EDITORIAL - Lest we forget

It is that time of year again, the time when Cebu gets put on the world map for hosting not just one of the most famous festivals in the world but also one of the most solemn of Christian traditions.

After two years we finally get to celebrate these activities again with a degree of normalcy almost like before the start of the pandemic.

Before we get lost in the raucous and rowdy celebration, let us not forget that we have religious obligations to fulfill or at least to respect. Even as we celebrate the Sinulog itself we must not forget the Fiesta Señor.

Are those two different? Yes.

Many get confused between the two or even refer to one thing as the other. But we should not forget that the celebration of culture, art, and dance is called the Sinulog Festival, while the solemn religious observation is called the Fiesta Señor.

It is easy for those outside Cebu, and even some people who have lived in Cebu all their lives and partaken of this celebration every year, to confuse the two.

While activities related to the Sinulog celebration have started since last December yet, the activities related to the Fiesta Señor are set to start today with the Walk With Jesus at 4 a.m. before ending with the “Hubo” mass on January 20.

This is what makes this Cebu activity unique. Even as we celebrate the worldly in terms of song, dance, and visual arts --a virtual feast for the senses that has won international acclaim-- we also pay attention to the divine, in terms of bringing ourselves closer to God.

Both God and man are celebrated in these activities, although it may seem the emphasis appears to be on the human aspect of the celebration.

Considering how we have been constrained from celebrating this activity for the past two years, it may easy for us to lose ourselves in the worldly aspect of the event, in the Sinulog festivities only.

We should not forget to show our devotion and pay homage to the Holy Child.

To Cebuanos and our visitors we wish you a good start to the Fiesta Señor. Pit Señor!