Jubilee Year of the Holy Chalice of Valencia will begin looking at those affected by DANA

The III Jubilee Year of the Holy Chalice of Valencia begins next Thursday, October 30, with a special look at those affected by DANA on its first anniversary, under the motto “The Chalice of Hope.”

Since Pope Francis awarded in 2014 With the perpetual celebration of this jubilee every five years, it has become a tradition for various institutions and parishes to receive replicas of the Holy Chalice used by Christ at the Last Supper.

This year the parishes of Nuestra Señora de Montserrat de Picaña, San Jorge de Paiporta and Nuestra Señora de Gracia in the Torre neighborhood will receive the replicas of the Holy Chalice. These communities suffered in a devastating way the effects of natural phenomena on the night of October 29 to 30, 2024, which claimed more than 200 human lives due to the overflowing of the river channels in the south of the capital of Turia.

As the Archbishop of Valencia, Mons. Enrique Benavent, recently explained, “they are affected parishes, but they also stand out for their solidarity,” which is why the delivery of the replica of the Holy Chalice is intended to be recognition.

For the Prelate, the Third Jubilee Year of the Holy Chalice “is a special occasion to continue making this relic known,” with its cultural, academic and tourist implications, “but also, and this is what matters to us as the Church, for reflection and personal and spiritual enrichment on its deepest, most essential meaning from Christian values. The Holy Chalice is a sign of communion that invites unity and dialogue.”

In one carta pastoral Made public last Friday the 24th, Bishop Benavent explained that the jubilee motto, “The Chalice of Hope”, aims to “link hope with the Eucharist, reminding us that only those who feed on this pilgrim’s bread can experience the most intimate encounter with Jesus, true source of hope.”

“The year of the Holy Chalice gives us an opportunity to rethink and strengthen the Eucharistic life of our Christian communities,” continued the prelate, who warned of “an evident dissolution of the centrality of the Sunday Eucharist in the lives of Christians, even those who are integrated into the pastoral structures of our parishes.”

“The veneration of the Holy Chalice as a relic linked to the Eucharist is an evident call to unite our lives with the Eucharistic Sacrament, so that by participating in Christ’s love for humanity, the desire to give ourselves as He does to our brothers, especially those most in need, is awakened in us,” he added.

How the Holy Chalice of the Last Supper arrived in Valencia

According to tradition, the Holy Chalice used by Jesus Christ at the Holy Thursday dinner arrived in Rome thanks to Saint Mark the Evangelist and Saint Peter. There it was used by the popes during the first centuries until the persecution of Emperor Valerian in the mid-3rd century.

Pope Sixtus II then ordered that the relic be protected. This is how the deacon San Lorenzo takes him to Spain, to his homeland, Huesca. During the Muslim invasion, the Holy Chalice is hidden and carried from one place to another.

It is known that in the 11th century it was located in the Monastery of San Juan de la Peña. King Martin, the Human, claimed it to be part of the reliquary of the Crown of Aragon in 1399.

Already in the 15th century, King Alfonso the Magnanimous moved it from Barcelona to Valencia and from 1437 it was part of the reliquary of the cathedral, until in 1916 it was transferred to a large urn located behind the main altar.

Route of the Holy Chalice of Valencia

Among the various activities around this celebration, an “Urban Route of the Holy Chalice” has been established, which runs through the different scenarios linked to the relic, among others, the Royal Monastery of the Trinity, the Convent of Santo Domingo, the Royal College of the Patriarch, the Silk Exchange, the Palace of the Borja, the Basilica of the Virgin and the Cathedral of Valencia.

Near the cathedral in the Almudín building, an explanatory display on the Holy Chalice will also be installed that includes an immersive cube with laser technology.