WHO SAYS you can’t take a vacation during the Holy Week? Not the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP).
CBCP Secretary General Rev. Fr. Marvin Mejia said the Church also encourages recreation and family time, but Holy Week obligations must not take a back seat.
“Go to the beach and enjoy, but more than that pray and participate in the liturgical celebration,” Mejia said in an interview.
But fulfilling Church obligations alone does not ensure a “job well done,” said Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo, chairman of the CBCP Permanent Commission on Public Affairs. Catholics should refrain from merely “squeezing” the Holy Week traditions into their vacations, he said. It should be the other way around, he added.
“Filipinos are just praying, reflecting and attending the rituals for the sake of doing so,” Pabillo said.
Some Holy Week practices have changed over time, Church officials noted. Pabasa is now sung to modern tunes, while fasting has become an excuse for dieting. Solemn days are no longer quiet.
Mejia said, however, that change was normal in a postmodern society that encourages more expression and participation through arts and music. These “new” ways should lead to meditation and a deeper relationship with God, he said.
“People have different ways to spend the Holy Week, but you should never set aside the original intention of Lenten practices. Traditions have deeper meanings,” Mejia said.
Pabillo shared the sentiment, pointing out that a clear understanding of the practices and why they are done should be the basis for modifying them.
“There is no problem singing in rock version as long as it helps you understand. You have to truly reflect on the message of what you are reading. That is the reason why the traditional Pabasa is sung in a slow and solemn manner, so that the story is better understood,” Pabillo said.
