To many foreigners, the spectacle looks like idolatry—more than a million Filipinos joining the annual procession of a centuries-old statue of a blackened Christ, believed to be miraculous, through the streets of Manila every January 9<sup>th.
This year, the slow-moving procession drew 1.4 million people and lasted for 20 hours, leaving two people dead and hundreds injured, authorities said. In previous years, the procession drew as many as 12 million Filipinos, sources said.
But despite the deaths and injuries, despite the chaos and the fighting that took place among devotees, Filipinos who took part in the procession of the Black Nazarene feel thankful and blessed for having been given the privilege to show their devotion to Jesus Christ.
Critics say the procession amounts to idolatry, but the Philippine Catholic Church considers it a vibrant expression of the Filipinos' faith in God.
Responding to critics and doubters, Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle said the devotees joining the procession do not deserve to be judged harshly, adding that the devotees had no one to turn to except the cross-bearing Christ, the Philippine Daily Inquirer reported.
"Have you ever experienced having no one or nothing to cling on to?" Tagle asked the crowd attending the early Saturday Mass in Manila ahead of the procession.
The cardinal said this year's Black Nazarene procession was particularly meaningful as it fell within the Year of Mercy declared by Pope Francis, and the Philippine Catholic Church's observance of the Year of the Eucharist and the Family.
For his part, Msgr. Hernando Coronel, the parish priest of Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene, said, "The people reach out to it because they have a personal relationship with God."
"They come to me and say the Lord has performed miracles for them. To the devotees He is for real," Coronel said.
The Black Nazarene is a life-sized iconic statue of Jesus Christ bearing the cross en route to his crucifixion. The statue shows a barefooted Christ on bended knees with his head bowed, symbolising the agony and pain He endured during his Passion.
The statue, carved by an anonymous Mexican artist sometime in the 17th century, derives its name from "Nazarene" which is a title of Christ identifying him as being of Nazareth in Galilee.
The statue is considered miraculous by many Filipino Catholics who carry cloths and seek to touch the statue believing that it possesses healing powers or can bring good fortune.
This year was no exception, as many devotees handed cloths to those who were adjacent to the carriage, hoping that they could swipe the idol for them.
"When I was a young woman, I walked on my knees and begged the Black Nazarene to give me a good husband," 72-year-old Nilda Saavedra, told reporters. "I also prayed that all my three children could finish college. All my prayers were heard."
The Black Nazarene statue was brought to Manila by Augustinian priests in 1607, decades after the start of Spain's colonial rule. It was believed to have acquired its colour after being partially burned when the galleon carrying it caught fire on a voyage from Mexico, another Spanish colony at the time.
For the past 200 years, millions of Filipinos flood the streets as the wooden statue is carried through Manila for its annual feast day. Those who observe the occasion, which includes men, women and children alike, usually walk the streets barefoot as a gesture of reverence toward the statue. The event can sometimes become dangerous as the throngs push one another out of the way, Christian News reported.
The procession began at 6 a.m. on Saturday and concluded at 2 a.m. on Sunday morning, and was guarded by an estimated 5,000 police officers and members of the military.
The vast majority of Filipinos—approximately 80 percent—are Roman Catholics. Only 2.8 percent of the population regard themselves as evangelical Christians.
