Cult of the Lord Holy Christ of the Miracles

Senhor Santo Cristo dos Milagres
Festa do Senhor Santo Cristo dos Milagres
The image of The Lord Holy Christ of the Miracles at the beginning of the procession in His honour in Ponta Delgada, Azores.
StatusActive
GenreReligious Feast
Date(s)Fifth Sunday of Easter
BeginsFifth Sunday of Easter
EndsAscension Thursday
FrequencyAnnually
VenueCampo de São Francisco
Location(s)Ponta Delgada, Azores
CountryPortugal
Years active1700
Inaugurated13 April 1700 (1700-04-13)
FounderVenerable Mother Teresa da Anunciada
Most recent24 April 2016
Previous event3 May 2015
Next event14 May 2017
Websitewww.senhorsantocristo.com
www.santo-cristo.com

The Cult of the Lord Holy Christ of the Miracles (Portuguese: Culto do Senhor Santo Cristo dos Milagres), popularly known as Senhor Santo Cristo or Santo Cristo dos Milagres is a religious veneration associated with an image of Jesus Christ, depicted in the events of the New Testament (presented in Luke 23:1-25). The wooden image of Christ, by unknown artist, in a Renaissance-style representation of the Ecce Homo, represents the episode of Jesus of Nazareth's life when the martyred religious figure was presented to the crowd following his whipping, and includes a crown of thorns, uncovered torso and bruised/beaten body. Narrated in the New Testament, the artist represented in grande artistic style the contrast between violence on the body and the serenity of the expression, emphasized by the gaze from the image.[citation needed]

Normally, this statue and piece of art is on display in the Sanctuary of the Lord Holy Christ, in the Convent of Our Lady of Hope (in Ponta Delgada, on the island of São Miguel in the Azores), but annually leads a procession through the streets of the city. The festivals in honour of the Lord Holy Christ of the Miracles occur on the fifth Sunday after Easter, the day on which a great procession winds the streets of the provincial capital, and terminating on the Thursday of Ascension. These events are the most and oldest religious devotions still carried out in Portugal, with the popular feasts at the Sanctuary of the Sovereign Mother, in Loulé, and the 20th century celebrations in honour of Our Lady of Fátima having comparable interest. Annually, the celebrations in Ponta Delgada attract thousands of Azoreans, Luso-descendants and peoples from the various islands of the archipelago to São Miguel.[citation needed]