Nineteen months after the fire in Oslob Church, the second in its history, I visited the church again during a south Cebu trip and from what I have found, there is still so much to do.

Thanx to Jobers Bersales, some Cebu archival images (scans) from the Ahlborn Collection was made available to me. Part of the collection are black and white images of Oslob Church, the mortuary chapel and the kumbento.

I was in Oslob over the weekend to check on the progress of the reconstruction of the burned church of Oslob and was happy to find that it now has a roof so that masses can again be said at this old structure. While this is commendable development, there is still much to be done. I asked Jun Tumulak, a member of the Parish Pastoral Council and he said that the total cost needed in bringing it back to a functional church complete with it’s flooring paved and tiled, pews, windows, painting, etc. is about P35 million.

I visited the Basilica del Sto. Nino, the Augustinian convent in Cebu last 31 October to take photos around the church for a future post at my travel blog, langyaw.com. When I went out, I was surprised that the centuries old icon of the Inmaculada Concepcion (Immaculate Concepcion) of Oslob Church was just outside, encased in clear plexiglass and there were two long lines infront where people waited to come close and touch it.

While browsing through archival photos, I found two images of the old altar of Oslob Church in Cebu. These were probably taken during the late 19th or early 20th centuries. From the setup of the altar, these might have been during a major feastday or Holy Week. These two were from San Agustin in Intramuros, Manila.

Oslob has always been frequented by Muslim slave raiders but in 1813, with the aid of Fray Julian Bermejo’s string of watchtowers, the local armed militia was able to repel and capture the leader of a raiding party off Sumilon Island. This decisive event led to the formation of a new town that is now the current poblacion of Oslob. Prior to that and located around two kilometers south, are the ruins of a former fortified settlement called Daanglungsod.