San Jose Parish is an old Roman Catholic church that is located in San Francisco, a northeastern town in Camotes Islands in the province of Cebu, Philippines. It is dedicated to the patronage of St. Joseph and it is sometimes known as St. Joseph Church or San Francisco Church.
Table of Contents
History
The church of San Francisco used to be part of the parish of Poro and a mission station of the friars belonging to the Society of Jesus. It became a parish on June 23, 1863.
The town was called Suangan or Sulangan after a plant whose saps were used to light up homes and later renamed to what it is known presently. It is not certain how it came to acquire its current name and there are two stories that are purported to explain the matter. One, it was named after a resident who many thought was a saintly figure. Two, Spanish church officials sent an image of St. Francis Xavier but was delivered to the Church of Pilar, becoming its patron, and an image of St. Joseph that was meant to Pilar was instead given to San Francisco.
As a town, San Francisco is part of the Camotes islands and its territory includes some islands such as Pacijan and Tulang Diot.
Architecture
A staircase guides the laity to a portico of plain columns. Entrance to the church is a rectilinear doorway. On each side of the entrance are a pair of stained glass windows. On top of the portico is a semicircle of stained glass portraying the patron. The pediment features a cross flanked by paired pierced-wall windows. The bell tower is erected in the epistle side, it is quadrangular in shape. The second to the uppermost level features a relief of a patron, while the highest level is pierced with a set of three slender arches on each side.
Celebration
The feast day of St. Joseph is held every third Sunday of March in a celebration called Soli-soli Festival.
Services
The parish office is open Tuesday to Saturday from 8:00 until 11:30 in the morning and from 2:00 to 4:30 in the afternoon. On Sundays, it is open earlier at 5:00 to 11:30 in the morning and from 2:00 to 4:30 in the afternoon.
Mass schedule
Below is the weekly mass schedule of San Jose Church in San Francisco, Cebu from June 9, 2025 to June 15, 2025. Please reach out to the church for an updated schedule. Additionally, you may also want to view mass schedules of churches in San Francisco.
Monday
- 5:30-6:30 PM
Tuesday
- 5:30-6:30 PM
Wednesday
- 5:30-6:30 PM
Thursday
- 5:30-6:30 PM
Friday
- 5:30-6:30 PM
- 6:00-7:00 PM (First Friday)
Saturday
- 6:30-7:30 AM
- 6:00-7:00 PM (Anticipated Mass - FB Live)
Sunday
- 6:30-7:30 AM
- 9:00-10:00 AM
- 4:30-5:30 PM (FB Live)
Church information
| Details | |
|---|---|
| Name | San Jose Church in San Francisco, Cebu |
| Other Names | San Francisco Church |
| Address | Poblacion, San Francisco, Cebu 6050 |
| Country | Philippines |
| Contact | 0926 715 4948 |
| sjpconventoffice2019@gmail.com | |
| web.facebook.com | |
| Religion | |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Established | June 23, 1863 |
| Age | 162 years |
| Status | Parish |
| Archdiocese | Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cebu |
| District | District I - Metro Cebu North |
| Vicariate | Vicariate of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception |
| Patron | St. Joseph |
| Feast day | Third Sunday of March |
Nearby Churches
- Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Church in Tudela, Cebu
- San Roque Parish Church in Consuelo, San Francisco, Cebu
- St. Francis Xavier Church in Pilar, Cebu
- Sto. Niño Church in Poro, Cebu
References
- Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cebu. Retrieved July 6, 2022
- Balaanong Bahandi: Sacred Treasures of the Archdiocese of Cebu. Cathedral Museum of Cebu, Inc. and University of San Carlos Press. 2010. ISBN 978-9715390187.
- Elizaga, Troy. The Formation of Towns and Parishes in Cebu, Philippines. Retrieved via Academia on July 4, 2022
- Oaminal, Clarence Paul (May 25, 2018). San Francisco, Camotes, Cebu. The Freeman. Retrieved July 6, 2022
- TOWN’S DESCRIPTION. Municipality of San Francisco Camotes, GOV.PH. Retrieved July 6, 2022
- Soli-soli (Typha latifolia) as an industry and as a festival emblem of Pacijan Island, Cebu, Central Philippines:its status, processing and proposed conservation options for sustainability. Department of Science and Technology. Retrieved July 6, 2022
- Soli-Soli Festival. Cebu Business Week. Retrieved July 6, 2022
- Tan, Marlinda Angbetic (October 27, 2007). Suroy Suroy Sugbo: Camotes By Marlinda Angbetic Tan. The Freeman. Retrieved July 21, 2022