Thousands of devotees attend opening of Fiesta Masses in Quiapo

PRELUDE TO ‘TRASLACION’ Devotees of the Black Nazarene bring replicas of the revered image to Quiapo Church in Manila to be blessed. The gathering may be considered a preview of the bigger annual procession known as “traslacion,’’ which will be  on Jan. 9. —GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE 

MANILA, Philippines —Thousands of devotees have already gathered at Quiapo Church, Manila, for the Feast of the Jesus Nazareno ahead of traslacion.

According to the Nazareno Operation Center on Wednesday, 4,500 devotees attended the first round of the Fiesta Masses as of 3:50 p.m. at the Minor Basilica and National Shrine of Jesus Nazareno in Quiapo.

The crowd estimate then quickly jumped to 11,700 around 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., said the operation center.

Fiesta Masses are special religious services or masses celebrated in honor of a patron saint during local fiestas.

Meanwhile, 9,500 devotees were counted in Luneta in the same period—this as the original image of the Nazareno is still at the Quirino Grandstand.

As of 6 p.m., the operations center recorded an estimate of 17,900 devotees in Luneta from 5 p.m.

The Fiesta Masses were held beginning at 3 p.m. and will be conducted hourly until 11 p.m. on Thursday, coinciding with the arrival of the image of the Jesus Nazareno from Quirino Grandstand.

The Nazareno Operation Center said that, with the figures, both Quiapo Church and Luneta are still in a “normal situation.”

This year’s traslacion procession is set to be held on January 9, Thursday, where millions of devotees are expected to participate.

READ: Crowds building up for ‘Pahalik’ on the eve of Nazarene procession

On the day of the traslacion itself, devotees flood the streets of Quiapo in hopes of being able to see (or ideally, touch) the image of the Nazareno as it traverses from Quirino Grandstand to the Minor Basilica and National Shrine of Jesus Nazareno.

The duration of the procession varies every year, with the 2024’s lasting for 15 whole hours.