It’s Santacruzan time!

Our country is rich in traditions handed down by our ancestors. Festivals are part of the Filipino culture which are largely influenced by Spanish religious practices. Some festivals are in honor of a patron saint or major events in the life of Jesus Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary. A festivity is held every month somewhere in the country. Each city or barrio comes to life with at least one festival. Visitors, both local and tourists, are always welcome to celebrate the festivities which are special occasions for Filipinos to extend their hospitality and friendship.

The colorful month of May blooms with fiestas such as the much-awaited Flores de Mayo and Santacruzan. Flores de Mayo is the flower festival during May in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This month-long revelry is distinctly separate from the Santacruzan. In the Tagalog region, this custom began after the proclamation of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception in 1854 and after the publication circa 1867 of Mariano Sevilla’s translation of the devotional Flores de Maria.

Many towns celebrate Flores de Mayo with people gathering inside the church every afternoon to pray the rosary and offer fresh flowers and songs to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Children visit the church with bouquets of flowers and baskets of fragrant petals which they sprinkle while walking to the altar. This custom is called Alay sa Birhen.

Nine days of prayer or novena in honor of the Holy Cross precedes the Santacruzan. This festival was introduced by the Spaniards in the Philippines and has since become part of our Filipino tradition.

A Santacruzan or Festival of the Holy Cross is a religious-historical procession held in many cities, towns and small villages throughout the Philippines. It is one of the most colorful May-time festivals which commemorates the finding of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem by Queen Helena, mother of Emperor Constantine the Great. There was a joyful celebration of thanksgiving after the Holy Cross was found and brought back to Rome. Hence, the most important sagala is the Reina Elena and her consort, a boy called Constantino.

The procession has evolved throughout the years. The Santacruzan is now a unique blend of beauty pageant and religious procession as attractive belles walk in their stunning gowns. It is definitely more than a competition as to which sagala’s canopy is the brightest or has the most creative flower arrangement. As May starts, processions that showcase beautiful maidens and handsome consorts under floral arches are common evening fixtures in many parts of the country. Movie and TV personalities are also invited to participate in the Santacruzan as sagalas and escorts.

Pretty young ladies and gays are chosen to represent various biblical and historical characters and attributes of the Blessed Virgin. Each one is dressed in exquisite and resplendent gown, looking regal just like the queen she portrays. It is also required that gentlemen joining the Santacruzan wear Barong Tagalog.

The beautiful belles walk with their consorts under hand-carried bamboo arches adorned with colorful flowers. Some of the queens in the parade include Reina Fe who symbolizes the virtue of faith and she carries a cross; Reina Esperanza represents the virtue of hope and carries an anchor; Reina Caridad symbolizes the virtue of charity and carries a red heart; Reina Justicia personifies the "mirror of justice" and carries a weighing scale and a sword; and Reina de las Flores who carries a bouquet of flowers.

The highlight of the procession is the majestic Reina Elena who carries a small cross and walks with her consort, Prinsipe Constantino, under a huge canopy of beautiful and colorful flowers.

The highest honor given to a woman’s beauty is to be selected as Reina Elena. Behind her is a float carrying the image of the Blessed Virgin Mary followed by a brass band that leads the festive sounds of the procession and the singing of Dios Te Salve. The devotees who walk with the procession hold lighted candles in their hands, praying the rosary, and singing songs of praise.

The origin of the Santacruzan has its roots in the stories about the historical discovery of the Holy Cross on which Jesus was crucified. It is said that Queen Helena was sent by her son, Emperor Constantine I, on a mission to find the true cross on which our Lord was crucified. Queen Helena traveled to Jerusalem in 326 A.D. in search of the Holy Cross. She recovered three crosses during the excavations. She tested each cross by making her sick servant lie on all three. The cross where the servant was healed was identified as Christ’s.

In another story, Constantine I, the first Christian Roman Emperor, went on a battle against Maxentius in 312 A.D. and asked God for help. Constantine cast his eyes heavenwards and saw in the night sky a glowing sign of the cross with the words In hoc signia vincit which means "By this sign thou shalt conquer." He used the cross as his battle insignia with the words and defeated the Roman Army in the Battle of Milvian Bridge. Constantine’s victory led to his conversion into Christianity. His mother, Queen Helena, was inspired by her son’s experience and went on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land to seek the Holy Cross.