Madrid, November 22, 2010
Frontal view of the Valle de los Caídos and Santa Cruz basílica. El Escorial, Madrid, Spain.
The organizations consider that the cross is a “symbol of revenge and death, and should be dismantled.” They propose that “its destruction be called the culmination of a public national act of redemption of guilt before the victims of Franco’s regime.” The Organizations propose leaving the basilica in the Valley of the Fallen without a cross, relocating the Benedictine monks who serve there, and disinterring the remains of Franco and Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera and giving them to their families.
Meanwhile, the Archbishop of Madrid has announced his intention to have masses served over Christmas inside the basilica, which had been closed for several months by the Foundation of National Well-being for repairs.
On Sunday, November 14, 2010, three thousand people attended a mass served on the esplanade of the Valley of the Fallen.
The Archbishop of Madrid emphasized that the Benedictine Order has the legal right to “freely and publicly practice religious rites” granted it by the Spanish government in 1979, and reminded protestors that there is a law in existence regarding the historical monument, which recognizes the “exclusive character of rite and burial in this sacred place.”
