CEBU, Philippines — The Augustinian fathers in Cebu spearheading the Fiesta Señor 2019 are making minor changes in the religious activities to allow piety and sacrifice on the part of devotees.
Fr. Ric Anthony Reyes, head of the secretariat committee, told The FREEMAN there is no dramatic change to the scheduled religious activities during the weeklong celebration.
But there are minimal adjustments during the Walk with Jesus on the Opening Salvo on January 10 and the fluvial procession on the eve of the feast on January 19.
He said the dawn procession dubbed Walk with Jesus, which typically kicks off the nine-day Novena Masses leading to the feast, will begin at the Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish Church – a first time in history.
This adjustment means that the walk will be longer and will have to start at an earlier time.
For centuries, the penitential foot procession would start at Fuente Osmeña Circle, which is only 2.3 kilometers away from the end point at the Basilica Minore del Santo Niño particularly facing the stretch of the Osmeña Boulevard.
Devotees may take an additional three kilometers from the starting point to Fuente Osmeña Circle.
The departure of the procession from Fuente Osmeña Circle before would start at 4 a.m. but organizers had to move it earlier at 3 a.m. this time to make it for the scheduled first Mass at the Basilica.
Fr. Reyes said for the fluvial procession on the Visperas, the image will leave from Lapu-Lapu City at the Muelle Osmeña wharf in returning to Cebu City.
Prior to the Visperas, the pilgrim image of the Santo Niño is earlier set for the traslacion or the transfer to the different parishes particularly the National Shrine of St. Joseph in Mandaue City and the Virgen dela Regla National Shrine in Lapu-Lapu City.
The Augustinians, however, started this modification in 2018 when the galleon or vessel to be used to carry the pilgrim image is opened to other interested individuals or entities.
Last year, the religious community picked the Naval Forces Central to transport the image using the huge BRP Agta via its port in Barangay Canjulao, Lapu-Lapu.
“The friars assigned in the Basilica have not really made some more activities… but we only continue and stabilized changes we did the previous fiesta in order to take root to the devotees these expressions of piety and devotion,” Fr. Reyes said.
The Augustinian fathers at the Basilica Minore del Santo Niño are made custodians of the highly-revered image, also considered as one of the oldest religious relic in the country.
The present administration of the Augustinians in Cebu earlier made adjustments to reach out to more devotees outside the cities of Cebu and Mandaue.
Previously, it used to take off from the Ouano Wharf in Mandaue City.
Last year the Augustinian fathers made a big jump when organizers decided to bring the pilgrim image to Lapu-Lapu City following the fervent requests of residents there to have the Holy image visit at the island. (FREEMAN)