Children carry little crosses and sacred images in the first ever Pasos sa Kabataan in Cebu. CDN PHOTOS/CHRISTIAN MANINGO
RELIVING CHRIST’S ULTIMATE SACRIFICE
Instead of toys, they carried crosses.
Last Saturday, the children of the Archdiocesan Shrine of San Roque in Barangay Mambaling, Cebu City paraded through the streets, bringing crosses made of bamboo and wood, to relive the passion of Jesus Christ over 2,000 years ago.
Some of the kids also carried wooden carriages (andas) that bore small images of the suffering Christ as well as other characters who accompanied the Lord in His final hours on earth.
The Pasos sa Kabataan — the first in Cebu — was intended to share with little ones the story behind the passion and death of Jesus Christ in order to redeem humanity.
The activity was the brainchild of Fr. Mhar Vincent Balili, parish priest of the San Roque Shrine and vice postulator of the cause for the sainthood of the late Cebuano Archbishop Teofilo Camomot.
“We want to acquaint children about the tradition of the Pasos, and our Christian faith. We want to inculcate in them the story of our redemption while they are still young because, more often, they are exposed to so many things and they may lose sight of the mysteries of our salvation,” he told Cebu Daily News.
Among the images used in the Pasos sa Kabataan in Mambaling were those of the Agony in the Garden of Gethsamane, Señor de la Paciencia (the image of a seated Christ right after he was scourged, crowned, and cloaked) and Jesus’ Carrying of the Cross or the Nazareno.
Also included in the procession were the images of St. Peter, St. John the Evangelist, St. Salome, St. Cleofe, St. Mary Magdalene, St. Longino, and Our Lady of Sorrows.
“I realize that people love symbols — something they can touch, feel, or even smell. It is also a form of catechesis. These symbols would find more meaning in their prayer,” said Balili who earlier introduced the ‘Atong Gugma Alang sa Kabataan’ (Agak) program to help poor kids in Mambaling.
Fr. Mhar Balili, parish priest of the Archdiocesan Shrine of San Roque in Mambaling, Cebu City orients kids in the parish about the images of the passion of Jesus Christ. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
Prior to the procession, the children who joined the Lenten activity underwent an orientation or catechesis on the images that would be included in the Pasos sa Kabataan.
Derived from the Spanish word paso or step, the Pasos procession takes the faithful back to Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice to redeem mankind.
The procession, which is usually done twice during the Holy Week, includes solitary images of the sorrowful Blessed Virgin Mary, the apostles, and the women disciples who stayed with Jesus before He breathed his last.
By introducing children to the rich tradition of Holy Week, Balili hoped that they will feel the importance of Christ’s sufferings and carry it with them as they grow older.
“Taking up the cross also gives the children an actual and real experience of what Christ did for us. Our crosses might be our problems, family, children, parents, or work,” he said.
“(But) we carry them with joy and hope because Christ carries them with and for us. It involves commitment to bear our sufferings with and for Christ,” he added.
Balili, who completed his studies on liturgy in Rome, said that commitment to Christ means “taking up your cross daily, giving up your hopes, dreams, possessions, even your very life if need be for the cause of Christ.”
“Only if you willingly take up your cross can you be called His disciple (Luke 14:27). The reward is worth the price,” he said.
At present, the San Roque Shrine holds a feeding program, catechism and tutorial for kids, particularly streetchildren, and also aids them in attending school.
Balili dreams of being able to send more children to school and provide the parents of all Agak beneficiaries with a livelihood program on condition that they will not cease to look after their children’s education and welfare.