Passion play sees final performance of veteran 'Jesus'

Scores of penitents whipped themselves bloody under a scorching Philippine sun while others were nailed to crosses in a polarizing Good Friday tradition drawing the most extreme of Catholic devotees.

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The macabre spectacle, officially frowned on by the Church, attracts thousands of Filipinos — and a smattering of tourists — each Easter weekend to sites across Asia’s only majority Catholic nation. In San Fernando, Pampanga, 64-year-old Ruben Enaje was nailed to a cross for the 36th time on Friday.

Minutes after the nails were gingerly removed from his palms, he told reporters it would be for the last time.

“I really can’t do it anymore. They had to aim portable fans at me earlier just for me to breathe normally,” Enaje said, after temperatures reached 39 degrees Celsius.

In an unscripted moment, Enaje had tumbled down an embankment while navigating the narrow path to the cross after being “pushed a bit harder than usual” by a man playing a Roman soldier.