The Passion Flower
Flower of the Five Wounds
In
mid June, as summer temperatures rise, this exuberant beauty opens
its petals to reveal a multi layered flower of striking complexity.
When the Portuguese and Spanish missionaries and explorers arrived in
the Americas in the 16th century they were charmed by its features and immediately associated it with Christ's Calvary.
The Jesuits named the flower Flos Passionis or Flos de las Ccinco
Llaga, Flower of the Five Wounds
RELIGION AND PASSION
Roman Catholic priests of the late 1500s believed that the petals, rays, and sepals, symbolized particular aspects of the Passion (suffering and death of Jesus Christ). The flower's five petallike sepals and five petals depicted the 10 apostles who remained faithful to Jesus throughout the Passion. The circle of hairlike rays above the petals suggested the crown of thorns that Jesus wore on the day of His death.
The Passion Flower
Folklore and Myth
Like so many climbing vines, the passion flower was used as a love charm because of its habit of clinging which was a reminder of clinging love. Among the Catholics, it was regarded as a spiritual herb, symbolic of the crucifixion, and meant to bring peace and blessings to the home when grown around arbors and fences.
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