The Irony and Glory of the Cross

On this Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross, we are called to look lovingly at this sign of our salvation and new life. In the desert, centuries before the coming of Jesus, the Hebrews looked upon a bronze serpent mounted upon a pole for deliverance from the seraph serpents which had been sent as a punishment of their collective sin of complaining to God about their life in the desert. In the time of Jesus, the cross was the most ignominious and painful form of execution for notorious criminals, but behold, there is the Son of God,, nailed to one and dying upon it.
 Ironically, however, the cross has become the glorious symbol of our salvation and a cause for rejoicing, as it has brought us new life, as did the brazen serpent in the desert.
Amazing too, is the tale of its discovery in 320 by St. Helen, mother of Constantine, three centuries after the crucifixion of Jesus...the cross along with the nails!  Happily, we have relics of the True Cross spread throughout the world for our veneration.
Today, then, we recall the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus, the total "emptying of himself" for our sake, and his resurrection, one mystery, which is the pattern for our own spiritual journey of death to sin and resurrection in Jesus. This is our day of glory too.  We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you, because by your resurrection, you have redeemed the world.
Bro. Rene