With age old Holy Week traditions back in observance in different parts of the country, thousands of devotees and pilgrims are expected to join this year’s Alay Lakad to the Antipolo Cathedral on Maundy Thursday and Good Friday.
Shrine rector and parish administrator Fr. Reynante U. Tolentino said that aside from the lifting of the restrictions, the faithful are eager to visit the pilgrimage site which was declared as the country’s first international shrine early this year.
“We are expecting more pilgrims to visit the cathedral particularly this Holy Week following its declaration as an international shrine,” said Fr. Tolentino who has been actively promoting devotion to the Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage.
“Alay Lakad” (Penitential Walk) from Metro Manila and nearby provinces to Antipolo City’s International Shrine of the Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage will be observed on Maundy Thursday and Good Friday.
The Lenten activity is a tradition observed by many with some even walking barefoot, towards the Antipolo Cathedral as part of their penitential vow.
The Antipolo Cathedral was formally declared as an international shrine during rites led by Papal Nuncio Archbishop Charles John Brown on Jan. 26.
In addition, Pope Francis gifted the cathedral with the Golden Rose (Rosa d’ Oro), considered as the highest honor granted by a Pontiff to a Marian image or shrine. The Antipolo Cathedral said the honor given to the Marian shrine is the first in the country. It is the ninth Golden Rose given by Pope Francis to a Marian shrine since the beginning of his Pontificate.
Archbishop Salvatore “Rino” Fisichella, Pro-Prefect of the Section on Fundamental Questions regarding Evangelization in the World of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Evangelization personally offered the Golden Rose at the foot of the revered image of the Nuestra Señora de la Paz y Buen Viaje during the “Misa de Gracia” that he celebrated at the Antipolo Cathedral on Feb. 26, exactly a month after the formal declaration of the Antipolo Cathedral as an international shrine.
The Alay Lakad involves walking a distance of 17 kilometers. It was suspended for more than two years because of the pandemic.
Upon reaching the Antipolo Cathedral, the participants would utter a short prayer or make wish in front of the altar before tossing some coins or paper bills towards the altar as their donation.