Lift high the cross

By REV. JOHN P. ROSSON- | Comments: 0 | Leave a comment

No other symbol rivals the cross - not the star of the Magi, the crib of the child, the table of the upper room, water, bread and wine or oil. No other sign is so Christian.

The cross crowns steeples, marks graves and decorates necks. The Sign of the Cross begins and ends every Eucharist. Every sacrament grants the cross. Mass requires the cross "on or near to the altar." The cross completes the beads of the rosary. We enter and leave the church with the cross.

The New Testament is an account of the cross. The Gospel of Mark is a passion narrative with an extended introduction. Paul develops, in his circumstantial letters addressed to specific communities with unique problems, an entire theology of the cross. Paul urges we preach nothing but the cross of Christ.

We are entering the phase of Lent dedicated to the cross: The last two weeks of Lent are Passiontide, when we ponder the suffering Christ. In churches, the cross is veiled, symbolizing that Jesus hid Himself (John 8:46-58).

On Good Friday, we will step forward to venerate the cross.

In Rome, in the Basilica of San Clemente across from the Coliseum, there is an apse mosaic of the cross. In the mosaic, Christ has inclined His head and given his spirit into the hands of the Father.

A great peace emanates from Jesus' face, from His entire figure. Pain is overcome. Nothing of wrath, of bitterness, of accusation lies in the picture. Death is not the main thing we see. We see love that, through death, is not abolished, but stands out more than ever. Earthly life is extinguished, but love remains.

The cross in the mosaic is a tree, beneath which four sources of water originate, at which deer slake their thirst. It evokes thoughts of the four rivers of paradise: The cross grows north, south, east, and west.

The apse mosaic cross encircles the entire world with branches that radiate outward. It is a heavenly vision.

These are the High Lenten days of the cross. Construct a home replica of the Apse Mosaic in the Basilica of San Clemente in Rome: Place a cross of twigs or branches in a pot of soil. Take a cutting from an ivy or climbing vine and root it in the pot.

As the plant grows, it will encircle the cross and climb the tree - a living example of Jesus as the source of life and of the cross as the tree of life.

You might also decorate a crucifix at home, erect a cross on your front lawn to announce your boast in the cross of the Lord or place a cross on your table for the days leading up to Holy Week.

We adore you, O Christ and praise you, because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.

(Father Rosson is pastor of St. Mary's parish in Cooperstown.)[[In-content Ad]]