SAN PEDRO CUTUD, Philippines (AP) — A Filipino devotee has been nailed to the cross for the 30th time in a Lenten ritual and offered his sacrifice for peace in Belgium and other countries targeted by Islamic extremists.

Ruben Enaje and several other men screamed in pain as they were nailed to wooden crosses in a reenactment of Jesus Christ's death in Pampanga province north of Manila. Thousands of foreign and local tourists snapped pictures of the devotees in scorching summer heat.

Enaje, a sign painter, says he also prayed for peaceful Philippine presidential elections this year and a better job.

The Good Friday ritual is opposed by religious leaders in the Philippines, Asia's largest Roman Catholic nation, but the gory event has persisted.

(Story by: The Associated Press)

 

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