The town of Sogod has a very descriptive name which in Cebuano means “start” or “beginning”. Just what begins in Sogod is until now a favorite topic of conversations during fiestas, wakes and the everyday gatherings over a jug of tube on the shores or the side streets of the town. One plausible explanation is the fact that the white sands of the northeastern coastline of the island start to appear in Sogod. Another one is that the mountains which people in northern Cebu have to traverse to reach their destination starts in Sogod.
Sogod was established as a parish on July 31,1832 under the patronage of Santiago Apostol but there is no record of any priest assigned to the parish in 1832 (Redondo,1886:162-163). The first to be assigned on record was Fr. Patricio Cudelia de San Jose who administered the church from 1842 to 1851 (Yap,et.al., 1981;120). There is no record either concerning the construction of the coral stone church which used to dominate the promontory above the municipal hall until an ill-conceived covered basketball court began encroaching on it’s vista point.
A winding road goes up to the right side of the church ending on a wide plateau at the back. For those on foot , there is a picturesque cemented stairway going all the way up to the front of the church from the street below.
A little further to the right of the church are remnants of what was once a baluarte or watchtower , proof that this part of the island was also prone to Moro raids due to a thriving coastal settlement. It is no wonder then why the church was built on high ground.
The church , which comprises a single nave with a transept. was badly damaged during World War II in 1951 when Typhoon “Amy” swept through the Northern part of Cebu (Archdiocese of Cebu,1959:47). In the early 1960’s, a generous lady named Doña Matilde Cabrera offered to pay for the materials for the reconstruction of the Church. Doña Matilde had evacuated to Sogod during World War II and was so grateful for being sheltered by the townsfolk. Meanwhile the townsfolk shouldered the labor component of the reconstruction, which was carried out by Fr. Manuel Montegrande (Yap,et.al.,1981:120). On January 16,1963, the newly renovated church was blessed.
Despite the renovation , the facade of Sogod church, plastered over with concrete and painted white, still betrays it’s colonial character. It is made up of three levels divided by horizontal cornices. Shallow pilasters flank the arched opening to the ground floor level. The pilasters are repeated on the second level, this time flanking a semi-circular niche for the patron saint. The triangular pediment is almost bare except for a smaller segmented niche or false window. An octagonal three-storey bell tower is attached to the facade with alternating open and blind rectangular window.
