Jesús de la Peña Chapel

The Jesús de la Peña Chapel, also known as the San Isidro Labrador Church, is the oldest surviving religious site in Marikina. It stands on a rocky outcrop in Barangay Concepción Uno, where Augustinian missionaries established the first place of worship in the area during the Spanish colonial era. The chapel is a small structure compared to the city's main parish church, but it has a quiet, atmospheric quality that the larger church lacks.

The site is not on the standard tourist circuit — most visitors to Marikina never make it here — but it rewards the detour if you have the time. The immediate surroundings are residential and unremarkable, but the chapel itself is well-maintained and the grounds are peaceful. It is a manageable distance from the city centre by tricycle or on foot for those happy to walk.

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A story
The first Catholic mass in Marikina was celebrated at this site, making it one of the oldest places of Christian worship in the entire region. The Augustinian missionaries who established the church in the seventeenth century chose the location for its position on a rocky promontory above the river — hence the name "de la Peña," meaning "of the rock."