Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross

In the Ordo for the use of the dioceses of the Philippines we read: Today’s feast celebrates a double anniversary. In Jerusalem, Constantine erected a round church, the Anastasis, above the empty grave of Jesus, and a basilica, the Martyrium; in the square between the two churches, a shrine, Calvarium, marking the place of the crucifixion. These were dedicated in 335. They were destroyed by the Persians in 614. The present church of the Holy Sepulcher was built by the Crusaders in 1149. Today also commemorates the discovery of the Lord’s cross by the Empress, St. Helena, in 320.

As a people of faith who always mark ourselves with the sign of the cross before leaving our homes, or as we enter or pass by a church, or in starting to take a bath, or in a near death accident, let us not allow ourselves to be nailed in corruption, oppression and division. Let us make the wood of the cross of Christ our ground on which we stand tall to proudly witness our faith before others. May we come out of our own shells of conveniences and like the first converts bravely and become heroes and saints of this changing world.