Several countries in Hispanic America publicly celebrate the Holy Cross with processions, prayers, and music recalling the date when St. Helen found the Holy Cross.
Newsroom (05/05/2023 06:20, Gaudium Press) May 3rd is known as the “day of the Cross”, the “feast of the Crosses” or even the “May Cross” in many countries of Spanish America such as Chile, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Colombia, Venezuela and even Spain itself.
Liturgically, the day receives the name “Inventio” of the Holy Cross, referring to the Latin term “inventio” which means “discovery”, and “encounter”. It was on May 3, 366 that St. Helena found the Cross of the Savior.
The feast of the Holy Cross in May was for centuries considered the main liturgical feast to venerate the Cross, the object chosen by God to work the Redemption of the world.
However, the feast lost prominence after John XXIII’s motu proprio “Rubricarum instructurum” established September 14 as the day of the “Exaltation of the Holy Cross,” the day that commemorates the consecration of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, and the main day commemorating the Holy Cross in the universal Church.
Commemorations in Spain
However, in several countries in the Americas, May 3rd continues to be celebrated with great enthusiasm and procession. The faithful usually go out in processions to a high point in the city where a cross is installed and the participants lay flowers, sing and pray next to the symbol of Catholicism.
The commemorations vary a little from city to city. Special mention should be made of the region of Andalusia in Spain, known for its Holy Week processions and which has no less important celebrations on May 3.
In Granada, for example, the celebration of the Day of the Cross begins on May 2. For two days, the city streets are taken over by flowers and people dressed in flamenco fashion singing and playing music.
In 2023, a total of 51 crosses can be visited in the streets, squares, courtyards, and schools of the city of Granada. The city also holds a contest to elect the most beautiful crosses of the year. (FM)
Compiled by Dominic Joseph