EDITORIAL - The Santo Niño is not a doll

The admonition by an Augustinian priest that the image of the Santo Niño is not a doll that can be dressed any which way that people wished could not have been more timely and relevant. That is because it has increasingly become a fad to dress up the Santo Niño in ways that do not attach to it the spiritual reverence that it deserves.

The only true look of the Santo Niño is in its traditional red and gold garb. A green spin-off later emerged and appears to have been tolerated, apparently due to the fact that no other alterations have been made aside from the color. A name was even coined for this green replica –Santo Niño de Suerte– owing to its color which often denotes money, by itself already an argument against the replica.

Then came a deluge of other replicas such as Santo Niño images dressed as policemen, doctors, fishermen, etc. There is no doubt that this is a manifestation of the Santo Niño's strong influence on popular culture. But while there could be no real and lasting harm this practice can do to the faith, there is nevertheless a need to put a stop to it.

And no reason can be more compelling and appropriate than that it is just simply not right. The absence of malice and ill intentions can never couch a thing that is inherently wrong and make it right. It will still be wrong. The Santo Niño is not a doll and should not be treated as such. So the sooner people are made to realize this, the better.

Maybe the fad got to the level of seeming acceptance that it seemingly enjoys now is due to the fact that there has been no real and aggressive effort to stop it. Many of those who wield religious authority perhaps thought it was too innocuous to really sweat over and be anxious about. But just as tiny drops of water, if allowed to persist on dropping on stone, can and will eventually bore a hole through that stone, so will this practice too.

God knows what other ideas people may come up with if they are allowed to keep on with this practice. Not even devotion is strong enough an argument to allow it. One cannot use the excuse of being too devoted and loving of the Santo Niño that he can do as he pleases with the image. That a contest of sorts was even cooked up to further the travesty of dressing up the Santo Niño as anyone pleases is an indication of how truly alarming the situation has become. It must stop.