Catholics celebrate 401st feast of Nazarene

The Catholic faithful gather again today to celebrate the feast of the Black Nazarene, now on its 401st year, in the storied district of Quiapo, Manila.

This unique devotion to the Black Nazarene is likely to be as gripping as past celebrations, with authorities reportedly expecting some three million devotees who will try to get near and touch the miraculous image during the traditional procession.

Philippine National Police chief director Avelino Razon Jr. expressed confidence that the Manila Police District (MPD) is ready to deal with the throng of devotees who will flock to Quiapo even as he maintained there is no specific threat during the event.

Razon said a sufficient number of unarmed but uniformed policemen will be deployed in the whole district hours before the procession.

The Nazarene’s route would again be concentrated along Quiapo after it was extended up to Luneta during last year’s fourth centenary celebration.

Officials of St. John the Baptist Church, the minor basilica that has housed the statue since 1787, said this year’s celebration would be traditional but “with more coordination with authorities to prevent accidents.”

Among the popular devotees of the Black Nazarene is Vice President Noli de Castro, who earlier reportedly expressed willingness to join the presidential race in 2010.

Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales, who will lead the feast in a High Mass at 6 a.m., said he again expects the celebration “to personify Christian injunctions of learning to humble and deny oneself, and to courageously take up one’s crosses and trials in life in imitation of Christ.”

The cardinal’s Mass will be followed by agape, or food sharing by devotees, and then by two more masses at 9 a.m. and 12 noon before the procession of the image begins.

Church rector Msgr. Clemente Ignacio has expressed hope that the devotion of Filipinos to the Black Nazarene would lead to national renewal and progress.

Ignacio said the feast should be an opportunity for Filipinos to renew their faith in the Lord since the patron saint is “a fountain of hope – Son of God who came here to save all of us.”

“I call on devotees to deepen our devotion and relationship with the Black Nazarene. Evil is lurking so much in the world and we hope from the heart of Jesus and through the Nazarene that there will be big changes that will bring forth hope for our country,” the priest said in an interview.

The parish priest said he had asked devotees in earlier masses to “pray, confess and strengthen their faith in God before going to the feast on Wednesday.”

“May the feast of the Black Nazarene lead to deep change of heart among Filipinos,” he stressed.

Traditionally, the celebration starts when the huge entrance of the Quiapo Church opens and the image of the Black Nazarene comes into sight. The ocean of devotees will start to yell “Viva Señor” while some wave white towels high in the air along with the scripture of the Black Nazarene.

The statue is placed in a gilded carriage, and as the procession starts, participants garbed in maroon grab two long ropes and pull the carriage forward. Many will attempt to touch the image while some will throw their handkerchiefs and towels in the air. People who join in the procession walk barefooted as a sign of humility.

It is widely believed that the Black Nazarene, a life-size image of a “black” Jesus Christ carrying a cross, is miraculous. Devotees who would be able to touch the image or have their handkerchiefs or towels touch it believe they will receive blessings from the Lord.

However, it is unknown to many that the celebration on Jan. 9 is neither the feast day of Quiapo nor of the Black Nazarene but the date of the transfer of the image from Intramuros to the Quiapo Church.

Historical background

On May 31, 1606, the first group of Augustinian Recollect missionaries landed on the shores of Manila, bringing with them from Mexico the life-size image of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ genuflected under the weight of the cross.

The ship had caught fire and the image was burned. But people decided to preserve and honor it. Since then, miraculous things have been reported by those who touch it.

The image was enshrined at the first Recollect church in Bagumbayan, now called Luneta, which was inaugurated on Sept. 10, 1606, and placed under the patronage of the glorious precursor and martyr, Saint John the Baptist.

In 1608, the second biggest Recollect church dedicated to Saint Nicholas of Tolentine was completed inside Intramuros where the image was transferred. The Recollect Fathers then vigorously promoted devotion to the Suffering of Our Lord represented by the image, and in just 15 years, the Confradia de Jesus Nazareno was established on April 21, 1621.

The confraternity obtained Papal approval on April 20, 1650, from His Holiness Pope Innocent X.

Sometime between 1767 and 1790, then Archbishop of Manila Basilio Sancho de Santas Justa, ordered the transfer of the image of the Nazareno to the Quiapo Church, again providentially placed under the patronage of Saint John the Baptist.

In Quiapo, the devotion to the Nazarene attracted an even bigger following. Its popularity, which initially spread to the northern and southern provinces of Luzon, stretched throughout the country.

The distinct Filipino devotion to the Black Nazarene also merited the sanction and encouragement of two Popes: Innocent X who issued a Papal Bull in 1650 canonically establishing the Confradia de Jesus Nazareno, and Pius VII, who granted indulgence to those who piously pray before the image of the Black Nazarene of Quiapo in the 19th century.

The image survived the great fires that destroyed Quiapo Church in 1791 and 1929, the great earthquakes of 1645 and 1863, and the destructive bombing of Manila in 1945 during World War II.

Parade route

Authorities over the weekend announced that the procession will start at the Quiapo church, then on to Villalobos, right on Palanca, right on P. Gomez, right on Paterno, right on Quezon Boulevard, left on Globo de Oro, left on Gunao, right on Arlegui, right on Fraternal, left on Vergara, left on Duque de Alba, left on Castillejos, left on Fornecio, right on Arlegui, left on Nepomuceno, left on Aguila, right on Carcer, right on Hidalgo, left on Barbosa, right on Globo de Oro, right on Palanca, right on Villalobos and back to the church.

Affected roads would be closed during the parade.

Devotees can also be assured that the celebration will have good weather as the weather bureau forecasts fair weather in Metro Manila today.

Cops to escort Black Nazarene

Meanwhile, Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim advised the public not to get close to the carriage of the Black Nazarene when it comes out of the church because policemen would escort it all the way to Villalobos street.

This is the first time that policemen, and not devotees of the Black Nazarene, would escort the carriage out of the Quiapo Church to maintain order at the start of the procession.

“This time, we would adopt a system because every time they take it out, it is delayed because of too many people at Plaza Miranda. It gets delayed by one or two hours,” Lim said.

He explained that the police would escort the carriage for the first 30 meters.

Upon reaching this point, they would relinquish their hold on the rope and turn it over to the devotees.

“What is important is that we would be able to bring the carriage to the corner of Plaza Miranda and Villalobos Street. The people will be blocking the way but we have to respect the tradition because they want to get close to the carriage.”

He is optimistic that today’s celebration would be peaceful and orderly. “I think that nothing will happen because the minds of the people are focused on devotion.”

He appealed to the devotees not to bring any expensive jewelry or cellular phone. But he believes that nobody would attempt to snatch anything since they would only have difficulty escaping from the throng of people.

As for preparations, the 78-year-old mayor said, “It’s all systems go. We have alerted the MPD, through Police Superintendent Romulo Sapitula, to maintain peace and order and also to regulate traffic.”

Lim said City Health Office chief Dr. Lorraine Sanchez would field nurses, doctors and ambulances in the vicinity of Plaza Miranda to provide first aid.

He also instructed the City Engineering Office to remove all the vehicles that would block the way of the Black Nazarene.

As of last night, Manila City Hall had already cleared the streets of vendors and other obstacles. – Cecille Suerte Felipe, Helen Flores, Evelyn Macairan