In case you’re wondering about this…
More than a dozen Filipinos were nailed to crosses and scores more whipped their backs into a bloody pulp on Friday in a gory ritual to mark the death of Jesus Christ.
The voluntary crucifixions in the northern Philippines were the most extreme displays of religious devotion in this mainly Catholic country, where millions are praying and fasting ahead of the Easter weekend.
In the small village of Cutud, about 80 km (50 miles) north of Manila, seven men cried out as nails the size of pencils were driven into their hands and feet before they were hoisted up in the scorching heat.
Once again: NOT ME.
As for this:
Up to 20,000 people watched the spectacle, which has grown from a village production started in 1962 to a media and tourist attraction copied in other parts of the country.
The atmosphere was festive, with hawkers selling beer, ice-cream and souvenir whips. Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven” blared out from speakers before the penitents approached the crosses.
Yeah, I’d be the idiot shouting FREEBIRD!
Um, Jesus did that for us so we don’t have to.
Good one Beo. Sad that they don’t realize it.
I always shout “Play Stonehenge!” but sadly few people get the reference.
Idiots! Leave um’ up there.
I still say natural selection is alive and well.
maybe they WANT to. Doi.
Geez, they’re STILL doing this? I saw them doing this live in ’74!
Boy, I bet Christ would have appreciated a little Zepppelin before The Main Event. But not the played-out “Stairway to Heaven”. More like “Achilles Last Stand”, arguably their heaviest tune, and at over 10 minutes, their longest I believe. Crucifixion is not something you want to rush into…
The Filipinos see it as a test of faith to be able to go through with it. It’s not that much dissimilar to Ordeal in the old Western traditions, though slightly less suicidal.
It seems nuts to us, but you have to admit that it takes balls. More balls that our society has anymore, where it’s nearly a biological disaster of catastrophic proportions for anyone to get a papercut.
You missed the best part of this spectacle. Although the pictures portrayed this as a solemn activity, in years past it has been just the opposite. There are food, trinket and balloon vendors at this event. The balloons have pictures of Jesus Christ on them as do many of the souvenirs. This is a circus, and while yes I agree that they have every right to act upon their faith, we have every right to say “oh please.”
I guess the thing I really don’t understand is that if my son or mother or other relative died because a drunk driver crashed into their car or some psycho nut job gunned down people in a public building, I wouldn’t recreate the event every year to celebrate the anniversary. Nothing would ever make me forget about my loss but “reliving” it year after year, by having someone crash into a car full of people, would be disturbing and inappropriate in the extreme.
Have you noticed that Spanish-speaking countries are Catholic like King Kong’s a monkey?
Like, scarily Catholic.
Wahhabi Catholic.
Truly frightening.
MegaTroopX, most Catholics in Spanish-speaking countries are poorly-catechised and don’t know what the Church actually teaches, which is that self-injury for any purpose is directly contrary to the Bible’s mandate to regard the body as the temple of God. Liberation theologians (glorified Communists) in those countries were more interested in starting revolutions than teaching authentic faith, so they didn’t care so much when people started mixing pagan and Christian customs. I’m sure that no matter what the local bishop in the Philippines says about it, the people will do what they want.