CEBU, Philippines - The canonization of the second Filipino saint, Cebu’s San Pedro Calungsod, will be one of the highlights of the Sinulog Grand Finale come January 20 during the Sinulog Grand Mardi Gras.
This year’s theme, “Cebu City: Turning diamond. Gems of the past, brilliance of the present,” will showcase the significant events that happened in Cebu in the various eras up to the present, which is now on its 75th year.
Ricky Ballesteros, the executive director of the Sinulog Foundation Inc., said that with the essence of the theme, they chose the most significant event that happened to Cebu last year with the canonization of San Pedro Calungsod last October 21 in Rome, Italy.
“At present, the most significant that had happened for Cebu is the canonization of Pedro Calungsod, so it will be one of the highlights of the Sinulog grand finale as we celebrate the 75th year of this annual festivity,” Ballesteros said.
Ballesteros added that the image of San Pedro Calungsod will have a special place in the grand stand. As the image of Sto. Niño will be placed at the right side of the stage, the image of San Pedro Calungsod, on the other hand, will be placed in the left side where the different contingents will exit.
He will try to request for the original pilgrim image of the first Visayan saint, which was used during the canonization, the Duaw Nasud activities and the National Thanksgiving Mass last November 30, which gathered over a million devotees at the South Road Properties.
However, Ballesteros also thought of the possibilities that something might happen to the image once the public will know that it is the original image placed on the grand stand.
Meanwhile, Msgr. Achilles Dakay, the spokesperson of the Archdiocese of Cebu, appreciated the move by the cultural organizers of the Sinulog Festival.
“It’s good that they included San Pedro Calungsod and they gave importance to our newly-canonized saint,” Dakay said.
As to whether the pilgrim image of San Pedro Calungsod will join the solemn procession of the Miraculous Image of Sto. Niño on January 19, Msgr. Dakay said that he does not know yet what the arrangement will be. –MIT (FREEMAN)
Sinulog 2013 highlights San Pedro Calungsod
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