Filipino fanatics commemorated Good Friday with self-flagellation and crucifixion

On Good Friday, Catholic fanatics in the Philippines who reenact the final moments of Jesus Christ are nailed to wooden crosses and others are beaten to death in extreme displays of religious devotion.
While most Filipinos go to church or spend the holiday with family, hundreds gather in villages around the city of San Fernando, north of Manila, to watch men punish themselves in an attempt to atone for their sins or seek miracles from God, AFP reported.
Dozens of bare-headed freaks, dressed in black cloaks and wreaths of vines, walked barefoot through the dusty and narrow streets, rhythmically beating their backs with bamboo strips tied to ropes, their blood wetting the tops of their trousers and splattering the spectators.
"This is for my son, who is epileptic," said Joel Yutok, who has his 13-year-old son's name tattooed on his chest.
Yutok, 31, said his son had not had a seizure in the eight years since he began participating in the Good Friday flogging.
The flagellation marks the beginning of street performances performed by pious residents.
In the village of San Juan, a short, wiry man with white hair who plays the role of Jesus Christ and two other people are dragged by neighbors dressed as Roman centurions to a raised mound where wooden crosses are placed on the ground.
As spectators take pictures with their mobile phones, three-centimeter nails are driven into their palms, and then the crosses are raised vertically.
A few minutes later, the crosses are lowered to the ground and the nails are removed.
"I will continue to do this as long as I live, as long as my body is able to do it. This is my oath," said 67-year-old retired fisherman Wilfredo Salvador, who began playing the role of Jesus Christ in crucifixion productions 16 years ago. years after a mental breakdown.
"It's nothing. Sometimes it heals in a day and I'm able to wash dishes and shower," Salvador says of his wounds.
The extreme actions have been condemned by the Catholic Church and health experts.
This week, the Philippine Department of Health urged the public to "avoid actions or rituals that result in physical injury."
"We join the pastoral guidance of our religious leaders who direct everyone to religious practices that are safe and healthy," the statement said./BGNES