From ‘Batang Quiapo’ star Coco Martin to OPM’s Angeline Quinto, discover the personal vows and miraculous stories behind showbiz’s most devout faces.
Every January 9, Quiapo transforms into a river of faith. Millions of devotees, barefoot, weary, and resolute, fill the streets to walk with the Black Nazarene, carrying prayers that words often fail to express.
While the Traslación is known for its scale and intensity, its true power lies in the quiet, deeply personal stories it holds, including those of celebrities whose devotion began long before the spotlight found them.
For many public figures, faith in the Black Nazarene is not a spectacle but a lifeline, one that carries them through uncertainty, loss, and hope.
Coco Martin: a vow rooted in gratitude
Before he became one of the most recognizable faces on Philippine television, Coco Martin was simply another devotee kneeling inside Quiapo Church. In the early years of his career, when opportunities were scarce and responsibilities heavy, he turned to the Black Nazarene with one prayer: to find steady work and to uplift his family from hardship.
As his career flourished, Coco’s devotion did not fade. He continued to visit Quiapo quietly, often away from cameras, seeing his success not as self-made but as grace received. For him, devotion is not just about asking, it is about returning, again and again, in gratitude. The Black Nazarene, as Coco has shared in past interviews, reminds him of humility, perseverance, and the importance of remembering where he started.
Angeline Quinto: faith that carried her through loss
For Angeline Quinto, devotion to the Black Nazarene is woven into both joy and grief. A lifelong devotee, she found strength in prayer during one of the most painful chapters of her life, the illness of her adoptive mother, Sylvia “Mama Bob” Quinto.
In moments when answers were uncertain, Angeline’s faith became her anchor. She has often spoken about how praying to the Black Nazarene did not always mean asking for miracles but asking for strength to endure, to accept, and to keep going. Even after loss, Quiapo remained a place of refuge, where thanksgiving exists alongside sorrow.
Noli de Castro: guidance in the stillness
Other familiar faces quietly share the same devotion. Veteran broadcaster Noli de Castro built a routine of prayer at Quiapo long before his journalism career took off, finding guidance in stillness rather than applause.
Even at 75, Noli ensures his schedule is clear every Friday morning for Quiapo. For him, the Nazareno is a consultant for life’s biggest decisions, providing a sense of direction that no teleprompter ever could.
Passing the torch: McCoy de Leon and family
Actor McCoy de Leon brings his young daughter to the feast, passing on faith not through sermons, but through example. Recently, he made headlines for bringing his young daughter, Felize, to the feast. By teaching her to shout “Viva!” amid the crowd, he is passing on a tradition started by his father. For McCoy, the physical struggle of the procession is a way to prove that faith—much like family—requires effort and presence.
Where fame dissolves: The Quiapo Equality
Comedian Giselle Sanchez traces her devotion to a personal healing experience, while actors Dimples Romana, Rodjun Cruz, and Dianne Medina have each spoken of prayers answered in ways both subtle and life-changing. Fashion designer Renee Salud, long before acclaim, made pilgrimages to Quiapo as an act of surrender, believing success is sustained not only by talent but by grace.
What unites these celebrities with millions of ordinary devotees is identification. In the Black Nazarene, they see a Christ who understands exhaustion, sacrifice, and perseverance. In Quiapo, fame dissolves. There are no leading roles, no audiences, only people reaching out in faith, carrying crosses both seen and unseen.
The devotion to the Black Nazarene does not elevate status; it humbles it. And for Martin, Quinto, and countless others, that humility remains the greatest blessing of all.
For Coco Martin, The Black Nazarene reminds him of humility, perseverance, and the importance of remembering where he started.
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