Nat’l Museum to declare Basilica, image of  Sto. Niño de Cebu as National Cultural Treasures

LAPU-LAPU CITY, Cebu—The National Museum of the Philippines will declare the Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño and the image of the Sto. Niño de Cebu as National Cultural Treasures.

This was announced by National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) chairperson Rene Escalante during the launching of the three-part webinar “Bound By History: Magellan, Santo Niño and the Beginning of the Augustinian Evangelization,” organized by the Augustinian Provincial Committee on the 500th Anniversary of the Arrival of the image of the Sto. Niño de Cebu on January 30, 2021.

Escalante, who is also the concurrent executive director of the National Quincentennial Committee (NQC), said that the declaration is scheduled on April 14, 2021, the day wherein the Catholic Church will celebrate the 500th anniversary of the introduction of Christianity in the Philippines.

The said activity is one of the 34 major milestones of the 2021 Quincentennial Commemoration in the Philippines.

Escalante, however, clarified that the main event of the NQC is the 500th anniversary of the Victory at Mactan on April 27, 2021, which is a government-led activity.

Escalante made this statement after a lot voiced their confusion about the 500 Years of Christianity as the main event of the NQC. Escalante said that he understands this confusion, especially since the majority of the Filipino population are Roman Catholics.

Despite this, Escalante expressed his support to academic, cultural, and historical aspects of the 500 years of Christianity in the Philippines as an integral part of the 2021 Quincentennial Commemorations in the Philippines.

He said that they already outlined government-church collaboration in the 500 years of Christianity, which includes the exhibit and documentary being produced by the NHCP and the Philippine Embassy in Lisbon highlighting the role of the Sto. Niño in Philippine History and Culture. 

/bmjo