Yesterday John and I went to the Pampanga province to witness a Filipino tradition. The wiki has information on exactly what’s happening. But here’s what I saw.
Men carrying crosses:
Very large crowds flocking to witness the events:
Self-flagellation (the two guys kneeling with really red backs), and men hanging themselves from crosses:
So much of what I saw was really hard to watch. I don’t understand the rituals, and I find it illogical. I understand to some extent how they think this is acceptable, but their own religion doesn’t support it.
However, it’s a very big thing here. We saw so many tourists, Filipino mostly, and at the site in the last photo there were even tents set up with snacks, drinks, and ice for sale. You could get cross balloons from the balloon guy. It was interesting, and I’m happy to have experienced this part of Filipino culture once, but I feel no compunction to do it again.
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