MOSSYROCK — It's easy to see the white cross overlooking U.S. Highway 12, but getting there is an act of faith.
It's a half-mile walk uphill on a path that winds past delicate paintings of the 14 stations of the cross.
There is a way to drive to the top of the Hill of Divine Mercy, but owner Henry "Hank" De Goede prefers people to walk past the depictions of Jesus' suffering and crucifixion.
"It becomes a pilgrimage, an encounter with the Lord," said De Goede, his Dutch accent still strong after half a century of farming in Washington, the past 27 in Mossyrock.
His family bulb farm is more famous for its annual tulip festival and Christmas poinsettias, but it is growing in reputation as a place where Christians of all denominations can gather for reflection and prayer.
Since building the cross on Nov. 1, 1996, De Goede has observed the Catholic Feast of the Cross every September.
On Saturday, about 60 people gathered for the seventh annual observation, sitting on gray wooden pews.
The anniversary's numerical significance wasn't lost on De Goede, who designed the cross's measurements as multiples of seven.
He decided Jesus' commandment that his disciples forgive people 70 times seven times also applies to the Feast of the Cross.
"We've done it now seven times," he told the crowd, doing the math. "We have 483 to go. (It is hoped) this cross will be here this long. We won't."
The cross stands on a hill overlooking the De Goede fields and Mayfield Lake. Hawks fly overhead and yellowing maple leaves fall from nearby trees.
The audience was as varied as the landscape.
De Goede is originally from the Netherlands. Many at the feast were Hispanic, and two of the youngest gathered at the cross were from Ethiopia — De Goede's newest adopted grandchildren.
The event featured music from a "choir" of Mexicans and Anglos playing guitar and singing.
Many of the songs were traditional hymns: "Lift high the cross/ the love of Christ proclaim / till all the world / adore his heavenly name."
Other were a mix of languages.
"Somos el cuerpo de Cristo / We are the body of Christ."
The Bible reading was an Old Testament story of Moses and the serpent in the desert.
Josefina Magana, 18, Mossyrock, read the words in both Spanish and English.
When she and her family came to Mossyrock six years ago, she spoke no English. Now she wants to become a lawyer. She begins college at Western Washington University in a few weeks.
She said she visits the cross whenever she can, and enjoys participating in its ceremonies.
"It makes me feel good inside and out, knowing that people can count on me," she said.
The Feast of the Cross dates back to the fourth century, when St. Helen went to Jerusalem looking for pieces of the cross and praying for her son's conversion. Her son, Roman Emperor Constantine, eventually converted and built a temple to Jesus and the cross.
John Ahmann, Chehalis, said the feast is a paradox.
"There are some that meet the cross with repugnance. To some, it's a thorn in their side," he said. "To others, it's met and received with hope and joy."
He has spent recent years in a monastery studying. His mother, Marlene Ahmann, painted the hill's stations of the cross.
On the giant cross's stone pedestal, three Catholic leaders wore white robes and conducted the service.
They proclaimed the cross as a message of hope and salvation.
"We hope this cross will be a message of love and peace for this whole valley, the state of Washington and the whole country," said the Rev. Tom Royce of Yakima.
In a chapel at the base of the hill, that message has gotten stronger since the start of the Iraq war this spring.
Sixto Zaragoza of Winlock is one of the people leading the weekly rosary masses to pray for peace.
A rosary, he said, is an intercession in prayer for others, like a lawyer defending someone in court.
"If people are wanting the best interests for other people, they won't jump on a plane and kill other peoples," he said.
Maria and Diana Guzman, teenagers whose parents work for De Goede, said they have started attending the weekly chapel meetings to pray for peace.
They pray "to stop the war, so people who don't have anything to do with war won't die," said Diana.
The two said they enjoy the cross.
"You can have a lot of peace to think," Maria said. "It's a nice place."
The Hispanic community, many of whom work for the De Goedes, have a ceremony at the cross on Good Friday. They carry a cross 3½ miles, eventually walking up hill for a mass.
The hillside path and chapel are always open and are free to the public. A caretaker guards the main entrance.
De Goede, 80, says even the local football team runs up and down the path to train.
"I don't think they have much of an encounter with the Lord, but that's OK," he said with a smile. "The Lord's not a nitpicker."
He sees the cross as a symbol that unifies the divisions among Catholics, Protestants and other Christian denominations.
Perhaps, he believes, that unity might take shape as a ecumenical Easter sunrise service at the cross.
"Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think it should be initiated by me," he said. "I think someday it will happen."
If you go
The Cross of Christ and Hill of Divine Mercy are just west of Mossyrock on U.S. Highway 12.
From the west: Take Interstate 5 exit 68 and follow Highway 12 to De Goede Bulb Farm. Take a right onto Birley Road, then a left onto Mossyrock Road west. Go past the bulb farm, then take a left at the signs. The driveway will go under Highway 12. Take a right and park at Our Lady of Guadalupe Chapel.
A Rosary service in Spanish meets Thursdays at 7 p.m.
