February 20th, 2017
Philippines Celebrated the Black Nazarene Parade in Grand Style 菲律賓盛大慶祝黑拿撒勒人節遊行‥‥‥‥‥‥‥‥‥‥‥‥‥‥‥‥‥p. 1 Philippines Celebrated the Black Nazarene Parade in Grand Style by Jason Grenier, special correspondent
This January a huge parade in Manilla attracted over one and a half million people, and most of them walked barefoot to show their respect. The focus of the religious celebration is a life-sized statue of Jesus wearing a crown of thorns and carrying a wooden cross. What makes this statue special is that it shows Jesus as a black man, with dark skin. The faithful pray to the “Black Nazarene,” as the statue is called, in the hope that their wishes for miracles will be granted. The majority of Filipinos are Catholics, many of whom believe the Black Nazarene has the power to cure disease. In Philippines, the Black Nazarene Parade is celebrated on January 9th every year. On that day, the Black Nazarene statue is placed on a carriage. The carriage is then paraded through the streets of Manilla, the capital of the Philippines, by volunteers who take it in turns to push and pull it with long ropes. Meanwhile, the excited crowd presses close around the carriage every step of the way, trying desperately to touch the statue to receive a blessing. Such sincere religious devotion can be dangerous, however. Injuries and even occasional deaths can occur as people fall and get crushed underfoot by others in the mad rush. The parade usually lasts around twenty hours non-stop. Since it is impossible for so many people to actually get close enough to physically lay a hand on the statue, the hopeful devotees throw their towels and cloths in its direction instead. Volunteers riding on the carriage with the Black Nazarene catch these cloths, wipe them quickly on the surface of the statue, and throw them back into the crowd. Those lucky enough to catch one can take the holy object home, which is considered to be the next best thing to touching the statue itself. With the streets so crowded, the parade brings the traffic to a standstill in the Manilla neighborhoods. Vehicles are forced to take different routes, leading to long transportation delays and challenges for emergency services. Since large public events can make tempting targets for terrorists, the Black Nazarene parade has thousands of soldiers and police deployed by the government of the Philippines to ensure order and public safety. Fortunately, this year’s event sees no serious problems. When the parade finishes, the Black Nazarene is returned to its home in a church in the Quiapo district of Manilla, where it will await next year’s parade. ~1~