Taxco, Mexico (AP) – Catholic worshippers in the Mexican state of Guerrero carried crosses and flagellated themselves in overnight processions as they commemorated Good Friday. Hundreds watched as ...

The late Pope John Paul II would whip himself, according to a nun who helped to look after him. So how common is this practice in the Catholic faith? "We would hear the sound of the blows," says ...

MANILA, April 6 (Reuters) - A group of 20 Catholic devotees walked barefoot for hours in Manila on Thursday while repeatedly striking their backs with bamboo whips to commemorate the passion of Jesus ...

Responding to acts of extreme corporal mortification during Holy Week, Catholic bishops in the Philippines have discouraged practices such as self-flagellation and crucifixion in favor of more ...

Pictures show devotees being flogged and others whipping their own backs red raw. The participants defied a ban on gatherings for the Holy Week display. There were less people taking part compared to ...

A new book about Pope John Paul II alleges that the pope engaged in self-flagellation in order to feel closer to God. Does Catholicism teach a proper way to whip yourself? No. The Catholic Church does ...

An official of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) yesterday reminded the faithful all over the country not to engage in crucifixion and self-flagellation in honoring the ...

In Jerusalem on Holy Wednesday, the friars of the Custody of the Holy Land venerate the two stones that, according to the Gospel of Luke, were stained with the blood of Jesus during his passion. The ...

Hundreds of half-naked Filipinos marched on narrow roads, whipping their backs until they were bloody in a religious ritual Thursday as the mainly Roman Catholic state observed the Lenten season.

Despite the rejection of the Catholic Church, self-flagellation continues to draw huge crowds in the predominantly Catholic Philippines during the Holy Week. John Rio, a resident of Hagdang Bato said ...

All pain but no gain? The Catholic Church said yesterday it does not encourage the time-honored Lenten ritual, usually practiced by provincial folk, of having oneself nailed to the cross to repent for ...

Devout Muslims in India have mourned the martyrdom of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson with a solemn mass flagellation ceremony. The ritual is known as Ashura, and is celebrated on the tenth day of the ...