Most Rev. Martin Sarmiento Jumoad, DD, Archbishop of Ozamiz, has ordered the temporary closure of St. John the Baptist Parish Church in Jimenez, Misamis Occidental following an act of sacrilege involving the church’s holy water font. The decision comes after a viral social media video showed a woman nonchalantly spitting into the font—a gesture that drew widespread outrage and concern from the local faithful. The video, captioned “Unsa diay ni?” (What is this?), has since alarmed both parishioners and the broader Catholic community.
Read Archbishop Jumoad’s order below.
St. John the Baptist Parish Church is a National Cultural Treasure of the Philippines having been declared by the National Museum of the Philippines in 2001.
The viral video has since been deleted by the vlogger but a copy of the clip was sourced by Ruben Vapor.
Meanwhile, the vlogger has denied this but nevertheless apologized.
