If the celebration last year left we with questions as to how come the number of devotees of the Black Nazarene keeps growing and do all of these devotees really know what they are doing, I guess this year, as I brave myself again in facing the challenges of capturing some bits and pieces of one of the most celebrated feast in the country, the Feast of the Black Nazarene 2013 leave with simple joy and amazement as to how miraculously every thing goes in its right place.
Compared to last year, this year's procession took a little less shorter. From the longest 22-hour procession, this year, the procession only lasted for 18 hours, so by 1:30 in the morning of January 10, the replica of the Black Nazarene was finally back, safe and sound, to its place inside the Basilica of the the Black Nazarene in Quiapo, Manila.
Having a family who's a devotee of the said patron, it s a tradition for us to visit the church see the procession even if we all hail from the neighboring district, Tondo. It was my father who's very active to this kind of stuff back then, so don't ask me to whom I get the habit. But then again, more than a habit, seeing and praying on to the Nazarene on this festive day is actually an eye-opener.
Every year, we, Filipino Roman Catholics has this Via Crucis traditions. It is our simple way to be one with Jesus Christ who offered his life for our salvation. Via Crucis or Station of the Cross is usually done by visiting churches, 14 churches for every station of the cross. It is one my many "panata" during the Lenten Season, and as we celebrate Lent this year, I, and my two aunts, spent our Maundy Thursday visiting churches from the eastern metropolis, specifically Mandaluyong, Pasig and Quezon City.
This is my very first time to do it outside Manila City, and even though I feel bad for not visiting any Manila-base church, I am somehow happy too see other beautiful churches outside of Manila. As a Manileno, I thought we have the best churches in Metro Manila, well, that is until I saw some from this part. And despite of those some being so new and modern, I somehow felt how each of them were made with solid faith and love to God.
And one of those modern praying areas that we've visited that caught my attention is the St. Pio of Pietrelcina Chapel in Libis, Quezon City. It isn't really a church, but according to the staff there, this chapel that is inspired by the Church of Our Lady of Grace in San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy, it can hold up to 500 church-goers.
Once again, the avenues of Manila City was flooded the colors maroon and golden yellow as the country celebrates the 2012 Feast of the Black Nazarene.
Attending this year's celebration feel so different for a devotee like me, because the man who encouraged and thought me things about this tradition is already gone. It's kinda painful to see the church and the people, but we have to move on, I have to move on, just like the procession of the Black Nazarene, which is attended by millions of devotees every year.
Today, I attended the 10:30 a.m. mass. By this time, the Basilica of the Black Nazarene is already full of devotees from the different parts of the world. And as if I have any other choice, I pushed myself in just to get inside and see the altar. As expected, it was grand and looks so mystical.
