An abandoned newborn baby boy was found in a church - wrapped in a box left under a statue of Jesus Christ.

The youngster was soundly asleep in the cardboard container with ‘dried mangoes' printed on the side when a Catholic priest found him in Cebu province, the Philippines on Sunday morning, July 2.

He was wrapped in a blue towel and a black blanket was draped over his lower body. A brown plushie toy was also found beside the box near the boy's head.

Footage shows the infant, believed to have been only a few hours old as his umbilical cord was still wet with blood, innocently dozed off unaware that he had already been deserted by his caretakers.

Father Arven Lerio Pretila of Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish said: ‘We were turning on the lights in preparation for the Sunday mass. We didn't know anybody coming in at night.

'But around 1 or 2 am, the dogs were suddenly very noisy. We don't know the reason, but they were possibly barking when the baby was left. We will turn over the baby to the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Bantayan.'

The box sat next to a statue of Jesus which was in the corner of the church when Father Arven found him. The words ‘no register' were also written on the box along with details such as his given name.

The baby was taken to a health centre for a health assessment before being turned over to social workers.

Father Arven added: ‘They are tracing now if there are any possible parents of relatives. It's still a blessing. God bless.'