The Exaltation of the Holy Cross

It almost sounds like an oxymoron, "the exaltation of the holy cross".  In the time of Jesus, the cross was far from holy and certainly not something to be celebrated.  It would have been the equivalent of today's electric chair.  It was a vehicle for a painful and ignominious death, a sign of disgrace and darkness.  But in the Christian paradox of the grain of wheat dying in order to bring life, it is now a sign of victory over sin and death, a sign of new life and light.
The Eastern and Western Churches give great honor to this feast which seems to be a combination of the finding of the cross by St. Helena between 326 and 328 A,D, and the recovery and triumphal re-entry of the cross to Jerusalem by the Emperor Heraclius in 614 A,D. after it had been captured by the Saracens.  The Eastern Churches give it such high regard, that it is preceded by a solemn Vesper Service the evening before and becomes a focal point for the rest of the liturgical year.  Sundays are designated as "the first Sunday after the Exaltation of the Cross, the second Sunday, and so on. Why this solemn recognition?  Well, it is the tangible sign of our salvation.  It reminds us of the love Jesus poured out for us to give us a berth in the kingdom of heaven, and it reminds us of who we are as his disciples.  Hence, we wear it around our necks, and it hands in places of honor in our churches and our homes.  We even begin our prayer by making the sign of the cross on our bodies.  For love of it, thousands of believers have given their lives in imitation of Jesus.  May we grow in reverence respect and love for it and may it have an exalted place in our spiritual lives, as St. Marcellin advocated.
Bro. Rene