Out of my mind

I went to Quiapo today. I usually attend the Saturday anticipatory mass in our parish but since I was cooped up in the house the whole day trying to finish some artwork that I promised some friends, I thought I would drive all the way to Quiapo to bask in the purity of the devotion to the Black Nazarene that many people display. I caught the 6:30 pm mass; it was perfect time since the procession of Black Nazarene replicas was winding up. The piety that devotees during the annual Black Nazarene procession has always struck me emotionally. You just have to be there to appreciate it. It's... raw passion and emotion. The whole thing is like a dance that's always teetering at the brink of complete and total mayhem; but it never does. Somehow, there is method to the madness. There is poetry in the chaos. Sadly, this year's feast falls on a Monday. I would have gone on leave to be able to join the procession, but I have lots of important meetings. But I am hoping my meet...

I was having lunch with my colleagues at Wendy's at the Mall of Asia today when this poster advertising their shrimp sandwich caught my attention. I took a picture of the poster using my cellphone. It was lunchtime so I couldn't take a good shot without the reflection from the glass wall. Anyway the quotation on the poster, which is enclosed in quotation marks is pretty clear. It says "Take this all of you, and eat it." Abstaining from meat during this season of lent is supposed to be good for our souls, thus they are pushing their shrimp sandwich with clever advertising. A colleague thought using the words Jesus Christ said at the Last Supper is sacrilegious. You be the judge.

This is my column today at the op-ed section of the Manila Standard Today . THERE are legions of Filipinos who swear by the miraculous powers of the infant Jesus, locally known as the Santo Niño. In Cebu, for example, faith in the Santo Niño is so absolute that every thing that happens in the province—even the success of the recent Asean summit—is attributed to the benevolence of the little child in princely robes. The last two weekends of January are frenzied months for Santo Niño devotees as the major festivities that pay homage to the Santo Niño are held one after the other—from the fiesta at Tondo, the Sinulog in Cebu, the Ati-atihan in Kalibo and of course to the annual exhibit and procession of Santo Niño images spearheaded by the group of fashion designers who go by the rather archaic name Congregacion del Santisimo Nombre del Niño Jesus. All these events attract droves of devotees. The Santo Niño figures heavily in local history as in the case of the Santo Niño de Cebu (a gift ...