Saint Helena and the Santacruzan

The Santacruzan is a Filipino religious tradition. This event is part of Philippine culture and the lifestyle of Filipinos. The Santacruzan means the Holy Cross or in Spanish Santa Cruz. This event goes hand in hand with the Flores de Mayo, honoring the Blessed Virgin Mary and Saint Helena or Santa Elena. Saint Helena is the mother of the first Christian Roman Emperor Constantine.

The Santracruzan celebrates St. Helena's pilgrimage to the Holy Land to find the wood where Christ was crucified. When St. Helena found pieces of the wooden cross she went back to Rome bringing with her pieces of the wood. The pieces of the cross were venerated by the faithful, the newly converted Roman Christians. The cross obviously is holy since that is the cross of Christ, hence called the Santa Cruz or the Holy Cross.

The Philippine Santracruzan is a long procession featuring the characters in the Christian Bible's Old Testament and New Testament. The final characters at the end of the procession are St. Helena or the Reina Elena aka the Empress or Emperatriz and her male consort Contantine or Constantino. In essence representing St. Helena and her son, the Emperor Constantine.