Faithful Philippine Believers Mark Easter with Self-flagellate

Christian devotees are seen flagellating themselves on the street in Manila, the Philippines, to mark Good Friday on March 25, 2016.

The practices serve as an alternative to acts of Good Friday penance prescribed by the church, such as abstaining from work or from eating meat. The country was converted to Catholicism during the 16th century Spanish colonial conquest.

Father Douglas Badong, rector of the Quiapo Catholic Church in central Manila, said the church does not condone the practices.

"The church discourages these acts because Jesus Christ had already undergone that for all of us, there is no need to repeat it," he said.