The Truth About Flores de Mayo and Santa Cruzan

The truth about Santa Cruzan and Flores de Mayo
By Gil Alfredo B. Severino

MONSIGNOR Guillermo "Gigi" Gaston, who is presently serving as consultant to the National Commission on Culture and Arts based in Negros, seriously expressed strong disapproval over the way the Catholic Church celebrated "Santa Cruzan" and "Flores de Mayo".

Gaston decried the confusion over these two separate events and how the Catholic Church allowed the "vandalization" of their historicity and sacredness.

Traditionally, Santa Cruzan is celebrated at the beginning of May while Flores de Mayo at the end of the month, Gaston said.

"Santa Cruzan is based on Emperatriz Elena's effort to find the cross of Jesus when she commissioned the excavation of Mt. Calvary. When found, she led a procession to offer the cross in a church. His son Constantine the Great was a little boy, then," Gaston explained.

Today, we see a fashion show of gowns, beautiful girls and boys in their teens, at times their parents fought for the coveted Reyna Elena title, Gaston said.

In other places, movie stars paraded themselves and the Catholic Church never explained the event, Santa Cruzan must lead people to the Cross, which is the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, Gaston added.

"Everything must point to the Cross of Jesus Christ. The celebration need not be grand. But if there's beauty and expenses involved, people must see to it that it must point to the Cross," Gaston said.

Gaston added he wrote a paper on this once and gave it to the City Tourism Office but still it remains unheeded.

Meanwhile, Gaston explained Flores de Mayo is the crowning of the Virgin Mary with flowers celebrated by children after a month of catechism classes.

"Flores de Mayo is for the spiritual development of children. This is not connected with Santa Cruzan. Without children's catechism, Flores de Mayo is meaningless," Gaston explained.

"That is why Jose Rizal has a play where an angel and a devil were fighting over children not to let them enter the church. Eventually, the angel won and all children celebrated inside the church," he recalled.