Last Sunday we celebrate the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. This Feast has been celebrated in the Church since the year 326 when the True Cross was found.
Fifteen hundred years earlier though, the Israelites were journeying through the desert from Egypt towards the Promised Land. It was a difficult journey and a time of purification for them. We hear in the first reading how, despite the great signs and wonders God worked in Egypt, they grumbled against Moses and against the Lord. To punish them for their ingratitude God sent poisonous snakes to wreak havoc in their camp. Many were bitten and died. They then repented of their sins and pleaded with Moses to intercede with the Lord on their behalf. God told Moses to make a bronze serpent and put it on a pole, so that all those who looked at it, after being bitten would be healed and live. This bronze serpent was a foreshadowing of Christ on the Cross.
In last Sunday’s Gospel Jesus explained in his conversation with Nicodemus that when the Son of Man is lifted up on the Cross as Moses lifted up the bronze serpent in the desert, all who believe in him would have eternal life. The first to look at Jesus on the Cross and live was Dismas the dying thief.
October 27, 312, before the Battle of Milvian Bridge, the Roman Emperor Constantine saw a cross of light in the sky, accompanied by the words “In Hoc Signo Vinces” (“With this sign, you shall win”). This vision led him to instruct his soldiers to replace their imperial eagles with the symbol of the cross, which he believed would ensure victory over his adversary, Maxentius. The event marked a significant moment in the history of Christianity, as it symbolized the beginning of its acceptance within the Roman Empire.
The following year after Constantine’s victory, in 313 he issued the Edict of Milan, which made it permissible for Christians to worship publicly, and it included an order that all confiscated property should be returned to its rightful owners. Now that the Catholic Faith was legal it soon became the religion of the Roman Empire and spread rapidly throughout the length and breadth of the empire. Shortly after the legalisation of Christianity, the mother of Constantine, St Helena travelled on pilgrimage to the Holy Land and used her influence to establish there, Churches and Shrines at the holy sites. Until this time where was very little in the way of places of worship in those places where Jesus lived, walked, preached, performed great miracles and especially where He suffered and died. So, in 326 St Helena established and recorded all the holy sites, and she also helped pay for excavations on Mt Calvary. There was a strong tradition with the locals that the Cross of Jesus had been buried there. To everyone’s great joy and astonishment the excavations soon uncovered three crosses, two used for the thieves crucified with Jesus and the other used for Jesus Himself. But how were they to know which one was used for Jesus? St Macarius, the local Bishop had an idea. He had all three crosses brought to the house of one of his parishioners, a woman who was on the point of death. He prayed that God would reveal which cross was the holy one. He then touched the first cross to the dying woman’s skin and nothing happened, the same with the second cross, but with the third cross, the woman immediately opened her eyes and rose from the bed in perfect health! The true Cross had been found! A great basilica was constructed on Mt Calvary by St Helena. This is still there today and is known as the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre. The Basilica incorporates Jesus’ tomb, and a cistern where Saint Helena found the instruments of the Passion, including the Cross. Centuries later the Persian empire conquered Jerusalem and confiscated the True Cross. However, on the 14th September in 614, the Roman Emperor Heraclius recovered the True Cross and ever since the Feast has been celebrated on the 14th of September. After recovering the True Cross Heraclius wished to carry it in full regalia up the Via Della Crucis in Jerusalem. However, the weight became unbearable. So, the Bishop of Jerusalem explained to him, that to carry the Cross one must imitate the poverty of Christ, who bore it free of earthly attachments. Heraclius immediately divested himself of his imperial garments, put on humble clothes of a pilgrim and bare foot, he was able to carry it to the summit of Golgotha.
Meditating on the Passion of Christ does more good for our souls, than a year of many other devotions. The Cross is the definitive revelation of God’s love for us, who became one of us, though sinless and died the most torturous death imaginable to atone for sin and to give us eternal life. The crucifix is a powerful shield against the devil, the instrument to lift up those who have fallen. Every Holy Mass is an unbloody repetition of the Redemption wrought by Jesus for us on calvary. During the Mass, Jesus becomes present through the Consecration, and we gaze on Him, fully present in the Sacred Host with the eyes of faith. We grow in love through the faithful and humble reception of Jesus during Holy Communion. Another essential virtue we need to help us carry our crosses is humility and the short cut to humility is regular Confession. With love, humility and gratitude let’s carry our crosses every day. Remember also to have crucifixes in the home, near the main door and ideally above the head of every bed. The crucifix is powerful, special graces come from meditating on the crucifix, so many saints are depicted doing this. The cross is our Christian flag and through this we will conquer all evil! Praise be Jesus Christ, now and forever!
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