Crucifixion ceremonies

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We arrived in San Fernando after leaving Port Barton in Palawan via a joiners van trip then a domestic flight & a horrendously expensive airport taxi from Manila (yeah, I know - we should have tried the coach station but it was getting late on Maundy Thursday and we had to get there at reasonable hour in order to settle in and find somewhere decent to eat) The next day, on Good Friday itself, we discovered that much had changed since the other blogs about these crucifixions had been written. There is no free VIP ticket anymore. These tickets are now $100 each and had sold out 2 weeks ago. We were thus denied access to the VIP tent & faced a 3-4 hour wait with the locals under the burning sun for the ceremony to begin and, boy, was it hot - so much so that later that night I came out in a heat rash! To mitigate the heat we lingered as best we could in a shady spot next to a street vendor and provided we remained alert we could back away from any passing flagellant and avoid getting splattered with his blood. As the ceremony approached I noticed there was a section close to the 3 crosses reserved for the media and, mustering as much bravado as I could, managed to get a couple of media passes by stint of my business card. At 12.29 as the sun beat mercilessly down, the ceremony started. Ruben Enaje was dragged forwards by the centurions and a crown of thorns thrust upon his head. Ruben is a bit of a folk hero in these parts and is the star 'Jesus' amongst the handful who volunteer to be crucified with 3 inch nails each year on Good Friday. The reason for this is due to the fact that he has subjected himself to this traumatic event 34 times in as many years (he only had a reprieve during the pandemic as the ceremonies were cancelled) This all started after he miraculously survived a 3 story fall from a construction site and he does it to feel closer to Christ in his Passion. Once crowned, Ruben was nailed to the cross which was then levered upright in front of the massed crowd. Somewhat fittingly, at the exact moment that Ruben was crucified, dark clouds gathered in the sky and the heavens opened. For 10 excruciating minutes Ruben hung on the cross before he was taken down and rushed to hospital. As if that wasnt enough, at this point a second batch of crucifixions occured. These next 3 guys really had it tough as not only were they also nailed to the cross for 10 minutes but they were denied the adulation of the attendant masses as most were scrabbling to depart and had turned their backs on them.
I found the whole ceremony was a powerfully moving yet grisly reminder of what Christ suffered for us and no amount of movie images quite prepares you for the impact of seeing hundreds of young men dripping in blood from self-flagellation and then witnessing men hanging from the cross with 3 inch nails through their hands. Although this event is highly contentious and frowned upon by the Catholic church one cannot deny the strength of belief that drives their actions. It really made me choke with emotion seeing first hand what Christ went through. This totally unique event which happens nowhere else in the world is definitely not to be missed if in the Philippines during Holy Week.
However, be aware that the ceremony is held in a poor part of town and is extremely crowded. I always travel with zipped pockets but in the crush to leave I felt fingers quickly jab into the pocket where I kept my purse. Thankfully the pocket was deep and the thief (a rotund middle aged woman) failed to get anything but I was surprised that I hadn't been aware of her unzipping the pocket.

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