Saint Elizabeth Church Celebrates the Feast of Santo Cristo

Parishioners at Saint Elizabeth's Church in Bristol, Rhode Island gathered Sunday afternoon for a procession celebrating the Feast of Santo Cristo dos Milagres and Santa Isabel. The festival is modeled after the original festival which takes place in Ponta Delgada, in the Azores, and celebrates the Feast of Santa Isabel as well. While the Feast of Santa Isabel is typically observed on July 4, Saint Elizabeth's has combined the two because of the other celebration happening on that day.

"It's a tradition fo the community here" said Joseph. J. Martins, who handled public relations for the event. He cites the number of individuals who are immigrants or direct descendants of immigrants in the community as a reason. Sunday marked the 93rd festival, where traditional portugese food is available, with festivities such as a calendar raffle.

The celebration lasted from Friday to Sunday. According to Martins, the turn out has been good, despite the number of other festivals in the community.

Highlights of the procession included hoisted images of Santo Cristo, Santa Isabel, São José, and Our Lady of Sorrow, along with bands such as Juventude Lusitana, a Cumberland based Philharmonic band.

The image of Santo Cristo was carried to the front of the church, where parishioners had the opporunity to pray before it.