Republic of the Philippines - Stamps & Postal History

RP Issues of 2015

 

HOMEPAGE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2015, April 20 (16).  Santo Niño: Hope of the People

Litho Offset, Amstar Company, Inc.,  Perf 14 (Stamps), Perf 13 (Souvenir Sheets)

Singles, Sheets of  40,  Souvenir Sheets on One

                      

 

10p  Santo Niño: Hope of the People, 450th Anniversary - Singles   (200,000)

 

200p Souvenir Sheets of One   (30,000) 

(The first 21k gold ink, three-dimensional embossed souvenir sheet of the Philippines)

 

 

First Day Covers:  Manila & Cebu City

    

Manila FDCs

 

   

Cebu City FDCs

         

 


Santo Niño and the Dawn of Christian Faith in the Philippines

450th Year – Finding of the Santo Niño de Cebu

450th Year – Presence of the Augustinians in the Philippines

50th Year – Santo Niño Church as Basilica Minore


The Santo Niño icon of Cebu is historically recognized as the oldest religious relic in the Philippines. Its origin is traced from the celebrated voyage of Ferdinand Magellan in 1521 which accidentally “discovered” and claimed the islands for the Spanish Monarchy. The historic arrival was purely uncalculated for the fleet did not intend to sail directly to the Philippines. The land of the spices, particularly the highly-contested Moluccas, was the expedition’s target destination. The armada reached the islands after it was driven away by strong winds from the original route which eventually brought them to the island of Cebu. The preliminary encounters that followed forged conditional alliances and the accompanying ceremonials took place including the introduction of the Christian faith. Initial attempt to evangelize the indigenous people of Cebu was accomplished with the hasty acceptance of the Christian faith by King Humabon and his subjects numbering around 800. The Santo Niño image was given to Queen Juana upon her ardent wish to have it in place of her local deities. The baptized indigenous people did not flourish in their practice of faith mainly due to the untimely demise of Magellan (including the chaplain Fr. Pedro Valderrama) and the eventual return of the surviving contingent to Spain. Also attributable to the absence of deeper instruction, the baptismal rite was misconstrued by the locals as a customary ritual of friendship rather than a spiritual initiation. After the interruption of forty-four (44) years, the Legazpi-Urdaneta Expedition arrived in Cebu. On April 28, 1565, the dramatic yet providential discovery (pagkakaplag) of the same wooden image in a partially scorched hut started the distinctive Christian heritage of the Philippines. The Augustinians who accompanied the journey commenced the systematic evangelization and Christianization of the islands. The subsequent foundation of the Church and Convent of the Augustinians rose on the actual site where the statuette was found. It became the central house of the Augustinians, the mother church in the Philippine Islands. The establishment of organic settlements and mission areas followed instantaneously and the pioneering evangelization gradually prospered in geographical reach and ecclesial organization despite the scarcity of missionaries. Additional religious orders were commissioned to the Philippines in successive intervals: Franciscans (1578), Jesuits (1581), Dominicans (1587), and Augustinian Recollects (1606). Their ground-breaking missionary endeavors contributed to the Philippine identity as a predominantly Christian nation. 

The first Church and Convent dedicated to Santo Niño developed into a principal house of the Augustinian friars mainly in the spiritual and missionary formation, and the promotion of the devotion to the Holy Child – the adored patron, protector and inspiration. As a consequence, the Santo Niño Church grew in popularity throughout the islands both in magnificence and significance as the cradle of Philippine Christianity, and the perpetual sanctuary of the Santo Niño of Cebu. In recognition of the historical, religious and cultural importance of the Santo Niño Church and the sacred relic it keeps, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) petitioned Pope Paul VI in 1964 to confer on the Santo Niño Church the title “Basilica Minore” in time for the Fourth Centennial of the Christianization of the Philippines in 1965.The Santo Niño icon was also canonically crowned by the Papal LegateIldebrando Cardinal Antoniutti – a solemn gesture of singular honor reserved to the beloved Santo Niño. In its entirety, the Fourth Centennial Celebration overwhelmingly succeeded in engaging the entire nation, thus renewing “The Philippines for Christ” in faith, commitment and enthusiasm to live out the Gospel message. 

The proposed celebrations on the 450thYear of the Finding of the Santo Niño statuette and the 50th Anniversary of the Basilica Minore consist of activities that will be organized by the Province of Santo Niño de Cebu-Philippines in collaboration with the different sectors. The Commission on Augustinian Cultural Heritage, in coordination with the Community of the Basilica, is tasked to make the proposal for submission to the Provincial and Council, who, in turn, will create an Ad Hoc Committee to do the initial planning and deliberate on the submitted proposals. The Committee initially convened on March 9, 2012 to discuss the preparatory initiatives primarily the creation of the executive and working committees who will spearhead the approved commemorative events. The composition of the Executive and Working Committees include representatives from the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), national government agencies such as the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP), National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA); the Augustinian Family, particularly the Vicariate of the Orient (Philippine Province), Augustinian Sisters of Our Lady of Consolation (ASOLC); other Religious Congregations; the Archdiocese of Cebu, headed by His Excellency Archbishop Jose Palma, DD; local government units of Cebu, represented by the Provincial Governor and Cebu City Mayor; non-government organizations, private companies and individuals. The Executive and Steering Committees have met several times for the finalization of the calendar of activities. The projected Santo Niño celebrations are scheduled for launching on the occasion of the 2014KaplagFestival – an annual festivity honoring and remembering the historic and providential finding of the icon of Señor Santo Niño. The year-long (2015-2016) Santo Niño Festival adapted the theme, “Santo Niño: Hope of the People.” It is likewise intended to reinvigorate the religious fervor of the faithful to the Holy Child who has favored the country and its people with abundant graces since the miraculous finding in 1565. 

http://basilicasantonino.org.ph/pages/kaplag.html

 

 

TOPICAL CATEGORIES

 

  • Religious

  • Statues

 

Articles by Dr. Ngo Tiong Tak

Back to the Top

Home

Issues of 2015