The Augustinian Fathers of the Basilica del Sto. Niño in Cebu City recently found reason to hope so based on a letter sent by Vatican officials.
The letter was in response to an invitation by the Augustinian Fathers to the Holy Father to drop by Cebu during his visit to the country from Jan. 15 to 19.
In a letter, the Holy See “noted” the congregation’s invitation and enjoined Cebuanos to pray that the Supreme Pontiff will make it to Cebu which was affected by last year’s 7.2-magnitude quake and supertyphoon Yolanda.
“Vatican officials neither accepted nor declined our invitation. But if the Holy Father really has no intention to come to Cebu, then his emissaries should have denied our request right away,” said Fr. Jonas Mejares, rector of the Basilica del Sto. Niño.
Itinerary
The Vatican’s letter to the Augustinians was not released to the media pending approval from the congregation’s prior general.
Mejares urged Cebuanos to keep their hopes alive and to pray that the Holy Father will come to Cebu City next year.
Pope Francis earlier said he will visit the country on January 15 to 19, 2015 to spend time with victims of last year’s calamities.
His complete itinerary will be announced later this year. So far, only Manila and Leyte have been mentioned.
Of his five-day trip to the Philippines, only six hours will be spent in Leyte which was hardest hit by supertyphoon Yolanda.
Occasion
Queries were raised as to why most of the pope’s time will be spent in Manila which wasn’t affected by last year’s strong quake and supertyphoon.
Fr. Edwin Gariguez, executive director of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines-National Secretariat for Social Action Justice and Peace (CBCP-Nassa), called on those preparing the pope’s itinerary to let Pope Francis spend more time with victims of the calamities.
Pope Francis’ visit to the Philippines falls on the week of the Jan. 18 feast of the Sto. Niño.
“The occasion could not have been more timely. Swak na swak sana (It’s a perfect fit),” Mejares said.
The coral stone belfry of the Basilica del Sto. Niño in downtown Cebu City collapsed during the strong earthquake last Oct. 15, 2013.
Milestones
Mejares is hoping that the pope will spend time to visit the centuries-old basilica which houses the image of the Sto. Niño, a baptismal gift of Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan to Cebu’s Queen Juana in 1521.
“The Pope is so unpredictable. When he decides, no one can stop him. I hope the Sto. Niño will advise him to come to Cebu City. Four to six hours will be enough,” Mejares said.
“If it is really God’s will, then Pope Francis shall be here in Cebu. We believe in the power of prayer,” he added.
The Augustinian Fathers, who are caretakers of the centuries-old basilica and image of the child Jesus in Cebu City, sent two invitations to Pope Francis.
In December 2013, the congregation through its prior general — Most Reverend Father Alejandro Moral,
OSA — sent a letter to the Vatican, inviting Pope Francis to attend the grand celebrations in April 2015.
Aside from the annual fiesta celebration in January, the Augustinian community will mark three milestones.
These are the 450th anniversary of the discovery of the image of the Sto. Niño and of the Augustinian’s presence in the country and the 50th anniversary of the church’s title as a minor basilica.
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