Six chapels are found alongside the right lateral nave of the Manila Cathedral. These are as follows :
The Chapel of St. PeterThe Chapel of St. Peter
The Chapel of St. Peter occasionally serves as the mortuary, the place where bodies of the dead lie in state until burial. This chapel is located at the right side of the altar adjacent to the transept. The glittering mosaic dominates the mortuary chapel. The theme depicts St. Peter, primate of the Church, receiving the keys of heaven from Jesus Christ.
The Chapel of Mary Help of Christians and Our Lady of the Pillar
This chapel was designed by the Spanish architect Michele Fisac. The venerated image of Our Lady of the Pillar was a present from the Cathedral Chapter of Zaragoza, Spain, to Rufino
Cardinal Santos, given personally by the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, Don Martin Artajo, in 1954. The chapel once exhibited photos of the Shroud of Turin. At present, the image of the Nuestra Señora de la Paz y Buenviaje is enshrined in this chapel.
The Chapel of Blessed Souls
The Chapel of the Blessed Souls has a unique marble altarpiece by the Italian artist Giuseppe Perischetti. The marble relief shows the souls of Purgatory, assisted by holy angels, raising their prayer to Mary, as refugium peccatorum. Also represented are saints which Liturgy invokes in the commendatio animae: St. Michael the Archangel, St. John the Evangelist, and Saints Peter and Paul. At present, the chapel has the images of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph at the altar depicting the nativity scene.
The Chapel of St. Jude
The Altar in the Chapel of St. Jude Thaddeus has a beautiful and interesting mosaic work by Marcelo Mazzoli.In this altarpiece, St. Jude points out to the faithful the linen which was miraculously imprinted with the image of Christ, and which he presented to King Abgar who was desirous of knowing the true features of Jesus. On one side of the mosaic is a representation of St. Jude’s Epistle crossed by a palm branch to signify his martyrdom.
The Chapel of Sta. Potenciana and Sto. Niño
The of Sta. Potenciana, a long-time patron of Manila, now also functions as the Chapel of the Santo Niño. In the chapel are images of the Holy Child Jesus. Its striking altarpiece is a beautiful mosaic by Aurelio Bargallo, depicting Sta. Potenciana as distributing alms in the company of an angel bearing a lamp which signifies virginity and wisdom.
The Chapel of St. Pius X and Ina Poon Bato
The Chapel of St. Pius X has been assigned as the new chapel of Our Lady of Boon Bato or Ina Poon Bato, the miraculous intercessor of the Aetas and countless other faithful living near Mt. Pinatubo in Zambales. The chapel altar has a marble relief by Giuseppe Lombardi, showing the holy Pontiff, Piux X, in the act of venerating the Monstrance which is presented to him by an angel. His crown is presented at one side, signifying the highest office of the Catholic world, which he held from 1903 to 1914.