"The wolf shall dwell with the lamb: and the leopard shall lie down with the kid: the calf and the lion, and the sheep shall abide together, and a little child shall lead them." Isaiah 11:6 (Douay-Rheims)
After the celebration in Quiapo last January 9, the people of the Visayas will be celebrating tomorrow the Sinulog Festival in honor of the Child Jesus. The Image of the Child Jesus, venerated in the Visayas as the Santo Nino de Cebu is very much Spanish in origin. Though Spanish in origin, it has captured so well the innate religious sentiments of the Filipino people. Historically the Santo Nino is also linked to the evangelization of these islands. I myself is also a devotee of the Santo Nino. I do not know and I cannot explain the charm and the peace that this form of devotion evokes in me and in my fellow Filipinos. In my office desk and in my bookshelves I have the image of the Child Jesus prominently displayed for everyone to see. There are many explanations given by some modern theologians so called about this attachment of the Filipinos. But I would prefer to stick to the simple explanation that our national character of religiosity tends favorably to a closer devotion to the Lord. This is our national destiny. Christ seen as a Child, demonstrates to us his paradox once again. It demonstrates to us that faith in God Almighty is demonstrated not by human power but by his power. In our weakness the power of God is more manifest because faith can move mountains as our Lord said. But on the other hand there is also a lesson to the ordinary devotee and Catholics, that our religious fervor is a good sign and a valuable trait. But these are not ends in themselves but as a means to an end. If our religious fervor nourishes us in the same way a baby is nourished by milk, so let this devotion be our milk to help us grow in maturity. For indeed our maturity is made more manifest when we are increasing in our love for the Eucharist, that is to say the Holy Mass. For they that hear the word of God shall live and they that eat of his body and blood shall have everlasting life.
1 comment:
Thank you for your kind post on my blog.
I lived in Cebu from 1984 to 1993 but after my experience of the Sinulog in 1985 - the commercial celebration that began only in 1980 - I never got involved in any way. It is shameful that some business people and politicians of Cebu have been allowed to steal something so precious and abuse it. I once heard Eddie Gullas, now a congressman, I think, and once Governor of Cebu, lamenting what had happened, even to the extent of some dancers carrying bottles of beer while also carrying the Santo Nino. 'Let them dance if they want to', he said, 'but leave the Santo Nino out of it'.
Meanwhile, under its present elected 'leadership' unsolved extra-judicial killings in Cebu City have grown unabated. Between 2004 and mid-2008 there were around 120 such: http://globalnation.inquirer.net/cebudailynews/news/view/20080616-142974/Solve-extra-judicial-killings-in-Cebu-City
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