HOLY WEEK. The live street play of Senakulo, the re-enactment of Jesus Christ's passion and death in 2023. The Archdiocese of Palo and the local government here are expecting at least 60,000 devotees this coming Good Friday (March 29, 2024) to witness the traditional religious activity. (PNA photo by Roel Amazona)
PALO, Leyte – The Archdiocese of Palo and the local government here are expecting at least 60,000 devotees to witness the live street play of Senakulo, the staged re-enactment of Jesus Christ's passion and death, on Good Friday.
Nariza Marasigan, the town tourism office head, said that now that social distancing is no longer enforced, the agency is expecting to surpass the more than 60,000 pilgrims and tourists visiting the municipality pre-pandemic Holy Week.
These visitors are expected to also visit Guinhangdan Hill for the Station of the Cross and various churches in the town for the Visita Iglesia.
Archdiocese of Palo Vicar General Rev. Msgr. Gilbert Urbina said that although Holy Week activities are more church-related, the local government may also come in because tourism at this time is both of “devotion and curiosity.”
“For the church, this is something solemn; that is why it is important to have devotion because it supplies experience, understanding, and reflection,” Urbina said Wednesday.
Mabel Moron-Sevilla, director of the re-enactment locally known as Tanggal, said they did their grand rehearsal on March 25 and are ready to present the one-hour community theater performed by volunteer artists.
Palo town, the home of the Roman Catholic faith in Eastern Visayas, has been staging Tanggal since 1974.
The diocese has 1.2 million Roman Catholic residents, 63 parishes, 1 chaplaincy, and 13 mission stations, divided into two districts: the Eastern District for Waray-speaking people and the Western District for Cebuano-speaking residents.
The Tanggal will be played on major streets of this town from noon until 1 p.m. and will be followed by the Siete Palabras, or the Seven Last Words of Jesus Christ.
The Palo Traffic Auxiliary Office, for its part, will implement a traffic re-routing scheme. (PNA)
