The image of God in artwork depicts western thought: tall, curly chestnut hair, a clear complexion, and a pair of immaculate blue eyes. The colonizers taught us a canon wherein the ideal image of the Lord should resemble perfection; no wonder we treated them as gods, and the religious oppression became the metastasis of a more than 300-year empire.
It is very different from the image of Nuestro Padre Hesus Nazareno, or the Black Nazarene, brought by the Spaniards in 1606. Contrary to the ideal image of God, Nazareno is a dark-skinned man kneeling while carrying a wooden cross.
Tracing the Genesis of Apo Nazareno
In the 16th century, an anonymous Mexican artisan carved the image. Despite what many people believe, it was not aglow during its voyage from Acapulco to Manila. According to Monsignor Sabino Vengco Jr., the image was carved using mesquite wood, a type of lumber abundant on the American continent. It was also the same wood used by the Spaniards to build galleon ships in the 15th and 16th centuries.
The Translacion, or the solemn transfer, celebrates every 9th of January. It commemorates the transfer of the old image from Bagumbayan, or Luneta Park in modern times, to Quiapo Church. As nomenclature to the celebration, the festivity is called Feast of the Black Nazarene or Quiapo Day.
The Andas is the carroza of the Poon. Before, a group of men carried it, called the "mamamasan." The Andas is the carroza of the Poon. Nowadays, even women are taking the Andas during processions. It is no longer a chauvinistic undertaking but a collective of people entwined together to show their love for Nazareno.
Pamamanata as a Spectacle of Faith
Nazareno depicts the passion of Christ, although the feast celebrates before the Holy Week when pilgrims (or the namamanata) from different economic backgrounds gather to pay homage to Senor by attending the novena, mass, and the Translacion. It usually takes a day before it reaches the Basilica. In 2012, the procession took 22 hours to finish, making it the longest-recorded procession of the feast. It is like a "festival of madness," according to media practitioners.
Critics call it a paganistic ritual, and some theorize that it takes us back to the uncanniness of colonialism. Some people may find it absurd to see people pushing each other to get closer to the Andas to wipe the image of Apo Nazareno. Although what we perceive in the media is cavernous, there are valid reasons why people are so eager to touch the image of Nazareno.
Some ask for forgiveness of their sins; others ask for miracles for their sick loved ones; and some thank the Lord for the blessings given to them. We cannot invalidate the faith of the pilgrims, especially if faith is the only way to save their loved ones from a dreaded illness or if it is the only facet to save their lives from subterfuge.
The image is very close to the hearts of Filipinos in general because he is a king disguised as a man. It is not paganism but rather a eudaimonia wherein God's grace is an ardor even in the most challenging situations. Nazareno is very close to our hearts because it is not just a physical metamorphosis but a mere representation of God, a King disguised as a man.
The image reflects the daily struggles of Christians persecuted like prisoners inside a jail or a tramp deprived of economic advancement. God disguised himself as a man to show that he embraces His followers from their physical archetypes to their sufferings.
“Walang Hanggang Pasasalamat”
Paulo Fontanilla | OLA Social Communications
