Happy Ishtar (in my hometown Igbaras, Iloilo)

The picture below was taken at the time when Black Friday or Viernes Santo devotees poured out to the streets at around 4-5 pm and wound back to church at 6-7 pm.

After that, a vigil followed until midnight. Next midnight, the Mater Dolorosa and her Crucified Son "met" for some sort of "buklas lalaw" where the sorrowful mother's veil is lifted.

The deep purple veils of sorrow shrouding all "santos" in the church including the Crucified One, is pulled down and communal worship begins where the minister blesses not only water and oil but as well, all means that makes lives of worshippers abundant.

Pardon this repetition, the anticipated rise of the Crucified One, heralds fresh life prompting worshippers to bring samples of their seeds and tools of production that include but not limited to paray, mais, mongo and other beans, etc. brought to church for blessing.

In my yonder years as acolyte, the tools dragged to worship included passenger vehicles, private cars and tricycles, among others.

Today, the cue of vehicles up for blessing on the eve of Easter stretched for over a kilometer that the ageing cura paroco would delegate acolytes to do the rest of sprinkling the tools of livelihood with the freshly transformed holy water.

Easter heralds not only new life but prosperity as well.

Which brings us back to ancient Mesopotamia where worshippers celebrated the feast of Ishtar, goddess of beauty and prosperity with its symbols of bunnies, eggs, sweets and women, among others, which the likes of the deranged orange head paedophile at the White House and his co-Epstein devotees hold at premium to the point of attacking another sovereign people.

Happy Ishtar!!!

(PS. The Vienes Santo "prosesyon" now stretches up to midnight for two reasons: the unbearable heat and the phenomenon "privatization" of worship.

Before, the Santo Intiero, the star of the show, was fetched at the residence of the Hingcos in Brgy. 2 at around two, in a small procession leading to the church where rituals like the "washing of the feet of apostles" started the worship. The homily was followed by the crowd pouring out of the church, which lengthened along the way for the "via crucis" procession, stopping briefly on each "estasyon" of the cross. After the 14th station, the procession wound up to church at around 5-6, the last gleam of sunlight still blanketing the western horizon. The vigil starts.

Today, the procession started at sunset or shortly before that when the heat is bearable. Climate change singlehandedly did all that reversal. The 4-5 pm April heat, still sears nowadays, thus, the readjusted timing.

The other factor, the "privatization" of worship added to the sunset or sunrise of the Viernes Santo streak, wherever one may view it.

Before, the "santos" were fewer and small -- the "santo-intierro" the star of the show, was the shortest vertically because the Crucified One is lying down, horizontally that is. Its fellow "santos" -- the pensive Jesus, Virgin Dolorosa, the Tortured One (39 lashes), the "pieta" were at least human size and could breeze through the crowded road.

Today, if you look at the prosesyon from a distance, you can spot the big difference -- it transofrmed itself to a cacophony of lights and bedlam, loudspeakers spewing incantations and music. Each "santo" has a loudspeaker; the procesyon has become a parade of sluggish but well dressed giants.

The Vienes Santo prosesyon has opened the flood gates of competition among the town's who's who -- families who can muster and field "santos" beyond life-size, giants standing on oversized carts adorned or dressed for the kill.

Life emanating from the parade of the "santos" is palpable, each "santo" brandishing at least a ower generator for lights and sound system blaring songs and incantations. Each has an army of prayer warriors and chanters -- some serving as human hands to push or pull, a team of pole holders to push up drooping powerlines to ensure passage of oversized "santos".

The cura paroco or celebrating minister follows the star of the show -- the Santo Intierro -- has his own entourage to pray and sing amid the hum of a power generator to light up his contingent and amplify their supplications.

A familia with cash to burn is free to field a "santo" at the Viernes Santo procession which has become a parade of devoted who's-who to last till the graveyard shift of sort.)