Devotees force their way through the crowd to touch the rope connected to the carriage bearing the Black Nazarene during Tuesday鈥檚 grand procession. 鈥擬ARIANNE BERMUDEZ
Jeffrey Garcia, 22, a former altar boy, almost died of dengue in 2014.
He was then 19 years old 鈥� and fighting for his life in the hospital 鈥� when he thought of seeking the intercession of the Black Nazarene of Quiapo, of which he knew little besides what he had learned from his grandmother.
She told him that the image of Jesus Christ carrying a cross was 鈥渕iraculous鈥� 鈥� and that was all Garcia needed to remember.
鈥淏efore she died, my grandmother always reminded me to turn to Him for help,鈥� he recalled.
Unlike his grandmother, however, Garcia at the time considered himself more a Marian devotee. But in December 2014, after he was diagnosed with 鈥淪tage 4 dengue,鈥� he started to heed lola鈥檚 spiritual advice and stormed heaven with prayers.
鈥淚 was praying the rosary at that time. I was asking God to heal me because I was receiving blood transfusion every week,鈥� he said.
Receiving a discharge slip from the hospital days later, Garcia attributed his recovery to his silent conversations with the Black Nazarene.
Keeping lola鈥檚 vow
He has since 鈥渋nherited鈥� his grandmother鈥檚 vow and joins the millions of Nazarene devotees in the annual feast.
On Monday, he went to Quirino Grandstand for the traditional 鈥淧ahalik鈥� 鈥� an opportunity for the faithful to approach and kiss the image.
He spent the night under the stars at Rizal Park and completed his 鈥渇ull-time service to God鈥� by following the 鈥淭raslacion鈥� or grand procession the following morning.
Jesus Racaza was about the same age as Garcia when he discovered the Black Nazarene.
Life used to be a mess
His life before the Nazarene devotion was a mess, he confessed. He often got into street fights as a teenager.
Joblessness weighed him down when he became a parent raising a growing family.
One day, heavily burdened, he decided to go to Quiapo Church to pray.
He asked the Black Nazarene for a job and promised to change. Days later, he said, a company hired him as a bill collector.
Having kicked his bad habits, Racaza now considers himself a dedicated family man with a five-decade-old 鈥減anata鈥� to keep every Jan. 9.
And the 76-year-old Racaza is not allowing age to slow him down.
He was his wearing 鈥�20-year-old Nazarene shirt鈥� when the Inquirer saw him hearing Mass on Tuesday morning at Quirino Grandstand before the traslacion.