Last weekend, parishes around Melbourne marked the annual feast of the Child Jesus—the Santo Niño—a tradition that dates back more than 500 years and finds its origins in the Philippines. It’s a beautiful devotion that continues overseas thanks to Filipinos who now call Australia home.
The annual festival is known colloquially as Sinulog, from the local Visayan dialect and describing the wave-like movement of dance-worship that locals perform in gratitude for the abundant blessings they have received from God. During the celebrations, devotees cry out, ‘Viva Pit Señor!’ which means ‘Hail, Lord, Holy Child!’ The tradition is said to date back to when the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan arrived in Cebu, the south of the Philippines, in 1521. He presented an image of the Child Jesus to the local Rajah Humabon and his wife, who eventually converted to Christianity. The feast now marks the arrival of Christianity in the South-East Asian nation and celebrates the people’s ongoing devotion to the Child Jesus.
In Melbourne, celebrations took place in parishes across the west and south, with Masses also celebrated in the dioceses of Sandhurst and Sale. Thousands filled St Andrew’s Catholic Parish in Clayton South on Sunday 21 January, with attendees coming from all over the city to celebrate. Monsignor Joselito Asis, Episcopal Vicar for Migrants and Refugees, said it was a delight to see so many gathered for the annual event, especially following years of the COVID pandemic.
‘After the pandemic, we tried our best ... I was so impressed to see that many people [this weekend],’ he said. ‘The different associations represented the different provinces in the Visayas Islands.’ That included members of AVAVI, the Australian Visayan Association of Victoria Inc., who helped organise Sunday’s event in Clayton. Also in attendance were the Hoppers Tribal Sinulog Group Victoria, St James Hoppers Sinulog Group and the Mabuhay Aesthetic Events Performance Association in Victoria.
The feast marks the arrival of Christianity in the Philippines and celebrates the people’s ongoing devotion to the Child Jesus.
A local parishioner, Jenny, said the feast of Santo Niño held special meaning for the Filipino community as it focused on children. ‘In a special manner, it forces us to focus on our children and youth—the challenges they face and also the hopes they raise,’ she said.
‘The feast and this Eucharistic celebration are fresh opportunities for us to entrust our youth to the protection and guidance of the holy child.’
Sunday’s homily was delivered by Fr Luis Viovicente, a Filipino priest visiting from Canberra. The feast of Santo Niño, he said, is a reminder that ‘God became like us and became a child.’
‘So we pray for our children ... and we remind our little ones that they have a special place in the heart of Jesus,’ he said. ‘Jesus was human, 100 per cent. Just like you and me, except [we are] in sin. So what does it mean to become like children—a child of God? On the journey of faith, we rely completely on God, and God provides ... At the end of the day, we are all dependent on God’s divine mercy.
‘So let us put our trust in the Lord, knowing that God knows what is best for us.’
The feast and this Eucharistic celebration are fresh opportunities for us to entrust our youth to the protection and guidance of the holy child.
The feast of the Santo Niño is only one of many celebrations that attracts a crowd, with Filipinos gathering also for the Catholic procession of the Black Nazarene on 11 January. In Manila, millions took to the streets for the procession, the first time since the pandemic.
The Philippines is home to the largest group of Catholics in Asia, with 85 per cent of the country’s 108 million people identifying as Catholic. The Philippines remains one of the top five birthplaces of Australian Catholics born overseas.
