“The sign of the Holy Cross reminds the world of the sacrificial love of the Lord Jesus Christ,” His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel emphasised on Monday at the historic St George the Great Martyr Chapel of the Patriarchal Residence.
His Beatitude explained that the veneration of the Holy Cross dates back to the apostolic period and recalled the words of the Holy Apostle Paul concerning the Cross as the power of God for those who are being saved.
The Patriarch of Romania then outlined the historical background of the feast celebrated on 14 September, recalling the discovery of the wood of the Holy Cross by St Helena, its elevation before the faithful by Bishop Macarius of Jerusalem and, later, the return of the Holy Cross to Jerusalem after it had been recovered from the Persians.
A sign of victory and glorification
Patriarch Daniel stressed that the Holy Cross should not be regarded as an object possessing a power independent of Christ: “The Cross cannot be turned into a magical sign with occult power.”
“The Lord Jesus Christ transforms the cross from an instrument of torture into a sign of victory over sin and death and of the glorification of humble and merciful love,” His Beatitude added.
The Patriarch of Romania recalled the presence of the sign of the Holy Cross in the liturgical and everyday lives of Christians: on the Holy Table, iconostases and church domes, on vestments and liturgical vessels, at graves, in homes and at crossroads. The cross worn by Christians thus serves as a constant reminder of the Crucifixion and Resurrection of the Saviour.
“The sign of the Cross is not merely an ornament in the church, but the sign of Christ’s love for us, which calls us to humble love for God and merciful love for our fellow human beings,” Patriarch Daniel emphasised.
The spiritual elevation of the believer
The Primate of the Romanian Orthodox Church also listed the different forms bearing one’s cross can take in everyday life: raising and educating children, family life, monastic asceticism, illness, loneliness, and the trials each person undergoes.
Patriarch Daniel explained that the Exaltation of the Holy Cross calls believers to their own spiritual elevation through love.
“The Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross signifies the spiritual elevation of the believer through humble, sacrificial, forgiving and merciful love — the only love that brings salvation to the human person, that is, union with God, the source of eternal life,” His Beatitude said in conclusion.
Photo: Lumina Newspaper
