Filipino devotees nailed to crosses to re-enact Christ's crucifixion

Filipino devotees reenact crucifixion on Good Friday

Robert Besser
24 Apr 2025, 08:47 GMT+10

Filipino devotees nailed to crosses to re-enact Christ's crucifixion

On April 18, Good Friday, Christian believers in the Philippines were nailed to crosses in a reenactment of Jesus Christ’s crucifixion
This took place in San Pedro Cutud, a village in Pampanga province, where hundreds of Filipinos and tourists gathered to watch
Ruben Enaje, 64, was nailed to the cross for the 36th time, playing the role of Jesus in this yearly religious event

CUTID, Philippines: On April 18, Good Friday, Christian believers in the Philippines were nailed to crosses in a reenactment of Jesus Christ's crucifixion.

This took place in San Pedro Cutud, a village in Pampanga province, where hundreds of Filipinos and tourists gathered to watch.

Ruben Enaje, 64, was nailed to the cross for the 36th time, playing the role of Jesus in this yearly religious event. Two other men also joined him in reenacting the crucifixion.

Actors dressed as Roman soldiers hammered two-inch nails into Enaje's palms. Their bodies were supported with ropes and cloth as they were lifted onto wooden crosses.

"The first five seconds were very painful. As time goes and the blood goes down, the pain numbs and I can stay on the cross longer," Enaje said in an interview.

About 80 percent of the Philippines' 110 million people are Roman Catholic. The crucifixion reenactment is part of Holy Week, a sacred time from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday.

During Easter week, some people also whip their own backs with bamboo sticks to ask for forgiveness. However, the Catholic Church has advised against this and says prayer and true repentance are enough to observe Lent.

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