Hordes of faith healers and the faithful continue to arrive early dawn on Good Friday, April 7, at the farming village of Bgy. Kapitangan, Paombong, Bulacan to get the miraculous perfumed oil of the Mahal na Poong Sto. Cristo.
The faithful troop to this Bulacan town as part of their Lenten tradition of touching the venerated crucifix, the patron saint of the village, which is bathed in oil and perfume.
According to elders in the village, the centuries-old image of the “Krus ng Mahal na Poong Sto. Cristo” continues to attract multitudes of faithful as well as local and foreign tourists.
The image of the Crucified Christ is taken down from the chapel’s main altar before being doused and bathed in oil and perfume.
The perfumed oil is collected and distributed to the people who line up to get the miraculous perfumed oil believed to have healing powers.
The ritual ends when the image is cleaned and then brought back to the chapel’s main altar.
Barangay Kapitangan is known for its bloody Lenten rituals where hundreds of bareback flagellants whip their backs while walking barefoot towards the Catholic chapel to fulfill their vows locally known as ”Panata.”
Every high noon on Good Friday, several faith healers—including females—are nailed to a wooden cross at a man-made Golgotha beside the Catholic Chapel.
Thousand of bottle-wielding devotes line up to get their share of the miraculous perfumed oil. (Photo posted on Facebook of Von Daniel Santos)