The Chinese community together with Special Guest Mayor Oscar Moreno, top media and bloggers in the city welcomed the Chinese New Year at Bell Church, Macasandig last February 15, 2018.
Before the rites began, Mayor Oscar Moreno and Greg Marten Lao were interviewed to give their comments about the Chinese New Year (2018) Year of the Dog.
Mayor Moreno wishes wealth and prosperity to the people of Cagayan de Oro this year.
On the other hand, Greg Marten Lao shared the different customs, traditions and symbol meanings related to the Chinese New Year. He also shared what the different features of the Bell Church meant. When asked if what course of action they plan to do to prevent flooding in the temple, he said, they need not do anything since their gods will protect them.
CHINESE NEW YEAR RITES PROPER
The rites started at 10 pm where beautiful fireworks exploded into different colors and lit up the sky. It was a sight to behold and amazed the guests.
After that, the guest gathered in front of Bell Church where a Lion Dance was performed with the dancers starting there and then entering the temple.
When the dance was over, the attendees went inside the church for a mass was about to take place.
After the mass, two thousand tikoy was distributed to the attendees and everyone was invited to the other building to eat various Chinese dishes such as misua, egg and lugaw. This ended the celebration.
Chinese New Year Trivia
Family Reunion Dinner – On New Year’s Eve, families gather for a delicious reunion dinner and partake of various Chinese dishes including steamed fish which they believe would bring them wealth in the New Year.
Red Envelopes – These envelopes contain cash gifts usually given by senior family members to junior members or from employers to employees.
Fireworks – The New Year would not be complete without fireworks for they are believed to drive away evil spirits due to the noise that they bring.
Lion and Dragon Dances – These traditional dances are believed to bring “good luck” and are usually performed by a group of dancers with drums, cymbals and even fireworks as their accompaniment.
Chinese Decors – During Chinese New Year, you will usually see red-colored decorations since it is connected with wealth and good fortune in the Chinese traditions and customs.
Some common Chinese decors you’ll see in the New Year are the following; red lanterns, windows and doors with paper adornments with writings on them, golden orange trees, Chinese knots and potted kumquats.
House Cleaning – An intensive cleaning is usually done by Chinese families before the Chinese New Year to remove bad luck from the previous year. However, dusting or cleaning must be avoided on New Year’s Day to prevent good fortune from being removed from the household.
Eating Dumplings, Niangao and Mandarin Oranges – In the Chinese New Year, dumplings, Niangao (chewy pellet of glutinous rice) and mandarin oranges are eaten for good fortune.
New Year Markets – When the Chinese New Year is near, markets selling flowers and potted plants like peonies, narcissus and orchids since they are known to be auspicious.
Praying at the Temple – This is an important tradition during Chinese New Year since worshippers usually go to the temple to pray, light incense and pray to their deities to receive blessings and good luck in the upcoming year.
Most major temples will host dragon and lion dances on the front yard.
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