Dear friends in Christ
The month of September is dedicated to the Holy Cross, since the feast of the Exaltation of the Cross occurs on 14th.
One of the best-known representations of the Cross as the Tree of Life is the 12th century mosaic in the Basilica of San Clemente, Rome. Where the Cross penetrates the earth a luxuriant tree bursts forth and sends its branches far and wide, covering the entire expanse of the apse of the Basilica. In doing so it reaches and enfolds all categories of people: teachers and preachers, chaplains and farmers, ladies and hunters, nobles and shepherds. All of human life is brought into contact with the life that flows from the Cross (John 12:32). And not only human life, for the Cross’s work has a cosmic dimension and so it includes fish, birds and animals, fills the earth and the heavens. There the Father’s hand can be seen, carrying the laurel wreath with which the victor is to be crowned, Christ, our champion, who has been slain. His body appears squeezed dry, since having loved to the end (John 13:1), there is nothing left for Him to give. The Cross is decorated with white doves, taken to represent the Apostles who will soon fly to all corners of the world carrying the message of Christ’s victory. At the foot of the Cross four rivers flow out and a little deer drinks safely, seemingly unaware of the deadly serpent lying nearby. All of these details are portrayed to give us an insight, a better understanding, of the power of the Cross and the Redemption that it has brought for us.
In the Gospel of last Sunday we heard Jesus tell His disciples that anyone who wishes to come after me must deny himself and take up his Cross and follow me. Notice how active this language is: He doesn’t tell us to accept the Cross as it comes; no, He tells us to take-it-up; to consciously go towards it and embrace it. We must consciously and freely walk the path of suffering-love if we are to be His followers. Our mission is to be the bearers of Divine Love in the midst of the world; this takes a million different forms but that’s our basic purpose. And this will always involve suffering because it means the path of self-denial and it means that the Divine Love will meet resistance. If I prioritise the avoidance of suffering, I might gain the whole work but I will lose necessarily becoming the person God wants me to be. That’s the meaning of the feast of the Holy Cross on Thursday. In the words of the ancient chant: Christus vincit…Christ lives, Christ reigns, Christ conquers! He does this by the power of the Cross working in us.
God bless you!
Msgr Kevin Hale