Several Roman Catholic devotees have been nailed to wooden crosses in a gory Good Friday ritual in the Philippines, and others flogged themselves or took part in religious plays to reenact Jesus Christ's suffering.

Four men and a woman people wearing crowns of twigs and escorted by villagers dressed as Roman centurions were nailed to crosses on a dusty hill in San Pedro Cutud village. Similar reenactments played out in nearby farming towns.

Thousands, including many tourists, watch the annual spectacle. The Catholic Church frowns upon it, instead calling on the faithful to mark Lent with prayers and acts of charity.

Prior to the reenacted crucifixions, dozens of penitents beat their bare backs with sharp bamboo sticks and wood. Some had their backs cut to keep them bloody.