After three years of subdued iterations, church officials from the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene in the Philippine capital's Quiapo district released its plans for a full Nazareno procession of the highly-venerated image of Jesus depicted carrying the cross to Calvary.
Local media reported that the annual Manila tradition last had its full procession in 2020, merely two months before the start of the pandemic.
Schedule of Events
In a Facebook post, church officials said a novena would be held at the Quiapo Church every midday for nine days, beginning December 31.
A yearly blessing of replica images would also take place inside the church on the afternoon of January 3 and 4.
Beginning January 6 until the feast day of January 9, a public veneration of the original image would be held at the Quirino Grandstand in Manila's principal public square.
Historians believe that the Nazareno image was first enshrined at the Bagumbayan Church outside Manila's Old City before being transferred inside the now-destroyed San Nicolas Church during the Spanish era. The procession was to commemorate the transfer of a copy of the image from Intramuros to Quiapo at some point in the 17th or 18th century.
On the evening of January 8, a vigil and program would be held at the square, followed soon after by a mass at midnight of January 9 offered by the Archbishop of Manila, Cardinal Jose Advincula.
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What's New for 2024's Procession
Usually, the procession begins before dawn on January 9. However, church officials are yet to confirm or release the schedule for the start of the procession, which would pass by the narrow streets of downtown Manila.
Unlike the COVID years, when people were discouraged from kissing the image of the suffering Jesus and instead advised to venerate it by viewing and touching it, the Rev. Hans Magdurulang - 2024's festivities spokesperson - told local media that the restoration of the kissing gestures would be returned.
However, Magdurulang added that the Nazareno image would be put inside a protected glass case during this year's procession so as to discourage devotees from climbing the processional carriage unlike in previous years.
The procession would also be live-streamed for devotees who would not be able to travel to Manila for health reasons.
Beyond the festival, the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) announced earlier this month that the Quiapo Church - already named a minor basilica by Pope John Paul II in 1988 - would be declared a national shrine on January 29, just a few days after the Antipolo Cathedral would be scheduled to be declared an international shrine for the Virgin Mary under the title "Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage."
Urban legends say that the image of Jesus in Quiapo and that of the Virgin Mary in Antipolo were made from the wood of a single dark Mexican tree, but this remains to be disputed. Nevertheless, both images visit each other's shrines every year.
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