Marking Easter with Crucifixions

[Manverulin]

CNN News
Filipinos mark Easter with crucifixions
April 13, 2001
Web posted at: 6:38 AM EDT (1038 GMT)


CUTUD, Philippines -- The audience looks on as blood sprays, nails bite into flesh, and the water and fan salesmen do a roaring trade. This is Easter, Philippines style.

The small town of Cutud, about 80 km (50 miles) north of Manila, comes alive every Good Friday in a re-enactment of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ in this devoutly Roman Catholic country.

Despite the orthodox Church frowning on the ritual, participants whip themselves and a number are nailed to wooden crosses for several minutes all over the country to atone for sins and seek cures for sick relatives.

This year, 11 men and one woman underwent the crucifixion ordeal while more than 20 young men chose to be flagellants -- whipping their backs into a bloody smear after being cut with a glass embedded instrument.

Extreme faith
"I am the actress of Jesus on Good Friday," said faith healer Amparo Santos of Bulacan, shortly before she had three-inch (7.5 cm) nails driven through her right and left hands and onto a large wooden cross.

Why does she do it? "Because Jesus is the one that has called me for this kind of position."

Grimacing as the nails went in, the spritely 60-year-old was soon composed, chatting and laughing, and even answering questions from the assembled audience.

Santos said she was being crucified for the 14th time and intended to go through it again next Easter.

Chito Sangalang, 45, who played the role of Christ in a re-enactment of the original crucifixion, was back on his 15th year, having earlier vowed that this would be his last.

Over 1,000 people, many of them foreign tourists, gathered to witness the bloody spectacle with spectators jostling for the best camera positions.

Water and fan salesmen were kept busy in the searing heat.

Evelyn Leyson, a Filipina nurse now living in Santa Barbara, California, said she had come to witness first-hand the fervor displayed by some Catholics.

"When I first saw people walking around with blood on their backs, I felt weird," she said, adding that while the participants' actions were extreme they were a powerful expression of faith.

One flagellant, 24-year-old Dan Fernando, said he was unfazed about the potential health risk of having his back cut by the same instrument used by many others.

"God will protect me," he said.

Pic of the ceremonies

Even thought I am Filipino myself, I'm a bit disturbed by this. I can understand that some people want to go through what Jesus did, but being crucified for a few minutes, well thats a bit extreme for me.

 

[Archer 007]

Wow!

 

[Knowze Gungk]

Every one has their own (or someone elses) way of celebrating, nothing wrong with it, as long as no one is nailed up against their will.

I, my self, like to preserve ancient beliefs, while embracing new commercialized concepts. I celebrate Easter by crucifying bunnies.

 

[Manverulin]

Crucifying bunnies.... hmm..... thats new.

 

[EmpireofVirtue]

I just have a question. How a christian can find the strength to nail up someone, even if he wants that? I can understand (even if it's awckward) those who want to play Jesus... but I can't understand those who want to play the Romans...

 

[RedWolf]

Anybody that volunteers for the lunacy should be left up on the cross so that they are removed from the gene pool. Stupidy should be a crime.

And why are they nailing them through the hands? It's generally accepted that crucifixions were done through the wrist as the hands wouldn't have supported the weight of a person. (This has been proven with cadavers I believe).

I've seen these re-enactments on TV and they tend to tie them to the cross to hold their weight and THEN drive the nails through the hands. So they aren't actually hanging from the nail peircings. But if you're not going to do it authentically then why bother? What are you proving?

 

[KaNick]

These freaks must really enjoy pain.

 

[Achinz]

Obviously some people believe in an extreme form of penance. It's only one further step from the accepted practice among Latin American Catholics to enact the carrying the cross with real whipping in the procession. The belief being the more you suffer and atone, the more favourably God will look on you in the future.

 

[Manverulin]

I guess they just want to know the pain, or at least some of it, that Jesus had to go through. I guess it helps them feel closer to God in some way. And they actually go for more. There was someone who had their 15th crucifixion

 

[RedWolf]

Originally posted by Manverulin
I guess they just want to know the pain, or at least some of it, that Jesus had to go through. I guess it helps them feel closer to God in some way. And they actually go for more. There was someone who had their 15th crucifixion

People that do it more than once are the dumbest of all. Like what do think you're going to gain? Like you get to heaven and they start counting up "times you got nailed to the cross" and then hand out the biggest offices or something to those with the highest "score"?

Seems absurd to me.

Although I'm an antheist so what do I know.

 

[Knowze Gungk]

Why do you care what other people do to themselves?

 

[Achinz]

I think pain may just be relative or not even felt as when in a trace. It's well known that the Hindus pay penance to their gods in very gory ways to those not used to the sight and also have such established practices as running on hot coals.

 

[RedWolf]

Originally posted by Knowze Gungk
Why do you care what other people do to themselves?

Me? I don't care. If someone wants to nail themselves to a cross then they're well within their rights to do so. I just think that the idea is absurd and anybody that does so is a moron.

 

[CivCube]

They want to know what Jesus went through with experience.

 

[Plexus]

My problem with this is that Jesus died on the cross so that we would never have to.

Though I have to respect thier devotion.

 

[Gingerbread Man]

Originally posted by Plexus
My problem with this is that Jesus died on the cross so that we would never have to.

Though I have to respect thier devotion.

Couldn't have said it better.

The idea is that he suffered so we wouldn't have to. Then they just ignore it and inflict unnecessary pain upon themselves.

 

[Dark Ascendant]

Doea anyone know how the 60 year old women could have nails driven through her hands for 14 years? Shouldn't there be holes in her hands by now?

 

[Goober]

Hmm, those pics might be a tad bit overdone. You are not allowed to display Graphic pics, and those seemed graphic.

Some crazy, fanatical religious thing . . .

 

[Zarn]

Thery are idiots. Jesus suffered for us, so we didn't have to suffer. This is not what following in Christ's footsteps means.

It doesn't take 15 times to relize what Jesus went through, either.

 

[Margim]

Originally posted by Knowze Gungk
Every one has their own (or someone elses) way of celebrating, nothing wrong with it, as long as no one is nailed up against their will.

I, my self, like to preserve ancient beliefs, while embracing new commercialized concepts. I celebrate Easter by crucifying bunnies.

I think the bunny goes back before the commercialisation, or even the Christianisation of the easter celebrations - something about the rabbit being a resemblence of the saxon goddess of spring, if I'm right. However, if you sold the crucified bunny - then your on to the commericalised concept