When people leave crosses, flowers at the scene of a fatal accident

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Victoria33

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When people leave crosses, flowers at the scene of a fatal accident,

Is this a Catholic or Non-Catholic phenomenon?

I know, on my usual route, someone placed a cross and flowers near a stoplight about 3 years ago… it seems they upkeep the cross even now.

Is there a belief among some that that is where one’s soul leaves this earthly life?

I have all the sentiment for those in this position. But I’ve never known personally, anyone who has done this.

Thank you in advance for any answers, information on why this is done.
 
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As far as I know, it’s Christian, but not attached to a specific denomination. So the person might be Catholic or non-Catholic.

There are literally dozens of these around where I work. The traffic is bad and a lot of the roads have land on the shoulder where one can easily put the cross (as opposed to having a concrete walk or office building there).

If the person died on that spot then that is where his soul left. However, it’s likely some of them might have died in the ambulance or in the hospital, in which case their soul would leave the body in those places.

It’s just a memorial. I usually pray for the person, but given that many of them are likely Protestant, it is more of a commemoration than a prayer request.
 
I have read this is a tradition in some countries like Mexico and other places. I don’t believe here in the U.S. it has any “official” sanction. People in the grieving process express their grief in many different ways.
A young girl in my part of the world was killed a week ago when a deer ran out in front of the car in which she was a passenger. It hit a telephone pole and killed her. There is a little memorial “shrine” that has sprung up by the other teens and family and friends as a way of memorializing her.
By the way. In many, if not most, states in the U.S. these roadside memorials are actually illegal. I don’t think they are enforced however (unless it is a traffic hazard) out of respect for the family and friends, and also because I think a lot of police believe they might be the most successful reminder of the dangers of driving recklessly, drunk, or texting while driving.
 
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It seems to be big among Latino Catholics…I think its a beautiful and theologically full practice…why not flowers and a cross at the site of death; where the soul leaves the body and faces the Particular Judgment? It encompasses our Eschatological beliefs perfectly.
 
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Here in Australia it’s quite common. And we don’t have much of a Latino population.

I vividly remember the aftermath of Princess Diana’s death. Loads of floral tributes at a few different places associated with her - the tunnel in Paris where she died, Kensington Palace where she lived, Buckingham Palace which is the hub of the royal family.

If someone I loved died, I might not be able to visit their grave regularly, or at all. The next best thing would be the spot where they died.
 
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I know in USA these days, many people, especially non-Catholics, do not even have graves. They are cremated and their next of kin scatters their ashes someplace like the ocean or the forest, or else keeps them at home in an urn.
Those memorial crosses, or piles of stuffed toys and signs, might be the only place their friends can visit to mourn.
 
a bicycler was killed by a “hit & run” on the lawn of the office where i work;, must be at least 4 or 5 years ago;

his relatives left a flower decorated steel cross on the lawn; it is still there today…
 
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One reason I noticed this one cross is because I often use the bicycle. In the car, sometimes, we are more detached from our surroundings, but that’s another subject. This memorial has always struck me. I will do like Tis Bearself said and say some prayers. I think I have seen enough of the country that, while I recognize, it might be a Latin American custom, I think I’ve seen it in places, where there are not as many say as in the Western states.
 
i don’t see the “roadside crosses” as much in the midwest as i do in NE USA where i live;

and yes; i agree it “may” be a Latin American “thing”

whoever left the Cross (“they” set painted stainless steel embedded in concrete) on my office lawn painted the name “Ramon” on the front of it

anecdotal, i know…
 
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I think it is a spontaneous gesture expressing a lot of emotion. Obviously it is not done in hospitals or other places where people frequently pass away.

It can be a distraction in some places and might be very unsafe.

Nearby there is an electrical cable that was ripped off of a utility pole, which cut a man’s body in half. He was on a motorbike, speeding, evading police at a high rate of speed, intoxicated. Well, there’s been a memorial there for a couple years ever since. And, the deformed wire is still there as a twisted reminder. Gory story, but true.

often grave flowers serve the same purpose as a memorial and expression of sentimentality. WE OFTEN NEVER GET OVER THE LOSS OF A LOVED ONE.
 
About ten years ago some friends and myself set up a shrine near where a girl we knew died. At first they tried to stop us but then it was allowed. This continued for some time and there are still photos and videos of it online. She was very special. Now even the structure it was attached to is completely gone. It is totally gone. The surrounding architecture is all different and the land is for sale. Still I can never pass by there without thoughts of her. I’d like to think she is watching over me and some day I’ll see her again.
 
Here in the UK you don’t get many fixed crosses at such places, but you get a lot of flowers, soft toys, photos etc on spots where people have died (we have few Latino people over here, so it is not connected Latino customs). These tend to be along busy roads (which is a sobering thought if you are speeding yourself). Grief is universal, regardless of creed or culture and the marking of a spot where your loved died seems a very natural and human way of mourning. A short prayer when passing such a spot is an appropriate thing I think.
 
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I know in Montana, highway fatalities are marked by white crosses. These serve as reminders of safe driving more than for a memorial.
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its a memorial. I had a group of teenagers crash into the front paddock. one of them died there by the water tank.

he came from about 7 hours away. so a memorial tells people where he lost his life, and also remembers him. and it also helps his loved ones

even atheists do it! I am in australia, latinos are very rare here. its probably from the english tradition, as lily says, look at what happened with Princess Di
 
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It’s not necessarily a Latino thing in USA. I have seen crosses for accident victims of all nationalities, and in some states it’s actually the Highway Patrol that puts up crosses or a non-religious memorial sign as safe driving reminders.

In USA, the memorials consisting of stuffed animals, balloons etc are typically used not for roadside accidents, but for victims of urban violance, such as murder victims. People will come and bring stuffed animals, signs etc and leave them at the spot where somebody was gunned down or outside the house where they died.
 
Every time I pass a little memorial like that ,be it a bunch of flowers or a cross. I say a prayer for those deceased and their families.
 
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The memorial in Pittsburgh for a young lady who was killed crossing the street is still there, she died in December 2012.
 
All this is getting out of hand if you ask me. People die all the time in hospital rooms, yet I have not seen any of them turned into a shrine to the deceased.
 
Odilon said:
People die all the time in hospital rooms, yet I have not seen any of them turned into a shrine to the deceased.
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I don’t think the hospital wants to freak out the next patient assigned to a room where someone had died. Checking into a hospital room for a bypass or something, and seeing a memorial to a previous patient would be a bit unsettling.
 
When I said “Latin American custom”, I did not mean it at the exclusion of other cultures, I guess, I meant to say, I can see how apparently, it is done by them along with others. Sorry for any misunderstanding.
 
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