Philippine churches will be implementing a “no contact” observance of Ash Wednesday on Feb. 17, which marks the start of the 40-day Lenten season. 

The churches have observed this practice last year as a COVID-19 precaution.

According to Archdiocese of Manila Apostolic Administrator Broderick Pabillo, the Vatican instructed the ash to be sprinkled on the heads of churchgoers instead of the traditional rite of marking their foreheads. 

“Wala nang contact. Lalapit sila at bubudburan ng abo ang kanilang ulo,” Pabillo said in an interview in Teleradyo.

Pabillo noted that the traditional dictum, or the “repent and believe in the gospel,” will still be included. However, the directive said that instead of repeating the formula from the Roman Missal to each attendee, it will only be said once by the ministers. 

“At ‘yung formula na sinasabi na ikaw ay tao, tandaan mo sa abo ka babalik, magsisi ka sa iyong mga kasalanan…[‘Y]an po ay sasabihin na lang ng minsanan sa lahat,” he said.

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The Archdiocese of Manila auxiliary bishop urged Catholic devotees yesterday, Jan. 9, to include Jesus in their struggles during the mass for the feast day of the Black Nazarene.  

“We do not deny the suffering that are with us, but put Jesus there at magtratransform po ang ating kahirapan sa ating kaligtasan,” Apostolic Administrator Broderick Pabillo said. 

Pabillo used the story of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ to further amplify his message. According to him, it was Jesus’s struggle that led people to salvation. 

“[A]ng krus ay instrumento ng pagpaparusa, ng pagpatay…[H]indi tinanggihan ni Hesus na siya ay i-akyat sa krus. Si Hesus na nasa sa krus ay hindi na parusa kung hindi kaligtasan para sa atin,” he said. 

The bishop also said that devotees became more intimate with Jesus despite the changes in the Quiapo church’s traditional celebration of the feast of the Black Nazarene. 

Although health professionals warned devotees to stay at home, thousands of Filipinos flocked to Quiapo Church which astounded netizens as videos and photos of the festivities surfaced online. 

The Manila Police District estimated that around 400,000 visitors were seen in Quiapo today. Quiapo church announced that it would hold at least 15 masses, with only 400 visitors allowed for each mass.

The scheduled mass will also be livestream at Quiapo Church’s official Facebook account for non-physical mass goers. 

Unruffled devotion

Prior to the pandemic, devotees walked through the streets of Manila, with some attempting to kiss or wipe the image of the Black Nazarene with a cloth in hopes that their prayers would be granted. 

Thomasian Nazareno devotees, however, remained unruffled amid cancellation of the annual Traslacion or the procession of the Black Nazarene. 

“Kahit di tayo physically present, sa ating pagdadasal sa ating mga tahanan, sa online connection lang, ay lumalapit tayo sa Diyos,” Pabillo said. 

Thomasian devotees resorted to alternative ways to practice their devotion to the Black Nazarene. 

“I try my best to attend their online mass everyday,” first-year Communication Arts student Chiqui Cabrera told TomasinoWeb. 

“If you really have faith with him kahit nasaan ka kaya mong pakita na devoted ka sa kanya,” second-year journalism major and devotee since nine-years of age Kyle Llamas told TomasinoWeb. 

Another journalism student, who wished to be known as “an unworthy servant of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph,” practiced his devotion this year differently as well. 

“This year, since it is the pandemic, I went out of the door to greet the car procession of Señor Nazareno, which was held by my parish as I waved a napkin, venerating the image of the suffering Christ,” he told TomasinoWeb. 

He also said that he feels sympathetic to the devotees who were not able to practice their devotion due to COVID-19 constraints. 

The City of Manila cancelled the annual Traslacion last year, Oct. 23, due to the pandemic. Devotees hold a grand procession each Jan. 9 to commemorate the 1767 transfer of the venerated image of the Black Nazarene from Intramuro to Quiapo. 

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The faithful were urged to not rely on their human abilities in dealing with challenges such as the pandemic during Red Wednesday, Nov. 25.

“The troubles that we face are beyond our control. Why should we be anxious to control everything that is beyond our power?” Rev. Fr. Cecilio Vladimir Magboo, O.P. said during the mass in the Santisimo Rosario Parish

Magboo, who is the Pastoral Services Director of UST Hospital, emphasized that people should not pretend that they can handle everything especially during these trying times.

“Wala sa ating mga kamay ang maraming pangyayari na hindi maganda sa ating buhay,” he said during his homily.

Magboo stressed that “everyday life is a risk,” considering the plight of frontliners and the continuing persecution of Christians around the world even in recent times.

He said that those circumstances did not occur without God’s will, saying that people will emerge victorious in the way God wants, not in a worldly sense.

“Let God do His work. Let us not dethrone Him and rely on our human abilities that we can solve everything. We do not dethrone God from His place,” Magboo said.

Amid the current difficult circumstances, he pointed out that learning the true meaning of hope and putting it in God is the greatest blessing one could receive.

“Not even the sparrow will fall to the ground without the knowledge of God or without God willing it,” Magboo said.

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