Sto. Niño basilica in Cebu ready for feastday celebration

The Santo Niño Pilgrim Center is spruced up as the nine-day novena mass starts on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2020. PHOTO BY BERNADETTE A. PARCO

The annual celebration of the Feast of the Sto. Niño will kick off on Thursday with the traditional procession followed by the first day novena mass.

The theme for the 455th Fiesta Señor celebration is Sto. Niño: Cause of our Unity and Charity.

The Penitential Walk with Jesus starts at dawn from Fuente Osmeña with devotees walking through the stretch of Osmeña boulevard, a main throughfare in Cebu City, and is expected to end at the Basilica del Sto. Niño.

The solemn procession is followed by the installation of the Hermano Mayor and Hermana Mayores at the Santo Niño Pilgrim Center.

Masses in both English and Cebuano are scheduled through out the day for nine days leading up to the triduum feast day celebration.

A line up of religious activities organized by the Augustinian Recollects at the Basilica, including the Walk with Mary at the start of the triduum celebration on Jan. 17, 2020 which is followed by the Misa de Traslacion that will be held at the Santo Niño Pilgrim Center,

The eve of the feastday celebration starts with Traslacion mass at the National Shrine of Saint Joseph in Mandaue City to the National Shrine of Virgen de Regla in Lapu-Lapu City followed by a fluvial procession at Mactan Channel.

There will be a mass held at the Pilgrim Center for the commemoration of the first baptism and first mass in the morning. 

In the afternoon, a foot procession of the replica of the Santo Niño de Cebu.

On the feastday celebration, masses will be held throughout the day. — BAP, GMA News