The recent calamities that hit the country could double the number of devotees for Saturday’s procession of the Black Nazarene in Quiapo, Manila, church officials said Friday.

Msgr. Clemente Ignacio, rector of the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene (Quiapo Church), said they expect the number of devotees to top the estimated six million people last year because of the natural calamities and man-made disasters that hit the country recently.

“We noticed that when our country experienced a crisis, the number of churchgoers also increased,” he said in a press briefing.

“In the past, devotees are not that many. Last year the police said the crowd peaked at three million during the procession while the people that came in and out of Quiapo Church was around five to six million,” he said.

Due to the expected big number of people coming to Quiapo this year, the priest appealed to devotees to just go to the more spacious Quirino Grandstand area at the Rizal Park where the procession will start at 7:30 a.m.

“My request to devotees that will come from other places is for them to just go to Luneta if they want to join the procession. Let’s leave the narrow roads of Quiapo to those living in the area so as to divide the crowd,” said Ignacio.

Held annually as part of the celebration of the Feast of the Black Nazarene, the procession will take the following route: from Quirino Grandstand going to Katigbak Drive thru P. Burgos, straight to McArthur Bridge, right to Palanca, left to Estero Cegado, right Carriedo, left Evangelista, right Raon, right Quezon Blvd, thru under Quezon Bridge, left Palanca, left Globo de Oro, left Gunao, right Arlegui, left Nepomuceno, left Aguila, right Carcer, right Hidalgo, left Barbosa, right Globo de Oro St., thru under Quezon Bridge, right Palanca, right Villalobos thru Plaza Miranda going to Quiapo Church.

The grand annual procession will highlight the 403rd Feast of the Black Nazarene, marking one of the country’s most spectacular religious festivals. It will start following the 6 a.m. concelebrated mass to be officiated by Manila Archbishop Gaudencio B. Cardinal Rosales.

The image was quietly transferred to the grandstand last January 7 at 11 p.m. for a vigil. The traditional “Pahalik sa Nazareno,” a mass, healing services, and the Station of the Cross were held Friday as well as a voter’s education forum that was anchored on the celebration’s theme, “Tunay na Deboto, Matuwid at Masunuring Katiwala ng Poong Hesus Nazareno.”

The Holy Hour will be observed at 3 a.m. this Saturday. At the Quiapo Church, hourly masses will be held from 3 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 3 p.m. to 9 p.m.

This year’s procession will take the traditional route after a re-routing last year led to confusion among devotees and stretched the procession to a long 10 hours. Devotees traditionally follow the procession barefoot as a sign of humility or in fulfillment of a vow (panata).

While chanting “Viva Senor!”, many will try to get near and touch the ropes, believed to have miraculous powers, attached to the gilded carriage of the image of the Black Nazarene. Others will throw towels to the men surrounding the image and who will in turn throw the towels back to the crowd after wiping them on the image of the black Christ.

The life-sized wooden statue was brought to Manila by a group of Augustinian Recollect friars from Mexico on May 31, 1606. First enshrined at the first Recollect Church in Bagumbayan (now part of Rizal Park), the Black Nazarene was transferred to a bigger Recollect Church in Intramuros, Manila in 1608.

In 1787, Archbishop of Manila Basilio Sancho de Santas Junta y Rufina ordered the transfer of the image to the Quiapo Church where it has survived great fires in 1791 and 1929, strong earthquakes in 1645 and 1863, and the bombing of Manila during World War II.

The Recollect Fathers worked to spread devotion to the Black Nazarene all over the country. During the 19th century, Pope Pius VII granted indulgence to those who piously prayed before the image of the Black Nazarene.