Readings for Exaltation of the Cross September 14 2014

Allow me to give a brief history lesson as todays feast is not one that not all of us are familiar with. According to tradition, early in the fourth century Saint Helena, the mother of the Roman Emperor Constantine, went to Jerusalem in search of the holy places in Jesus’ life. As part of her search she excavated the second-century Temple of Aphrodite, which was built over the tomb where Jesus was buried. During that excavation workers found three crosses. Legend has it that the one on which Jesus died was identified when a dying woman touched it and was miraculously healed.

That cross immediately became an object of veneration by visitors to the Holy Land. It was kept safe locked away in an ornate shrine. And once a year on Good Friday it was taken out of its precious silver container and placed on a table for viewing and veneration by pilgrims the world over.
We hear today one of the most famous passages in the Bible. For years there was always at least one person holding up a sign with this passage shown at every sporting event on TV. It made no difference whether it was a football or baseball game or the Olympics. The line is John 3:16 and it states, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish
but might have eternal life.”

We all know that Jesus died on a cross for us and we are reminded of this in every Catholic Church we go into. The Crucifix is found not only in churches but probably in many of your homes as well, you may also wear it as a necklace or have it as another piece of jewelry. This reminds of us Christ’s cross and the sacrifice he made for all of us.

We also need to be reminded as Paul does with the Philippians that Jesus emptied himself so he could become a slave. Not the type of slave that we are accustomed to hear about. He did not come and empty himself to serve a human master, but to serve his Father. This service was done in the many miracles and signs that we hear about in the Gospels. This service was such that he was willing to sacrifice his own life for a horrific death on the cross. This was done as we hear in the Gospel today as well not to condemn the world, but to save it.

We see all the violence being perpetuated around the world and wonder what is going to stop it. Is it more violence, or do we ignore the violence since it is not here. These are difficult questions which I do not know the answer too. What I do know is, if we follow the Love that God showed the Jewish people in the desert, we can begin to have a conversation that can lead to a more peaceful society.

We all need to empty ourselves of our egos and preconceived notions of those around us. This will allow God to replace all of those things with the Love he has for each and every one of us. This Love is so powerful that by sending his son into the world we have seen a whole new attitude and religion grow up over the last 2000 years. We are not done with our growing pains, but we need to work on letting go of our egos and showing people the Love that Christ has shown for us.

How do we overcome this and become the people that God would like to lead out of the desert? We need to empty ourselves and become a slave to God and do as Jesus teaches. This means we need to work on our relationship with Christ. We can do this by reading the Bible, praying, helping others and simply sitting quietly to listen to what Jesus is putting in our heart. We all live busy lives, but we need to find the time to do these things to grow our relationship with Christ so that we can show his Love to those around us.

We need to also remember that just as Jesus did we need to talk with our enemies, not at them, but talk with them. What we find when we do this is that we really are not that much different as people as we may think. There may be differences in religion, social or economic circumstances, but deep down all people want the same thing, a better world for their children to grow up in and a more peaceful and loving world. This can be accomplished if we are all willing to pick up our cross and shoulder it with the Love of Christ.

If by emptying ourselves and forming a better relationship with Christ we will all begin to live a life that Christians are called to, one of unending Love and peace. The kind of Love that knows no bounds as God showed us when he sent his son to die for us. We can accomplish this through the sacraments where we are reminded of his Love for us. The sacrament of reconciliation is a beautiful expression of God’s Love for us as it was to the Jewish people in the Desert. They were called and struggled, even as we all struggle today, but God allowed them to be reconciled to him by simply looking at a likeness of the snake that had bitten them. He did this even though they mocked him. We need to remember that God will never forget us. We need to remember to seek his forgiveness when we stray from him with a sincere heart.

To truly exalt the Cross of Christ we must live as Jesus taught us to live – with unconditional love and forgiveness and inclusion for everyone; not just for the people we like, but for the very least and most disliked of our fellow human beings as well. That kind of true exaltation of the Cross of Christ will bring healing into our world; even more than just keeping it locked away in a precious silver container.

So the question comes what are we willing to give up in order to have a better, stronger relationship with Christ?