CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

The parts of this chapter are presented so that the readers may have a better

understanding of the basic who, what, when, where, why, and how of the study. It

includes the background of the study, the statement of the problem, the significance of the

study, the scope and limitation, the theoretical framework, the conceptual framework, and

the definition of terms.

A. Background of the Study

Culture and religion are commonly linked to each other. As stated by Aguinaldo

(2002), religion is one of the aspects of culture since it comes with different practices

such as devotion to a sacred image and celebration of feasts, which may become widely

practiced in a particular society.

The Philippines, for example, is known for their strong devotion to their religion,

no matter which congregation they belong. However, the dominant religion in this

country is the Catholic. As a matter of fact, more than 80% of the country’s population is

Roman Catholic (Kim & Kim, 2016). Hence, Catholicism plays a significant role in the

religious and even in the social aspect of the country. An example of these religious

events is the Feast of the Black Nazarene of Quiapo, which is infamous for the number of

participants who join it.

The Nuestro Padre Jesus Nazareno or more commonly known as the Black

Nazarene is one of the biggest religious events that happens every year. The celebration

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of the sacred image bring millions of Catholics together every ninth of January. As every

year, millions of devotees flock to Quiapo to get a glimpse of the sacred image of the

Black Nazarene.

Aguinaldo (2002) also mentioned that the roots of the devotion to the Black

Nazarene were to ask for a favor and to ask for forgiveness, to be able to express

gratitude, to obey a request, and to pay for wrong deeds. Devotion to sacred images like

the Black Nazarene can also be equated to making panata (vows), which is also one of

the factors that brings people to the feast of the Black Nazarene every year.

Filipino devotees of the Black Nazarene believe that the image itself is a

miraculous object since people who touch it have been healed or have their petitions

granted. The journey of the Black Nazarene started when an anonymous Mexican

sculptor made the image and it was brought to Manila from Acapulco, Mexico via the

galleon. There is a widespread belief that the image was burned by a fire on the galleon,

so it became black. However, according to Monsignor Sabino A. Vengco Jr. from the

Loyola School of Theology, the image was not charred rather it was originally dark

through to its core as it was made out of mesquite wood—a known medium during the

time that the image was created.

The original image that belonged to the Recollects from Mexico was preserved in

the Church of Saint Nicholas of Tolentino near the modern-day Rizal Park inside

Intramuros until the Liberation of Manila in 1945, when both the church and the image

perished during the continuous attacks and flames. A common misconception about the

image in the Quiapo Church is that it is the lost original one. Nevertheless, history claims

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that on January 9, 1787, the Recollects donated a copy of the image to the Church of the

Camisa which is the reason for the celebration of the image every 9th of January by

means of a procession.

Before the main event called the Traslacion, there is a practice of the pahalik

where people queue for hours to touch and kiss the foot of the Black Nazarene. Even

during this pre-event, the dedication of the devotees, who line up for hours just to touch

the Black Nazarene for a few seconds, is strongly evident. An article called Devotion to

the Black Nazarene (A Pastoral Understanding) stated that aside from the pahalik, there

are several other practices done for the feast of the Black Nazarene. The pasindi which

includes the lighting of multi-colored candles outside of the church; the padasal which

involves the so called “mandarasals” or priests to hold prayers; the pabihis where the

Black Nazarene is dressed up with his garments; the pabendision which happens after the

mass or the kissing of hands of the priest and involves sprinkling of Holy Water; the

pahawak where the devotees touch the statue or the garments of the Black Nazarene; the

pamisa involves mass offerings; the pagnonobena which involves the praying of the

novena; the pagpasan where the carrying of the wood of the carroza or the rope attached

to it begins; and the pagyayapak where devotees would walk barefoot during the

procession.

There have also been other practices related to the Black Nazarene, which are

believed to be effective in healing and granting petitions such as asking to bring home the

dried sampaguitas (jasmine) that were offered, the cutting of the vestments of the Black

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Nazarene and even the ropes that were used during the procession, wiping towels at the

sacred image, and bringing of the Hands of the Black Nazarene to those who are sick.

Thousands to millions of devotees face different challenges in order to hold the

sacred image. The number of devotees participating in the procession have quickly risen

in numbers for the past ten (10) years. In fact, in the year 2008, almost 1.5 million

devotees attended the Black Nazarene feast and the numbers have not decreased ever

since (Canoy & Chua, 2010). Each year the routes also change in order to accommodate

the millions of devotees that want to hold the Black Nazarene. It has also come to the

point where the mayor of Manila, Joseph Estrada, has declared the 9th of January as a

holiday in 2014. This exhibits the importance of this religious event to the mass.

However, along with the growing population comes the growing number of casualties.

In the year 2010, Pagulong (2012) reported that two men died while the

procession was on-going while hundreds more are injured. Accidents are more prevalent

due to the increasing number of people joining the Traslacion. Thus, as Pagulong (2012)

also reported, about 4,000 soldiers, police and emergency workers are on duty for the

procession. Moreover, some Western governments have also warned the Philippines

about the possible threats since there are many terrorists attacks all over the world and

there are numerous people who join the procession.

The said feast is also prone to different crimes and inconvenience such as the

issue of traffic and closure of roads. from minor crimes to the heinous ones. There are

also cases where people would go there to earn profits from the event such as selling

merchandises, food, drinks, and etc. A report by Adel (2018) which states the different

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road closures and alternate routes during the Traslacion that had been implemented

during the feast of the Black Nazarene. However, the number of attendees is still

expected to increase for the next years.

There are only a number of scholars who studied about the devotion to the Black

Nazarene, thus only a little is known about the development the Black Nazarene of

Quiapo from the beginning of its propagation until the present time in the city of Manila.

A case study on this topic is needed for the purpose of providing an explanation of both

the development and devotion to the Black Nazarene despite the fast-paced life in the city

of Manila. Furthermore, it will benefit the majority of the population as there are more

than 80% Roman Catholics in the country (Kim & Kim, 2016).

B. Statement of the Problem

The Black Nazarene is a reality for the Filipinos, but some foreign experts

consider this procession as an idolatry or a fanaticism. The lack of research about the

propagation and the development of the Black Nazarene may be one of the roots of the

perception that the faith to the Black Nazarene of Quiapo is a mere idolatry. Hence, this

research paper focused on exploring the different angles of the feast from 2006 to 2016 in

order to provide a comprehensive explanation about the devotion of the members of the

Quiapo Church to the Black Nazarene. Moreover, this study aimed to answer the

following questions which may help in providing a better understanding of the

implications to the individual and the society of the devotion to the Black Nazarene:

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 1. How did the individuals in the Quiapo Church become a devotee of the Black

Nazarene?

2. What are the meanings behind the religious practices dedicated for the Black

Nazarene of Quiapo?

3. How do those activities affect the lives of the devotees and non-devotees in

the Quiapo area?

4. How did the religious activities of the devotees in the Quiapo Church develop

from 2006 to 2016?

C. Significance of the Study

With its large number of attendees every year, the Feast of the Black Nazarene has

already become a part of the tradition of millions of people in the Philippines and around

the globe. The devotion of Christians, who continuously show their persistence in joining

the festivity for their own personal intentions despite knowing the challenges they are

bound to face, is always as evident. Thus, it is important to understand the entirety of the

said festivity. This study served its purpose which is to elaborate different aspects of the

feast—what it is all about and how it affects people individually and society as a whole—

and to help explain and tackle issues revolving around it through different perspectives.

The results of this research may be a benefit to the following:

NON-BELIEVERS. Often, non-believer individuals question beliefs and rituals

that they do not deem necessary in life. Thus, the results of the study aimed to

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make these people better understand the reasons behind the "Nazareno hype." It

explained the psychology behind the unwavering worship to the Black Nazarene,

and why people choose to do whatever it takes despite the hardships of attending

the said festivity. The study may informative to them in a way that it showcased

the development of the religious practice during the feast from 2006 to 2016—

how it turned from a small celebration to a big one over time. It may also give

everyone knowledge about the different dangers that usually happen, and the

damages and casualties that consequently arise during the feast of the Black

Nazarene.

STUDENTS. This study may also benefit students (e.g. those who are in the

fields of psychology and the behavioural sciences) for any of their academic and/

or personal intentions. They can make use of it either as an addition to their

knowledge or as a means of evaluating themselves. This research can also help

them be critical thinkers, encouraging them to look beyond what meets the eye

when it comes to the events that take place during the feast and the implications

of those.

EDUCATION. One of the advantages of this research is its future educational

contributions. Aside from the fact that it can be used by professors as a guide or

basis of their lessons, the results of this add up to former discoveries and studies

regarding the topic. It also tackled a new perspective and use new lens in

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conducting the research, and have possibly administered further researches about

the said problem in the future.

PLACE/SOCIETY. In conducting this study, a clarification on how the feast

promotes unity not only in a particular community, but also in the whole society,

may have been provided. It may help in illustrating the effectivity of the feast in

gathering people from different parts of the country. This study may also help in

explaining how the festivity boosts the economy of the place by exposing the

different marketing strategies of businesses and small vendors. Lastly, it can also

help in finding solution to the waste management problems that consequently

arise in the area during and after the feast.

FUTURE RESEARCHERS. The results of the research may contribute to the

academic fields of Psychology and Behavioural Science. It may aid psychologists

and behavioural scientists understand and interpret the behavior of the devotees

of the Feast of the Black Nazarene, mainly focusing on the how's and why's such

as the processes and the reasons why such festivity is being held. Different

psychological theories have also been incorporated in this study, which yielded

results for the research questions and gave solution to the problems

aforementioned. It may also contribute to the different fields of Social Sciences

such as Anthropology, Political Science, and Economics since the devotion to the

Black Nazarene can be considered as a social phenomenon in the Philippines.

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D. Scope and Limitation

The study aimed to determine the emergence and development of the religious

practices performed for the feast of the Black Nazarene by the devotees in the Quiapo

Church.

This paper mainly focused on the religious practices itself performed by the

devotees, which is particularly held for the feast of the Black Nazarene, as the primary

basis for determining its development from 2006 to 2016. However, the research study

still included the answers of the non-devotees from the semi-structured interview for a

contextual analysis.

In addition, the researchers confined their study to the factors that motivate the

devotees to join the religious practices, its possibility to change over time such that the

goals are still kept or depreciated, and the effects of those changes, if ever there are some,

to the devotion.

The research is also limited from the development of the religious practices in the

feast of Black Nazarene from 2006 to 2016 and the respondents for the research study are

only the devotees and non-devotees within the Quiapo area. The study’s scope began in

2006 since it marks the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the Black Nazarene in the

Philippines. The participants of the study were only the members of the Quiapo Church

and/or the non-members who live or work in Quiapo, Manila—the center of the Black

Nazarene devotion.

There were twelve (12) purposively selected respondents from the group and

outside the group who answered the semi-structured interview questions from the

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proponents. The selected participants consisted of a devotee and a non-devotee from the

three (3) different clusters according to their ages—youth, middle-aged, and senior

citizen. For each cluster, there were two (2) devotees and two (2) non-devotees asked

about the devotion for the Black Nazarene. Moreover, the responses were contextually

analyzed for the meanings of the religious practices attached by both the devotees and

non-devotees through the Symbolic Interactionism Theory.

The research design of the study was an explanatory case study since it focused to

the causes and effects of the development in the religious practices of the Black

Nazarene, particularly its devotees. The sampling technique used was a purposive

sampling which is non-probability in nature in order to avoid biased results.

E. Theoretical Framework

Symbolic Interactionism was the theory used to analyze how the devotees and

non-devotees in the Quiapo Church view the development of the religious practices

related to the Black Nazarene. This theory originated from George Herbert Mead and was

later developed by other theorists like Herbert Blumer, Charles Hortan Cooley, and Max

Weber. Symbolic interactionism focuses on microlevel analysis, thus examining the

society through people’s interactions and behavior in groups (Kendall, 2007).

This theory was chosen because each of the Black Nazarene devotees has his or

her own reason as to why he or she devotes, consequently affecting how the religious

practices are performed and how they develop. Furthermore, non-devotees’ perception on

these practices are also shaped by their personal knowledge and personal encounters or

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interactions related to the Black Nazarene. According to Kendall (2007), “from this

perspective, people create, maintain, and modify culture as they go about their everyday

activities.”

Schaeffer (2013) said that there are also manipulation of symbols. This happens

when there are specific rules to be followed by certain people. In that case, the people are

trained to do things in a certain manner, and not doing it looks undesirable. The same

thing goes with the practices related to the Black Nazarene. As devotees participating in

the feast organized by the Church, there are rules they have to follow. However, due to

each devotee’s being subjective, some rules are being neglected. Church officials and

assistants then see those acts as undesirable.

F. Conceptual Framework

The study mainly focuses on the religious practices relating to the Black

Nazarene, its execution and meaning, as viewed by devotees and non-devotees. It

takes the idea that the development of the religious practices are caused by what

meaning the devotees and non-devotees ascribe to the Black Nazarene and the

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devotion. To arrive to that, church officials were first interviewed to know the

practices performed for the Black Nazarene and its meanings objectively. They were

also asked about the changes they implemented from 2006 to 2016.

Next, devotees and non-devotees were interviewed. To have a clear view on

the development, the interviewees, both devotees and non-devotees, were clustered

into three groups: youth, middle aged, and senior citizens. The devotees were asked

about how they became devotees and why they remain devotees, while the non-

devotees were asked about how they see the devotion. Their answers were close but

not exactly the same as the church officials’ answers, so symbolic interactionism was

used to analyze the development of these practices.

G. Definition of Terms

To provide a better understanding of the terms and concepts used in the study, the

following are hereby defined:

1. Devotees - Catholics who attend masses in the Quiapo Church and have

participated in the religious practices for the Black Nazarene more than once

2. Non-devotees - Catholics who also attend masses in the Quiapo Church, but have

never participated in the religious practices for the Black Nazarene

3. Traslacion - the annual procession for the feast of the Black Nazarene which is

joined by thousands of Filipinos

4. Gabay - those who guided the devotees into their devotion to the Black Nazarene

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