FILIPINOS CELEBRATE FEAST OF SANTO NIÑO ON SUNDAY – Pit Señor! Joy, piety and togetherness in a dazzling display of faith

Marco Carvalho

It’s one of the most vibrant and expressive public displays of faith in Asia’s largest Catholic nation, but also an exuberant trademark for Filipino communities spread around the world. Macau Special Administrative Region is no exception. On Sunday morning, believers will flock to Saint Augustine’s Church to attend a Mass in honor of Señor Santo Niño. Later on, hundreds of Overseas Filipino Workers will swarm the streets of central Macau to celebrate Sinulog, a lively festival that intertwines faith, culture and tradition.

Devotees, dressed in dazzling costumes, danced their way Last Sunday along Avenida Comercial de Macau and Avenida Panoramica do Lago Nam Van to the pulsating beats of drums and whistles to praise the Holy Child of Cebu – “Viva Pit Senyor! Long Live the Christ Child! – and to commend Him for the graces granted throughout last year.

Deeply rooted in Cebu’s rich and colorful history, the ritual prayer-dance is a crucial part of the celebrations of Sinulog. The annual cultural and religious festival commemorates the introduction of Catholicism in the Philippines, a circumstance in which Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan played an instrumental role: “Sinulog is special, first and foremost, because of its rich history, which dates back to 1521, when Ferdinand Magellan gifted the Santo Niño image to Hara Amihan, the wife of local ruler Rajah Humabon, after their baptism. Nowadays, Sinulog is celebrated by devotees through dance, as a form of thanksgiving. By dancing, they deliver their petitions to Santo Niño, just as it was done by the natives back then. This connection to history is what makes Sinulog so special”, Angelo Miguel Magat, vice-president of the Santo Niño de Cebu in Macau Association, told “O Clarim”.

Faith Like Flowing Water

Nobody knows exactly when and where the venerated statue of the Christ Child of Cebu was sculpted, but the image offered to Hara Amihan by Ferdinand Magellan is the oldest Christian artifact in the Philippines. Carved in dark wood, the Flemish style sacred statue stands 30 centimeters tall and depicts the Holy Infant with a serene expression and the attitude of a Spanish monarch. The image is adorned with imperial regalia, including a golden crown, orb and several scepters, wears fine clothing and possesses several sets of jewels, offered by devotees over the last five centuries.

On Sunday, the streets of central Macau will come alive with colorful costumes, lively music and exuberant performances that, somehow, reflect the spiritual and material opulence of the image of Señor Santo Niño, in the same way that the fluid and rhythmic movements of the dancers and drumbeaters seeks to recreate a current of faith that steadily flows into the promise of salvation: “The Sinulog steps are characterized by the fundamental pattern of two steps forwards and one step backward. ‘Sinulog’ – which comes from the Cebuano word ‘sulog’ – means ‘flow of the river current’. The ritual prayer-dance simulates a river current when performed by a large crowd”, Angelo Miguel Magat illustrates.

A mix between faith and culture, history and devotion, Sinulog has undergone changes in scope in format since the early 1980’s and stands today as a testament to the Philippines’ indomitable faith. In addition to the religious celebrations, the festival, as it is celebrated in Cebu, also encompasses a parade and a stage contest, covering various competitions in honor of the Holy Child.

The model was adopted by the Filipino diaspora working and living all over the world. In Macau, where the Señor Santo Niño festivities where first commemorated in 2003, Sinulog is, for the Filipino migrants, one of the most anticipated events of the year. The festival became a token of unity and resilience, a powerful source of hope and transformation in the face of adversity: “It is important for all Catholics and not Catholics alike, I would say. It’s not just for the Filipinos. It serves as an important reminder that our Lord Jesus was born to save us, to save all mankind and to redeem our sins. This is a message that concerns the people in the Philippines, in Macau and elsewhere over the world”, Danilo Perez Ngo, founder of the Couples for Christ Choir, that animates the Tagalog-language Eucharistic celebrations at the Cathedral of the Nativity of Our Lady. “It’s a very special celebration, with unique features, because it celebrates the birth of Jesus, the second person of the Holy Trinity”, Mr. Ngo, a civil engineer, adds.

Santo Niño is Togetherness

The Filipino community in Macau adopted the tradition of commemorating Sinulog in the third Sunday of January. As in the Philippines, the celebrations in honor of the Santo Niño de Cebu begins, nevertheless, much earlier. Religious celebrations start on the Thursday and last for nine days, with a novena being celebrated in Saint Augustine’s church. Sinulog’s most striking feature – the dazzling parade in which dozens of devotees’ dance to praise the Holy Child – takes place on the 10th day. The four groups that will dance their way through the streets of central Macau Sunday afternoon, Angelo Miguel Magat recalls, prepare months in advance: “The Filipino community begins the celebration with a nine-day novena held at Saint Augustine Church, led by the Cruzada de Santo Niño. On the 10th day, which is the festival day, the procession and ritual competition take place. This year, we will have a total of four groups competing. They typically practice for two months before the celebration takes place”, the vice-president of the Santo Niño de Cebu in Macau Association told “O Clarim”. “The devotion to Santo Niño is prevalent in the Philippines and Sinulog is regarded as the grandest and most anticipated festival in the country. The celebration of Sinulog is important to the Filipino community in Macau because it is a time when the community unites to profess their devotion to Santo Niño. Moreover, it’s also a time when Filipinos in Macau feel as though they are back home in the Philippines”, Mr. Magat concludes.  

The celebrations in honor of Señor Santo Niño in Macau culminate with the election of the Queen of Sinulog, late in the afternoon. The tradition has long since spread beyond the borders of the Philippines. In addition to Macau, Sinulog is also celebrated in places such as neighboring Hong Kong, Portugal, Germany, the United States of America and Canada.