Joanna Marie O. Santos
March 29, 2023

The Lenten Season is coming to an end, which could only mean one thing: Holy Week. Aside from the many who plan on celebrating the long weekend taking time off school and work, many other Filipinos will be spending the last stretch of the Lenten Season with their families, practicing many of the Holy Week traditions deeply rooted in Philippine culture–many of which have been around for centuries, some even specific to certain regions. While there are numerous traditions that have been passed down from generation to generation across the Philippines, we’ve enumerated the top 5 traditions often practiced by Filipinos during Holy Week.

1. Waving the palaspas during Palm Sunday Mass

To signify the final Sunday of Lent and the official beginning of Holy Week, Filipinos across the country visit their church to attend the Palm Sunday Mass, where palm fronds will be given or sold to churchgoers. Meant to reenact the arrival of Jesus into Jerusalem, the palm fronds will be waved at the very beginning of the mass just as the priest enters.

These palm fronds will not only be blessed by the priest conducting the mass, but will also be collected and used to make the ashes for the following year’s Ash Wednesday. 

2. Visita Iglesia on Huwebes Santo

Considered being one of the most common practices during the Holy Week, the Visita Iglesia is an essential Holy Week tradition that dates back to the 1500s. Filipinos who participate in the Visita Iglesia spend either their Maundy Thursday and Good Friday visiting seven churches and pray at the Stations of the Cross, either inside or outside the Church. The main observance, however, is the evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper–the last mass before Easter Sunday that signifies the Last Supper.

3. Pabasa ng Pasyon

Many households in the Philippines still participate in the Pabasa ng Pasyon every Good Friday, where family members, friends, and other guests gather together and recite the “Pasyong Mahal”. This 16th century epic poem highlights the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and is either chanted or sung in front of religious icons of Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary, and the Saints.

Most families begin the Pabasa during the early morning of Good Friday, as tradition dictates that the singing must end on or before 3pm of that day. 

4. Senakulo

A local theatrical drama about the Passion of Christ, the Senakulo has been a Holy Week staple in the Philippines since the 17th or 18th century. Local theater companies and community groups perform different versions of the Senakulo, oftentimes creating their own scripts that present the dialogue in either prosaic or poetic form. While the Senakulo is more commonly staged during Good Friday, some provinces commit to staging the traditional performance which may last from 7 to 8 days. 

5. Salubong

Before the Easter Mass, taking place during the early morning of Easter Sunday, the Salubong is a procession meant to depict the apocryphal reunion of the Virgin Mary and Christ after His resurrection. While the procession takes place, something commonly found the congregation to be praying the rosary.

There are two separate processions that take place. The first consists of only men, where they carry the figure of Jesus. Twelve men are usually dressed as the apostles, while others simply carry images or icons of male saints. 

The second procession, meanwhile, carried the figure of Mary, who is veiled and dressed in black to symbolize her mourning. Icons of female saints are carried, and the high point of the procession is when the veil is finally removed from the Virgin’s icon, which signals the end of her suffering. 

Lenten Season and Holy Week, in general, are the pinnacle of the coming together of Philippine culture and spirituality. While they may seem unusual to others, there is no denying that the traditions practiced during Holy Week are a testament of the Filipino people’s deep and enduring faith.