Hundreds of thousands of Filipinos participate in the "Black Nazarene" celebrations despite the pandemic
Hundreds of thousands of Catholic worshipers poured into a church in Manila on Saturday hoping to see a statue of Christ attributed to miraculous powers, despite restrictions imposed to combat the Covid-19 pandemic.
Ignoring calls from the authorities to stay home, the participants gathered along the avenue leading to the Chiapo Church in Manila, where 15 masses were held since dawn on the occasion of the "Black Nazarene" feast, a statue of Christ carrying the cross preserved in the church of the same name.
This year the scene of chaos that usually accompanies the gathering of worshipers during these rallies, which annually attract hundreds of thousands of Catholics who make up 80% of the country's population, was absent this year, and the participants sought to touch the statue, believing in its ability to heal the sick.
Made in the size of an adult, this statue was introduced into the Philippines in the early seventeenth century during the Spanish colonial era.
According to the circulating accounts, the statue was blackened by smoke from a fire on the ship on which it was transported from Mexico.
He usually roams the crowded streets of Manila, but this year the authorities preferred to cancel the march due to the pandemic, for the first time in decades.
This time, the worshipers were forced to view the statue without touching, to avoid the spread of infection.
"I am very happy with what I see now," said George Arevalo, 32, after participating in the mass, in which the number of attendees was limited to 400 in respect of the rules of physical distancing.
Arevalo indicated that he touched the statue for the first time in 2017, stressing that this step allowed his wife, who suffers from epilepsy, to give birth to a child in complete health without any problems.
Thousands of policemen have deployed to ensure that physical distancing rules are adhered to. Manila Police Chief General Leo Francisco said hundreds of thousands of people had flocked to the site as of Saturday afternoon hours.