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Do you have a Chinese Temple in your area? Have you visited it?

In one of my walks, it led me to one of the tourist spots here in our city. Let me take you down memory lane again. My original article was posted two years ago. Since I am here most of the time, I would like to share this post here with you as well. My first memory of this place was in my elementary days (first grade I think) during a city tour that our school organized. This was one of the places we visited that day. Sometimes it's good to explore and re-explore your city/town for you will learn more things about it. https://steemit.com/beautifulsunday/@leeart/beautiful-sunday-at-bell-church Let's start our visit to one of the temples here in Baguio City.

Bell Church in Baguio City Formerly known as the Chinese Buddhist Temple, Bell Church was founded by the early Chinese immigrants. It is said that they originated from what is now Guangzhou, China.

Kow Fan or Ng Pee and his group left their homeland in China and came here to the City of Pines. They then settled here and thus Bell Church was founded in August 1960. These forefathers were said to be the followers of Ji Jong, a Buddhist monk. This Taoist church is built just a few steps away from the border of Baguio City and La Trinidad.

The Filipino-Chinese community has been a big part of the Cordillera. They have set up restaurants, schools, churches, and other businesses. Some intermarried with locals creating a stronger bond with the Cordillerans and Filipinos as a whole. In 1954, back when they were just starting, the original members of the church were only few, mostly Chinese farmers. They humbly started by holding their service in a restaurant. As the devotees grew in number, they then transferred to the house of Ng Pee in km. 6, La Trinidad. After a few years, they transferred to the new location at km. 3, La Trinidad where the Bell Church now currently stands. A small temple was also built at km. 6.

Reportedly, the house and lot where the current temple now is said to have been donated by the locals. The house was then converted to a temple and more pagodas and other structures have been built within the property. Aside from Taoism and Buddhism, the church has three other patrons which represent Islam, Christianity and Confucianism. These saints were the ones who dictated how the temple should be built. These same saints were asked for guidance about their future, business, marriage, etc.

It is called Bell Church because the followers has a philosophy that believes in unity and a bell represents unity. They believe that regardless of religion, we should live in harmony. Whatever differences we have, we should live a good life. They believe in the principle of karma - do good to others always so good karma will come back to you. Much like the golden rule. Bells are used to warn people from calamities or disasters but for Bell Church, this represents a call of spiritual awakening.

Here in Benguet is the headquarters of Bell Church. They do have chapters scattered throughout the country and abroad like Hong Kong and United States. Members of this church held festivals every year. They give away freebies to the community. This temple will be filled by locals who want to partake of the blessing that the church and its members offer. They do this twice a year I think - during the holiday season and Chinese New Year. Aside from that, every Chinese New Year, you can see dragon dancers in business establishments spreading luck and driving away evil. These dragon dancers can be witnessed parading the streets during Chinese New Year. They have a gym here where they teach martial arts and dragon/lion dances.

Bell Church is open to tourists but limited access only. The main temple is open to the public all the time. You are not allowed to take photos inside the main temple though. You can offer your prayer and you can also see what your fortune is. You can ask the staff there to assist you with that. The other pagodas are open on selected days as well. This is a popular place for filmmakers. Pre-pandemic, they were open to the public from 8:00 to 11:30 a.m. and then from 1:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. If you are looking for free places to go, then go to Bell Church. It's a quick visit on your way to La Trinidad Strawberry Farm. To get there, from Baguio City, ride a jeepney going to La Trinidad and ask to be dropped off Bell Church. You can find these jeepneys along Magsaysay Avenue near Baguio Center Mall and also near City Hall. You should get off the border arch of Baguio City and La Trinidad.

Thanks for your support, comments and time reading this post. Share with us your experience visiting a Chinese temple. What temples do you have in your area? **All contents are mine.*

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