About Us

Welcome to the website of New Zealand – Filipino Devotees of Señor Sto. Niño

Who We are

The NZ-Filipino Devotees of Senyor Sto. Niño brings together devotees of the Holy Child Jesus (Señor Santo Niño) in the greater part of New Zealand from all backgrounds and walks of life who share a common veneration. The devotees volunteer and offer their time, skills and diverse resources in promoting worship and reverence for the Infant Jesus. The devotees are made up of both New Zealand and Filipino Catholics who believe in keeping a tradition of prayer and thanksgiving for Señor Santo Niño. We value the traditional Filipino traits of piety, friendship and hospitality. We would like to inspire the community to live our faith by our works through various projects through out the year that promote family values. We are Christ-Centered and welcome everyone to celebrate the devotion to the Holy Child Jesus expressed in the traditions of both the Philippines and New Zealand.

Our Beginnings

It was in 1993 when three Filipino-New Zealanders namely Miriam Batucan, Mila Rigby and Alice Smith, (who are ardent devotees of Señor Santo Niño de Cebu) came together to initiate public devotions to the Holy Child Jesus in Auckland, New Zealand.

These three ladies gathered other devotees and organized the first public celebration of the Feast of Señor Santo Niño in Auckland on the 3rd Sunday of January 1994 with a special mass at the Mt. Roskill War Memorial Hall. This was attended by approximately 400 people. The mass was followed by a traditional fiesta lunch and a presentation of songs and dances. The highlight of the presentation was a famous Sinulog dance number performed by the organizers themselves. Since then, the group was called SINULOG GROUP.

The following two year’s celebration saw more and more devotees attending the Fiesta celebrations. The number doubled in 1995 but reached almost a thousand in 1996, this time attended by some other groups within the Filipino communities. Because of numerous requests and the growing number of devotees each year, the group decided to hold weekly novena/masses in honour of Señor Santo Niño and started reaching out to those in need. With this came about the need for an organisational status to help promote our charitable activities. This prompted the formation of the NZ – FILIPINO STO NINO DEVOTEES TRUST. It was Oscar Batucan who has put it all together as a Charitable Trust.

There have been many attestations about the miracles received from Señor Santo Niño. It is with Faith and Thanksgiving that the number of devotees who participate in the stewardship of the Church have increased.

The devotees join together to pray and respond to the spiritual needs of our community in order to fulfill Christ’s call to make disciples of all nations and to become a living testimony of the many blessing from our Beloved Señor Santo Niño.

26 Years of Devotions to Señor Santo Niño

in New Zealand

For the past 26 years, thousands of Auckland’s Filipino-Catholic community, as well as those from outside Auckland, have gathered during the fiesta celebrations in honour of the Holy Child Jesus (Señor Santo Niño) on the third Sunday of January.

It is a moving, faith-filled event marking Señor Santo Niño’s blessing in a number of healings, cures and answered prayers. The devotion to the Christ-child seemed to have originated in Spain at the beginning of the 16th century and usually it emphasized the ideas of kingship. From Spain, the devotion spread to the rest of Europe. And from Europe – it spread to the other parts of the world.

The tradition was brought to Auckland in the late 1980’s by an ardent devotee to Señor Santo Niño by the name of Alice Smith (who is now back to our Creator) assisted by Mila Rigby and Allen Villamor. Devotions were held in designated people’s homes for many years and have grown in number until in 1993, Miriam Batucan, Mila Rigby and Alice Smith came together to initiate public devotions to the Holy Child Jesus in Auckland, New Zealand.

These three ladies gathered other devotees and organized the first public celebration of the Feast of Señor Santo Niño in Auckland on the 3rd Sunday of January 1994 with a special mass at the Mt. Roskill War Memorial Hall. This was attended by approximately 400 people. The mass was followed by a traditional fiesta lunch and a presentation of songs and dances. The highlight of the presentation was a famous Sinulog dance number performed by the organizers themselves. Since then, the group was called SINULOG GROUP.

After modest beginnings, the feast of Señor Santo Niño has grown to a major event in the Filipino-Catholic calendar, not only in the Philippines, but in most parts of the world including Auckland.

The Mass marking the feast day is a grand event, with several priests and a Bishop or Archbishop concelebrating on the altar. The celebration is preceded by 9-days of prayer and massesand at the end of the Mass, people of all ages, young and old, offer a Sinulog dance as an offering of thanksgiving for blessings received or as an offering of petitions.

The celebration keeps growing year after year. There have been many attestations about the miracles received from Señor Santo Niño. It is with Faith and Thanksgiving that the number of devotees who participate in the stewardship of the Church have increased.

Next year, on the 20th of January 2021, we will mark the 27th annual fiesta celebrations in honour of Señor Santo Niño in Auckland, New Zealand. The devotees, from within Auckland and places far North and South join together to pray and respond to the spiritual needs of our community in order to fulfill Christ’s call to make disciples of all nations and to become a living testimony of the many blessing from our Beloved Señor Santo Niño.

We thank all Devotees of Señor Santo Niño for your steadfastness in holding on to your devotions even in the midst of challenges and difficulties which migrant families often meet.

It is our deepest desire to continue to work for the realization of our vision to put up a shrine for our Beloved Señor Santo Niño with the help of all the devotees in Auckland and greater part of New Zealand even as we put our hearts and hands together in prayer for all our brothers and sisters in the faith devastated by recent earthquakes and the super typhoon that hit the Philippines. We continue to send support to help them rebuild their lives.

Thank you Señor Santo Niño for your bountiful blessings,

Oscar and Miriam Batucan

VIVA SENOR SANTO NINO!!! PIT SENOR!!!