May the Lord give you peace, grace, and blessings. It is on 14th September 2022. We celebrate the feast day of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.
We reflect on Numbers 21:4-9 and John 3:13-17.
The Cross is the sign, the signature, and the significance of Christianity. It is the Trinitarian event and the centre of the Scriptural moment. It redefines the power and resurrects the hope of humanity. It is not only the shape of Christianity and the sacramental sign that silences all satanic manifestations. The Holy Cross brings peace, protection, and reconciliation to all who believe in the passion and death of Jesus.
The cross is not a sign of disgrace but the channel of grace and the sign of strength and courage.
A little boy lost his way home and asked for directions from a police officer. He took him street after street and none of them was his street. Then the officer noticed a church with a cross and asked him: “do you live anywhere near there?” Brighten up in his eyes and mind, the boy said: “Take me to the cross. I can find my way home from there.”
Do we really love the Cross of our Lord? How do we express our love towards the Holy Cross? We all love the cross for a display. It is the most used and abused symbol is the cross just because good and bad people use it alike. Some use it for cult or cultural and but many use it for ritual. The Holy Cross invites us to empty, enlighten and enter a holy life.
Our Holy Father Francis makes a clear distinction on the Cross, “The tree of Paradise with the tree of sin; the tree that bears the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil, but of knowledge, with the tree of the Cross.” The tree of Paradise “did such
great harm,” whereas the tree of the Cross “brings us salvation and health, and pardons that harm.” It is this “itinerary that human history follows.” It is a way that enables us “to encounter Jesus Christ the Redeemer, who lays down his life for love.”
The Romans and the early Christians were curious and enthusiastic to find out about the original cross. How many households and the interiors include the presence of the Holy Cross in our families and workplaces?
Let us pray as St. Francis of Assisi did it: “We adore you, Lord Jesus Christ, here, and in all your churches throughout the world, and we bless you, for by your holy cross you have redeemed the world. Amen.
May our veneration bring us closer to Jesus who brought glory to it. God bless you.