The yearly blessing of the replica and estandarte of the Black Nazarene has begun Tuesday, Dec, 27, and will be held until Thursday, Dec. 29, in front of the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene or Quiapo Church in Manila.
The blessing started after the 12:00 pm Mass and was attended by thousands of devotees from the different parts of the country.
Earlier, in a media orientation, Mr. Alex Irasga of Quiapo Church said that the traditional blessing will be held for three days to avoid the influx of devotees as part of the COVID-19 protocol.
Also, as part of the precautionary measure against the spread of the coronavirus, Quiapo church has announced the cancellation of the annual Traslacion procession next year, which is attended by millions of devotees.
The traditional pahalik (kissing of the image of the Black Nazarene) and pasanan (carrying) will be replaced by the “pagpupugay” (viewing and touching) to be held from January 7-9, 2023. The “walk of faith” procession is also included in the list of activities for the Feast of the Black Nazarene 2023 and is scheduled on January 8, 2023. Both the “pagpupugay” and “walk of faith” will be held at the Quirino Grandstand in Luneta.
All activities for Nazareno 2023 are live-streamed on the Facebook page of Quiapo Church as well as on the SOCOM platforms of the Archdiocese of Manila namely TV Maria, Radio Veritas and the Archdiocesan Office of Communications (AOC).
Quiapo Church is encouraging all the devotees who will physically take part in the Nazareno 2023 activities to always wear face masks and to practice social distancing to prevent the threat of COVID-19. (By Jheng Prado | Photo by Rian Salamat/RCAM-AOC | Photogallery)
