THE FEAST OF SANTO NIÑO

In the 15 th/ 16th centurt a great devotion to the Child Jesus developed in Europe. From the many statues, especially three became known worldwide and were-and -still are the object of great veneration. The oldest one is the so-called "BAMBINO" of the Church of Araceli in Rome. It dates back to the 15th century and is carved of wood from olive trees of Gethsemane in Jerusalem. A Franciscan friar brought it to Rome where it became very much venerated. It is richly decorated with gold and jewerly donated by devotees. At Christmas time the Church with the "Bambino" becomes the center of popular piety. Well known are the "Sermonds of the Children" given from a small pulpit close to the statue of the "Bambino". But also throughout the year the devotion is going on; people are praying before the statue and every year an average of two thousand letters from all over the world are addressed to the "Bambino of Rome". these letters remain unopened and thier content is not known; they are probably petitions, thanksgiving or just expressions of love and admiration.
Another famous image of the Child Jesus is the "INFANT OF PRAGUE". It is found in the Church of the Carmelites Maria de Victoria in the city of Prague, but it originates from Spain and was brought to Bohemia in 1556. In 1628 the statue was handed over to the Carmelites who exposed it in the church entrusted to them. Thousands of people from all over the world flocked to this miraculuos image- emperors, kings, and simple faithful and made donations to "the small king and secret emperor". Copies of the Infant of Prague can be found everywhere in the world from Brazil to India.
In the Philippines it is the statue of the SANTO NIÑO de CEBU which conquered the hearts not only of the population of that city but also of all the Filipinos. On April 7, 1521, Ferdinand Magellan entered the port of Cebu. One week later a mass baptism was held. Several hundred natives, some say eight hundred, others five hundred; led by the chieftain Humabon were baptized. Queen Juana was given as a baptismal gift a statue of the Child Jesus. In 1565 another expedition arrived in the Philippines under the leadership of Miguel Lopez de Legaspi and Fray Andres de Urdaneta. They found a lot of resistance and hostility among the natives who fled the village and set it on fire. While searching among the ruins for things spared by the fire, the statue of the Santo Niño was found on April 28, 1565. It was entrusted to the Augustinian fathers who erected a church in 1571, dedicated to the Holy Child Jesus, where the statue was brought and venerated. In 1740 a new church was erected, dedicated to St. Augustine, and on January 16 the SANTO NIÑO of Cebu was enthroned in that church. From Cebu the devotion to the "SEÑOR SANTO NIÑO" spread to the other parts of the Philippines. In 1971 the feast of the Santo Niño was intorduced in the National Calendar to be celebrated in the Third Sunday of January. Rome confirmed this decision in 1975 and in 1978 the texts for the Mass and the Divine Office were approved.