JESUS CHRIST
Shocking pictures from gruesome Good Friday reenactment show Filipino Catholics NAILING themselves to crosses
Seven devotees, including a woman, were crucified in the city of San Fernando and San Pedro Cutud village
SHOCKING pictures show Filipino Catholics nailing themselves to crosses in a gruesome Good Friday reenactment.
Seven devotees, including a woman, were crucified in front of thousands of spectators in a bloody spectacle frowned upon by church leaders.
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Three devotees wearing crowns of twigs were nailed to crosses by villagers dressed as Roman centurions on a dusty hill in San Pedro Cutud village. Four others were crucified in nearby farming villages in San Fernando city, north of Manila, tourism officer Ching Pangilinan said.
Ruben Enaje, a 57-year-old sign painter who survived a fall from a tall building, was taking part in his 32nd reenactment.
Impoverished devotees undergo the ritual to atone for sins, pray for the sick or for a better life, or give thanks for what they believe were God-given miracles.
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The Lenten rituals are frowned upon by church leaders in the Philippines, Asia's largest Roman Catholic nation.
The reenactments of the crucifixion, however, have become a tourist attraction in the largely unknown villages in Pampanga province, around 50 miles from the capital.
While the crucifixions have become a tradition for villagers, they still leave many foreign tourists bewildered.
"It's terrible," said Luke Henkel from Florida. "You wanna stop it."
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Mayor Edwin Santiago of San Fernando, where San Pedro Cutud lies, said more than 400 police officers were deployed and first-aid stations set up to look after the huge crowds.
"We provide assistance because we can't stop the influx of tourists," Pangilinan said. "We don't promote it as a festival but it's rather a show of respect to a local tradition."
Villagers used the crowd-drawing events to peddle food, water, fans, umbrellas and souvenirs and rent out parking slots and toilets.
Read more about religious festivals around the world
A leading cellphone company provided tents for shade with its name embossed on them.
Archbishop Socrates Villegas said it's best for Catholics to mark Lent with prayers and acts of love and charity.
"Instead of spilling your blood on the streets, why not walk into a Red Cross office and donate blood? Choose to share life. Share your blood," Villegas said in remarks posted on a Catholic church website.
Meanwhile a theatre-goer in Brazil launched a bizarre attack on a Roman soldier in a bid to rescue Jesus from being crucified during a staging of the Passion of Christ play.