325. A Folksy Warehouse Find: SAN JOSE AND NINO JESUS

Oh, the things you find in a warehouse! Yes, this San Jose with his little Niño—carved from a single piece of wood—was found in a dusty warehouse of demolished house parts and old lumberyard materials. It was such in a sorry state—with paint peeling, base cracked, and features that are hardly recognizable.

But I thought the 15.5 inch santo looked promising underneath that layer of dust and grime. It had all the characteristics of a true primitive--carved with shallow features, painted with bright colors to cover up the stiffness of the figure. 

There are little details that added much to the appeal of this peace which I got next to nothing. The fact that it was totally fashioned from one piece of softwood wood, including the base, was remarkable, as the symmetry of the piece was almost perfect. Why, the silhouette looks almost like an awards trophy for some contest!

San Jose, himself, looks younger, what with his very sharp, pointed beard and straight black hair. His tunic features a collar while a bow knot is neatly tied high above his waist, as opposed to a simple cord. His robes are painted yellow (which has become grrenish with age) with chicken feet-like prints, typical of Visayan santos. The santo tapers down to the simple, squarish base, with corners lopped off.

Child Jesus on the other hand, looks like an afterthought, ramrod-straight in the arm of San Jose. It almost looks like standing, not seated in a cuddle.

All this San Jose needed was a thorough cleaning and a quick trip to a neighborhood painter to make it more presentable. A light coat of varnish to fix the paint was the final touch to this folksy warehouse San Jose and his little Niño—now fit to be displayed in my house!

232. Santos of La Naval: STA. CATALINA DE SIENA

STA. CATALINA DE SIENA. Antique ivory image
used in the La Naval procession of Our Lady of the Most
Holy Rosary, Sto. Domingo Church, Q. C. Credits: Saga of 
La Naval, Triumph ofa People's Faith, Dominican 
Province of the Philippines, 2007.

St. Catherine of Siena, (b. 1347.d. 29 April 1380), youngest of 25 children, joined the Third Order of St. Dominic and received the stigmata. She encouraged Pope Gregory XI to abandon Avignon for Rome, ending 70 years’ exile of the papacy from the city. Canonized 1461, Declared Doctor of the Church in 1970. Patroness of Fire Prevention. 

About The Image: The image of Sta. Catalina is housed at the Beaterio de Sta. Catalina. At the base of the image is inscribed: Donacion de la M.R.M. / Catalina de la Resurrecion/ Jez/ +13 unio 1853. This means that the image was donated before Mother Catalina died in 1853. When the Japanese destroyed the building on 28 Dec. 1942, the image was evacuated under the leadership of Fr. Francisco Sadaba O.P. of Letran. The air raid sirens threw the bearers in panic, who left the image in the street while they scampered for refuge at the Jesuit religious house in Intramuros. Eventually, everybody reached the University of Santo Tomas campus. The image is dressed in Dominicn’s habit.

Attributes: Crown of roses proffered by Christ, chosen over a crown of gold, heart in hand, rosary, book (referring to her work) and lily, symbol of virginity.

208. OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY, Santissimo Rosario Parish, U.S.T.

OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY, Santissimo Rosario Parish, U.S.T. ca. 1960. 

 The 1960 celebration of the Feast our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary, from September 24 to October 2, was pacled with activities and marked with great pageantry, culminating in the grand procession of the images of Our Lady and St. Joseph in the late afternoon of Oct.2, Sunday. The Santissimo Rosario parish itself was erected on 2 May 1942, with its seat at the Students’ Chapel and Fathers’ Residence of the UST.

The first parish priest was the very rev. Fr. Emiliano Serrano O.P. U.S.T.’s close association with Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary began just before Santo Domingo Church was firebombed in December 1941, at the heaight of war. The miraculous image of our Lady was transferred under military escort to San Juan de Letran. But with Letran also under threat, the image was transferred to the U.S.T.’s Students’ Chapel where Our Lady stayed as a refugee, until her enshrinement at her magnificent church in Quezon City, built in 1954.

 A replacement image was installed in the chapel, made of wood and carved in the round. It depicts a standing Mary, with the Christ Child on her left arm, while holding a rosary with the fingers of her right hand. The smaller-than-lifesize crowned image stands on a cloudy base adorned with flowers. 

The devotion to Our Lady never waned even with her transfer, but in fact, became even stronger, as people flocked to U.S.T. to implore her maternal assistance particularly in October. The 1960 solemn festivities were marked with daily masses, novenas, flower offerings and vigils.

Block rosary units, established early in the parish area, practiced the “recitation of the rosary in the “Rosario de la Aurora”(dawn rosary) procession. This devotion took place at 4 a.m. on the first Saturdays of the month—from May to October. The faithful, carrying images our Lady and their candles, assembled at the U.S.T. gate and marched in procession around the campus, singing Ave Marias and praying the Rosary.

 Today, the grandeur that was the pre-war Santo Rosario fiesta lives on, as more devotees from all corners of the Philippines gather every October to personally reaffirm their faith in the unfailing protection of their patroness, Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary.