Nearly a month ago, in my second or third day here in Cebu, a friend brought me to the kiosk housing the famous Magellan's Cross. The cross looks like cuts of ordinary plywood pieced together. The inside part seems hollow. Then I read these words engraved in the pink stone on the base of the "relic":
This Cross of Tindalo WoodEncases the Original Cross PlantedBy Ferdinand Magellan On This Very SiteApril 21, 1521
Right away, I sensed something wrong. The original cross was made of wood, but obviously, no effort had been made to cure it or keep it in a special environment. So how was it able to survive five centuries?
I didn't dwell much on the thought, though, because I was more surprised by the disorganized arrangement of the Basilica Minore del Santo Niño and its surrounding buildings. One bad architecture sits cramped beside another. The church has been under a long succession of curates, and it seemed to me that each one of them decided to commission an additonal structure according to his (tasteless) wishes.
The stinky information about the cross came into my mind again yesterday, when I came across this article from the Philippine Daily Inquirer. My, was my suspicion right!
The authority in charge of the place is deceiving the public. The fact that it concerns a religious object makes the act all the more shameful. And the sad thing is that there is no need for it. For a true pilgrim, the spot should be holy enough even without the very cross Magellan erected.
