EDSA Shrine

Cardinal Jaime Sin, the Archbishop of Manila, proposed the construction of a commemorative shrine two days after the Marcos family went into exile following the People Power Revolution of February 1986 which saw the deposing of President Ferdinand Marcos, the end of his authoritarian regime and the installation of Corazon Aquino as his successor. Sin made the proposal as an act of thanksgiving to the Virgin Mary, to whom devout Catholics attribute the success of the peaceful revolution.^[5] The “miracle” honors the Rosary and Our Lady of EDSA's role in the peaceful victory.^[6]

The concept for a commemorative shrine emerged when Sin and his Auxiliary Bishop and former secretary Gabriel V. Reyes were en route to Camp Aguinaldo to say a thanksgiving Mass. At a corner of Epifanio de los Santos and Ortigas Avenues, Reyes pointed out to Sin the site where a group of protesters, including Catholic religious sisters, offered flowers to soldiers during the revolution. At an empty lot nearby stood two billboards of advertisements by the Family Rosary Crusade, featuring the Virgin Mary along with the slogans "The family that prays together stays together" and "A world at prayer is a world at peace". The two prelates concluded the success of the revolution was a miracle attributed to the intercession of the Virgin Mary. They also compared the event to the Battle of Lepanto and Battles of La Naval de Manila, which both ended in victories for the Catholic belligerents (i.e., the Venetians and Spaniards in Lepanto against the Muslim Ottoman Empire, and the Spaniards against the Protestant Dutch Republic in Manila).^[7]

Cardinal Sin convinced the Ortigas and Gokongwei families to donate the corner lot where the EDSA Shrine now stands today^[5] The shrine was initially planned to be built inside Camp Crame, but plans were scrapped because churches built on state-owned property had to be ecumenical in nature.^[8]

EDSA Shrine was then constructed with Francisco Mañosa as architect. Leandro Locsin and William Coscolluela was also involved with the preparatory work of the building.^[5] The construction was almost finished by November 1989 and the shrine was set to be inaugurated by December 8, 1989, the date of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. However such plans were interrupted by a coup attempt which began on November 29, 1989^[7] by the Reform the Armed Forces Movement against President Corazon Aquino.

The coup attempt ended on December 7, 1989, and the inauguration went as planned which was never postponed by Cardinal Sin. The church was consecrated and dedicated to the Virgin Mary on December 15, 1989,^[7] while Socrates Villegas, then a priest, was installed as the church's first rector.^[9]

When the Second EDSA Revolution was successful in deposing President Joseph Estrada in January 2001, Cardinal Sin declared the EDSA Shrine as holy ground, and crediting the Virgin Mary with the victory. A marker was installed on the anniversary of the 1986 People Power Revolution, recognizing the shrine as a "Holy Ground".^[9] On the lower part of thw podium is set of reliefs recalling the events of the First and Second People Power Revolutions, the latter which was held there at the shrine.

Other rallies and demonstrations held at the shrine were: Pro-Estrada rally (April 25 – May 1, 2001), protests against Reproductive Health Bill (August 4, 2012), EDSA Tayo rally against pork barrel (September 7, 2013), 2015 Iglesia ni Cristo protests (August 27–31, 2015), Lord, Heal Our Land concelebrated Mass (November 5, 2017), and the Trillion Peso March (September 2025 – February 2026). In 2019, the National Commission for Culture and the Arts declared the church as an Important Cultural Property.^[10]

On February 25, 2024, at Mass for the 38th anniversary of the People Power Revolution, Pablo Virgilio David, Bishop of Kalookan and President of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), said EDSA Shrine was not only for the Archdiocese of Manila but for the entire country.^[1] On January 25, 2025, the CBCP made the church a National Shrine, along with the Shrine of Our Lady of Mercy in Novaliches and San Mateo Church in Rizal.^[11]

Our Lady of Peace, Mother of Peace, Queen of Peace or Our Lady Queen of Peace is a title of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the Catholic Church. She is represented in art holding a dove and an olive branch – both traditional symbols of peace. The patronal image for this particular shrine is unique, as its design follows that of the statue atop the shrine roof. Mary, crowned and clad in golden robes, has her arms outstretched and her Immaculate Heart exposed, while two or three white doves rest at her hands and feet.

Her official memorial in the General Roman Calendar is on July 9 in the universal Church except for Hawaii and some churches in the United States, where it is kept on January 24.

Francisco Mañosa was responsible for the architectural and structural design of the EDSA Shrine.^[5] The National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCAA) described Mañosa's take on the building's design as a "modern take on Filipino architecture and adaptation of tropical architecture". The building is also noted for its "neovernacular" style and its distinguished "native architectural forms and indigenous materials" by architecture historian Gerard Lico.^[10]

The EDSA Shrine's design consisted of a promenade, the People's Plaza, with a statue of the Virgin Mary sculpted by Virginia Ty-Navarro as its focal point, and an underground church which was inspired from the Cathedral of Brasília.^[8]

Mañosa envisioned a different design from the existing building. The architect's vision for the shrine, which he dubbed as the "People's Basilica" is derived from the concept of the bahay kubo but on a larger scale. The initial design called for the use of seven pitched roofs clustered together to frame a statue of the Virgin Mary. However one influential member of the committee objected to this in favour of a Spanish colonial design, which caused Mañosa to withdraw from the project. He was ultimately convinced by Cardinal Jaime Sin to stay, resulting in his design for the present church.^[8]

Quick facts Our Lady of EDSA, Artist ...

Our Lady of EDSA
Artist	Virginia Ty-Navarro
Year	1989
Medium	Bronze
Subject	Virgin Mary, under the title "Our Lady of EDSA, Queen of Peace"
Dimensions	10.7 m × 3.5 m (35 ft × 11 ft)[12]
Weight	8 t (8,000 kg)
Location	EDSA Shrine, Quezon City

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The sculpture of the Virgin Mary as Our Lady of EDSA, Queen of Peace, is a prominent feature of the church. The committee behind the construction of the EDSA Shrine commissioned sculptor Virginia Ty-Navarro after initially considering National Artist for Sculpture Napoleón Abueva, who was recovering from a stroke at the time. Manny Casal was the second choice, and he had proposed a marble sculpture of the Virgin Mary with open arms comforting people of various backgrounds: laity, clergy, children, and soldiers. Casal intended the sculpting to be done on-site. While not selected to create the final image, Abueva and Casal nonetheless contributed other works within shrine grounds.^[8]

Ty-Navarro sculpted the Virgin Mary sculpture in her studio in San Juan. The sculpture was then transported to the shrine by helicopter with assistance from the United States embassy due to Ty-Navarro not anticipating the roads to the shrine were too narrow for the sculpture.^[8]

• People Power Monument
• Bantayog ng mga Bayani
• People Power Revolution
• Our Lady of Peace
• Archdiocese of Manila