PROFITING OFF OF FAITH A screenshot of the Facebook page that has alarmed Quiapo Church officials
Unscrupulous sellers online have been duping Black Nazarene devotees into paying P390 each for medallions that purportedly have been blessed by the Vatican and have the power to heal or to protect against evil spirits.
Officials of Quiapo Church in Manila, which houses the widely revered image of Christ bearing the cross, have disowned the Facebook account called “Black Nazarene Supporter” where the medallions are being offered for sale.
“Be careful and vigilant against the spread of fake accounts using the name of the administration and the church of Quiapo,” they said in a post on their official Facebook page, Quiapo Church.
The warning came with screenshots of the “Black Nazarene Supporter” account and photos of the medallions that bear the face of a Christ crowned with thorns, a cross and the words “Nuestro Padre Jesus Nazareno.”
‘Shipping fee’
The Quiapo Church officials reminded devotees that the church does not operate any “religious store” or sell any religious item.
The “Black Nazarene Supporter” account, which has gained 2,600 followers as of Thursday, claims to be the official Facebook account of the devotees.
It ostensibly offers the Black Nazarene medallions for free, but one when one clicks the “order” option a series of automated messages appear through Facebook messenger, one of them asking for a “shipping (delivery) fee” of P390 to receive the “healing necklace.”
The automatic messages purportedly come from an “assistant admin of the Black Nazarene in Quiapo” named Faith.
Celebrity photo
As an added come-on, the account features a photo of television host Willie Revillame while claiming that several people have already bought the “Blessed Black Nazarene necklace.”
It asks for an address where the item can be delivered and provides a list of the day’s buyers.
Reached for comment on Thursday, Fr. Earl Allyson Valdez, one of the assisting parish priests at Quiapo Church, said those behind the fake account are deceiving devotees.
“They misrepresent Quiapo Church to profit from it,” Valdez said.
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