Holy Week in Davao, 1897

The 1897 Holy Week celebration at San Pedro Church in Davao was quite a sight, attended no less by five priests and three brothers. With a growing population of converts in and around the old town, the public reception, led primarily by dedicated public officials and affluent families, was a well-attended display of devotion.

The Lenten celebrations leading to the Holy Week, based on the Gregorian calendar, started on 3 March 1897, the Ash Wednesday (i.e., Miercoles de Beniza), followed by Palm Sunday, over a month thereafter, on 11 April.

During the Spanish colonial period (1565–1898), the Lenten season (Cuaresma) in the Philippines was one of the most solemn and socially regulated religious periods of the year. Many practices that Filipinos still observe today, especially in places with deep Catholic traditions like Davao and other mission areas, trace their origins to these colonial customs.

For instance, the Ash Wednesday, then and now, marks the start of Lent, signaling repentance and reflection. Filipinos attend early morning Mass to receive ashes on their foreheads. The priest recites Latin phrases such as “Memento homo, quia pulvis es…” (“Remember that you are dust…”). Many people begin fasting and abstinence, especially from meat. In the past, the Spanish friars required attendance and strongly encouraged confession, while parish registers often noted attendance during major religious observances.

During the entire Lenten season, fasting, abstinence, and daily devotions are encouraged. Meat is avoided, especially on Fridays, and people eat simple foods such as fish, vegetables, and rice porridge. Many participate in the Pabasa (chanting of the Passion narrative), Visita Iglesia (visiting multiple churches), and the Stations of the Cross.

The Holy Week events are traditionally solemn.

On Holy Thursday (Jueves Santo), 15 April 1897, churches displayed the Blessed Sacrament, people visited several churches, and altars were decorated elaborately. According to accounts, “the governor (Bartolome Garcia Sanchez) himself had his confession and received communion during the High Mass, with the fiscal-lawyer at one side and his secretary on the other and followed by the local principalias, a great number of people and also the Spanish colony.”

And on Good Friday (Viernes Santo), processions reenact the Passion of Christ. During Black Saturday (Sábado de Gloria), the Santo Entierro (Dead Christ) image is carried in procession. Church bells remain silent until Easter Vigil, and silence and mourning are observed.

One of the most enduring Holy Week traditions in Luzon (but not practiced in Davao) is the Pabasa ng Pasyon. The Pasyon, a long poetic narrative of Christ’s Passion, was chanted continuously, lasting day and night, often for several days; it was held in homes or chapels. The season ended on Easter Sunday, 18 April 1897.

Holy Week celebrations in Davao today follow the general Philippine pattern but have distinctive local expressions shaped by parish traditions, urban growth, and multicultural setting. Compared with the Spanish-era frontier observances, modern Holy Week is larger, more organized, and parish-centered, with strong participation from families and communities.

The Gagmay’ng Kristohanong Katilingban (GKK), also known as Basic Ecclesial Communities (BECs), play a very central and practical role in Holy Week celebrations. In many areas, especially in large territorial parishes, Holy Week activities actually depend on GKK organizations, since parish priests alone cannot manage all liturgical and devotional activities.

But what is most significant in all the celebration is the Crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ who offered Himself to save the world from sins, and His eventual Ascension into heaven.