Dear Rappler reader,
Holy Week in the Philippines is all about the sights and sounds, and the silences in between. Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle puts it all in perspective. Confused by Holy Week dates? Find out how to calculate it on your own.
Below are the big stories we think you shouldn’t miss.
“Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” This is the first of the “seven last words” uttered by Jesus during the Crucifixion. Jesus nailed on the cross is the most iconic image during Holy Week in the Philippines. Rappler put together a long list of videos that chronicles the bloody rituals in Pampanga, to the solemn traditions of Palm Sunday, the Visita Iglesia, the Stations of the Cross and the Washing of the Feet.
“We can’t just be spectators, we can’t just shake our heads or simply complain, we should act.” Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle told Filipinos as he reminded the faithful about the “sanctity of life” last Good Friday. The Cardinal told Catholics to denounce the “culture of killing,” a reference to the Duterte administration’s war on drugs.
“Holy Week marks the clumination of 40 days of observing Lent.” But when is it, exactly? Do you find yourself never knowing when Holy Week is in any given year? That’s because it’s a movable feast. Here’s how it works.
“Please do not believe messages stating prediction of events. And do not forward any of these.” Science Undersecretary Renato Solidum Jr, on Monday, corrected a number of false online posts about the twin earthquakes that rocked Batangas on Saturday. A couple of days after, Tingloy town in Batangas, an island badly hit by the earthquake swarm, was visited by Social Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo, who flew in with relief goods.
“Hello, Tatay (Father). I have no questions at all. I just want to say thank you that you have given us hope. Thank you so much.” An overseas Filipino worker (OFW) in Riyadh on Wednesday, April 12, took the microphone and greeted Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. After opening the floor for questions, the OFWs raised problems ranging from the lack of a department for migrant workers and the need for wage increases.
“It’s public knowledge that his love for the poor is bordering on obsession. You name-drop the poor, you say the poor are being oppressed, maligned, his mood, his world is plunged into chaos.” Dismissed Palace undersecretary Halmen Valdez thinks some officials with direct access to Duterte may have been “name-dropping” poor Filipino farmers in order to rile up the President.
Government forces saved the country from a crisis after they foiled an attack by the Abu Sayyaf in Bohol. But Rappler’s Carmela Fonbuena, asks: How come the notorious terrorist leader got away?
“Key Daesh (ISIS) hideouts were destroyed and 36 ISIS fighters were killed,” the Afghan defense ministry said of the “Mother Of All Bombs” hitting ISIS positions in eastern Nangarhar province on Thursday. The GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb was unleashed in combat for the first time.
Based on data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), motorcyle-related injuries comprise 56% of the total identified transport incidents nationwide.
Barbie Almalbis is back on Rappler Live Jam! For those of you who prefer religious-themed music this Holy Week, check out Rappler’s music special with Bukas Palad Music Ministry.
– Rappler.com
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