Thursday afternoon. The festival begins when the stewards of La Cruz, organiser of the pilgrimage, gather to collect the Padrino. Accompanied by the stewards of the street to the sound of the ‘Romerito’, the Padrino collects the Madrina and they begin their journey through the different streets of the town to the church, where Mass will be celebrated, accompanied at all times by the Bonares Music Band.
The procession is made up of the stewards of the organising street, dressed in traditional Andalusian costume. All the emblems of the street are also paraded in the procession: the flag (leading the procession), the Simpecado and the Paso con la Cruz, preceded by the Padrinos.
Once the Mass is over, the entire procession makes its way through the different streets of the town until it reaches its chapel, where the cross is reinstalled so that it can be visited. Then the festivities begin, with the stewards of the cross inviting all those gathered to eat and drink in different halls and/or houses. The festival lasts until dawn, enlivened by singing and dancing.
When Holy Sunday arrives, the popular serenade begins in the Town Hall Square in front of the Cruz del Rincón.
The Bonares Music Band, accompanied by all the cruceros and cruceras, visit the Chapels of the Crosses, each one awaiting them with fireworks and ringing bells, welcoming this heart-warming event.
In front of the Glorious Cross, eight sevillanas are played, which are danced by all the townspeople attending this unique event of popular folklore.
Amidst the sounds of the band, the dancing, the locals and visitors around the Cross, the town bids farewell to such a heart-warming festival, rich in popular crafts and unique beauty in the surrounding area.
‘Romerito’ refers to the pilgrimage organised by the Cruz (Cross) that is the protagonist of that year, which is attended by members of the other crosses and the entire town.
In the morning, all the participants gather in Calle de la Cruz, where the line is organised and the procession begins until it reaches the parish church. The first event of the day is the blessing of the bouquet of flowers carried by the godmother and its placement on the cart with the Simpecado of the Cross of the Rosemary. Once the bouquet has been blessed, a procession takes place through different streets of the village to the natural spot ‘El Corchito’, where the pilgrimage is celebrated.
At dusk, to the sound of fireworks, the pilgrims are called to organise the return procession, in the same order as in the morning, but preceding the cart are the Padrinos del Romero and the Padrinos de la Cruz, who will be in charge of organising the pilgrimage the following year. Once they have travelled through several streets of the village, both padrinos stand in the Plaza de la Constitución, together with the Cruz del Rincón and the local authorities. Once everything is ready, all the pilgrims parade, expressing their commitment to the festival with a loud ‘Viva la Cruz y el Romero!’ (Long live the Cross and the Rosemary!).
When the entire procession has passed, the ‘entrega de varas’ (handing over of the sticks) takes place, that is, the Padrino hands over the ‘Vara del Romero’ to the Mayor, who in turn hands it over to the Padrino de la Cruz, who will be responsible for organising the pilgrimage the following year.
Once the ‘Vara’ has been handed over, the procession moves to Calle de la Cruz, which will be responsible for organising the festival, where the stewards invite all those gathered to ‘caldo’ (broth). This is the first event that the Cruz del Romero has to organise the following year.
Easter Sunday morning begins with the Dawn Mass, which is undoubtedly the prelude to the festivities in honour of the Crosses. After the Dawn Mass, the ‘Padrinos’ (godparents) of the Cross, who are responsible for organising the pilgrimage that year, are accompanied from the church to the chapel of their Cross by a procession led by the local authorities, the godparents of the previous and following year’s pilgrimage, and supported by all the residents of the village. To the sound of the ‘Romerito’ performed by the Bonares Music Band, the procession makes its way to the ‘pilgrim’s street’, which, according to custom, is covered with a carpet of this aromatic plant, and where all those gathered are invited to breakfast.
At dawn on Sunday, with the sound of fireworks and the reveille played by the band, the big day of the local festivities begins. With the ringing of bells in the belfry of the chapels of Las Cruces, each one sets off for the parish church where a solemn Mass will be celebrated in honour of the Holy Cross. There, in strict order of seniority, they will be placed in the naves of the church facing the transept.
After Mass, the twelve crosses are carried one after the other in procession through the streets of Bonares until they reach the Plaza de la Constitución, where they are arranged in two rows, one in front of the other, always in order of seniority, leaving a passage between the two rows that coincides with the centre of the square.
The local authorities and the Cross of El Rincón are placed on the main façade of the Town Hall, where the ‘Caídas’ (falls) will be performed. These consist of three bows made by each Cross as it walks towards the Rincón Cross along the aisle between them to the rhythm of the ‘Romerito’ music. When all the Crosses have made the Caídas, it is the Cruz del Rincón that makes the three bows to the others, on this occasion from its place.
Once this act is over, each Cross returns to its chapel accompanied by its stewards.
On 1 May, the ‘Cruz Chica’ (Little Cross) is celebrated, an imitation of the festive ritual of the Day of the Cross, but starring children. For a time, this tradition had been lost, but thanks to the intervention of the Town Council, it has been celebrated again every year since 1987.
The Cruces Chicas follow the same ritual as their counterparts and take the same procession route. Perhaps the most noticeable difference is in the excitement and the costumes (flamenco dresses), as well as in the size of the crosses, flags and simpecados (banners) in the different streets. At the end of the procession, the participating children perform the traditional ‘falls’ from the balcony of the Town Hall, which are judged by a popular jury made up of boys and girls from each Cross. Once the final count has been made, the Town Hall awards a plaque as a souvenir of the event to the three best Crosses that have performed the falls, as well as a financial contribution to each of them so that this festival can continue to be held.
