Mexican Christian Holy Figure: "Santo Niño"

This is a Mexican Christian image of the child Jesus known as Santo Niño de Atocha. Santo Niño is dressed in a long gown with a cape that has a wide lace collar and frilled cuffs. He is usually shown seated in a little chair.

Tradition says that the women of the Spanish city of Atocha appealed to Our Lady of Atocha to help them feed their imprisoned husbands. An unknown child appeared wearing pilgrim’s clothing and carrying a basket of food and a gourd of water. After the child gave food and water to the prisoners, his basket and gourd miraculously remained full. Those who had asked the Virgin of Atocha for a miracle suspected the identity of the little boy as the child Jesus. The Santo Niño de Atocha is the patron saint of those unjustly imprisoned, protector of travelers, and rescuer of those in peril. The Spaniards brought their devotion to Santo Niño with them when they colonized the Philippines.

The Christian faith is based on the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus or Christ. Jesus, (7–2 BC/BCE – 30–36 AD/CE), is the central figure of Christianity. Most Christian denominations venerate him as God the Son.

The principal sources of information regarding Jesus are the four canonical gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. The gospels declare that Jesus was a Jew born in Bethlehem, in the Roman province of Judea. At the age of 30, he began to preach throughout Palestine, which was then under Roman rule. The gospels describe miracles that Jesus performed such as raising the dead.

Most critical historians agree that Jesus was a Jew who was regarded as a teacher and healer. He was crucified in Jerusalem, on the orders of the Roman Prefect of Judaea, on the charge of sedition against the Roman Empire. Christians believe that Jesus then rose from the dead and ascended into heaven, from which he will return.

Source:
(MLA 7th Edition) "Jesus Christ." Children's Illustrated Encyclopedia. New York: Dorling Kindersley, 2010. 297.
Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 1 July 2013. Document URL: http://go.galegroup.com.ezproxy.lapl.org/ps/i.do?id=GALE|CX1796500200&v=2.1&u=lapl&it=r&p=GVRL&sw=w http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesus https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_Mexico “Saint: El Santo Niño de Atocha/The Saint Child of Atocha”. New Mexico History Museum. 30 June 2013. Document URL: http://nmhistorymuseum.org/tesoros/tesoros-lightbox/more-text-sats-esna.html http://www.ninoatocha.com/history.html