Demera
More than 300 years ago, the mother of the great King Constantinople Queen Helena went to Jerusalem in search of the Holy Cross of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Arriving there, at first she had faced difficulties as the Jews buried it and throw a garbage for three hundred years. Unable to find a person who could direct the way to the cross, Saint Helena strived hard.
An elderly man called Kirakos, was said to recon the place of the hidden cross but refused to reveal it to any one as of fright of the enemies Jews. Little did he know, the queen out of envy and love for her Lord, applied many torturing methods. Finally, the elderly man gave in and spoke about the truth as to where the cross was buried. The queen with her soldiers went to the place and started digging. The time was in Meskerem 17 and went on until Megabit 10. At the end of digging. They found three crosses. Patristic Fathers utter about the identification of the two other crosses which were Dismas and Gestas. Saint Helena was unable to differentiate the cross that the Lord was crucified on and so they had to bring a dead’s man body and put it on each of the crosses and then the Holy Cross raised the man from the dead.
Later on the queen made a church be built and honorable placed the cross. The feast of the lighting of torch is related with the Saint Helena’s burning of Demera.
May the Lord endow us peace, love and harmony by the feast of the cross.