San Agustin Church loses 300-year-old ‘Niño’ image

A gold image of the child Jesus cuddled by the Our Lady of Consolation and Correa at the historic San Agustin Church in Intramuros, Manila was stolen in broad daylight last week.

After hiding in the confessional, the thieves reportedly tiptoed their way up the altar and then casually walked out of the church with precious parts of the disassembled image stashed in their pockets.

Church officials, fearing that the valuable image may have been sold to collectors, are appealing that it be returned.

"It’s sacrilege. It is the property of the public because it is the Filipino people who venerate it," said Fr. Pedro Galende, director of the San Agustin Church and Museum.

The thieves left the silver crown of the child Jesus in the confessional and the torso and clothes in a corridor a few steps away. The torso is made of ordinary light materials like wood.

Missing are the image’s head, arms and limbs which are made of ivory and its shoes which are made of gold. Galende could not put a price tag on the stolen items, saying they are priceless.

"It is not the money; it is its historical and spiritual significance that makes it important," Galende told The STAR.

The Our Lady of Consolation and Correa at the San Agustin Church is about 300 years old and has always occupied the right side of one of the oldest churches in the country. The Church and the museum are linked together.

The cincture, which the Marian image wears, is the symbol of chastity for Augustinians. It was canonically crowned by former Manila archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin in 2000.

Galende said the thieves apparently planned the burglary carefully by hiding in the confessional when the Church and museum were closed for lunch break.

It was at this time of day when the employees were busy with lunch, he said, that the burglars climbed the altar and destroyed the swivel lock nailed to the wall to secure the altar box.

When the Church and museum reopened after lunch, the thieves mixed with the new batch of visitors and walked out of the building.

Galende said the thieves either knew that the image of the child Jesus is detachable from the Marian image or simply took a gamble in their attempt to steal it.

"Yes, it is possible that there is an inside job but our people have been with us for so long," said Galende. At the moment only the security agency manning the Church is conducting investigation on the incident.

The Our Lady of Consolation was left untouched by the thieves apparently aware that its ivory extremities and crown could not be removed without causing a ruckus. According to a Church handout, the crown of the Virgin, with its pearls "weighs more than a dozen ounces of the purest gold, it was generously spruced up with rubies, emeralds and other precious stones."

Galende said the theft was discovered at around 2 p.m. last Friday when a janitor found the crown in the confessionary box.

He added that the thieves may be planning to come back for the crown some other time as it is too bulky to be placed in the pockets. Security is purportedly tight at the Church with visitors being asked to deposit their bags.

The last time a similar burglary occurred at the Church was about 12 years ago when a one-foot ivory image of St. Michael Archangel lording over a devil was stolen in the museum.

Like the recent robbery, the metal head gear of St. Michael and the detachable ivory devil were abandoned in some place inside the museum.

The Church, however, got the image back after they went public about the burglary and an antique collector who purchased the image returned it. The thieves were never identified or prosecuted.

Galende hopes conscientious buyers of the golden image of the child Jesus will do the same. He said the public may call 527-4060 and 526-6794 or e-mail him at [email protected]. He said informants will be given confidentiality if requested.