The Archdiocesan Shrine of Santo Niño de Midsayap is the parish and archdiocesan shrine located in Midsayap, North Cotabato. It is under the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cotabato. Santo Niño Parish is the oldest parish church established by the missionary congregation of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate in 1939.
History
The pioneering OMI priests took over the missionary territory of Cotabato which includes Midsayap which during that time covers Midsayap, Libungan, Pigcawayan, Alamada and Aleosan. It was initiated by a French-Canadian Oblate priest, Rev. Fr. Egide Beaudin, OMI to fortify the evangelization of Christian settlers in the locality who were mostly coming from Visayas and Luzon who dreamed of living in Mindanao - the so-called Land of Promise. Fr. Beaudin made frequent contacts with the faithfuls where in just a few months of his work, he was able to learn the Cebuano language, earning him as a lovable and jubilant fatherly figure. Fr. Gil as he was fondly called by the people, Beaudin got enormous help from the people which made it possible to construct a worship place earnestly dedicated to the Child Jesus to whom most Cebuano settlers adored from their hometown of Cebu where He is highly revered. They were able to celebrate their first ever fiesta immediately to highlight the success of completing the church.
Fr. Beaudin was given full support by fellow missionaries to continue the missionary zeal of spreading the Gospel even to the harshest stations such as Cotabato populated my majority Muslim and Islam adhering Filipinos.
When the Second World War broke in 1941, the flourishing mission parish of Santo Niño was closed as worldwide turmoil reached Mindanao by invading Japanese forces. Foreign missionaries including the Oblates were put to concentration camps in the University of Santo Tomas and the University of the Philippines in Los Baños, Laguna.
After the war, the OMI priests went back to Midsayap to pursue the missioning to its people. American oblates took over the management of their mission stations including schools. Rev. Fr. Cuthbert B. Billman, OMI became the parish priest from 1945–1946. He was followed by Rev. Fr. Robert E. Sullivan, OMI from 1947-1948 which was also the time when the oblates established the first Notre Dame school in the Asia, the Notre Dame of Midsayap College. From 1949–1950, the parish was under Rev. Fr. Joseph Billman, OMI and assisted by Rev. Fr. Edward Gordon, OMI and Rev. Fr. Francis McSorley, OMI (who was later appointed as bishop-prelate of the Apostolic Vicariate of Jolo which covers the whole provinces of Sulu and Tawi-Tawi). In 1951–1952, Rev. Fr. Joseph Baynes, OMI took charge of the parish with the help from a pioneering Filipino oblate priest, Rev. Fr. Natalio Tabada, OMI who, during that time was being trained to parish management so that Filipino clergyman will soon become parish priests themselves.
In the years 1953–1954, Rev. Fr. Jan Kuilboer, OMI took the challenge of managing the parish assisted by a Filipino, Rev. Fr. Crisonogo Echavez, OMI. Another Filipino oblate, Rev. Fr. Santos Mendoza, OMI became the priest in charge in 1955. He was followed in 1956 by a highly spirited American, Rev. Fr. Philip Smith, OMI who later became bishop of Cotabato, subsequently promoted to become a metropolitan archbishop when Cotabato was elevated into an archdiocese.
Archbishop Philip Smith, OMI was then followed by fellow oblates who served Midsayap for one year namely; Rev. Cyril Canning, OMI assisted by Rev. Fr. Andrew Horgan, OMI in 1957, Rev. Fr. Matthew Casey, OMI in 1958; Rev. Andrew Horgan, OMI assisted by Rev. Jan Kuilboer, OMI and Rev. Fr. Clarence Bertelsman in 1959. From 1960–1961, Rev. Fr. Charles Prass, OMI became parish priest with the help from Rev. Fr. Benedicto Carreon, OMI (who later worked for Mindanao Cross in Cotabato City and Radio Veritas in Manila) and Rev. Fr. John Nep Chai, OMI. They were replaced by Rev. Fr. Thomas Lenert, OMI as parish priest and Rev. Fr. Francis Hickley, OMI and Rev. Ernest Sylvestre, OMI as assistants. Rev. Fr. George Baynes, OMI returned to Midsayap as parish priest and was assisted by another returnee, Rev. Fr. Natalio Tabada, OMI from 1964–1965. Rev. Fr. Justin Huelsing, OMI manage the parish in 1967-1967 followed by Rev. Fr. Jerome Jankord, OMI assisted by Rev. Maurice Hermann, OMI in 1968–1969.