"LEFT WING OF THE BASILICA CHURCH"

 "Taking an image, freezing a moment, reveals how rich reality truly is.”
— Anonymous 

Hello everyone :) . Recently , me and my girlfriend @purpleshangz went to  the Basílica Minore del Santo Niño de Cebú (Minor Basilica of the Holy Child of Cebú) commonly known as the Santo Niño Basilica  which located at Cebu City ,Philippines. We visited the church and prayed of our blessings that we had , we thank that God never leave us and he always there to guide, protect, care and love us , so we spend our time with Lord and enjoy the presence of him.

After, we went inside the church and we saw some beautiful exhibit photos which dedicated to our beloved Santo Niño , so take pictures and its description. Big up for those who take this awesome pictures :) LOVE IT ! 

"LANTAW" by Jayvee Gulfan

  In the assembly of the people of God, our King, Señor Sto. Niño watches with gladness. He hears His people and intercedes on their intercession. As a King suited for majesty, He becomes one with us in the celebration of His childhood.  

"YEARNING" by Dodds Marvin Compomanes

  When God made the Word flesh, He must have the idea in His mind that for us to be near Him, He will not only make His Son human, but also a child; in the person of the Sto. Niño. In the same way that a child yearns for his parents, so too we yearn for our Heavenly Father through His Son; that in this yearning, we may become children of God once again.  

"PISTA NA" by Dodds Marvin Compomanes

  It’s fiesta day! Thousands of banderitas are covering the pilgrim center and along the roads of Cebu City to signal the celebration the biggest fiesta in the entire province of Cebu.  

"LIFT"

  Volunteers lift the urna of the Sto. Niño de Cebu after arriving from the Walk with Jesus Penitential Procession on the Opening Salvo of the Fiesta Señor 2018, Thursday, January 11,2018.  

"SANGPIT"

  Our call to have a child-like faith brings about a transformation on how we see the Lord in His child-like stage. By this type of faith, it is easy to call on the Lord because we are not prejudiced with any outlook; we are only led to an innocent belief of God made man and a child like us.  

"NIÑO" by Giselle Marie Regner

  The Gozos to the Sto. Niño de Cebu is always paired with the swaying of arms. This gesture represents our plea to the Holy Child to hear our prayers and petitions. On the one hand, prevalent during the novena-masses of the Fiesta Señor is the act of swaying the image of the Holy Child as well. It reminds us to who we offer our prayers for.  

"PROTECTOR" by Mary Robin Quinain

  Devotees of the Holy Child are seen here entering one of the entrance gates to the Pilgrim Center. They lift their image of the Sto. Niño to protect it from the onrush of the crowd. In the very reason that we want to protect our individual statues of Him, so too our beloved Holy Child protects us from any danger and temptation.  

"DAWATA" by Edrian Gustin Camacho

  During the giving of the Holy Communion, the Eucharistic Ministers see to it that wherever you are, you will receive the Body of Christ. This is in the same way true for all of us faithful: that wherever we are, God is always ready to reach for us.  

"MISSION" by Rhea Carmel Maglahus

"CENTER" by Nina Kristine Alvarez

  A throng of devotees is seen during the first day of the novena mass for the Fiesta Señor. During the first mass up until the Fiesta Day, the number of devotees will still be the same taking into consideration the increasing number of devotees who flock by the Basilica every year.  

"TIN-AW" by Mary Robin Quinain

  With the raising of the many images of Sto. Niño de Cebu, we can always see clearly that it is through Him, with Him, and in Him we offer our prayers. He is the cause of our joy.  

"WAVES" by Jayhan Fe Bornea

  The recognizable swaying of the hands by the devotees of Señor Sto. Niño de Cebu during the gozos is seen here during one of the novena-masses. This act of faith is tantamount to our expression of lifting everything to God through His Son.  

"TUMONG" by Franz Ej Fua

  When a priest says mass, it is dedicated to himself, those who hear the mass, the souls, the saints, and to the Lord. This dynamism is a representation of His love for us; that in everything we do, we do it for God’s glory; in return, He gave us Himself to bring us closer to the Father.  

"PRESENCE" by Jan Everly Enad

  The iconic umbrellas of the Basilica used during the downpour of rain embody the faith of the devotees that nothing stops them from expressing their love for the child. His loving presence is in returned felt at the deepest recesses of their hearts.  

"IWAG" by Nina Kristine Alvarez

  With the start of the novena-masses for the Fiesta Señor, the devotees of the Holy Child do not only hear mass but also light a candle for their prayers and intentions. This is a symbolic manifestation of their meekness; that in their prayers, Sto. Niño will guide and light their way towards God.  

"SALIG" by Keith Lawrence Ermac

  Foregrounded by the image of the Sto.Niño de Cebu, an inmate of the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitaion Center waves his arm to the Holy Child. This is a wonderful reminder that even in our sinfulness, God is ready to forgive and pardon us.  

"HALAD" by Rhea Carmel Maglahus

  Teachers, school heads, district and division directors are seen here doing their Traditional Halad. Each school within the Division of Cebu City offers a traditional Sinulog Dance and offers their flowers to the altar. The petals from the flowers are then used the day after which will be tossed during the Fluvial Procession.  

"KAANYAG" by Regina Carla Albino

  The Feast of the Holy Child is not complete without the Cebuano’s’ Traditional Dance Offering, or the Sinulog. The festival showcases how we can offer our prayers to Sto. Niño by dancing. By that dancing, we can show our love to Him and in that love, we can be radiant and attractive to God and the others.  

"KAUBAN" by Dawn Michor Daan

  The image is taken during the Solemn Procession where thousands of devotees gathered to honor the Holy Child. This procession signifies that in our differences and diversity, we become one with our constant companion in the person of Sto. Niño. As His companions, walking through the road less traveled will be filled with vigor and happiness in due time.  

"PAGKAHIUSA" by Fr. Genesis Labana, OSA

  Of the many roads and streets traversed by the faithful during the Solemn Procession, it is an undeniable fact that whatever walks of life we come from, by the Holy Name of the Jesus, we are all linked and integrated to one another into our pilgrimage towards heaven.  

"SULOD" by Dawn Michor Daan

  Upon the symbolic departure of the Sto.Niño for the Solemn Procession, He calls us to be with Him. That to be with Him means finding Him; by finding Him, we find ourselves entering the heart and ultimately, the Kingdom of God.  

"CONVERSION" by Jan Everly Enad

  Accepted and welcomed by the new faithful at the conversion of the natives, the images are raised above their heads to honor and pay homage to their new and only God, Jesus, in the image of Sto. Niño.  

"PANAG-ABOT" by Britz Bryan Briones

"PAGBAYAW" by Micole Gerrard Tizon

  In our religious revelry in honor to the Sto. Niño, we do not only offer our dance to Him for our prayers. We also offer it to Him for thanksgiving to God for giving us a Child like Him. We are also thanking the Lord for as a child, Sto. Niño has become our inspiration to always live in humility.  

"TINUBDAN" by Regina Carla Albino

  During the Reenactment of the First baptism, we are reminded that the Cross, planted Cebu by explorer and navigator Ferdinand Magellan in 1521 marked as the arrival of the Spaniards and introduction of the Catholic faith to the natives of the island on the shoreline of Cebu, is a fount of mercy on us. This is also a fitting reminder that even in our struggles and undertakings; we can see the Cross of Christ as our hope for a never-ending love through Señor Sto. Niño de Cebu.  

"KAHITAS-AN" by Edrian Gustin Camacho

  Foregrounded by the clouds above during the Solemn Foot Procession foretelis the glorious seat of the Holy Child in heaven, where Jesus comes from.  

"HARI" by Christine Briones

  On the Visperas mass, we see the local heads of the Catholic Church, as well as the representative of Pope Francis: the Papal Nuncio to the Philippines Archbishop Grabriele Giordano Caccia dance the image of Sto. Niño together with the devotees. Aside from the festive mood of the dance brings, it also implies that whoever we are, we bow down to the one and only King, the Sto. Niño de Cebu.  

"BARE" by Keith Lawrence Ermac

  The image of Sto. Niño raised bare without his gallant robes and clothes at the ceremonial Hubo Mass on Friday, January 26, 2018 for the official closing of the Fiesta Señor 2018.  

"REPRESENTATION" by Giselle Marie Regner

"DALANGPANAN" by Carlo Emmanuel Caracena

  A devotee’s celebration of Feast of Señor Sto. Niño de Cebu is not complete without lining going to His original image given by Ferdinand Magellan to the wife of Rajah Humabon, Hara Humamay, and subsequently found through the expedition of the Miguel Lopez de Legaspi. The image of the Holy Child prods His devotees to pay homage to Him as He is the source of their hope and inspiration.  

"INAHAN" by Karl Niño Bascon

  The image of Our Lady of Guadalupe enters the gate of the Basilica during the as it ends the Walk with Mary Penitential Procession that started at dawn on Saturday of January 20, 2018.  

"STILL" by Christine Briones

  The celebration of the fluvial procession brings us to another facet of Sto. Niño the devotees see. It might be unknown to many but He is regarded the Celestisimo Capitan General de las Fuerzas Españolas en Filipinas or The Most Esteemed Captain General of Spanish Forces in the Philippines. By this, not only we are devotees, but we are also under the leadership and guidance of Holy Child. It is a good thing to realize that with Him we are altogether still and resilient.  

"SEE" by Britz Bryan Briones

  A view from above in a Philippine Air Force helicopter captures the historical fluvial procession in the Mactan channel. More than 200 motorized bancas and ships joined the annual procession that started at 6:00 am from the NAVFORCEN base in Lapu-Lapu City going to Pier 1 in Cebu City.  

"BEGINNINGS" by Joniel Benzent Quijano

  The urna carrying the image of the Holy Child proceeds to the galleon that will be used for the fluvial procession. He begins to embark on a journey to touch people’s lives through His loving gaze. It is also a significant activity that illustrates how the Lord is given as a gift to the Cebuano people through the expedition of the Spaniards, thus commence the Christianization of the Philippine Archipelago.  

"OMNIPOTENT" by Carlo Emmanuel Caracena

"KAAGAK" by Franz Ej Fua

  In the acceptance of the image of the Child Jesus we deliberately trust our whole life to Him. In the same way that this meekness speaks of His love through helping one another, whoever we are. For in the eyes of God, we are all equal.  

"TULAY by Joniel Benzent Quijano

  The image of the Sto. Niño de Cebu arrives at the foot of the Lapu-Lapu Bridge to the welcomed by the Oponganons. Here, the image of the Holy Child symbolizes God who builds bridges, wipes out gaps, and destroys walls for our union with Him and His children.  

"STRENGTH" by Christine Briones

  The image of Señor Sto. Niño de Cebu is welcomed at the National Shrine of St. Joseph after the Cebu-Mandaue Traslacion. The bearer of the image, with a robust nature, is part of civil forces of the Philippines. In our faith, there is an understanding that even in our sturdy nature, there is one sole source of our strength: Jesus Christ.  

"LINAW" by Micole Gerard Tizon

  The galleon that bears the Holy Child is photographed here together with other ships and motorized bancas during the Fluvial Procession. As El Capitan General, Señor Sto. Niño de Cebu does not only lead His galleon and other ships to a land, but also keeps them safe all the time.  

Hope you amazed these pictures captured by of our very own Filipino photographers . God bless always everyone :)

Best Regards:

-@jackobeat