Cebu's Child Jesus festival kicks off behind bars

Jan 23, 2018

CEBU: This year's feast of the Santo Nino or Child Jesus in the central Philippine city of Cebu kicked off with a visit to the city's prisons.

Encased in glass, the image of the Child Jesus carried by jail guards was brought to various reformatories, jails, and prisons on Jan. 19.

During the celebration of Mass, Augustinian priest Pacifico Nohara reminded inmates to "always do good, especially once you are free."

"You must continue to do good for that is the challenge for each and everyone of you," said the priest.

He said many devotees have been requesting that the image be brought to their places this year but it was the prisons that were given the chance to have a glimpse of what is reportedly a miraculous image.

"He came here to visit you and remind you that you are special to him. Though it is just an image, the presence of the Holy Child Jesus is always with you and he will never forsake you," said Father Nohara.

The image of the Santo Nino in Cebu was reportedly a gift from Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan to the queen of the island during her baptism as a Catholic, thus bringing Christianity for the first time to Philippine shores in 1521.

The annual feast in honor of the image attracts millions of people especially from the central and southern Philippines.

Devotees carry images of the Child Jesus as they dance in procession around the city. Having an image of the Santo Nino has been part of the Filipino people's devotion for centuries.

The feast is one of the most celebrated feasts in the country.

Unlike the Feast of the Black Nazarene in Quiapo, Manila, where millions of people go for its religious significance, the Sinulog is a week-long religious festival.

Non-religious activities have already been going on for a week even as thousands of people fall in line at the Santo Nino shrine to pray to the Child Jesus.

Michael (not his real name), who is in jail for robbery, said he was happy to have seen the image this year. "I feel light, so I pray for good health for me and my family," he said.

Lorenzo dela Cerna, a welfare officer in prison, said bringing the image of the Child Jesus to prison is part of the facility's "after-care program" for inmates before they are released.

In his homily, Father Nohara said "the miraculous image of the Santo Nino hears always our prayers, giving us hope, embracing us in times of suffering and inspiring us to be better persons."

"He is here with us, is always with us, constantly guiding our ways and that we should be thankful to him," added the priest.--Ucanews.Com