Philippines: Record number of people attend Black Nazarene celebrations

By Kielce Gussie

Just under 10 million people flocked to Manila in the Philippines to celebrate the Feast of the Black Nazarene from December 31 to January 10.

There are two major parts of this religious festival: a novena prayer and the “Traslacion”, the country’s biggest yearly procession.

To mark this feast, a life-size wooden statue of Christ carrying the cross is moved throughout the streets of the capital city. The government this year recorded the largest and longest procession ever—lasting almost 31 hours.

A “moving” ceremony

The wooden statue of Christ, dating back to the 17th century, was blackened by a fire. Augustinian Recollect missionaries had brought the image from Mexico to Manila in 1606. In 2006, the Filipino Catholic community celebrated the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the Black Nazarene. It is currently located in the Quiapo Church, also known as the Shrine of the Black Nazarene, which is a minor basilica.

The Feast of the Black Nazarene is one of the most popular religious celebrations in Asia. Some 9,640,290 pilgrims were reported to have attended the novena Masses and the “Traslacion”, which means “transfer” in Spanish.

Starting in Quirino Grandstand, one of the largest venues in the country, the procession brings the statue of Christ through the Quiapo district. This pilgrimage commemorates the original transfer of the statue to the Quiapo Church in 1787 and the length of the procession varies based on the size of the crowd.

Pilgrims make the seven-kilometer (4.3 mile) journey barefoot, dressed in earthy red-based colored clothes—these are designed to match the garments on the statue. During the procession, the faithful try to touch the ropes or climb on top of the carriage carrying the statue.