Feast of the Black Nazarene

The Feast of the Black Nazarene (Filipino: Pista ng Itím na Nazareno), officially and liturgically the Feast of Jesús Nazareno (Filipino: Kapistahan ni Jesús Nazareno), is a religious festival held in the Philippines. It is also known as the Traslación (lit:transfer) after the mass procession done during the feast. It is centered around the Black Nazarene, an image of Jesus Christ dating to the 16th century. The feast is celebrated annually on January 9.
The Feast of the Black Nazarene marks the octave day of the traditional Feast of Most Holy Name of Jesus (the original dedication of Quiapo Church). The octave day is celebrated by the annual procession of the image of the Nazareno along the streets of Quiapo, Manila. It is now considered as the image's national liturgical feast day.
Contrary to popular belief that the Traslación occurred on 9 January 1787 which became the basis of the annual feast (the Traslación), there is no available historical record to verify the exact date of transfer of the Nazareno from Intramuros to Quiapo. There is no definite date of the arrival of the image either. The Augustinian Recollects asserted that during their arrival in the Philippines in 1606, the Nazareno is not one of the sacred images that they brought with them. The year of their arrival in the Philippines was the basis of erroneous celebration of "400 years" of the Nazareno in 2006 which started the annual Traslación from Quirino Grandstand to Quiapo Church. Nevertheless, it can be assumed that the image was already in the Philippines before the middle of the 17th century since Pope Innocent X authorized the Cofradìa del Nuestro Padre Jesus Nazareno (Confraternity of the Lord Jesus of Nazareth) on April 20, 1650.
There are opposing views on whether to consider the Feast of the Black Nazarene as a proper fiesta since the January 9 observance has been thought as a celebration of the transfer of the image and not the liturgical "feast day" of the image. The annual January 9 procession has its roots in the observance of the traditional Feast of Holy Name of Jesus, the original dedication of Quiapo Church, with St. John the Baptist as its patronage. Msgr. Jose Abriol, former Rector of Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene stated that January 9 was the chosen feast of the Nazareno because it is the ninth day of the novena in honor of the Most Holy Name of Jesus which starts on January 1 which according to the old General Roman Calendar is the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus and the Circumcision of Our Lord. It is also the last day of the octave of the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus. It has been argued that the proper liturgical commemoration of the Black Nazarene is on Good Friday. In 2021, the Basilica's former parochial vicar Douglas Badong explained that the Feast of the Black Nazarene is a proper term for the religious event, and could be called a fiesta as the event is similar to the typical Filipino festival. In September 6, 2024, the 38th National Meeting of Diocesan Directors of Liturgy it was announced that the feast would be observed nationally starting in 2025 as part of the Philippines’ particular national liturgical calendar.
The event is colloquially referred to as "Nazareno" after the image itself, or the Traslación after the January 9 procession. The word "Traslación" is often corrupted to the incorrect "translacion".
In October 2024, the name of the Quiapo Church officially dropped "Black" from its name. The festivities starting the January 2025 festivities also followed suit accordingly.
The festivities begin with a thanksgiving procession usually held in the late evening of December 30 before the start of its novena the following day, New Year's Eve.
The Pahalík ("kissing") is usually done a day or a few days before the actual start of the procession at the Quirino Grandstand. Devotees form long lines outside the Grandstand, waiting for hours to be able to touch the image of the Nazareno.
The wiping of cloth on the image, which is also done during the actual procession itself, follows the folk belief that cloth can absorb the powers of a holy object, usually and specifically its curative abilities. This sanctity-through-contact descends from the ancient custom of ex brandea, cloth wiped on the bodies or tombs of the Twelve Apostles, itself part of the wider category of third-class relics.
Despite the name, kissing the image is prohibited due to health concerns. Devotees instead used handkerchiefs or small towels to touch the image. In 2021, Pahalík was renamed Pagpupugay ("paying tribute"), when devotees were only allowed to look at the image due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the latter is still used alternatively.
The main highlight of the Feast of the Black Nazarene is the Traslación, taken from the Spanish term for "passage" or "movement".
Every January 9, the Traslación of the Black Nazarene, commemorating the "solemn transfer" of the image's copy from San Nicolás de Tolentino in Intramuros to Quiapo, makes its way along the streets of Quiapo. Traslación is now the term used for the annual procession.
In recent years, the processional route was altered due to a rise in accidents, to afford other neighborhoods off the traditional route a chance to participate, and because of structural deficiencies in nearby bridges. It is normally only a school holiday for the schools near the processional route, but for the first time in the city's history, Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada in 2014 declared the day a special non-working holiday due to the impassability of some thoroughfares and projected congestion in others. His successors as City Mayor kept the practice. Since 2024, President Bongbong Marcos reaffirmed the status of the day as a city-wide holiday.
As per custom, the Nazareno leaves the Minor Basilica a day or two before the annual procession, either in a public fashion or clandestinely. Since 2020, the procession begins at around 04:30 AM PST (GMT+8) after a solemn midnight High Mass (Filipino: Misa Mayor) at the Quirino Grandstand presided by the Archbishop of Manila, followed hours later by the Morning Prayer of the Liturgy of the Hours. It ends in Quiapo in late night of the same day or early the following morning, depending on how long the image has travelled. Some participants choose to wait for the image inside the Minor Basilica to greet it, while most devotees walk throughout the whole processional route.
All devotees wear maroon and yellow like the image, and they walk barefoot as a form of penance and in emulation of Christ's walk to Golgotha. Attendees include families of devotees, tourists, and members of devotees' associations throughout the country and overseas, all carrying their long estandartes (religious gonfalon) usually coloured maroon or white and embroidered in gold and emblazoned with the image and the association name.
The Black Nazarene is processed upon the Ándas, and traditionally only men were permitted to be mamámasán ("bearers"), the devotees pulling the wheeled ándas by its two large ropes. In recent years, female mamámasán have been allowed to participate, with pregnant women barred for safety reasons. There is also the custom of vying to touch the Kanang Balikat, or the rope to the side of the image's right shoulder. Folk belief holds it to possesses great sanctity, as it is closer to imitating the image bearing the Cross.
Marshals from the Minor Basilica, known as the Hijos del Nazareno ("Sons of the Nazarene"), form an honor guard around the image, and are the only people permitted to ride the ándas for the duration of the Traslación. The Hijos – distinguishes from maroon-clad devotees by their yellow and white shirts – have the primary task of protecting the icon from damage and directing the mamámasán in front and behind using hand gestures, voice commands (sometimes through a megaphone), and whistle signals. In addition, they help devotees clamber up onto the ándas to briefly touch the icon's cross, and wipe the image with cloths tossed at them.
From 2021 to 2023, the annual Traslación was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, resorting instead to alternatives like Padungaw ("viewing") of the Black Nazarene and hourly Masses at Quiapo Church. However, in 2022, Masses were held behind closed doors due to a huge spike of COVID-19 cases brought by the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, resorting devotees to attend online. An alternative procession, known as the "Walk of Faith", was held on January 8, 2023, with an estimated 88,000 devotees joining the procession. Virtual processions using online game platforms such as Roblox and Minecraft have also been held by youth ministries in lieu of in-person ceremonies due to the pandemic, the practice of which still continues in parallel with the actual ceremony after the return of the Traslación in 2024.
After a long hiatus, the Traslación resumed in 2024. A new design of the ándas, built by Sarao Motors, was unveiled for that year's procession, featuring the image enclosed in a thick tempered and laminated glass, onboard lights for illumination at night, a sound system, and a built-in CCTV camera. Organizers and authorities prohibited devotees from climbing the ándas, but many ignored, believing that climbing and touching the image would bring miracles.
The ándas was redesigned in 2025 to include an exhaust fan for ventilation and reduced moisture, as well as an overhead glass panel. Tires used on forklifts were also adopted, in addition to steel tires, and improvements were made to make it lightweight.
The traditional Dungaw, a Tagalog calque of the rite's Spanish name Mirata, "to see" or "to view", involves the Black Nazarene, coming from Hidalgo Street, being made to stop briefly at Plaza del Carmen, a square along the southwest flank of the neo-Gothic Basílica Menor de San Sebastián, before proceeding towards Bilibid Viejo Street. The rite, which was discontinued in the early 1900s for still-unknown reasons, was revived and reincorporated into the Traslación on January 9, 2014, after the discovery of old documents attesting to its practice.
The resident Recollect priests remove the image of Our Lady of Mount Carmel from the principal niche of the retablo mayor, or use a replica which is termed its vicária. The image is dressed in its primera vestida, used only on the most solemn occasions, in its camarín, or private chamber. Only Augustinian nuns and other women may enter the camarín at this point. Men, including priests, all exit as they are forbidden from watching the Virgin "change clothes". During the entire vesting process, the rosary is recited.
Once fully dressed in precious robes and regalia, the original image, which was given to the Recollects in 1617 by a Carmelite nunnery in Mexico City, is then solemnly and silently processed on its own small ándas to a temporary scaffold erected at the southwest face of the church. There, it is lifted up by several priests and attendants to "see" and "meet" the Black Nazarene as devotees fall silent. A Gospel lesson is followed by general intercessions, and several prayers (often the Lord's Prayer and the Hail Mary), are chanted fervently. The Basilica's bells are rung throughout the short prayer service.
The presiding priests then shout "¡Viva Jesús Nazareno!" to which the crowd replies "¡Viva!" and "¡Viva Virgen del Carmen!" to which the customary reply is "¡Guapa!"; this cheer is done thrice. Shortly thereafter, the priests slowly turn the Virgin's image so that it "watches" the Black Nazarene and its procession depart the vicinity of Plaza del Carmen. The image of the Virgin is then returned to the high altar, or the replica returned to its proper place, while the choir sings the devotional hymn Nuestro Padre Jesús Nazareno.
Theologically, the Dungaw rite reflects the fourth Traditional Station of the Cross, where Christ meets his Mother, the Virgin Mary, en route to Golgotha, and reflects the closeness of Christ and his Mother. The rite is also seen as a "courtesy" of the Virgin's image towards the Black Nazarene, as the former's shrine is along the processional route.
The 2012 Traslación is currently the longest in the image's recorded history. It ended 22 hours after leaving the Grandstand, arriving at Plaza Miranda around 05:15 AM PST on January 10. The procession took longer than usual since the wheels of the ándas broke early on at a point near Manila Hotel, while the rope broke some distance away near Liwasang Bonifacio. There were also reports of groups of devotees diverting the image from the previously defined route in order to pass by business establishments outside the traditional route. This illicit act was done to allow homes and businesses off the planned route to receive the good luck and blessings of the image. The same duration was also recorded for the 2017 and 2018 Traslacións.
Meanwhile, the 2007 Traslación (the first to be held there for the occasion of the "400th Traslación", as previous processions were only held around the district of Quiapo) was the fastest procession in history, which only took nine hours before arriving back at Quiapo Church. Following new measures and a route change in 2020, which decreased the length of the procession by 300 meters (980 ft) by passing through Ayala Bridge instead of the usual Jones Bridge (2014–2019) or the traditional MacArthur Bridge (used 2007, 2009–2013), the 2020 procession took sixteen hours and thirty-four minutes, the third-fastest in history, an improvement from the recorded time of twenty-one hours in 2019. This was further shortened to fourteen hours, fifty-nine minutes, and ten seconds in 2024, with the introduction of the new ándas. Despite using the same route and ándas, the 2025 procession took 20 hours and 45 minutes to complete after the two ropes broke during the procession.
The Traslación is notorious for the casualties that result from the jostling and congestion of the crowds pulling the ándas. The injuries and even deaths of devotees are brought upon by one or several factors including heat, fatigue, or being trampled upon by the crowd.
An estimated 8,124,050 devotees participated in the 2025 procession: 15.89% at the Quirino Grandstand; 4.76% on the route; 79.35% in and around the church. The number was higher by 24.36% compared to the previous year with 6,532,501 devotees, thus becoming one of the biggest crowds in the religious festival's history.
Such high figures were reported even prior to the pandemic; for instance, the number of participated devotees in 2015 was placed at nine million.
In 2014, media outlets reported that there were 10 million participants—supposedly a record high—which, according to the National Capital Region Police Office, included a purported three million at the pre-procession mass at Luneta. However, this only caused confusion as the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council estimated only 300,000 devotees in the procession and the masses. The Church later explained that the figure covers attendance at the activities which included the pasasalamat and the pahalik. Meanwhile, Metro Manila Development Authority chairperson Francis Tolentino placed the number of the participants in the festivities at 10–12 million.
Red is the liturgical colour for the Feast of the Black Nazarene. In the absence of a national liturgical directive prior to 2025, the decision to celebrate the feast was left to individual parishes and communities. In 2024, the Archdiocese of Manila, and the rector of Quiapo Church at the time, Rufino Sescon, proposed the national observance of the feast to the Holy See. On September 6, 2024, at the end of the 38th National Meeting of Diocesan Directors of Liturgy in Antipolo, it was announced that the Feast of the Black Nazarene would be observed nationally starting in 2025 as part of the Philippines’ particular national liturgical calendar.
Propers for the Liturgy of the Word on this feast are similar to those on the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.
Since 2023, thirty-three hourly Masses are held at Quiapo Church from the first Vigil Mass on January 8 at 3:00 p.m. PHT until the last Mass at 11:00 p.m. of the feast day. This is to accommodate the many pilgrims at the basilica, while the number 33 points to the traditional age of Jesus at the crucifixion.
Similar processions replicating the Traslación are also held on January 9 in other parts of the country. The largest of these is held in Cagayan de Oro, which uses an official replica of the image given by the Minor Basilica in 2009. It has since become a center for the devotion in Mindanao.
On March 4, 2014, a replica of the Nazareno from Quiapo Church arrived at the Old Chapel of St. Rock the Healer Mission Center, Bishop's Compound, Brgy. Cawayan, Catarman, Northern Samar. Since then, many devotees across Northern Samar came to venerate the sacred image, especially on Fridays. At that time, the said mission center was constructing a bigger church.
On January 9, 2015, the first Traslación was held when the sacred image was solemnly transferred from the old church to the new and unfinished church building. Crowds not only from Northern Samar but all over the island attended.
On September 12, 2016, the newly constructed church was blessed, dedicated, and consecrated by Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle. The event was concelebrated by priests from Quiapo Church, Felomino G. Bactol, the Bishop of Naval, Bishop Emeritus Anghel Hobayan of the Diocese of Catarman, Emmanuel C. Trance, the Bishop of Catarman, the Mission Center's first administrator Alan Abalon and Mission Center's second administrator and rector Rico M. Manook. The event was attended by devotees from different dioceses in Eastern Visayas. During the ceremony, the Mission Center was elevated to the status of diocesan shrine, making it the first church in the Visayas to be declared a shrine in honor of this image.
On August 18, 2019, the said shrine became a parish, making it the first barangay-based parish in the whole Diocese of Catarman. Its current official name is St. Rock the Healer Parish, Diocesan Shrine of the Nuestro Padre Jesús Nazareno.
Filipinos overseas have brought the tradition of a procession and Mass honoring of the Nazareno image to countries such as Australia and the United States. As in Quiapo, a copy of the image is paraded through the streets or within the parish bounds, with devotees reciting prayers in its wake.
In September 2012, a replica of the Black Nazarene was canonically enshrined at Saint Catherine of Siena Roman Catholic Parish in Reseda, California, United States. A procession in the United Arab Emirates made it the first Traslación in the Middle East on January 4, 2019, the first Friday of that month.
Travel within the City of Manila during the Traslación every January 9 might be difficult as heavy traffic is expected. Most jeepneys and buses use alternate routes for the day to avoid the procession, thus creating additional travel time. Some public rail transport systems such as the LRT Lines 1 and 2 accommodate barefoot devotees when it is typically prohibited to ride barefoot.
Traffic rerouting is implemented on the annual procession and the day before, and is enforced by the Manila Police District with reinforcements from the Philippine National Police and, since 2014, the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority. The Philippine Coast Guard guards stretches of the Pasig River along the Ayala (since 2020), Jones (until 2019), MacArthur (until 2013) and Quezon bridges to ensure the safe passage of the procession.
A similar scenario may be experienced by tourists and travellers in Cagayan de Oro and in Catarman, Northern Samar during the yearly processions of the sacred image, as well as in other towns and cities where replica images are brought out in procession on this day.