Peñafrancia rites begin

NAGA CITY (Sep. 10, 2011) –Thousands of pilgrims and devotes from all over Bicol converged in this city on Friday (Sept. 10) for the traditional “Traslacion Processional” a 19th century religious rite, which starts the 9-day celebration of the feast of Bicolandia’s patroness, the Virgen of Peñafrancia.

On Friday’s homely at the Peñafrancia Shrine, after a penitential procession at dawn, Naga City Archbishop Leonardo Z. Legazpi, OP. DD appealed to the public and devotes stressing “ that once again the orderly celebration of the “Traslacion” and other Peñafrancia rites would depend on the conduct of its devotees.”

It the run up to last year’s Peñafrancia Tercentenary celebration (1710 - 2010) the Archbishop called for a “renewal on the Peñafrancia devotion”.

The Archbishop conducted dialogues with the City government of Naga to make the 9-day celebration exclusive to religious rites, andthe church had appealed to stop the commercialization of the religious event, and discipline vandals and drunken “Voyadores” (bearers of the Peñafrancia image in a procession).

In response, barangay Peñafrancia chairman, Jeffrey Moralde, imposed a long-standing ordinance for a Liquor-ban starting Thursday evening, prohibiting stores all along Peñafrancia Ave and the procession route in selling beer and gin.

Since last year, the “Voyadores” have been organized into religious fraternities called, “Confradia de San Jose”, wearing designated colored t-shirts during the procession, in accordance with their parishes in the Archdiocese of Caceres where they belong.

In Friday’s procession, about 3,000 members of the “Guardias de Maria” from 3 districts of the province kept the peace and order within the perimeter of the Peñafrancia carriage augmenting the fielded PNP and army personnel.

Last year, the Peñafrancia carriage was redesigned into an oblong-shaped “Andas”, weighing some 3-tons and covered with aluminum plates that made it difficult for rowdy “voyadores” to climb the carriage.

This year, the 6-hour procession followed the original 19th century route from the Peñafrancia Shrine to the Naga Cathedral with stops in 7 altar-stations along the route.

Official Church estimates claims nearly a million people filled the procession route from the Peñafrancia Avenue to the grounds of the Naga Cathedral starting 12 noon until 5:00 pm.

According to the Caceres Commission on Communication (CCCOM) Naga’s media office of the Catholic Church, the celebration of the 300-Tercentenary of the Peñafrancia last year also coincided with the declaration of President Benigno Aquino III under Proclamation No.33, declaring Naga City and Camarines Sur province as “Pilgrimage City and Province.” (SONNY SALES)