On Saturday 14 September 2024, the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross – which constitutes, together with the feast of Saint George, the most important and moving religious event of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George – the Royal Commission for the Republic of San Marino of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George attended Mass for the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, at the church of Francesco in Contrada San Francesco, located within the walls of the ancient city of San Marino. A precious relic of the Holy Cross was placed on the altar, with which at the end of Mass a blessing was given individually to all the participants. The Nuns of Perpetual Adoration sang during the liturgy.
The Mass was celebrated at 5.30 pm by Father Marco Scandelli, Constantinian Chaplain of Merit with Silver Star. He offered the Mass to his brothers, sisters, friends and their respective families, in the presence of the Delegate for the Most Serene Republic of San Marino, Dr. Cesare Tabarrini, Knight of Merit with Silver Star.
In his homily, Father Scandelli recalled the true meaning of the Cross, that is, that the glorification of Christ passes through the torment of the Cross and that the antithesis of suffering-glorification becomes fundamental in the history of Redemption. Christ, incarnated in his concrete human-divine reality, voluntarily submits to the humiliating condition of a slave (the cross, from the Latin “crux”, i.e. torment, was reserved for slaves) and the ignominious torture is transformed into imperishable glory. Thus the Cross becomes the symbol and compendium of the Christian religion.
At the end of the Mass, Leonardo Tricarico, Knight of Office, recited the Prayer of the Constantinian Knight.
