On Holy Week

We are commemorating the Semana Santa or the Holy Week. This is a remembrance of Christ's final seven days as a mortal. It all starts at palm Sunday here in cebu then confession schedules begin on Monday to Wednesday (Monday: Jesus chased the money-changers out of the Temple; Tuesday and Wednesday: Jesus preached and taught in Jerusalem) and then on Maundy Thursday until Saturday (Black Saturday), all the pious of the Philippines would gather together, in remembrance of the Christ's final hours. The Good Friday has got to be the most important one, since Christ died on the cross on that day. Especially on this particular day, everyone is on a sense of reverence.

However, the coming of the Easter Sunday brings in a renewed sense of faith. Easter Sunday brings to everyone a remembrance that Christ is alive and can make wonders on everyone's lives. Here, specifically in the town of Minglanilla cebu, we have the ever famous “Sugat” or “Salubong” in tagalong which now has become a festival called “KABANHAWAN” (Resurrection). I hope I can get some pictures and wake up early (Like 12am) since it happens at dawn.


Abstinence / Fasting?, ... since the start of the week I haven’t been eating much or fancy and I'm craving a lot of stuff and food. I’ve been eating my veggies, bico, benignit, some buwad (Dried Fish), egg and pretty much the same stuff for the rest of the days. We do this as a form of sacrifice.


For Non-Christians who could be reading this blog post and I would not want to talk religion here. But if you’re a tourist, and since most of the malls and stores are closed or closes early, you could either just stay in the hotel, go to beaches here in cebu or from any place in the Philippines or you could go to Bantayan Island, cebu. So annually, come Holy Week, the local folk of Bantayan Island are
sanctioned by the Church, to consume meat, in recognition of the “penance” of fishermen who completely cease fishing in order to take part in religious rites.


Thousands of tourists composed of pilgrims and sun-worshippers travel to this island annually to witness the Holy Week rites. Most anticipated is the procession of life-size antique religious images mounted on huge, elaborately-decorated carrozas. The priceless images were hand-sculpted by artisans in Spain in the 1800s, then entrusted to prominent families for safekeeping.

May all of us Christians spend the Holy Week on the most reverent of all manners! God bless!

On Holy Week On Holy Week Reviewed by Vernon Joseph Go on Friday, March 21, 2008 Rating: 5

2 comments

  1. WOW! bai, have you tried there in SIMALA? the place is kewl and you know what, you can deeply feel the essence and meaning of Holy Week there..

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  2. special awards you can't remember? Ummmm. Best in swim wear? LOL!

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