MOTHER-SON TANDEM CHOSEN AS MAYORES
Hermana, hermano mayores regular benefactors of Basilica del Santo Niño; hermano mayor owns school in Minglanilla
A school owner and his mother are this year’s hermano mayor and hermana mayor, respectively.
This year is the 453rd celebration of Fiesta Señor.
Mark Joel Go and his mother Rosalina were introduced to devotees of the Santo Niño during the opening mass at the Pilgrim Center of the Basilica Minore del Santo Nino yesterday morning.
Go and his mother inherited the position from Leo and Cristina Manguilimotan, last year’s hermano and hermana mayores.
Fr. Pacifico Nohara Jr, Basilica rector and over-all chairman of this year’s fiesta celebration, told reporters that it was the first time that fiesta organizers chose a mother and his son as fiesta patrons.
Nohara said they chose Go and his mother because of their resemblance to St. Augustine of Hippo, patron saint of the Augustinian Order, and to St. Monica, his mother.
Nohara said he first met Go and his mother a few months ago while praying at the inner chapel of the Santo Niño at the Basilica.
He was joining other devotees in lining towards the image of the Santo Niño when he saw Go and his mother waving at him.
Nohara also knew Go and his mother as they were regular benefactors of the Basilica for years.
When he saw Go and his mother near the shrine of the Santo Niño, Nohara thought he saw a sign from the Child Jesus.
A few months later, Nohara saw the names of Go and his mother in the list of those recommended for the titles this year.
“Maybe that was the sign that Santo Niño had wanted me to give me,” he said.
Go is the owner of St. Cecilia’s College, a Catholic tertiary school in Minglanilla, Cebu.
The tradition of choosing a hermano mayor and a hermana mayor for the Fiesta Señor dates back to 1565, after Spanish conquistador Miguel Lopez de Legaspi rediscovered the island of Cebu and the image of the Santo Niño.
After reviving the devotion to the Santo Niño in Cebu, Legaspi was named as the first hermano mayor.