“Two steps forward, one step back. We’ll come together to praise the ever Living God.” I went singing to the tune of Paula Abdul’s ‘Opposites Attract.’ But no, this has nothing to do with the ex-AI judge. This is part of the fun way of taking a glimpse into our colorful past much like peering into a kaleidoscope.
Historical chronicles had it that “synonymous to the Christianization of the Philippines is the feast of Señor Santo Niño de Cebu,” a festive celebration held every third Sunday of January in the beautiful Sugbu Island, a name which appeared in western travel records as Zubu, Subuth, Cubu, and then later on, Cebu.
The celebration is as interesting as the name itself which when literally taken, means “to walk in the waters”; a reference to how those early settlers came by sea craft and “had to wade ashore” as the shallow waters prevented boats from reaching the shorelines. The name is “evocative of arrivals,” the island considered a major destination, being connected to many points beyond its shores – a host to pilgrims, refugees and immigrants.
A sliver of history
On March 16, 1521, so goes one line of Roman “Yoyoy” Villame’s novelty song, the Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan (Fernando Magallanes in Spanish, Fernao de Magalhaes in Portuguese), under a Spanish fleet, planted a big cross in Cebu to symbolize the beginning of Christian faith in the archipelago. It has been said that the icon of the Sto. Niño was given by Magellan to Queen Juana (Hara Amihan), as a gift, for her conversion from paganism.
Later on, a fifth Spanish expedition headed by Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, assisted by Augustinian priests led by Fray Andres de Urdaneta, reached Cebu on the 27th of April in 1565, and made it a jumping point for spreading the faith in other areas; thus, the formal Christianization of the archipelago.
Meanwhile, the origin of the Sto. Niño de Cebu has three versions. What is widely accepted is that it was the same image given to Hara Amihan and found by Juan Camus from the ruins of the village burned down in an invasion of Legazpi’s soldiers.
The second of these popular theories is said to be more obscure, the image having come from China and brought to the Philippines by Chinese traders of unknown Franciscan missionaries who were already in China in the 4th century.
The third theory is the most bizarre. According to historical accounts, the image was a native idol made from driftwood. A luckless fisherman caught the driftwood at sea and threw it back several times. Only after deciding to keep it did he catch a school of fish. Thus, magical powers were attributed to the driftwood which was later carved into a religious icon.
“Although outlandish,” this according to the article, “the story manifests that the image is a local possession.” It is reinforced by several legends that when the image was placed in a box to be presented to the king of Spain, it got lost and returned to Cebu.
In recognition of its miraculous power, King Charles III of Spain awarded the image a golden fleece in the 17th century. And it was during the 4th centennial celebration of the Christianization of the Philippines when Prince Juan Carlos of Spain gifted it with a golden crown.
The image of the Sto. Niño de Cebu
This piece of information from a reliable source – the Cebuano Studies Center where one can trust the works of true-blue Cebuano historians – present a tapestry of notes compiled in the book “Cebu: More than an island” published in 1997.
According to the said book, the country’s oldest and most precious Christian relic is the Sto. Niño which is the most popular symbol of Cebu.
“Expressive of the pleasing opportunities in Cebuano culture, it is at once both foreign and native. In history, it was made by Flemish artisans, brought to the island by Magellan in 1521.
“In local tradition, it is a miraculous piece of wood, cast out of the Visayan Sea, worshipped for so many, many centuries ago. On one hand, it is a powerful deity that, in the colonial period, was called capitan-general and honored with a 21-gun salute when taken out from the church for a procession. On the other hand, it is an icon that “disappears” to become a playful and innocent child cavorting with peasants and fishermen.”
Today, the image of the Holy Child often referred to in the vernacular as the “milagrosong bata” (miraculous child) is enshrined at the San Agustin Church, the first Catholic Church later renamed Basilica del Sto. Niño manned by Augustinian friars.
“Sinulog, mosiyagit og kusog!”
It has been explained too that even before Magellan came to Cebu, the Sinulog was already danced by the natives in honor of their wooden idols – a two-step forward, one-step backward movement to the sound of drums resembling the current or “sulog” of the Pahina River here in Cebu City. Thus, the term “Sinulog.”
When the image of the Sto. Niño was handed to Amihan, the dance ritual was performed in His honor. The tradition continued at the Basilica, the home of the child Jesus. Candle vendors dance the Sinulog while making the offerings or supplication for those who buy candles. People chant “Pit Senyor!” (which is actually Sangpit or Sampit Señor, meaning to call) while doing the two-step forward, one-step backward worship dance. Others say that “sinulog” actually comes from the word “pagsulog/paghadla” which means playful coaxing or cooing of a child.
Street-dancing launched
It was in January 19 and 20, 1980 when the first “Sinulog sa Sugbu/Sugbo” was held as a feature in Cebu City’s celebration of the feast of Señor Sto. Niño. The dance has a strong resemblance to that of Aklan’s Ati-atihan and Iloilo’s Dinagyang.
Jovi and Ma. Cristina Juan’s works narrated of the local government’s grand lucrative idea in 1980. “The Sinulog fiesta at the time was an affair of local color,” went the tandem’s piece. Held at the Basilica del Sto. Niño, the feast featured Sinulog dancing performed by various groups to fulfill religious obligations. On the third Sunday of January each year, besides the faithful who joined the Sinulog to fulfill a “panata/panaad” (religious vow), the vent began to attract an increasing number of tourists.
“In subsequent years, the parade grew stronger and the number of spectators increased,” so it was observed. “The weeks before Sinulog are filled with an enormous sense of buildup, heightened by frequent announcements of the coming parade on every newspaper and radio station. Through the years, the parade itself remains the same with the insistent four-fourths beat resounding throughout the city.”
Hordes of people
A lot of modern-day miracles have been attributed to the Sto. Niño. The biggest is the outpouring of faith as shown by the hundreds of devotees attending Friday Masses at the Basilica’s Pilgrim Center and the long queue of people waiting for hours for their turn to kiss and venerate the original image displayed inside the urn on Cebu’s very special day.
Tourists with cameras come to see and document the events. Delegates from other regions in the Visayas and Mindanao areas join the street dance contest not so much to win but to show devotion to the Sto. Niño. For thousands of devotees, the image is not simply a piece of wood. It is the living Jesus Christ, “in the tenderness of His childhood.”
Cebu, as described by the book, is a lime rock island washed on all sides by the constant rhythm of the sea, and that it has little choice but to move along the waters of change. For a city whose very name Sugbu means “to plunge into the waters of the sea,” Cebu is certainly in no point closing its shores to more and more people coming in to venerate the Holy Child; to those seeking for greener pastures, to neighbors from nearby islands who want to explore the rich Sinugbuwano culture and those who want to mingle with the warm and friendly Cebuanos.
Cebu’s shores have always been open not only to the beatings of the sea waves but also to the “cultural influences that ceaselessly wash ashore.”
To the believers and devotees of the Holy Infant, here’s an invite into worship-dancing: “Two steps forward and one step back. We’ll come together to praise the ever Living God.” – Maria Eleanor E. Valeros
