Tags: Public Holidays and Celebration
By KC Santos
MANILA CITY, METRO MANILA – During the annual Feast of the Black Nazarene, Filipinos display their devotion in various ways. Some walk barefoot while others go out of their way – risking life and limb, literally – to touch the blackened image of Jesus Christ.
Every January, thousands of devotees flock to Quiapo Church, also called the Basilica Minore de Nazareno, to join the procession and hear liturgical services and novenas.
While most devotees join the annual religious rite as a way of displaying gratitude for blessings received, there are those who go to Quiapo with a heavy heart, prompting them to display peculiar ways of asking for mercy and forgiveness.
In between the notorious stampedes that have somehow become an inevitable part of this feast, is the anointing of handkerchiefs, barefoot devotees walking about church grounds, people carrying replica images (albeit smaller) of the Black Nazarene, and cutting a piece of the rope from the andas (or caroza) tied to the carriage carrying the actual blackened image.
Simple as these actions may seem, devotees actually submit to the physical discomfort, pain and even the probability of being nabbed of their personal belongings just so they could fulfill what they see as their own way of penitence.
According to Philippine Country, getting in close contact with the Black Nazarene is believed to bring not only healing and recovery for the ill-stricken but also miracles for those who believe it.
Whether it’s a form of fanaticism or not, devotees have made it a popular belief that a handkerchief thrown and wiped upon the revered image absorbs its powers that whoever owns it and gets it back will have the spiritual ability to help heal others.
In his blog, Dennis Villegas tells stories of devotees who have allegedly experienced the miracle of the Nuestro Padre Jesus Nazareno.
Monsignor Jose Clemente Ignacio, rector and parish priest of the Quiapo Church, Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene, explains the varying views of his fellow priests on these beliefs citing “Westernized theological paradigms” as one explanation of prejudice against Nazarene devotees.
In his blog Ang Tarlakin, historian Xiao Chua looks beyond the spiritual aspect of these traditions and instead focuses on the social history and diversity of the Quiapo community.
According to him, the presence of Chinese and Muslim merchants, and what he calls “folk Catholicism” – illustrated by the vendors of anting-anting or amulets and fortune telling- helps nurture this Filipino pious culture.
However one perceives these actions every Nazarene feast, the fact remains that Filipinos display their religious devotion like no other.
Related Stories:
For devotees, keeping it sacred yet safe at the Black Nazarene in Quiapo
What drives devotees to join the Black Nazarene procession
Black Nazarene procession still draws thousands of Filipino devotees
The sights and sounds of mystical Quiapo
A chaotic sea of humanity for the Black Nazarene
Accidents and Tragedies Administration Cooperatives Crime and Punishment Elections Environment Filipinos Abroad General News Government Agencies Government Offices Inspirational Stories Judiciary Labor and Employment Legislation Military NGOs and foundations non-government organizations and foundations People Power and Edsa Politics Poverty Public Holidays and Celebration Typhoons and Natural Disasters Typhoons and natural disaters Water Electricity and Utilities
WP Cumulus Flash tag cloud by Roy Tanck and Luke Morton requires Flash Player 9 or better.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
