It’s that time of the year! Many families woke up on Christmas and New Year’s Day to a loudspeaker playing Chamorro Christmas carols in front of their house. Most of them purposely woke up early to welcome the Niño groups of their respective parish whom they know will bring the image of the Niño (Child Jesus) to their homes just like they did every year. In fact, if for some reason the Niño group failed to visit their homes, parishioners would often call their parish and demand why! This is how this wonderful and unique Christmas tradition is celebrated year after year in Guam and in Saipan – the Mangingi` Niño!
While the Filipinos or the Germans have the Christmas caroling in the homes and the Mexicans have their La Posadas, here in Saipan we have the “Mangingi` Niño. This is a tradition which can be traced back as far as the Spanish period and a beautiful parish and family tradition which has been handed over from generation to generation. Today, every parish have organized several groups or teams and on the Christmas Day, the Holy Family Sunday, New Year’s Day and the Feast of Three Kings (Epiphany), they would go visit the respective parish territories in order to bring the Niño to every family. Each family or homes would then reverently pray (sometimes even kneel) to the Niño and each member of the family would kiss the Niño as a sign of their love and devotion to the Child Jesus born of Christmas Day. If they wished, the family would then give a donation, as they wished to the parish. “I have seen families praying and asking the Niño for what they need as a family and sometimes parishioners would be very emotional”, says Fr. Jason of San Vicente. “I am deeply touched and edified to see the simplicity and yet very sincere faith of the people towards the Niño. I think here we have a beautiful tradition, a treasure which I hope we won’t lose.”
Even the hallways of the hospital (CHC) are filled with the local Christmas carols while the Niño groups would go visit room by room so that the patients and their families can still venerate the Niño despite them being in the hospital. Family Christmas parties are even interrupted whenever the Niño will pass by while everyone venerates the image. This is how deeply rooted this tradition is to the life, culture and heart of our local Church. The coming of the Niño is considered an important visit of Jesus to their homes and rightly so.
This Sunday, the Feast of the Three Kings (Epiphany) will be the last Sunday that the different Niño groups of the different parishes will be going out to once again bring the Niño to the homes.
