Filipino Catholics Celebrate First National Feast of Jesus Nazareno

The Philippines celebrated the national feast of Jesus Christ under the title “Nuestro Padre Jesus Nazareno” on Thursday (Jan. 9) for the first time in the history of the Catholic Church in the country. 

Fiesta celebrations centering around Manila’s Minor Basilica and National Shrine of Jesus Nazareno — colloquially known as Quiapo Church — began as early as Dec. 31, 2024 with a traditional thanksgiving walk around the church. In the next few days, the church hosted novena masses and a ceremonial blessing of replicas of Jesus Nazareno presided over by the Vatican’s apostolic nuncio to the Philippines, Archbishop Charles Brown. 

In late 2024, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines formally declared Quiapo Church a national shrine, which led to Filipino liturgists declaring January 9 as a national feast to be held across the country. Prior to this, the church already held minor basilica status through a bull published by Pope John Paul II in 1988.  

Traslacion in a Jubilee Year

A vigil was also held in Luneta, Manila’s largest public square, on Wednesday night (Jan. 8) to commemorate the rite of transfer of the image of Jesus Nazareno from Intramuros, Manila’s old city, to Quiapo. According to Quiapo Church’s website, the overnight vigil in Luneta has been a yearly tradition since 2006. A replica of the image was presented in the square’s grandstand for public veneration, locally known as “Pahalik,” while devotees spend the night preparing for the procession. 

At the stroke of midnight on Thursday, a High Mass was offered by Manila Archbishop Jose Cardinal Advincula, and was concelebrated by priest-devotees from across the archipelago, including Quiapo Church’s rector, Fr. Rufino Sescon, who Pope Francis chose to become the new Bishop of Balanga in Bataan province. 

In his homily, Cardinal Advincula blended together the feast’s theme of obedience and the theme of hope as propagated by the wider Catholic Church’s 2025 Jubilee Year. 

“We Filipinos have a saying: ‘While there’s life, there’s hope,’” the cardinal told devotees in Tagalog. “But there is a better lesson the Lord tells us and teaches to us: ‘While there’s hope, there’s life….’ We cannot live when we do not have hope in our lives.”

Devotees in PH Entertainment Industry

Throughout the night, the shrine’s youth ministry entertained devotees through several theatrical acts prior to the mass. 

After the liturgical service, some celebrities who also happened to be Nazareno devotees graced the overnight vigil, particularly Dimples Romana, McCoy de Leon, and Coco Martin. It was revealed that Martin, who acts and directs the ABS-CBN action series “Batang Quiapo,” was instrumental in winning de Leon over to the devotion. 

Singer, actress, and YouTuber Angeline Quinto also sang for fellow devotees. It is understood that she and her husband Nonrev Daquina were both Nazareno devotees and were married in Quiapo Church in April 2024

Procession Speedbumps

The 2025 Traslacion procession began at 04:41 am, local time, and made quick progress on the route only for a few meters. Several devotees told Paper Straw Media that one of the two ropes guiding the “andas” or carriage of the image of Jesus Nazareno broke off early on, leaving devotees no choice but to propel the carriage from behind. 

Communication along the procession route and in the wider area of the City of Manila has also been poor due to authorities using signal-jamming devices to deter any digitally-triggered threats as a security measure.

The procession spent a significant amount of time on the corner of Ayala Avenue and Natividad Lopez Street, just before crossing Ayala Bridge along the Pasig River. Local media also reported an altercation between devotees and police personnel around the same area. 

The procession eventually reached San Sebastian Church, where a ceremony called “La Mirata” or “Dungaw” took place. The ceremony involved San Sebastian’s Madonna-and-Child image under the title “Our Lady of Mount Carmel” supposedly gazing at the image of Jesus Nazareno from one of the church’s side doors.

Quiapo Church officials later revealed that the second rope of the carriage snapped near San Sebastian, resulting in devotees having to push the carriage forward, especially when the carriage was bogged down in Bilibid Viejo Street. 

With such setbacks, including injuries from hundreds of devotees throughout the procession, veterans of the devotion expected earlier in the day for the end of the procession to be significantly delayed unlike last year. As of 11:00 pm local time, the carriage was at Hidalgo Street, which marked the final stretch leading into Plaza Miranda and the main doors of Quiapo Church.

The procession officially ended after 20 hours and 45 minutes at 01:26 am early Friday morning (Jan. 10), with officers of the Philippine National Police mounted on the sides of the “andas” as it made its way inside the church.

While the procession image of Jesus Nazareno is away from its shrine, Quiapo Church hosted 33 hourly fiesta masses, beginning at 03:00 pm on Wednesday and the last one scheduled at 11:00pm. Both book-end services were offered by Sescon as his final act in the festive season as shrine rector and prior to his episcopal consecration.