Holy Week in Paete, Laguna

Tutubi spent his Holy Week break not on the crowded beaches or some secluded place but in his hometown, Paete in Laguna. He reached home by braving a 4.5 hour drive with heavy traffic typical of long weekends and holidays.

A Guide to Holy Week in Paete (for those wishing to witness it next year)

Palm Sunday/Linggo ng Palaspas/Domingo de Ramos

palms are carried to church particularly the palaspas (made from nipa fronds) to celebrate the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem mounted on a donkey.

Holy Wednesday in Paete:

A unique ritual of bathing the mahal na Senor (as what the dead Christ is called) is performed at the home of the owners here.

A popular holy week destination for Metro Manilans, Paete town in Laguna boasts of a traditional life-size images on processions starting on Holy Wednesday where the unique moving saints of Paete re-enact biblical events called salubong at three places in town: at the public market, Plaza Edesan and ending at the town plaza.

The salubong at the palengke (market) is about Mary wiping the blood and sweat of Jesus carrying the cross with operatic voices on the background. The next scene at Plaza Edesan involve Veronica wiping the face of Jesus while the last scene at the town plaza shows the moving Veronica showing her towel's imprinted with Jesus' three faces and Mary's showing her own towel with facial markings. Procession starts after mass at Paete Catholic Church around 6pm.

Maundy Thursday:

A cenaculo (passion of Christ) is staged at the town plaza in the afternoon while many people come to visit the old baroque church famous for it's intricate facade, four large murals and the retablo (tableau) laced with gold leaf part of the Laguna Visita Iglesia

At 6pm, another procession will start, this time by IFI (Iglesia Filipina Independiente) popularly known as Aglipayan or simply Aglipay, with their own life-sized images and salubong. Note the santos are lined up for viewing on Quesada St. (Paete's Main road cutting across the town plaza) and photo opportunity.

It's during this time that people begin to trek to Paete's Tatlong Krus (Three Crosses) to camp there overnight (it's a big, crowded camp site on Good Friday)

Good Friday:

You may visit the home of the owner of the Señor (santo entierro) for a unique ritual of bathing the image. (for photos, please see Sidney's take of the rite here)


a view of Paete Church's intricate facade and baroque features
on Good Friday, the bells are silent while bamboo clappers and iron bars attached to wooden boards (called Matraka), make noise before the dead Christ

the Mater Dolorosa, the last image of the procession, is actually the exact replica of an image Mariano Madriñan made and received a gold medal during Amsterdam International Exposition of 1883 (note that a gold medal in expositions does not equate to a "first place" finish)

The various carriages with santos start to assemble inside the church. Those who joined the Wednesday procession got new wardrobes and flowers. The Seven Last Words are recited until 3pm when Dapit starts, the body of the dead Christ is brought to church.

Procession will start at 5pm with both Catholics and Aglipayan taking different routes. The procession route will snake its way to pass by the homes of owners of santos who joined the procession of Holy Wednesday where the images are displayed.

You'll notice the Tatlong Krus on Humarap (the hill overlooking Paete, part of Sierra Madre) are lighted with people visible if you have a telescope, binoculars or a telephoto lens.



Black Saturday/Sabado de Gloria

a traditional Easter Eve Ball is held at the grounds of Paete Elementary School (Central) while waiting for the Salubong of Easter Sunday

Easter Sunday:

The Salubong with a re-enactment of the resurrected Jesus' meeting with his disciples starting with Mary Magdalene at dawn that includes a procession early in the morning.

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Other Holy Week Events in the Philippines:

If you're looking for macabre and much hyped about crucifixions, you may try to view the bloody event in San Pedro Cutud, San Fernando, Pampanga where people volunteer themselves to be crucified under the searing heat of the summer sun for decades now.

Another event of Easter Sunday crucifixion is the so called Taltal (meaning: to remove) in Barotac Viejo, Iloilo,

Other unique celebration on Easter Sunday are the so called Sugat (Cebuano word for meeting) dawn plays in Minglanilla and Argao towns of Cebu.

The best place to be in Holy Week, for some, is just to stay at home. Imagine Metro Manila without the crowds, malls closed but Manila Ocean Park is open.

Holy Week Trivia:

Did you know why the date of Holy Week is not fixed? Holy Week, particularly Easter Sunday is reckoned from the full moon on or after the Vernal Equinox (equinox means the length of day and night are equal)


a picture of the full moon over paete (actually a test shot at 200mm)

Related Holy Week Posts:
Visita Iglesia: Manila's Churches and Cathedrals
Good Friday Procession in Paete
Visita Iglesia: Laguna and Rizal

Related Paete Posts:

Minglanilla Sugat Argao Sugat San Pedro Cutud Crucifixion, Holy Week, Catholic Rituals, Flagellation, Self-flagellation, palaspas, Mahal na Araw, Semana Santa

Related Posts:
St. Clare Monastery
Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage
Our Lady of Manaoag
Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, Lipa
Our Lady of the Pillar
Kamay ni Hesus
Visita Iglesia Manila
Visita Iglesia Rizal and Laguna