The Philippines is the largest Catholic Nation in Asia and the third in the world. Back in 2019, when I arrived in the Philippines for the first time, I was in wonder to see some Sacred images inside the airport (NAIA). As I started to go around, I continued to sense how much the Philippines is a Christian country. Many religious artifacts are put, not only on or in the Churches but also in the houses, stores, even in some public places. To strengthen their faith and their relationship with God, Filipinos recourse to different religious devotions. This includes: Devotions to the Santo Niño, Black Nazarene, Our Lady of Peñafrancia, etc. There are some Lenten rituals that include Pabasa, Senakulo, Visita Iglesia, Siete Palabras, Salubong,etc. On this point, it is worth mentioning the Simbang Gabi Novena leading to the celebration of Christmas.
In this reflection, we are going to focus on the devotion to Santo Niño (a Spanish title for the Holy Child Jesus). Santo Niño is among the most venerated religious image in the Philippines. This is because the image does not only show the faithfulness of Catholics to their religion; it is also a symbol of the birth of Christianity in the country. As Nick Joaquin puts it, this tiny image symbolizes a tremendous revolution, not merely in a theological sense, but the image has another, more special meaning for “us Filipinos, because it marks our beginning, the start of our history as One Nation.”[1] On this, the image is an emblem of national unity, an emblem of 500 years of the Philippines as a nation of Christian Culture. It has greatly impacted Filipino Catholics in different sectors of their lives. But, to understand this Devotion, we go back to the evangelization of the Philippines in 1521 through the Spanish expedition led by Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan. He brought with him the image of Santo Niño, which he granted, as a gift, to the Queen of Cebu, after the royal court expressed the desire to become Christians. The image of Santo Niño was granted to Queen Juana to take the place of her idols[2]. Thus, “the Faith in the Philippines began as a devotion, a folk devotion, to the Little Child.
The image of the Holy Child that Magellan brought is “about two- feet high, of tawny wood; his robe in cloth-of-gold embroidered with jewels; and is mounted on a golden pedestal studded with pearls.” The image was carved in Flanders; it may have been carried to Spain in the 15th century by Spanish soldiers.[3] Thus, it was dressed up in the traditional costume for children of the Spanish court of the late 16th and the 17th centuries.[4]
The Santo Niño image is replicated in many homes, areas and business establishments, with different titles reinterpreted in various ways. It is one of the most beloved and recognizable cultural icons in the Philippines, with the original permanently enshrined in a chapel at the Basílica Menor del Santo Niño in Cebu. There is a reason why it is still kept in Cebu, the former Capital of the Archipelago. We learn from Nick Joaquin that, when Manila became the Capital City, in the days of Legazpi, the authorities decreed that the Santo Niño must likewise go North. So, the image was crated and shipped to Manila, but it was in vain; The boxes arrived empty in Manila, because the Santo was still in Cebu, back in its old shrine. This miraculous event happened twice. For the third time, the elusive image reached Manila, but it wouldn’t stay there. It kept disappearing from the Augustinian Church in the city and reappeared in its old shrine in Cebu. “One legend has it that the Manila Augustinians finally decided to cut off the legs of the image, to stop it from escaping. But the Santo Niño, legless, continued to return to Cebu.” Manila gave up at last, and Cebu kept its little Lord. At the time, the South had been identified with Santo de Cebu, while the North (Manila) made a replica of Santo Niño, and it came to be identified with Santo Niño de Tondo.[5]
The devotion to the Santo Niño has spread outside the boundaries of Cebu, even abroad, by the Filipino Catholic devotees. On this, there are other various images of Santo Niño around the country: Santo Niño de Praga, Santo Niño de Tondo, Santo. Niño de Cortes, Santo. Niño de San Beda, Santo Niño de Bago Bantay, Santo Niño de Pasion, Santo Niño de Pandacan, Santo Niño de Maligaya, etc.. In these images of the Child, Filipinos have kept the European medieval model of a young prince with crow and orb. However, they also naturalized these medieval images, which accorded a worship clearly not European and are often garbed in a style that proclaims the Philippines. The gold robes of the Santo Niño de Tondo, for instance, have a charming design of banana leaves and palm trees.[6] Although, it’s difficult to distinguish the peculiarities among the various icons of the Santo Niño, they represent the same entity, the baby Jesus.
January is a succession of Santo Niño fiestas or festivals throughout the Archipelago’s islands. The devotion to the Holy Child in Cebu has turned into a great festival, considered as the mother of all festivals in the Philippines.[7] Not only the Church but also the local government are involved in the preparation and the celebration of these festivals. Every third Sunday of January, the colorful and joyful Sinulog Festival is held in Cebu symbolizing the Cebuanos’ devotion to the Santo Niño. Millions of people flock to Cebu City to pay homage before the Santo Niño de Cebu, while also participating in the festival that includes colorful parades, street dancing, processions, and many more. The festival emphasizes the profound influence of Catholicism in the Philippines.[8] Other festivals are organized around the country to honor the little child Santo Niño. (The Dinagyang Festival of Iloilo City, Sakay Sakay Festival in Maasin City, The Silhig Festival in Mandaue City, Sto. Niño Festival of Malolos in Bulacan, Halad Festival in North Cotabato, Ati-Atihan Festival in Aklan, Kahimunan Tu Bayugan Festival in Bayugan City, Lakbayaw Festival of Tondo in Manila, Kahimunan Festival in Butuan City, etc.[9] In our Saint Francis Xavier Parish, the foundation of Santo Niño de Maligaya holds its Kandulog Festival in January.
On the light of that which precedes, the devotion to Santo Niño is one of the devotions that attract a number of Filipinos. This attitude towards the image of Santo Niño is noticeable. A number of Filipinos venerate piously the image (and other images) while touching it, whether directly with their hands or using their handkerchiefs. A non-Filipino Catholic who sees them doing that reverence and other rituals may get a bit confused. That’s why Joaquin puts it, “Outsiders to our Culture find our style of worship distasteful and conclude that we don’t understand Christianity or true religion.” (One can say that there is a kind of religious illiteracy in the way Filipinos express their faith). Then, Joaquin asks if Christianity can really be reduced to pure and simple ethics.[10] Filipinos have their own style of worship that preserve their own pre-Hispanic traditions. There is a blend of Christianity and traditional religion, that become a folk Catholicism.
If we look closely, we find that when Filipinos venerate images through touching, there is an idea that, things touched by the Holy are Believed to Become holy.[11] People believe to be indwelled by the spirit of the one represented by the Sacred image. Moreover, The Filipino Catholic sees in the image of the Infant Jesus a haven of refuge, a rock of stability and, above all, a magnet of love drawing all close to him. Many can testify to the graces they received from the Infant King, believing and hoping against hope (cf. Rom4:18).[12]
According to the Catechism for Filipino Catholics, Santo Niño images the innocence, simplicity, child-like wonder of Christ. While responding to the Filipino’s natural love for children, the child image of Christ can sometimes foster a one-sided focus which neglects the mature, adult Christ and the demands of responsible discipleship (CFC, 467). Filipinos believe that the Santo Niño can grant and answer their prayers, and many homes and shops have images of the Santo Niño. Devotions to the Santo Niño are a part of every parish's life, and are celebrated with a major feast on the third Sunday of January.
In 1964, Pope Saint Paul VI, through his Papal Bull Cunabula Religionis, granted the canonical coronation of the Santo Niño de Cebu. On the occasion of the 500th Anniversary of the evangelization of the Philippines, Cardinal Tagle put it, “the country's oldest Catholic icon, the Santo Niño, is known for His miracles and people's devotions that transcend religions. In the words of Pope Francis, “the Holy Child is the Protector of the Philippines for half a millennium thus it is significant both in Philippine history and culture.”[13]
As we are nearing the end of this sharing, let us mention that the Devotion to the Child Jesus did not start in the Philippines. According to Joaquin, the Cult of Christ Child has its origins in the Middle Ages of Europe, and is peculiar to the culture of the continent.[14] The popularity of the Child Jesus grew during the Baroque period in Spain. On this, we understand that the Child Jesus didn’t only arrive in the Philippines when Magellan brought its image. His Spirit, that actively works in everyone, had been working with Filipino even before the missionaries set foot on the ground of the Philippines. He was already preparing Filipinos for the welcoming of the explicit Faith. Joaquin opines that, “He didn’t simply come and abruptly cut off from our past. It shared our past with us and served as the link between that past and our present.”[15]
The devotion is rooted in the belief that even as a child, Christ was ready to do the mission His Father sent Him to do. This Devotion is a way of honoring the virtues of Christ’s childhood. The image of the Child Jesus is an invitation for each of us to strive for the virtues of simplicity, innocence, humility, obedience, and childlike trust and confidence in the Father.[16] May we all learn from Santo Niño to keep on growing in the relationship with Christ who calls us to be childlike for us to enter the Kingdom of heaven (Cf. Matthew 18:1-5).
With the whole Filipino people, let us express our gratitude to Santo Niño, the Holy Child Jesus. May he always hear the prayers we address to Him. By His support, we resolve to remain children in the hands of God our Father in order to be filled with his graces.
Viva Señor Santo Niño! Viva Pit Señor!
[1]Nick Joaquin, Culture and History (Mandaluyong City: Anvil Publishing, 2004),98.
[2]Ibid.,104.
[3]Ibid., 100.
[4] https://epa.culturalcenter.gov.ph/3/82/2291/.
[5]Cf. Nick Joaquin, Culture and History,99.
[6] Nick Joaquin, Culture and History, 103.
[7] https://www.santonino500.com/the-devotion-of-the-santo-nino-in-the-philippines/
[8] https://thebedan.com/2024/03/09/sto-nino-images-in-the-philippines-a-tapestry-of-devotion-and-culture/)
[9] https://www.driftstories.com/santo-nino-festivals-philippines/
[10] Nick Joaquin, Culture and History,105
[11] Cf. Leonardo N.Mercado. Filipino Popular Devotions, (Manila: Logos Publications,2000), 50.
[12] Living with Christ Missalette, January 2025,1.
[13] https://500yoc.com/full-text-papal-nuncios-homily-to-mark-500th-year-of-first-baptism-in-ph/
[14] Nick Joaquin, Culture and History, 100.
[15] Ibid., 108.
[16] https://www.thetheologycorner.com/devotion-to-the-child-jesus#:~:text=Devotion%20to%20the%20Child%20Jesus%20is%20popular%20around%20the%20world,(by%20Herod%20the%20Great).