HOLY WEEK is yet again upon us, and as usual, classes and work are put to a halt.
With the long weekend ahead of us, Filipinos take this opportunity to visit relatives from the provinces to observe the Holy Week or just simply catch up and bond with them.
In Catholic tradition, devotees do visita iglesia, salubong, pabasa, and more as part of their observance for the sacred week.
However, as time went on, new and younger generations of Filipinos came to adapt to a new way of observing Holy Week.
While some would still go to their provinces to catch up with their families or bond with them by partaking in religious activities, these Gen-Zs that are interviewed by republicasia have shared their plans on how they will spend their days during the Holy Week.
Team bahay or team pasyal?
When asked about his plans for the upcoming Holy Week ahead, 22-year-old Dante Fernando simply says that he takes the time to rest from most responsibilities that aren’t house-related.
According to Fernando, he would mostly stay at home, but if there’s such a thing as an upcoming birthday or last-minute school-related tasks, we wouldn’t mind taking the time to partake in those.
“If I have to go out with family & friends, it would usually be a birthday celebration or heading towards the cemetery to greet my loved ones who passed away some time ago.” He said.
The same thing can be said for 22-year-old Prince, where he would too choose to take the time to rest and make the most of his free time for relaxation. He also stated that he plans to stay home with his family as they don’t practice religious tradition in their household.
During the lenten season, the majority of us got used to the practice of just simply staying at home with the family, and just like Dante and Levi; Mamic Acodensin too plans to spend the week with the family and watch the iconic Passion of Christ movie.
“At most, my family and I spend the week by staying at home and watching movies that are relevant to the Lenten season.” she said.
“This can go from iconic Filipino representation of the passion of Christ, horror movies that are set around holy week. You can never run away from the Filipino superstition about how evil will lurk while Jesus is dead,” she added.
Are old traditions still practiced amongst the younger generation?
As generations went on, the way that Lenten season used to be celebrated have evolved into different ways compared to the more traditional observation.
As the Zoomers come to grow into becoming adults, they’ve come to adopt practices that fit better with their modern lifestyle, values, and cultural shifts.
Dante Fernando considers himself to be an agnostic who can neither prove whether God is real or not. “The only thing important to whatever beliefs I have is that I’m doing actions based on the betterment for other people and myself.” He said.
However, despite being agnostic, Fernando believes that it is still important to observe the Holy Week.
“The fact that you’re still alive in this world and that you have the means to support yourself, whether it is from your family and friends or the effort that you put towards your growth.” He said.
“Basically, be thankful for the life you have lived so far and that you will strive to become a much better version of yourself in the future.” He added.
Mamic Acodensin–despite not considering herself a religious person still sees the importance of partaking in the commemoration, especially since she is someone who grew up surrounded by people who participate in religious practices.
“I grew up studying in a Catholic school so more or less I went with it and took everything at face value without questioning the purpose, at some point I end up practicing these traditions during Holy Week such as giving caridad on good Friday, blessing our palm on palm sunday and going to church on Easter Sunday.” She said
Acodensin also added on how a part of her was sort of held back from the happiness of her birthday as it coincided with the season where Jesus died.
“But one part of me says a lot about how this season usually plays between days on my birthday and used to be bitter at how I’m held back from happiness because this is the season where Jesus suffered the most.” She added.
For Prince, despite not being a traditional person himself, he sees the lenten seasons as an important traditional celebration as it serves as a reminder to maintain holiness and practice gratitude for the gifts that God gave him.
“Despite not practicing how it is traditionally celebrated, I do believe it is something sacred and worth respectfully giving time to.” He said.
