Quiapo Church on Tuesday reported that more than 1,268,000 devotees attended this year’s Feast of the Black Nazarene in three days — a number significantly higher than the 400,000 crowd estimate during the limited celebrations in 2021.

This marked the first time since the height of the Covid-19 pandemic that the event had gathered more than a million people, following the easing of restrictions.

The bulk of the crowd was present during the festivities on Sunday and Monday, during the two midnight Masses at the Quirino Grandstand with parish priest Fr. Jun Sescon and Manila Archbishop Jose Cardinal Advincula, and the hourly Masses inside and around Quiapo Church.

Sunday, in particular, the highlight of this year’s festivities, saw some 88,000 devotees walking from the Quirino Grandstand to Quiapo Church for the “Walk of Faith,” an alternative event to the more crowded “Traslacion”.

Nazareno 2023 spokesperson Fr. Earl Allyson Valdez told reporters that the traditional “Traslacion” may be resumed next year, depending  on the Covid-19 situation.

“It’s clear to us that whatever we have learned this year will be integrated and will be used for innovation in the years to come,” he added.