My Third Off-Day Was A Rainout so I Visited the Church of the Black Nazarene.....

I pretty much took it easy--especially in the afternoon. This morning I slept in then ate breakfast at the top floor of the hotel and watched the rain pour down on Manila Bay. Around 9:00 it let up and I headed out for one of the sights I'd been wanting to see since I've been here--the Quiapo Church which is north of the Old Walled City.

Quiapo is home to one of the oldest churches in the Philippines, dating back to 1586, but the current building was built in 1933 and over the centuries several buildings have fallen to fires, earthquakes and Japanese and American bombing during World War II. it is most famous, however, as the home of the Black Nazarene--an image of Christ that is believed to be miraculous. The life-sized statue was carved of dark wood in Mexico by Aztec carvers and carried by Spanish galleon to the Philippines in 1606. Catholic tradition holds that the wooden ship caught fire--charring the white image into the current black statue. The church today was rebuilt in a very distinctive Mexican colonial architectural style.

Even by Catholic tradition, this statue is almost considered frightening in the manner in which its devotees worship it. The sick come from miles away, often crawling on their knees in submission, and twice a year the image is carried on the shoulders of tens of thousands of frenzied devotees in one of Manila's biggest religions festivals. The ability of the image to gather large crowds and work them into a religious frenzy has frightened more than one dictator here. At Easter, the image is also paraded and you may have seen the pictures of the crowd--some of whom march in the parade lashing themselves with whips until they are bleeding. Although the government and the Catholic Church have banned it, there are still some fanatical followers who literally are crucified on crosses with the nails driven through their wrists and feet. It is probably the most fanatical following of any Christian symbol anywhere.

It was raining lightly when I left the hotel so I took a taxi to the church which was a good thing because the church is located in what is referred to in Manila as "Chinatown" and I probably would never have found it on foot. As it was, the taxi dropped me off and I walked about three blocks through the Chinese market area consisting of stalls and food vendors. I don't scare easily but I felt more than a little uneasy threading my way through the crowd and stalls. When I reached the church there was a Mass in session and I slipped in through a side door to get out of the rain and stood for most of the service which was in Filipino.

As the crowd left, I moved to the back of the church and the main entrance where the statue is kept. I spent about ten minutes just watching the crowd--they were literally lined up to just touch it. Some would wipe towels on it and then cover their faces praying while others would place a Rosary or religious emblem on the wood and pray. I didn't really feel comfortable taking a picture so I stepped outside the entrance and shot a photograph from outside and even then the guard motioned me away.

The plaza in front of the Church, Plaza Miranda, was once a popular gathering place for Filipinos to hold parades and festivals but a bombing in 1971 killed several people and led to a period of martial law in the Philippines. Today there is a monument there but people seem to avoid it except to enter the church.

From Quiapo I took another taxi to Intramoros--the Old Walled City. I had been wanting to walk around the top of the wall and look at the old military bastions. When I got there it started raining and I walked around about half of it and had to really be careful because the stones were slippery and I've already got a sore knee from slipping on the steps of the lighthouse on Corregidor. I do find Intramoros fascinating although the walls are almost in total ruin due to World War II. I shot a photo of the main entrance today and am attaching an old picture of the main entrance at the end of World War II during the Battle of Manila when the U.S. Army retook the city from the Japanese. Today almost everything inside the old city is rebuilt, including the Manila Cathedral where I stopped and took some photographs.

After about half-way, it was pouring and I was drenched and realized I wasn't enjoying it anymore so I walked back to the hotel. My running shoes are completely soaked and I showered, ate a really good lunch at the hotel and took a nap and spent the rest of the day in the hotel and the rain never really let up.

I've got a three-day job starting in the morning and head back to Houston Thursday night. Overall it was a good three-day weekend despite the weather.....