At least 12 Filipinos are to be nailed to crosses to reenact Jesus Christ's suffering in a gory Good Friday tradition that is rejected by the Catholic church but draws huge crowds of devotees and tourists to the Philippines. 9News
The real-life crucifixions in the farming village of San Pedro Cutud in Pampanga province north of Manila have resumed after a three-year pause.
The father of four has been portrayed in some media reports as among the bravest men in the world for the annual feat "but to be honest, I always feel nervous because I could end up dead on the cross"."When my hands are tied, I just close my eyes and tell myself, 'I can do this. I can do this'," he said.Village actors dressed as Roman centurions hammer 10cm stainless steel nails through participants' hands and feet.
Ahead of their crucifixion on a dusty hill, Enaje and the other devotees, wearing thorny crowns of twigs, would carry heavy wooden crosses on their backs for more than a kilometre under the scorching heat. The gruesome spectacle reflects the Philippines' unique brand of Catholicism, which merges church traditions with folk superstitions.
Robert Reyes, a prominent Catholic priest and human rights activist in the country, said the bloody rites reflect the church's failure to fully educate many Filipinos on Christian tenets, leaving them on their own to explore personal ways of seeking divine help for all sorts of maladies.
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