, a royal order from Queen Isabella II gave the University the power to direct and supervise all the schools in the Philippines and the Rector of the University became the ex-officio head of the secondary and higher education in the Philippines. All diplomas issued by other schools were approved by the Rector of the University and examinations leading to the issuance of such diplomas were supervised by the Dominican professors of UST.

The present UST campus in España Boulevard, Sampaloc, Manila

On September 17, 1902, Pope Leo XIII made the University of Santo Tomas a “Pontifical University”, and by 1947, Pope Pius XII bestowed upon it the title of “The Catholic University of the Philippines”. The University of Santo Tomas is the second university in the world after the Gregorian University in Rome to be granted the formal title of Pontifical University. The Gregorian University was allowed to assume this title in 1873. This recognition from the Holy See makes UST the lone Pontifical University in the Philippines and in Asia, hence whenever there will be a Papal Visit, Popes would always visit UST.

The UST Central Seminary and Santisimo Rosario Parish fronted
by the Carillon Bells that were dedicated to the Thomasian Martrys

The continuing increase in enrollment prompted the administration, in 1927 to transfer the university campus from Intramuros to its present site in Sampaloc district, which covers a total of 21.5 hectares. The Intramuros campus continued to operate until its destruction during the Second World War.

Throughout its more than 400 years of existence, the University has become the alma mater of great Filipino heroes, Philippine Presidents, various Chief Justices of the Supreme Court, government officials, prominent men and women who were outstanding in their chosen professions and its greatest achievement, its students and faculty who became beatified and canonized saints.

Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario de
Universidad de Santo Tomas

The Patronage of Our Lady of the Rosary

The beautiful venerated image of Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario was then enshrined in a chapel in the old Intramuros campus. History is silent on the origin of the image or its carving.  In a study conducted by the Committee for the Centenary of the Canonical Coronation of Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosaio - La Naval de Manila, it is speculated that the opus was done either by Maximo Vicente or Graciano Nepomuceno which is yet to be confirmed.

When the then newly constructed UST Campus in Sampaloc, Manila was completed, another chapel was also constructed for the Virgin. The Chapel was among the earliest edifices in the Campus of the University of Santo Tomas. It was completed on November 13, 1932 and it was later canonically inaugurated on April 26, 1942 by Michael J. O'Doherty, SVD, then Archbishop of Manila. The Parish/University chapel likewise became the center of the liturgico-sacramental life of the students and parishioners up to the present.

On September 28, 1942, the image of Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario - La Naval de Manila, which was saved from the bombings that destroyed the Old Santo Domingo Church in Intramuros, was transferred to the University of Santo Tomas and enshrined at the main altar of the UST Chapel. The university's image was kept for some time during the "evacuation" of the Virgin of La Naval Thus, the first fiesta celebration of the Santisimo Rosario Parish, set on October 7, the universal feast of the Holy Rosary, was graced by the presence of the historical image of the Blessed Mother, and this went on for several more years until the year 1954, when the La Naval was solemnly transferred to her new and permanent temple, the Santo Domingo Church in Quezon City.

Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario on her carroza

The original parish image was then restored to its former place at the high altar, until the implementation of the liturgical reforms of the Second Vatican Council. The Feast day of the University's patroness was moved from Second Sunday of October to First Sunday of the same month to give way for the traditional Feast of the Virgin of La Naval de Manila. The Fiesta is well attended by its parishioners and most importantly, by its students, faculty and alumni to pay homage to patroness of the University.

The devotion

The devotion to Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario was proven to be continuous and strong over the years. Her throne is frequented by the students who are asking guidance for their studies, professors for help on their work to educate the future leaders of the church and society, relatives of the patients (and patients) from the nearby UST Hospital to seek a cure or alleviation of their sickness. The Virgin became a silent witness to the University's illustrious history  and continuously guiding the centuries old institution on serving the Church and the nation by honing leaders and personalities that will guide the Philippines to a brighter future.

Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario de Universidad de Santo Tomas, pray for us!

References:

Dagohoy, Herminio, "The Saga of La Naval, Triumph of the People's Faith", Dominican Province of the Philippines, Quezon Avenue, Quezon City, 2007.
"History of the University of Santo Tomas", Retrieved from http://www.ust.edu.ph/about/history/ on October 5, 2019.
"Fiat Mihi Secundum verbum meum, 76th Parish Fiesta 2018", Santisimo Rosario Parish, University of Santo Tomas, Sampaloc, Manila, 2018.

Special credits to the owners of the photographs of the old and present UST campus that were utulized in this blogpost. 
+AM+DG+

This blogpost is dedicated to Nuestra Señora del Santisimo Rosario, the patroness of the blogger's alma mater whose University inspired the blogger to love and appreciate history that led to the creation of the "Pintakasi" blog.

¡Viva la Virgen del Rosario!
¡Viva Santo Tomas!