A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck northern Cebu on September 30, 2025, reducing the 140-year-old Daanbantayan Church (Archdiocesan Shrine of Santa Rosa de Lima) to rubble.
Parish priest Fr. Randy Nebria stated that structural restoration could possibly begin in 2028 with an estimated cost of around P50 million, pending studies, funding, and government support.
Parishioners and local vendors like Renagine Arriesgado, Merelo Allegart, and Judy Anne Lauron faced disrupted livelihoods and continue gathering for Mass at temporary locations like Panaghiusa Gym.
THERE were prayers, hymns and the familiar rhythm of a Mass for their patron saint.
Yet instead of gathering beneath the walls of the church they had known for generations, the faithful sat beneath the steel roof of a covered court, surrounded by basketball hoops, bleachers and makeshift arrangements for an altar.
Outside, their church lay in ruins.
The magnitude 6.9 earthquake that struck northern Cebu on Sept. 30, 2025, reduced much of the Daanbantayan Church, officially the Archdiocesan Shrine of Santa Rosa de Lima, to rubble, forcing the parish to find another place where its people could pray, celebrate and mourn.
And so, as the novena Masses continued in the days leading to Santa Rosa de Lima’s feast day in August, the faithful gathered in a place that was not meant to be a church.
Still, they came.
For a community accustomed to celebrating its patron saint inside the familiar walls of its parish church, the Mass at Panaghiusa Gym at Daanbantayan National High School became a different kind of fiesta, one marked not only by celebration, but by what they had lost and what they were determined to keep.
Even as they continued to pray, the memory of the earthquake remained, as did their longing for the church that had long been at the heart of their faith.
When the church fell
“Nahugno ang simbahan (the church collapsed)!”
Those were the words that continue to ring in the mind of Fr. Randy Nebria, parish priest of the Daanbantayan church, since the earthquake.
Nebria, who had been assigned to the parish only two months earlier, never anticipated that he would immediately be faced with such a serious challenge.
As he began to see the extent of the damage to the church, the only thing running through his mind was the devastation the tremor could leave on the people.
For him, the destruction was difficult to separate from what the 140-year-old church meant to the community, having long been part of the lives of its parishioners.
“Nahugno ang simbahan, ang imo sang pagbati nahugno (the church collapsed, and with it, your heart),” Nebria said, recalling the faces and tears of people who saw the church after the quake.
Legacy in stone
Established as a parish in 1858 and completed in 1886, the Santa Rosa de Lima Church had stood at the center of Daanbantayan’s religious life for generations.
Its coral-stone structure and surviving historic elements reflected the community’s long religious and cultural history.
In 2022, the church was elevated to an archdiocesan shrine, becoming the first shrine in the Philippines dedicated to Santa Rosa de Lima.
After the earthquake, the work of rebuilding began with what was left behind, as church officials and heritage authorities documented the damage and recovered historic materials piece by piece, like fragments of a jigsaw waiting to be put together again.
Living light
For friends Renagine Arriesgado, Merelo Allegart and Judy Anne Lauron, the Daanbantayan church is more than a place of worship. It is part of their childhood, faith and livelihood.
For years, they made a living selling candles to parishioners who came to pray and hear Mass.
When the earthquake damaged the church, their livelihood was shaken along with it.
Their candle sales dropped sharply as Masses and other church activities moved elsewhere, taking with them the steady stream of parishioners.
For them, the loss is more than financial. The church where they grew up, practiced their faith and built their livelihood remains in ruins.
Their prayer now is for the church to be restored and for people of Daanbantayan who were affected by the earthquake to be blessed with good health and a good livelihood.
Beyond the church
In the hours and days following the earthquake, Nebria noted that the damage to the church was only one of many concerns facing the parish.
The parish also had to address urgent needs such as
electricity, clean water and basic supplies while residents grappled with the earthquake’s impact on their homes and livelihoods.
Ongoing aftershocks added to the strain, making it difficult for anyone to rest during those initial days.
“Wa gyud mi matulog dayon (never did we rest easy),” Nebria said.
Bittersweet celebrations
A year after the earthquake, people continue to gather for Mass and other parish activities at a temporary altar outside the church, which remains off-limits due to the damage.
Nebria said celebrating Mass remains important, particularly during difficult periods, as it is an expression of Christian life regardless of the circumstances.
He also observed that some parishioners dealing with their own difficulties continued to help others, while people from outside the parish also extended assistance.
“Although naa pa ang kahadlok nila, you do not feel alone,” Nebria said.
Restoration
The restoration of the church will require more than simply rebuilding the damaged portions.
Nebria said studies have to be completed first to determine how the structure and its materials should be treated, including the identification and retrieval of elements that are essential to the church.
Nebria compared the process to medical treatment, where a doctor must first diagnose a patient before deciding how to proceed.
The preparations for restoration have already begun, he said, but the actual structural work will take more time.
Nebria said an estimated cost of around P50 million had been discussed, although the final amount would depend on the type and extent of restoration to be undertaken.
He said concrete restoration could possibly begin in 2028, although the timeline remains subject to the necessary processes and funding.
The government has assured support for the restoration, Nebria said, particularly because the church forms part of the area’s heritage.
There are also expenses outside the main restoration work, including the retrieval of materials and preventive measures, which may require additional support from donors and other groups.
A patient rebuilding
For Nebria, the restoration of the church is connected to the broader recovery of the community.
He acknowledged that the earthquake could lead people to question their faith, particularly after experiencing the destruction and uncertainty brought by the disaster.
His message to parishioners is to remain hopeful and patient.
He said recovery, like growth, takes time and cannot be rushed.
“Sama sa pagtubo, ang Ginoo pasensyoso kaayo. Sama sa pagtubo, pagbangon, kinahanglan sad ta’g pasensya. But go on, continue,” Nebria said.
The church, he added, has a role in helping people maintain their faith and giving them hope as they rebuild their lives.
Nebria said the continued presence of parishioners gives him reason to look forward to the church’s eventual return.
“Once mahuman, ma-restore siya, the faith siguro mura mo-shine balik,” Nebria said.
Until then, the parishioners will keep celebrating Santa Rosa de Lima wherever the altar stands, lighting candles and gathering for Mass as they have done for generations.
The church may have fallen, but its people have not stopped coming.