Prayers to Señor Santo Niño, 2023

Despite the continuing rains, thousands have been joining the early morning activities scheduled for this year’s fiesta for our dear Santo Niño!

Thousands more flock to the Basilica and other churches to lift their prayers, thanksgiving, and supplications up to Señor Santo Niño.

An estimated two million are expected especially on Sunday, the Feast of our Santo Niño de Cebu.

Will the heavens hear everyone’s prayer for good weather, for the sun to shine especially on Sunday?

May our Santo Niño also hear everyone’s petition for all fiesta participants to be kept safe/protected from all forms of danger and from the COVID-19 virus/variants as well!

Many devotees who have had their previous petitions granted by our dear Santo Niño will be back to offer thanksgiving prayers. Many more will come to ask for their prayers and petitions to be granted.

In Friday’s early morning walk for Mama Mary, it was touching to see a father lovingly pushing the wheelchair where his sick child lay sleeping.

Let us all remember also to lift the prayers for healing for all those urgently needing to be restored to good health and life, those seeking peace in their heart/mind and soul, those seeking daily food and deliverance from their hunger and poverty. These are legion.

Let us also offer prayers for public officials to render genuine service/care for all constituents, honestly using public funds not for their selfish, personal interests but especially for the neediest. The abusive are also legion.

May our dear Santo Niño chase away especially the lingering Low Pressure Area in Mindanao and tame the amihan bringing continuing rains that are sadly causing floods, landslides, damage, deaths included, in many areas of Eastern Visayas, Surigao, and Misamis areas.

Shall we please include in our prayers and lift to the Santo Niño the real and urgent necessities of those afflicted by typhoons/calamities, that these be promptly responded to by responsible authorities?

One persistent and special prayer and petition we can raise to our Santo Niño is for all to honor God’s earth, God’s creations with their simple act of responsible management of their own trash/waste!

May His Eminence Archbishop Jose Palma and all other priests who will celebrate Masses during this fiesta for our Santo Niño remember to remind all not to throw any trash anywhere.

Our fervent prayer is for all mass celebrants to just share these simple, short reminders to all: “From this 2023 Feast of our Santo Niño onward, let us remember to honor God and His creations by protecting His earth and our environment. Please look around you now and check/pick up any trash thrown where you are now.

“Please do not throw/leave any trash inside our church, out in the streets, anywhere else.

“Please responsibly, mindfully segregate and properly manage/dispose of your own trash at home or in proper publicly designated bins for segregated waste.”

And this still unanswered prayer for our Santo Niño to grant: “may the local governments responsibly lead waste segregation and inclusive/inexpensive/eco-friendly/waste management initiatives and no WTE please.

For this year’s Fiesta Señor, we pray that the local government officials and offices have already sufficiently/thoroughly prepared properly segregated bins, trucks, and disposal areas so that the city instead can save and earn from the huge festival waste volume instead of spending and wasting public funds for garbage and trash!

May this year’s experiences/memories of our Fiesta Señor and the Sinulog be wonderful and meaningful for you all!

May our Señor Santo Niño’s love and grace also be with you all.

May the beautiful "Gozos", Batobalani sa Gugma, “a hymn/magnet of love, of pasalamat (thanksgiving) and pangilaba (supplication), remain in your hearts!

Viva! Pit Señor!