Maligayang Pasko Ng Pagkabuhay/Happy Easter!

The Philippines, being a Catholic Asian country (the one and only), celebrates one of the most interesting and exciting religious rituals that it inherited from Spain, the country’s colonizer for more than 300 years. Easter, also called Pascha or Resurrection Sunday, is a Christian festival and cultural holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, described in the New Testament as having occurred on the third day of his burial following his crucifixion by the Romans at Calvary c. 30 AD. The first Catholic mass in the Philippines was on Easter Sunday of March 31, 1521 officiated by Father Pedro de Valderrama in the shore of a town islet named as Limasawa in the tip of Southern Leyte. Limasawa is dubbed as the birthplace of Roman Catholicism in the Philippines. (Wikipedia)

Lent or “kwaresma” in Filipino is the season wherein Filipino people recall Christ’s passion, his suffering, death, and resurrection, traditionally. Easter celebrations, particularly during Holy Week, are deeply religious, marked by traditions like the Pabasa (chanting the Passion of Christ), Visita Iglesia (visiting churches), and the Salubong (reenactment of the Virgin Mary’s meeting with the Risen Christ, In these modern days, many Filipinos use the Holy Week as an opportunity to travel since it’s a long weekend (from Maundy Thursday to Easter Sunday) so you will find that tourist spots are actually crowded and busy.

Easter morning brings a joyous celebration. After “Salubong” (welcome) ceremony in the early morning or dawn that re-enacts the meeting of the resurrected Jesus and his mother. The statue of Mary is usually dressed in black with a black veil to show her bereavement. In many communities, the faithful carry the statues of the risen Christ and the Blessed Mother through town in two separate processions. Traditional taboos from the previous day are carried over and are sometimes broken; sometimes swimming is allowed in the afternoon.

Black Saturday, also known in Tagalog as “Sabado de Gloria” or Holy Saturday, the day that Jesus died and buried in his tomb – very, very sad day, no parties, no laughing, no loud talking, and fasting is observed.

Easter traditions include sunrise services or late-night vigils, exclamations and exchanges of Paschal greetings, flowering the cross, clipping the church, and the decoration and the communal breaking of Easter eggs (a symbol of the empty tomb). Time for celebration as Jesus is alive!

Filipinos make this holiday joyous and celebratory and spend time with their family and invite friends and relatives. Among the food commonly eaten are roast pig, ham, lamb, veal, and chicken, with a meal of corned beef, a popular meal. It was traditional for farmers to share the meat from a slaughtered bullock or lamb with neighbors and or the less fortunate. When it comes time to plan your Easter menu, a glazed ham or a big roast leg of lamb is the default. These dishes are classics, for sure.

Given the predominantly Catholic population in the Philippines, seafood dishes like grilled fish, shrimp, and crabs are also popular choices for Easter meals, especially on Good Friday when meat is traditionally avoided. No sales of alcohol by liquor stores or taprooms are permitted during designated religious holidays in the Philippines.

This is the celebration of Semana Santa (Holy Week) in the Philippines, that many Filipinos observe seriously whether living in the Motherland Philippines or anywhere around the world to these days.

-By Anonymous Editorialist