Should We Preserve the Santacruzan?

The growing consciousness of the important role of women in Christian faith has been brought about by many feminist Catholic theologians and their continuous writings on the subject.

But long before this consciousness came about, the Filipino community particularly the Tagalogs concocted a popular retelling of biblical and historical female personages who contributed to the faith. It culminates with Queen Helena (Reyna Elena) who embarked on a pilgrimage to find the true cross of Christ. In the religious pageant, Reyna Elena is accompanied by a young Constantine who became the first emperor to make Christianity the official religion of the Roman empire. In towns who really know the tradition, they have San Macario mounted on a carroza. St. Macarius accompanied the Queen to the Holy Land.

There is no clear history as to the Santacruzan’s origins. The Tagalog region credits the beginning of the santacruzan or the Sta. Cruz de Manila after the declaration of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception on 8 December 1854. In 1867, Mariano Sevilla translated and published the devotional Flores de Maria or the “Mariquit na Bulaclac na sa Pagninilaynilay sa Buong Buan nang Mayo ay Inihahandog nang manga Devoto cay Maria Santisima” (The Flowers of Mary or the Beautiful Flowers Prayer for the whole month of May is dedicated by the devotees to Mary, most holy).

Since the Filipinos have a great devotion to the Holy Mother, a pageantry that involves a retelling of stories of faith will gain a large following. Philippine festivals begins in the first week of May with the Flores de Mayo. In some parts of the country, May is the time of fiestas and celebrations. To certain towns whose patron is San Isidro Labrador, the patron of farmers, revelry has already began with the Pahiyas of Quezon and the Carabao festival of Pulilan, Bulacan. A few towns away, the dancers of Obando are already twirling to the fandango. While the Boholanos are homeward bound for a series of town fiestas. So, while everyone is in a celebratory mood, the Santacruzan is held as the culminating event of the Maytime festivities everywhere. No wonder it holds the title, Queen of all Philippine Festivals.

The line-up of the Santacruzan tells a story. It begins with the ceriales: a cross, two candles, and in many processions, even with the boat of incense and the censer. Altar boys carrying the ceriales lead any religious procession. It tells you that the event has spiritual and catechetical significance. It is officially recognized by the Church as a practice of piety. The event therefore begins and ends in the town’s church.

A proper Santacruzan will begin with Methuselah, the legendary man who lived a thousand years. He is usually a child with a beard riding a cariton. He fries (at least acts like stirring) rice over a wok. He is a reminder that whatever glitters does not stay forever. What matters in life are the ones that are eternal.

After that, the Philippine context is put to the fore with Reyna Banderadas, who wears a red, white and blue terno and holding, obviously, the Philippine flag. Sometimes, we have Aetas to symbolize our pre-Hispanic lives before the coming of Christianity and Reyna Mora follows to tell us about the dominant religion during the time.

The coming of Christianity is symbolized by the virtues of faith (Reyna Fe with a cross), hope (Reyna Esperanza with an anchor) and charity (Reyna Caridad with a red heart). And then follows the sagalas Abogada who defends the poor, Sentenciada who symbolizes the innocents sentenced to death by King Herod, and Justicia who carries a scale.

The Biblical characters are next. The women of the Old Testament occupy a prominent place in the event. Reina Saba is the Queen of Sheba who sought Solomon for his wisdom. Infanta Judith is the judge who killed Holofernes to save her people. And finally, a personal favorite, Reina Esther is the Jewish Queen of Persia who protected her exiled people in Babylon from persecution.

The women of the Passion and Death of Christ succeeds the Old Testament characters. Veronica with the image of Christ on a cloth walks before the Tres Marias: Mary Magdalene with a perfume bottle, Maria Jacobe with a broom, Maria Salome with an incenser or oil. To add more sagalas, some will carry objects that would remind us of the Passion of Jesus: the money bag of Judas, the rooster of Peter, the spear and nails of the crucifixion.

In santacruzans that incorporate the Flores de Mayo, the final group are the titles of Mary. Usually eight children with the letters AVE MARIA head this part of the procession. Reina de las Estrellas (Queen of Stars) carries a star attached to a wand while Reina de las Propetas has an hour glass. Reina Cielo (Queen of Heaven), Reina de la Paz (Queen of Peace), Reina de las Flores and then Rosa Mistica hold a bouquet of flowers.

Finally, Reyna Elena highlights the procession. Queen Helena carries the cross with the young Constantine with her. She walks demurely under a decorated arc, usually well-lit and carried by the most handsome boys of the town. However, in towns whose prominent families pride themselves when their daughters are given recognition, they would give anything to secure that dream. Many santacruzans extend the title: you can have as many Reyna Elenas as you want, but the star is called, the Emperatriz.

As unassuming as he was, San Macario follows quietly. In identifying the true cross, St. Macarius of Jerusalem suggested that an ill woman be touched by the three crosses. One cross healed the woman instantly. Upon Emperor Constantine’s wish, a church was built on Christ’s sepulcher; the church became a basilica in the later years.

A band and a choir sings “Dios Te Salve Maria” in Latin. When it gets tired, they shift to English and the vernacular versions of Ave Maria to add some variety to a repetitive chant.

The santacruzan then ends in the town’s church. The parish priest blesses all who participated. The people then proceeds to the dinner venue usually the town plaza or gym where the santacruzan ball will also be held. The sagalas and their escorts finally dance the night away. After all, they spent a lot on their outfits.

Does the santacruzan have a future?

Celebrations are vital elements in a culture. As much as we preserve our artifacts in a museum to remember our past, and our written heritage is bound in libraries, we should make an equal effort to study our ritual traditions. How we do things contributes to our identity as Filipinos.

And like all celebrations, the santacruzan has to be nurtured by a people who acknowledges its significance not just in faith but in terms of building communities. We can do this by incorporating the history and the role of the santacruzan as part of our lessons in classrooms or lectures about our heritage.

Or see the potential in its creative concept.

The reason many of our citizens do not have a sense of our nationhood can be attributed to a lack of a collective memory. If Christians celebrate the bible that contains a collection of stories of faith, then Filipinos are brought together by a common memory.

Now a weird and wild idea. There are many women who continued to nurture our faith even after Queen Helena. If the santacruzan is a Philippine festival and its characters are extended depending on the number of sagalas, why can’t we extend or add another santacruzan-type of procession having the women in our history that contributed in nation-building?

Think: Melchora Aquino and Gabriela Silang on the runway? Cory Aquino in yellow? Or our mothers whose sweat and blood made us who we are today. Perhaps, we can re-tell our stories every year, so that our children remembers that building a nation is a contribution of who we are, what we have and what we hope for.

Shall We Change the Flores de Mayo to Hunyo?

When the dominant color of the countryside is brown and the heat is piercing, the need for water becomes pronounced. Imagine if your bread and butter solely depends on the fruit of the soil, nothing will make your heart jump for joy than the first signs of rain.

In the past when climate change was not an issue, the rains came in May. The first drops were believed to be the tears of the Virgin whose heart had been stabbed by the cries of her children.

That is why until today, May has always been the month of religious pageants and processions. And what’s a main event without flowers? When parched lands are quenched with water, flowers soon bloom and display their magnificent colors.

The Flores de Mayo is dedicated to the Virgin whose compassion watered the earth. Tradition has it that for the whole month, children scour the countryside every afternoon for the most beautiful blooms to be offered at the altar of the Holy Mother. They are gathered by a catechist who leads them in the praying of the rosary. They will hold the beads that symbolize a “garland of roses” (latin: rosarium “rose garden”). They will recite the Our Father’s and the Hail Mary’s while glancing once in a while to the statue of the Virgin, and then stare longer for the fleeting glance of another child inviting them to play afterwards.

In traditional communities whose folks keep the Flores de Mayo untarnished by other influences, the religious procession is done at the end of the month, usually at nightfall. With a bouquet of flowers, children in their best white garment demurely walk around town. Wearing a ribbon sash with a title from the litany of the rosary, every sagala and their escort are lighted by the devotees’ candles. Since there are more titles in the litany, there could be more sagalas in the procession.

The most important title of the Flores is Rosa Mistica. It is given to the winner of a fund-raising beauty pageant or to a local’s daughter. The parent/s of the main sagala must have made a name for themselves, whether as an affluent balikbayan, a successful professional or a popular celebrity.

The statue is followed by a throng of people, singing the “Ave Maria” while holding lighted candles that create the ephemeral feel of the ritual. For the more affluent communities, the procession is enlivened by music from a brass band. In fact, the biggest day of the Flores begins with the band playing around 5:00 am. The early morning music is called, diana or aurora. It is to remind the people of the day’s significance.

At sunset, the sagalas emerge from the church under beautiful arcos held by relatives or secret admirers. At the end of the line, the statue of the Holy Mother mounted on a carroza and decked with flowers is pushed by male devotees.

To citizens who treasure the event, the Flores de Mayo culminates with a ball at the town plaza and the much awaited event is the Rigodon de Honor. (Check the Flores de Mayo of Marinduque.)

From the very beginning, the prime motivation of the Flores de Mayo has always been gratitude. But like many tried and tested traditions, people loses sight of its original value while other elements not intrinsic to it are added.

The Flores de Mayo has always been church-based. The children who pray the rosary and has given flowers are also the ones who will parade the titles of the Virgin around town. To some conscientious communities, the Rosa Mistica is given to the child who has a perfect attendance. It is meant to encourage the children; as well as to ensure that the Flores de Mayo will stay as part of our culture.

How are we going to update this tradition?

First, we should return to its original inspiration: the beginning of the rainy season and a gesture of gratitude.

With the El Nino and climate change today, the rains stood us up. The fields remain parched and dry even at the end of May. Are we foreseeing a change of title: Flores de Hunyo?

Or should we be conscious that even with God’s mercy, we are not exempted from responsibility?

The Flores de Mayo, despite its name, is church-and-community-based. Our faith is genuine, but uninformed. It has been kept by popular religious practices such as rosaries, novenas, processions, and celebrations (Chapter 3, Catechism for Filipino Catholics).

That is why our faith has not been a leaven of transformation in Philippine society (The Christian Faith of Today’s Filipino, 2nd Plenary Council of the Philippines 1991).

Years ago, the Flores de Mayo has been a month-long celebration. Before the main event, the Hermano or Hermana Mayor organize other events such as medical and dental missions, fund-raising activities, or mass weddings.

Can an environmental activity be included in the Maytime festivities? The consciousness of today’s Fiipino has already been opened to understand our contribution to this heat that has not brought the rains back to our homeland.

The Fertility Dances of Obando: Will You Dance to Get What You Desire?

We do everything in our power to get what we truly desire. Even if they find themselves like fools, many childless couples are more than willing to dance to the saints of Obando, Bulacan just to have that one child they have been praying for years.

The Scriptures have more than one story about barren women granted what they deeply desired. Sarah, the wife of Abraham, bore Isaac in her old age (Gen 16-21). Isaac married Rebekah who never bore children in their 20 years of marriage, until the Lord blessed them with two children, Jacob and Esau. Isaac pleaded to the Lord to grant that wish (Gen 25:21). Rachel, the true love of Jacob, finally had Joseph and Benjamin. The wife of Manoah had Samson (Judges 13) and Hannah had Samuel after years of supplication at the Temple. And the most famous was Elizabeth, the wife of Zechariah, who found herself blessed when she bore John the Baptist in her womb (Luke 1).

And thus to the most devout during the Spanish Period in the Philippines, when there was no way to determine who was infertile among couples, the women were usually to blame. And so, in Jose Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere, Dona Pia, the wife of Kapitan Tiago, went to Obando to do that fertility dance to Sta. Clara, Sta. Maria de Salambao and San Pascual Baylon. Upon the advice of Padre Damaso, that pilgrimage gave us the damsel Maria Clara, whose birth caused the death of her mother. Whether it was a grant by the saints or the cause of a coerced coupling, Maria Clara and Obando went into history. Maria Clara was a combination of the two saints who granted the couple’s wish for a child. The unmentioned third saint was punished because he did not grant a son, the wish of both Kapitan Tiago and Dona Pia.

To this day, people still sing and dance the song to its most senior patron:

Sta. Clara, pinung pino

Ang pangako ko’y ganito:

Pagdating ko sa Obando,

Sasayaw ako ng pandanggo.

Sta. Clara, pinung pino

Ako po’y bigyan ninyo,

Ng asawang labin pito,

Sa golpe ay walang reklamo.

What’s the story of Sta. Clara and the Obando fertility dance?

Rewind to pre-Hispanic era.

As in Scripture, virtue is found in fertility; only later in Christianity do we find value in virginity. As Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, the wife of Manoah, Hannah and Elizabeth suffered social scorn, barren women in Philippine pagan society belong to the lowest social rank. When there was no science to intervene or discover if the condition is actually not the woman’s but the man’s, or herbal medications to make pregnancy possible, the recourse was to do the fertility dances to their anitos.

When a Franciscan built a chapel dedicated to Sta. Clara, the fertility dances continued. Mission work took the cue from St. Gregory the Great: pagan rites could be neutralized by establishing a Christian counterpart.

The second personage was San Pascual Baylon: his name “Baylon” was close to the word, “baele” thus he became the saint “who dances” and thus, the dances became Christianized. His patronage coincided with the establishment of Obando. In the past, there was Barangay Catangalang, named after the red mangrove forest found in the area. It was part of Polo. When Polo separated from Meycauayan in 1623, Governor General of the Islands, the Marquis Jose Francisco de Obando y Solis, decreed on May 14, 1753, that Catangalang would carry his name. With the change of name, the parish priest allowed a tribute for the making of a church that would replace the visita of Sta. Clara. The new patron was someone known to have danced before the statue of the Virgin Mary: He was no other than San Pascual Baylon.

The third personage was Our Lady of Salambao. Salambao means a fishing net. The legend had two fishermen, Juan and Julian de la Cruz who caught the image of the Immaculate Conception in their salambao. Days later, the parish priest of Obando got the image and enshrined it in the new church.

And thus, with these three saints, Obando became a pilgrimage center. And so the religious pageantry began. Patrons of Obando would leave food outside of their houses for the pilgrims in their nine-day novena. During these days, pilgrims could expect board and lodging from the residents of Obando. Unfortunately, the hospitality in the once secluded town had ended with the advent of modern transportation and commerce.

But like many traditions people find meaningful, the dances continued to flourish today and especially celebrated on from the 17th to the 19th of May. The songs are still dedicated to Sta. Clara who witnessed the transfer of attention from anito to santo.

And what does the Church say about this? There is no official condemnation.

As a priest, I agree. Traditions like the dances are community events whatever their history. They are supported by the people who found these traditions meaningful and worthy to practice until eternity. It survives because every year, there are success stories of childless couples finally having the baby they’ve been waiting for. Many so-called “intellectuals” will cringe from this type of popular piety, but wait till their deepest desires can’t be had even with the best of medicine and their show of money.

What’s a little tryst in Obando compared to the millions one spend for the sole wish that would fulfill one’s life?

However, many do not have a million.

They only have God.

And there are written and oral stories that support what we all know: With God, nothing is impossible.

Sometimes, you have to be a fool to show how much you really desire what you are praying for.