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Members of the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene’s parish youth ministry hold rehearsals for its Passion Play production entitled ‘Pagtalima’ in front of the Quiapo Church on April 4, 2023, Holy Monday. Passion Plays, colloquially called Senakulo, are traditionally performed by theater companies or community groups and may last the whole Holy Week but are usually staged on Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News
MANILA (UPDATED) — Quiapo Church in Manila, home to the revered Black Nazarene statue, is now a national shrine, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) said.
In their 126th plenary assembly in Aklan province on Sunday, the group approved Manila Archbishop Jose Cardinal Advincula's petition to make the church the country’s 29th national shrine.
The CBCP said it gave Quiapo Church the title "National Shrine of the Black Nazarene."
“Walang hanggang pasasalamat mula sa komunidad ng Quiapo at sa mga Deboto ng Poong Hesus Nazareno sa bumubuo ng 'Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines' sa pagkadeklara sa Basilika Menor at Pangarkidiyosesang Dambana ng Itim na Nazareno bilang isang pambansang dambana,” the church’s office said in a Facebook post.
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(The Quiapo community and the Nazarene devotees thank the CBCP for declaring the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene as a national shrine.)
Also known as the St. John the Baptist Parish, the church was recognized as an archdiocesan shrine just last May 10.
The Quiapo Church houses a 400-year-old ebony statue of Jesus Christ that drew millions of miracle-seekers in its yearly procession before the COVID-19 pandemic.
With the church's new status, the Feast of the Black Nazarene will also be recognized as a national feast to be celebrated in all churches in the country.
Devotees will no longer have to go all the way to Quiapo Church in Manila during the Feast of the Black Nazarene to manifest their devotion and prayers, Quiapo Church spokesperson Rev. Fr. Earl Valdez told ABS-CBN News on Monday.
“Kung hindi makapunta sa simbahan, at mayroong pagdiriwang sa inyong lokal na simbahan ay maituturing na iyong mga panata, at mga obligasyon sa Poon ay nagawa ninyo sa pagtungo sa malapit na simbahan at nakiisa sa pagdiriwang,” he added.
Valdez also clarified that the new national shrine status would not change or affect the operations and activities of the church.
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