THE CROSS OF FLOWERS
QUESTION? / COMMENT!
My father in law passed away and as an Hispanic, my mother in law said that during the novenario uno tiene que formar una Cruz con flores (during a novena one needs to form a cross with flowers). Cuando se termina el novenario el ultimo dia se recoje las flores que forman la cruz por los familiares y se ponen en un frasco y al dia sigiente se lleva al cementerio a enterarlo donde enteraron a mi suegro (The last day of the novena the flowers that were used to form a cross are placed in a vase in honor of families and taken to the cemetary to bury the flowers where my fatherlaw is buried)
I asked the priest about it and he said not to do it. But my mother in law wont listen unless her favorite priest or Jesse Romero says it's wrong. Please ask Jesse Romero to read and answer me back and let me know if doing that is pagan or brujeria
ANSWER! / COMMENT!
What she is doing is not part of Catholic Tradition, it may be some local tradition in Latin America amongst some Catholic families. Having said that, I believe what she is doing is harmless and is not a pagan practice. Roses play heavily in Catholicism. Our Lady of Guadalupe put roses in Juan Diego's tilma and told him to give them to the Bishop of Mexico City. We place roses in front of the images of Our Lady inside of Catholic Church's. The word Rosary means crown of roses. In ancient times, the Romans and the Greeks used to crown with roses the statues that represented their Gods as a symbol of the offering of their hearts. Following this tradition, the Catholic Christian women who were taken to martyrdom by the Romans, marched through the Coliseum dressed in their full color of clothing and their heads adorned with crowns of roses, as symbols of joy and giving their hearts for when they encounter God. At night, the Christians gathered their crowns, and for each rose they recited a prayer or a psalm for the eternal rest of the soul of the martyrs. I don't see anything dangerous with what your mother in law is doing. It seems like it just brings peace to her soul who is in mourning.