Inside the cathedral is the Chapel of the Holy Chalice, also known as the Holy Grail. This cup, which reportedly dates back to the 1st century, is said to be the chalice used by Christ at the Last Supper. It was, according to the traditional story, brought to Rome by St. Peter, and kept there until the persecution of Valerian, when Pope Sixtus II entrusted it to his deacon, St. Lawrence. Before his own martyrdom, St. Lawrence was successful in sending the chalice to his family in Spain. During the Moorish invasion the cup was kept in a monastery, then in the royal palace in Saragossa, later in Barcelona, and finally transferred to Valencia early in the 15th century. The chalice was later removed for safekeeping during the Napoleonic invasion in the early 19th century and again during the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s. But it was returned to the cathedral chapel. There the Pope will delivered an address to the Spanish bishops.

# posted by Squach : 8:20 PM   |