Santo Niño de Pasion de Navotas - The Little Prince of Navotas

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Santo Niño de Pasion de Navotas
A few blocks from the historic parish of San Jose de Navotas, there is a newly established parish that became one of the centers of the devotion to Santo Niño de Pasion in the country, next to Sts. Peter and Paul Parish in Poblacion, Makati City (home of the images of Virgen de la Rosa and Sto. Niño de Pasion de Makati).

Even from its early years as a visita (chapel), devotees already flock his throne to seek his help in their everyday needs and it  became one of the most frequented holy places in Navotas.

The image

The venerable image of Santo Niño de Pasion de Navotas is a de vestir wooden image of the Child Jesus under this particular title.

The image has a sorrowful mien and tearful looking down to the cross that he is holding on his left hand while on the right he holds a crown of thorns and the three nails meditating on His future Passion and death on the Cross to fulfill his mission to save the World from the hands of the enemies.

The image sports a wig, the aureola on his head and vested with vestments made from a variety of materials and designs that were given by the devotees for years. The image stands on a base and it is currently enshrined at the main altar of the parish.

Santo Niño de Pasion de Navotas
The beginning of the devotion

The century old image of Santo Niño de Navotas was initially owed by a pious yet childless couple named Roman and Inez Santos. Roman, known in Navotas as "Tandang Uman Dasal" was known to always have his rosary on his hand and became an instrument for teaching the children in Daanghari, Navotas to pray, particularly the Holy Rosary, and the devotion to the Santo Niño.

The Santos family, together with the community of Daanghari built a chapel dedicated to the Santo Niño de Pasion and it was established in April 26, 1906 through "bayanihan". Initially, the Masses wasn't celebrated in the chapel and it was only opened for special occassions until it was granted by with the help of  Msgr. Jose Mirasol and then the Parish priest of San Jose de Navotas Fr. Macasio Toribio. Masses in the chapel are held every first Wednesday and Sunday of the month. As the years passed by, the chapel developed and improved with the help of the community who are also devotees of the Santo Niño de Pasion to its present condition today.

On December 10, 2017, now part of the Diocese of Caloocan (since 2003), Bishop Pablo Virgilio S. David, DD, elevated the Santo Niño de Pasion Chapel into a Quasi-Parish and appointed Rev. Fr. James Anthony del Rosario as its custodian. In 2019, the Quasi-Parish of Santo Niño de Pasion de Navotas received the relics related to the life of Our Lord Jesus Christ from the piece of the crib to the stones of the Via Dolorosa and other instruments of the Passion and these can still be seen and venerated up to the present. On April 27, 2019, the Sto. Niño de Pasion Quasi-Parish became a full fledged parish with Fr. James Anthony del Rosario as its first parish priest. The parish in Navotas was the first and so far the only parish in the country dedicated to the Child Jesus under the title Santo Niño de Pasion.

A gathering of devotees of Sto. Niño de Pasion de Navotas
The devotion at present

The devotion to Santo Niño de Pasion of Navotas City continues to develop and grow over the years since it was introduced in 1906. The feast of the Santo Niño de Pasion de Navotas is celebrated every Fifth Sunday of Lent, or Passion Sunday. The local devotion to the Sorrowing Santo Niño in Navotas continues to have a place in the City of Navotas and it is gradually spreading in other parts of the Metro.

Looking at the image of the Santo Niño de Pasion of Navotas, we can see how the Child Jesus knew the purpose of His birth - to redeem the world through his suffering and death as he reached the age of 33. Although it is a painful reality, He followed the Father's will to accomplish his purpose. Here, we can learn to this image that we should accept what God willed for us, even if His Will is different from ours. But if we have a childlike confidence to Our Lord, it will give us a consolation that He is there for us along the way to do his Holy Will.

Santo Niño de Pasion de Navotas, have mercy on us!

 Reference:

Interview:

del Rosario, James Anthony - Parish Priest, Santo Niño de Pasion Parish, Navotas City

Special thanks to Rev. Fr. James Anthony del Rosario for the historical narrative and for the photographs of the Santo Niño de Pasion that was utilized in this blogpost.
+AM+DG+

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