Rommel David and several friends from the farming village of San Juan began the spectacle by whipping their bare backs with thin strips of bamboo until their flesh glistened red. -- PHOTO: AFP
SAN FERNANDO (Philippines) - DOZENS of devout Filipinos whipped themselves until blood flowed down their backs and others groaned while being nailed to crosses as Asia's bastion of Catholicism marked Good Friday. The extreme acts in the Philippines are among the Roman Catholic world's most bizarre events to mark the day when Christians believe Jesus Christ was put to death 2,000 years ago.
Rommel David and several friends from the farming village of San Juan began the spectacle by whipping their bare backs with thin strips of bamboo until their flesh glistened red. 'This is for my family, so there is no sickness,' said the 36-year-old decorator, a piece of cloth covering his head, which had a crown of barbed wire.
The scene was repeated in neighbouring villages around the city of San Fernando, about an hour's drive north of Manila and the heartland of the unique Philippine Good Friday tradition. By lunchtime, children were running around the villages covered in the blood of the penitents that had flicked off their backs.
About 25 people, including 34-year-old Mary-Jane Mamangun, were nailed to crosses under blazing heat in the villages of San Fernando, each spending a few minutes painfully re-enacting Jesus Christ's crucifixion. Mamangun said it was the 14th consecutive year she had been crucified. She believed that going through the ordeal had helped her grandmother recover from two strokes and her sister beat cancer.
In San Pedro Cutud village, sign painter Ruben Enaje, 49, was crucified for the 24th consecutive year, making him the veteran of the show there and its star. Up to 2,000 people watched in a carnival-style atmosphere as his groans were amplified via a microphone. 'I will pray for a peaceful national election (next month) and health for my family,' he said before being crucified.
Self-flagellation and people walking barefoot carrying wooden crosses all day are familiar sights across much of the Philippines during Lent, along with more traditional practices such as visiting churches and fasting. But extreme practices are officially frowned upon by the church. -- AFP
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