The Filipino people of the Philippines are 98% Christians. As devoted followers of Christ, they take Christianity very seriously. On Good Friday of every year, there are a few who follows the teaching of Christ to heart. The crucifixion is the most excruciation torture known to man, but there are a few Filipinos willing to go the extra mile and experience the pain Jesus had to endure.
The miracle to see those being crucified survive the ordeal is of utter amazement. It is considered a blessing to many Filipinos willing to be nailed to the cross. While there are critics from the Catholic church insisting them to stop, the devoted followers of Christ will continue this tradition till the day the second coming of our Lord reveals Himself.
(Daily Telegraph) DEVOTEES re-enacted Jesus's crucifixion in gory scenes while millions of other less extreme faithful across the Catholic Philippines prayed with their families on Good Friday.
A handful of people are traditionally nailed to crosses while hundreds more have their backs whipped until they bleed in Asia's major Catholic outpost, to remember the day when Christians believe Jesus Christ died 2,000 years ago.
In the small farming town of Cutud, a couple of hours' drive north of Manila, thousands of tourists gathered to watch what has over the years become the biggest and bloodiest Good Friday spectacle.
Fourteen people were nailed to crosses and hundreds were whipped as they walked through the town, their blood splattering onto the ground and walls of buildings.
The most senior of those nailed to a cross, Ruben Enaje, 50, said he was going through the ordeal this year for the 25th time as a way of giving thanks to God for allowing him to survive an accident unscathed.
One of the most outspoken critics of the bloody rituals, Catholic Archbishop Rolando Tirona of a Manila district, said they were a misreading of church teachings, but he conceded there were powerful cultural reasons behind them.
"The panata becomes so personal that nobody can correct or change them. They promise they will do this if their sick grandmother gets better and when she gets better, they say they have to fulfil their vows," Tirona told AFP
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