Penitensya

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My family was having dinner with the TV news on, when it featured the penitensya in some Luzon provinces. For my foreign readers, penitensya is the Filipino term for penance, but it has become most associated with certain practices during the Lenten season, such as flagellation and nailing to a cross. Those interviewed say they are doing it to fulfill a vow, and because they believe it keeps their families safe from harm and misfortune. It is not encouraged by the Catholic Church but people have been doing it since, and more have joined this year, according to the news we were watching. This got us talking.

Tatay: Stupid Filipinos!

Jun: Tatay oi?! It’s what they know about expressing their faith. And since when has being stupid become distinctly Filipino?

Tatay: Things like these happen only in the Philippines…

Jun: But that is how these simple folk understand their religion. Perhaps if they are made to understand why they don’t have to do it, then they’ll stop.

On second thought, they just might not. People will only believe what they want to believe, and no amount of persuasion and logic could sway them. My mother reminds me of this truth every day when she nags about stuff.

Besides the obvious health risks, I don’t have other valid issues and I do not sneer at these people. If they feel that it will be more punishing to do their penance publicly, and hence make the sacrifice worthier, then I leave them at it.

I see it as faith in action. Unabashed, express, certain. Blind faith, we may argue. But who are we to judge the workings of these people’s minds and hearts? They hold their own truths, and even for just a day, they put it in full view for all to think about. It may be one gory spectacle, but it does remind us about what happened to one Man whom we look up to, and why we hold on to Him.

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