Every 9^th of January, thousands of devotees flock to the Quirino Grandstand in Luneta to take part in a grand procession called “Traslacion” to commemorate the transfer of the venerated image of the Black Nazarene from Intramuros, Manila to Quiapo in 1767.

Being one of the top catholic nations in Asia, the feast of the Black Nazarene is one of the most sought celebrations amongst the catholic faith believers over the years. However, this 2021 the highly anticipated holy gathering will not push through due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This is truly a painful news for all religious attendees out there, but the feast management makes sure that they will still feel the holiness of the patron saint as they “localizes” the whole celebration—here’s how the celebration will be held this year.

NO “TRASLACION” AND “PAHALIK”

Quiapo Church has cancelled the traditional traslacion which draws millions of catholic devotees who bravely join the grand procession for the hope that their prayers and desires will be granted by Nazareno.

Also, the church decided to halt the kissing of the image of the Black Nazarene or the “pahalik” and announced that it will be replaced by “pagpugay”.

The image will be on display for the “pagpupugay” (tribute) and “pagtanaw” or viewing of the image.

15 MASSES AND CONTACT TRACING

On the day of the celebration, a maximum of 400 devotees would be allowed inside in each of 15 masses in Quiapo Church.

“Inside the Quiapo Church, only 400 people are allowed to attend the Mass. We will be celebrating 15 masses on January 9. We will accommodate a maximum of 6,000 devotees on that day,” Alex Irasga, a member of the Technical Working Group of Traslacion 2021, said in a press conference on Wednesday.

In its social media account, Quiapo Church announced that devotees can register online for the contract tracing for Traslacion 2021. This can be used when visiting Quiapo Church, Archdiocesan Shrine of the Blessed Sacrament, or the Sta. Cruz Church and Minor Basilica of San Sebastian or the San Sebastian Church.

CONTACT TRACING for #Traslacion2021
• Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene (Quiapo Church)
• Archdiocesan Shrine of the Blessed Sacrament (Sta. Cruz Church)
• Minor Basilica of San Sebastian (San Sebastian Church)

1. SCAN QR CODE
2. FILL-UP FORM
3. SUBMIT

BLACK NAZARENE VISITATION TO OTHER PLACES IN THE COUNTRY

The image of the Black Nazarene will be brought to several places in the Archdiocese of Manila and other neighboring dioceses.

The following are the list of places where the replica of the Black Nazarene will visit as published by the Archdiocese of Manila:

Dec. 30-31 - Antipolo Cathedral
Dec. 31 - Hospicio de San Jose
Jan. 1- San Lazaro Hospital
Jan 2 - Manila Cathedral
Jan 2 - Shrine of Padre Pio
Jan 3 - Greenbelt Chapel
Jan 3 - San Vicente Ferrer Parish (Biñan)
Jan 3 - Our Lady of Manaoag (Pangasinan)
Jan. 4 - Manila City Hall
Jan. 4 - San Roque Parish (Cavite City)
Jan 4 - San Jose Cathedral (Nueva Ecija)
Jan. 5 - Bureau of Fire Prevention - QC
Jan. 5 - San Isidro Parish (Las Piñas)
Jan 5 - Mother of Perpetual Help (Cabanatuan)
Jan. 6 - Manila Police District
Jan. 6 - Sto. Nino Parish (Signal, Taguig)
Jan 6 - Cathedral of San Fernando (Pampanga)
Jan. 7 - Brgy. 394 (Quiapo, Manila)
Jan. 7 - Sto. Domingo Shrine (Quezon City)
Jan. 7 - Baclaran Church

LIVE STREAM AND LED SCREENS

The celebration will be live-streamed on the official Facebook page and YouTube accounts of Quiapo Church and the Archdiocese of Manila's Office of Communications. LED screens will be set-up so that devotees can watch and participate in the mass.

 “We will be putting up LED billboards in Quezon Boulevard, Carlos Palanca, Carriedo, Plaza Lacson, and Villalobos Streets, where people will be able to watch the Masses inside the church,” said Alex Irasga, a member of the Technical Working Group of Traslacion 2021, said in a press conference on Wednesday.

ROAD CLOSURES AND RE-ROUTINGS

Meanwhile, as devotees are expected to flock to Quiapo Church in Manila, here are the road closures, parking plans, and road re-routings in Manila starting January 8, Friday posted from Manila PIO official Facebook page.

Here are the road closures for today, Jan. 8, 2021, which will start at 10 p.m. onwards.

• Southbound lane of Quezon Blvd. (Quiapo), from A. Mendoza/Fugoso to Carlos Palanca St.
• Northbound Lane of Quezon Blvd. from Carlos Palanca St. to Fugoso St.
• Westbound lane of España Boulevard from P. Campa to A Mendoza St.
• Stretch of Evangelista St. from P Paterno St. to Recto Ave.
• Stretch of Palanca St. from Carriedo/Plaza Lacson to P Casal St.

For January 9, 2020, the road closure will start at 12 midnight for the following roads.

• Stretch of Ronquillo St. from Rizal Ave. to Plaza Sta. Cruz
• Stretch of Bustos St. from Plaza Sta Cruz to Rizal Ave.

For re-routing of vehicles, here are Manila PIO’s plans for the celebration as published in the article written by the Philippine Star:

• Vehicles going to the southbound lane of Quezon Blvd from A. Mendoza: turn right to Fugoso St. then left to Rizal Avenue.
• Vehicles going to the southbound lane of España Blvd: turn left to Nicanor Reyes St., or turn right to P. Campa St., then left to A. Mendoza St., then right to Fugoso St.
• Vehicles coming from McArthur Bridge intending to utilize Palanca St shall go straight to Rizal Ave. to point of destination.
• Vehicles coming from Ayala Bridge intending to utilize Palanca St. shall go straight to P. Casal St. to point of destination.
• Vehicles coming from P. Burgos Ave. intending to utilize Quezon Bridge shall go straight to McArthur Bridge or Jones Bridge to point of destination.

The whole celebration of the feast of the Black Nazarene is indeed a lot different from the previous ones, may this sudden change wouldn’t stop all the believers to continue expressing their faith.

May you all have a meaningful celebration!