Religious Vendors of Manaoag

Abe V Rotor

Name the holy objects - from rosaries to statuettes,
holy water to ointments - and the vendors have it.
Vending is more than livelihood, it is art - craftsmanship
and the art of selling itself. Persistence and persuasion,
variety and strategy, make vending a serious business
yet it is a hobby and past time, a kind of sport to many.
Above all, vendors bridge the gap of trade and commerce,
linking different walks of life and the grassroots. Here
they are part of the faithful's devotion to the Lady of
Manaoag.

Religious Vendors of Manaoag

Tell me how many candles you have burnt for the Virgin;
Rounds of rosaries, Stations of the Cross, and psalms?
How many times have you walked to the altar on your knees,
And stigmata bleeding your side, feet and palms?

You have done these a thousand times through the faithful
Queuing to touch the miraculous icon, touching her robe;
You have done these with the light and incense of offering,
In whispers of atonement of faults in quiet throb.

You have done these a thousand times through your art
That leads the faithful to know where good and evil part. ~

Photos taken during a family pilgrimage to Our Lady of Manaoag
shrine in Manaoag, Pangasinan, Holy Week 2009.

Light from the Old Arch 2, AVR