Moriones of Marinduque

            The show must go on: Longinus was  beheaded at midnight of Black Saturday.

 The carnival spirit of Marinduqueños remained unquenched as they staged the annual
  Moriones festival, one of the Philippine versions of Brazil’s Mardi Gras.

            Tradition holds that Longinus was
Roman soldier who pierced the left side of
Jesus as He suffered on the cross. Blood
from the wound fell on the blind left
eye of Longinus, and miraculously cured
it. The soldier became a believer, provoking
 the ire of other Roman soldiers.

  The highlight of the festival is the mad chase of Longinus, ending with the pugutan
– his beheading.

  Morions roamed the streets of Boac, Mogpog and Gasan, from Holy Monday to Easter Sunday dressed in colorful Roman soldiers’ costumes and fierce looking masks and helmets made of wood, papier-mache, carved wood and other indigenous materials and brightly-colored tunics. Aside from scaring the kids, or engaging in antics or surprises to draw attention., lucky tourists got Morions to perform a harana for them.

           

Like in most part of the Philippines, the Holy
Week is the peak season of the province,
and that most of its income from
 tourism was generated by this weeklong
 festival. The Moriones or Moryonan tradition
is one of the festivals in the Philippines
where cultural practices or folk history is turned into street festivals. Lent is the commemoration
of the suffering, crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is a 40-day-long
observance (excluding Sundays) that
begins on Ash Wednesday, and ends with Easter
Sunday. As Catholics see this season as a time for personal conversion and atonement, various acts redemption are committed by the faithful.It is a pantomimic dramatization that complements
other Lenten rituals such as the traditional self flagellation by the penitents and the chanting of Christ’s passion, which in some version will include parts of the Book of Genesis
and the Revelation.

A tourist brochure exhorts visitors to immerse themselves in a “a culture preserved through the centuries; festive traditions and colorful customs in the cozy ambience of its quaint town.”

A local once told me “There are three kinds of people: First, those who have experienced Marinduque; second, those who have heard of and plan to visit the islands; and lastly, those poor benighted souls who will never learn of Marinduque in their lifetime”

The first  time that i watched the Moriones  was in holy week of 1996, a month after one
of the country's worst environmental  mining disaster  happened  when more than 2.5 million
metric tons of mine tailings were discharged to the Boac River from the MarCopper's Tapian
 pit.

Fr. Allan Malapad, parish priest of
Buenavista town,  said in his Easter Sunday
 homily that year       the Moriones aptly
showed the “evil” man has tried for a long
time to hide. In strict theological sense, the destruction of the environment and its
ecological imbalance is the betrayal of Christ.

In some cultural nuances, the mask
had a connotation of duplicity and betrayal,
 while in others, it had strict ritual purpose The mask is both a sign of disguise and hope, of pretension and dream.. Besides its dramatic
effect, it signifies the wearer’s distancing from the character; meaning, the actors are
 faithful followers of Christ, while the characters (Roman soldiers) they represent are pagans and persecutors of Christ and his disciples. This dichotomy is important, because no fervent
Christian wants his or her piety put in doubt.

We will be seeing more Morions as they make the 2016 elections the biggest nationwide Moriones festival. And so the latest real-life telesersye about the rich and the famous continues to unravel before us -  in a country notorious for kickbacks, patronage and philandering, and where candidates are regularly caught buying votes, ballot boxes are switched, and defeated candidates usually denounce the winners for fraud. The elections have  become the arena for the elite to carry out profiteering and political showmanship. Good public relations (PR) campaign  mask the incompetence of the political elite who have become alienated from Philippine society, and who tend to represent their clans' interest, rather than various interest groups.


An article  by Quijano de Manila from the Philippine  Free Press November 1961 issue caught my attention: “The Judas in Philippine politics, who has all this time campaigned and posed as the champion of the common people, will betray the very masses whom he swore to defend and protect. The Biblical sale of Christ for 30 pieces of silver has found its counterpart in the twentieth century.”

The provincial wide schedule of Moriones 2013 was as follows:

PALM SUNDAY, March 24

5:00 a.m.         Holy Mass in all Parishes

7:00 a.m.         “HOSANAHAN” (Procession in all town centers celebrating Christ entry to

                        Jerusalem with participants showing off their gaily decorated palaspas, palm fronds)

8:00 a.m.         Holy Palm Sunday Mass in all Parishes

3:00 p.m.        Holy Mass (Boac Cathedral)

4:00 p.m.        “Estacion Heneral” Makeshift altars mounted in front of selected

                     houses in the Poblacion serve as the STATIONS OF THE CROSS. (All Parishes).

5:30 a.m.         Holy Mass in all Parishes.

HOLY MONDAY, March 25

7:00 a.m.         Holy Mass at the Moriones Arena, Boac (Ceremonial Morion Mask Rites)

7:30 a.m.         Holy Mass, Start of Mogpog Moryonan 2013 Mogpog Covered Court,

                         followed by Parade & Opening Ceremonies.

8:00 a.m.         Registration of Morions (By tradition, morions register in designated

                         places in the Poblaciones of all towns).

                        LENTEN PARADE Sta. Cruz Municipal Employee, DepEd, Cast of

                        Pang-Mahal na Araw na Pagtatanghal and MASK

                         (Moriones Association of Sta. Cruz)

9:00 a.m.         “COMMUNITY PARADE OF COSTUMES”

                        (Boac Town Center, Public and Private sector officials and employees

                        in morion inspired costumes of biblical characters, turning the town

                        into a small Jerusalem. Similar activity of wearing kaftan and parade

                        of morions is undertaken in Torrijos by the public and private sector form

                         Monday to Holy Wednesday. In Sta. Cruz “PABASA” is held at the

                        municipal lobby.

10:00 a.m.       OPENING OF MARINDUQUE EXPO 2013

                        (Boac River Bed) c/o The Provincial Government of Marinduque

                        Opening of LEGION Photo Exhibit 2013

                        (Boac Covered Court)

3:00 p.m.        Morion Parade (KMMK, MISTAH & LEGION) Boac, Poblcaion

6:30 p.m.        Torch Parade, Boac Poblacion followed by Mass and Installation of

                         New MISTAH Members (Boac Cathedral)

HOLY TUESDAY, March 26

5:30 a.m.         Holy Mass in all Parishes.

7:00 a.m. -      PABASA NG PASYON sa mga Parokya

10:00 p.m.      Visita Iglesia to 7 Parochial Churches

8:00 a.m.         Registration of Morions (All Towns) Parade

9:00 a.m.         Morion Parade (KMKK) Poblacion, Boac, Parade

10:00 a.m.       Visita Iglesia/Parade of MISTAH, Our Lady of Peace & Good Voyage –

                        Balanacan, Mogpog

1:30 p.m.        Visita Iglesia of MISTAH, St. Joseph the Worker Parish, Malabon, Sta. Cruz

2:30 p.m.        Parade/Visita Iglesia of MISTAH, Holy Cross Parish, Poblacion, Sta. Cruz

Morion Parade – LEGIONS

4:30 p.m.        Visita Iglesia San Isidro Labrador Parish, Poblacion, Mogpog

HOLY WEDNESDAY, March 27

4:00 a.m.         Pabasa ng Pasyon (Kiosk, Gasan)

5:30 a.m.         Holy Mass in the Parishes

6:00 a.m.         Pabasa ng mga Barangay ng Boac

8:00 a.m.         Community Parade of Costumes

(Participated by Public and Private Sectors, Official and Employees

    in Morion Inspired Costumes of Biblical characters, turning the town center

  into a small Jerusalem with BULATING on the streets of   Boac. “

 PAGPAPAKASAKIT NI JESUKRISTO”, Mogpog, Poblacion.

“KALBARYOHAN”, Sta. Cruz, Poblacion (Holy Wednesday to Good Friday)

3:00 p.m.        Morion Parade (KMKK, MISTAH & LEGIONS) (Poblacion, Boac)

4:00 p.m.        Holy Mass in all Parishes

5:00 p.m.        Holy Wednesday Religious Procession, All Town Centers

7:00 p.m.        “SENAKULO PART I (The Creation)

Presented by the Provincial Government of Marinduque in cooperation with

the Sinakulista (Moriones Arena, Boac Riverside)

HOLY THURSDAY, March 28

8:00 a.m.         Visita Iglesia/parade of MISTAH, St. Joseph Spouse of Mary Parish,

                      Poblacion, Gasan

9:00 a.m.         Misa ng Krisma in all Parishes

                        Morion Parade (KMKK, MISTAH & LEGIONS), Boac, Poblacion

10:00 a.m.       Visita Iglesia/Parade Sto. Niño Parish – Buenavista

                        Kalutang Competition (Gasan People’s Park, Guingona Park)

11:00 a.m.       Visita Iglesia/Parade MISTAH – St. Ignatius de Loyola Parish

2:00 p.m.        Visita Iglesia – MISTAH Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish Matuyatuya, Torrijos

3:00 p.m.        Parade of Morions (Legions, KMKK, MISTAH)

5:00 p.m.        Holy Mass in all Parishes in celebration of the Last Supper

                         Holy Procession (Aglipayan Church – Buenavista)

6:00 p.m.        Start of Vigil at the Blessed Sacrament – Boac Cathedral

6:00 p.m.        Religious Procession – Gasan Independent Church

7:00 p.m.        “SENAKULO PART II” (Last Supper)

                        Presented by the Provincial Government of Marinduque in

                        cooperation with Sinakulista, Moriones Arena, Boac, Riverside

7:00 p.m.        SENAKULO (Buenavista Coastal Park)

GOOD FRIDAY, March 29

6:00 a.m.         Pang-Umagang Panalangin – Boac Cathedral

                        Tawak Drinking (Ritual, Drinking of Herbal potion against poisonous

                         bites, Brgy. Mercado, Boac)

6:00 a.m.         Flagellantes (Self-flogging by penitents), Boac Cemetery

8:00 a.m. -      “DAANG KRUS, KALBARYO NI KRISTO

12:00 p.m.      (Sta. Cruz Town Plaza)

9:00 a.m.         “VIA CRUCIS” (The way of the Cross, Reenactment along the streets of

                          Boac in cooperation with the Sinakulistas culminating at the Moriones Arena)

9:00 a.m.         “VIA CRUCIS” in Mogpog and Torrijos

12:00 p.m. -    Tawak Drinking (Guingona Park, Gasan) Flagellantes. (Self-flogging by

1:00 p.m.        penitents) Gasan and Mogpog cemeteries

1:00 p.m.        “HULING PITONG WIKA” all parishes

3:00 p.m.        Celebration of the Passion of Christ (Boac Cathedral)

4:00 p.m.        Pagpaparangal at Pagsamba sa Krus na Banal (Boac Cathedral)

5:00 p.m.        GOOD FRIDAY Religious procession – all towns

8:00 p.m.        Moriones Festival Presentation – “KRISTO ANG TAGAPAGLIGTAS”

                         (Sta. Cruz, Poblacion)

                        PUGUTAN (Buenavista Coastal Park c/o Municipality of Buenavista)

8:00p.m.        MORIONES FESTIVAL PRESENTATION,

                        “KRISTO ANG TAGAPAGLIGTAS” (Sta. Cruz Town Plaza)

BLACK SATURDAY, March 31

6:00 a.m.         Pang-Umagang Panalangin

9:00 a.m.         Morion Parade – Legions, KMMK, MISTAH

4:00 p.m.        Morion Parade (LEGIONS) Boac, Poblacion

7:00 p.m.        SENAKULO (Beheading of Longinus) c/o the Provincial Government

                         of Marinduque (Boac Moriones Arena)

7:30 p.m.        Pugutan Play (Guingona Park, Gasan)

                        LEGION TORCH Parade (Boac Poblacion)

8:00 p.m.        Torch Parade (MISTAH) Poblacion, Boac

9:00 p.m.        BLESSING OF FIRE and EASTER MASS (in all Parishes)

EASTER SUNDAY, March 31

4:00 a.m.         “SALUBONG AT BATI” “ALELUYAHAN”

                        (Ritual and Dance celebrating the appearance of the Risen Christ before the

                          Blessed Mother. Designated Area in all town centers.

5:00 a.m.         Holy Easter Mass, all Parishes

6:30 a.m.

8:00 a.m.

7:30 a.m.         “GASANG-GASANG EASTER SUNDAY STREET DANCING

                         FESTIVAL w/ HIGANTENG MORION”

10:00 a.m.       “TRADIOTIONAL PUGUTAN” Mock beheading of Longino

                        (Mogpog Covered Court)

11:00 a.m.       Brotherhood and Camarederie (MISTAH)

Senakulo, Taralets sa Pinas

The Senakulo (from the Spanish cenaculo) is a Lenten play that depicts events from the Old and New Testaments related to the life, sufferings, and death of Christ.

The senakulo is traditionally performed on a proscenium-type stage with painted cloth or paper backdrops that are called telon. It takes at least eight nights - from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday - to present the play. Christ is presented traditionally as meek and masochistic, submitting lamblike to his fate in obedience to authority.

In urban areas, there are modernized versions of the senakulo that run for only one or two hours. They may be presented in different types of venues: on the traditional stage, on the streets, in a chapel, in a large room, or out in the open. Comedy, courtship, and special effects may be incorporated. Furthermore, modern senakulos tend to focus not on Christ’s submissiveness, but on his reason and resolve in courageously standing up for the downtrodden against their oppressors, perhaps suggesting how current problems may be resolved.
Street senakulos is another form of penance where the people are walking with the procession. People near the church wait eagerly to witness the reenactment. Locals act as Roman soldiers with their menacingly painted masks and armors, pounding on doors to search for Jesus. Most anticipated among the episodes are the judgment of Jesus, the Crucifixion and His Seven Last Words. Spectators may range from devotees to the merely curious. For some, it is the time to reflect on the life of Jesus, while others take it as a chance to spend time with family and friends.

The routine of the reenactment has not changed, but its presentation is infused with a fresh flavor to reach the modern-world absorbed consciousness of the new generation.

... lifted from WikiPilipinas and others :)

Banahaw, the Holy Mountain

(My Article originally published in TODAY newspaper in the late  1990s)

MOUNT BANAHAW, QUEZON -- Water is flowing again within Mount Banahaw, noted someone who intends to visit the "Holy Mountain" on Holy Week. Last year water was scarce. Skeptics have a scientific explanation for this: El Niño ravaged the country last year and Banahaw was not spared this environmental phenomenon. However, for the pilgrims and believers, this means that Banahaw is no longer disappointed -she no longer "hides her water." Banahaw's "disappointment" is said to stem from issues related to commer- cialization. Whenever business -minded persons fetched water from the springs by the gallons and sold them at ridiculous prices to the tourists, the water would disappear. When the government planned to build a superhighway that would run through the mountain, the water disappeared for months. The campaign of pilgrims and environmental groups did not prove futile: the project had to be changed and the water came back. Call it a crazy explanation, but the belief that they have regained the mountain's "trust"-as evidenced by the water flowing from the springs and waterfalls-has lifted the spirits of the people in the area.

Banahaw is their sacred mountain: She continuously manifests her protective powers through events that appear miraculous and certainly providential, even though these may be dismissed by outsiders as pure coincidence.

Banahaw protects her chosen ones: no outside threat can disturb the people's serene faith, their ineffable peace. Gratefully they dedicate their own sacrifices. With hymns and rituals, wearing ceremonial garb, they periodically sweep the templo, dredge the sacred pool, repair the footpaths for the pilgrims, trim the grass and the branches of the trees, and burn the refuse left in the sacred groves by the thoughtless tourists.

There are basically four categories of people who frequently climb Mount Banahaw. First, there are the religious, the sects who consider the mountain the site of the New Jerusalem. There are those who scale the slopes of Banahaw as part of their sacrifice in exchange for blessings or "miracles" that they are seeking, including the cure for those suffering from sickness. Other visitors are in search of anting-anting, psychic or paranormal experiences. Then there are mountaineers or outdoor groups wanting to breathe fresh air from one of Southern Luzon's largest forests.

Through the years, the number of religious sects in Mount Banahaw has grown to 168. Seventy-three of these are members of the Mount Banahaw Holy Confederation. As they believe that the mountain is the "New Jerusalem" the holy parts of the mountain are called puestos in Dolores and Sariaya and erehiya in Tayabas. The puestos normally represent the elements: earth, water, air and fire.

Superstitions abound for trekkers and pilgrims. One must request permission before starting the climb so as to ensure the guidance of the spirits. These spirits make their presence felt through strange lights or luminous objects, the eerie feeling that one is being watched along the trail, cold air enveloping one's body, and other manifestations. Some even see supernatural beings like dwarfs. The boisterous laughter of a group will earn them the ire of the spirits-they may find themselves drenched in rain while other groups in the vicinity remain completely dry. There are those who say that the crater of Banahaw is the perfect landing site for UFOs.
If Banahaw is known as the Holy Mountain, myth has it that the nearby mountain, Mount San Cristobal, is the "bad mountain." There, a spirit called Tumao is believed to haunt hikers and subject them to weird phenomena. 

I am vocal about my belief in the power of one of the holy mountains in the Philippines, that is, Mount Banahaw. Before I begun my review for my bar exams, I went there along my friends from Squakings to ask divine guidance. When I took the exam, I made sure that the ballpens that I will use were brought there. Even the jacket that I wore during the exam period was the very same jacket that I had when I hiked upto the peak last year.Then I went back last January, when it was a blue moon, to again ask for divine intervention. Hiking for almost three days is not an easy matter, but the fatigue and stress does not matter when you are asking a favor. Some would say that I am too superstitious but I always tell them that we have a different perspective about things: I really consider Banahaw as a powerful mountain, whose energy I need to strengthen my faith in passing the bar. Prayers before taking the exam will work in easing the tension inside the room while waiting for the bell to ring to signal the beginning of the exam. In my case, , I broke the tip of my Pilot ballpen because of too much tension during my Political law exam. It good that I have extra five more Pilot ballpens with me.

Scientists like Raymundo Punongbayan of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) have long been intrigued by the folk belief that if Banahaw erupts, water will gush from its crater. Mount Banahaw is one of the largest active volcanoes in the Philippines, its unique feature being an elliptical crater 758 meters high. The recorded date of the latest volcanic activity of Banahaw was in 1730 and 1743.

Punongbayan explained that in the event that Banahaw erupts, there will be pyroclastic flows toward the town of Sariaya and lava flows cascading toward the town of Dolores. Pyroclastic flow is a turbulent flowing mass of ejected fragmental volcanic materials mixed with hot gases and moving downslope at high speed. Pyroclastic flows may result from the collapse of tall eruption columns or from spillover of ejected materials from the erupting vents. Punongbayan compared lava flow and pyroclastic flows with the toothpaste. Squeeze it slowly and the toothpaste will flow down slowly, while pressing it immediately will cause the toothpaste to zoom up. The former resembles the lava flow, the latter the pyroclastic flows.

The Philippine archipelago has more than 200 volcanoes distributed in five volcanic belts. Banahaw is one of the 22 known active volcanoes in the country. A volcano signifies a vent, hill, or mountain from which molten rock or gaseous materials are ejected. For a volcano to be considered active, Punongbayan explained that it must have erupted in historical time. On the other hand, a volcano is considered dormant if there is no historical record of its last eruption. Punongbayan stressed that the best way to educate people is to give specific labels like "Banahaw volcano" instead of Mount Banahaw.

Declared a national park in 1921, Mounts Banahaw and San Cristobal cover an area of 11,133 hectares of moderate to steep terrain. The Quezon side is noted for its unique rock formation, mystical cave and medical springs. It has three towering peaks-Banahaw de Lucban, 1,875 meters above sea level; Mount Banahaw, 2,158 meters above sea level, and Mount San Cristobal, 1,470 meters above sea level.

One of the biggest forests in Southern Tagalog, the national park contains game animals such as wild pigs, deer, monkeys, and game birds such as hornbills, pigeons, jungle fowls, tailor birds, wag tails, orioles, brown doves, parakeets and coucals. Giant rats, wild cats and reptiles such as snakes, pythons and ground lizards are also seen in the area. It is home to tree species such as red lauan, tanguile and mayapis, while plant species like rattan, vines, grasses, club mosses, ferns and other aerial plants are abundant within the park. The park is traversed by eight rivers, namely, Olla, Manipis, Santa Cruz, Liliw, Dalitawan, Malinao, Bakong and Lazaan. It is locally known as vulcan de agua due to the abundance of water even during the dry season.

For pilgrims and mountaineers, the jump-off point is Santa Lucia toward Kinabuhayan town. The wide and well-trodden trail leads to Kristalino Falls, a 30-meter waterfall surrounded by vine-covered trees, ferns, palms and bamboos. Just one-and-a-half hours away is a second waterfall whose surrounding area is ideal for a campsite. One of the most difficult portions of the trail is a vertical wall leading to a very narrow ridge over a minute waterfall known as Salamin Bubog. This climaxes in a treacherous slippery stretch over huge boulders leading to a cavernous formation with a 30-meter-high entrance known as the Kuweba ng Diyos Ama. On the way to the summit are landmarks like Pinoy Lihim, huge moss-covered boulders marking two divergent paths, and rows of trees with twisted trunks almost hugging the ground on bended knees. These trees are commonly known as Niluhuran.

The first peak is Santong Durungawan, which overlooks a clear, blue open sky. The crater of the volcano is shaped like a winding canyon with walls soaring as high as 915 meters; its floor is between 27 and 46 meters wide. Thick forest carpets most of the interior but some portions exhibit marked scars of past avalanches. From Durungawan, the descending group will pass through Tatlong Tangke, which used to refer to a series of waterfalls, and again to a gully and a kaingin trail. Crossing over rocky trail will lead to the backyard of the town of Kinabuhayan. (Dennis Gorecho)

Palm Sunday, let us welcome Jesus Christ.

Palm Sunday, Basco, Batanes 2007

palm sunday, basco batanes 2007

On Palm Sunday Christians celebrate the triumphal entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem, the week before his death and resurrection. For many Christian churches, Palm Sunday, often referred to as "Passion Sunday," marks the beginning of Holy Week, which concludes on Easter Sunday.

The Bible reveals that when Jesus entered Jerusalem, the crowds greeted him by waving palm branches and covering his path with palm branches. Immediately following this great time of celebration in the ministry of Jesus, he begins his journey to the cross.

The faithful have traditionally decorated their houses with the palms from Palm Sunday, and, in many countries, a custom developed of weaving the palms into crosses that were placed on home altars or other places of prayer. Since the palms have been blessed, they should not simply be discarded; rather, the faithful return them to their local parish in the weeks before Lent, to be burned and used as the ashes for Ash Wednesday.