Feast of the Holy Cross

The Exaltation of the Holy Cross Annual Feast Day: September 14 In 2004 I wrote this article, an adaptation from an older work. The message remains as needed for the many that know not the story it relates. I am humbled, on my birthday, to share this history, as my present,with as much of the world that will take the liberty to read it and gain some insight into the Leader of Christianity and of the world. When the Sacred Body of Jesus was taken down from the Cross and carried to the grave on Calvary, the Cross on which He died was thrown into a ditch or well, and covered over with stones and earth, so that the followers of the Crucified Redeemer might not find it. Almost three hundred years later (312 A.D.), Constantine the Great, not yet a Christian, while battling with Maxentius for the throne of the Roman Empire, prayed to the God of the Christians to aid him in his struggle. In answer to his prayer, a luminous cross, or monogram of Christ appeared in the heavens bearing the inscription: “In This Sign Thou Wilt Conquer” In gratitude for victory, under this banner, over Maxentius at the Milvian Bridge, on October 28, 312, Constantine had the Sign of Christianity placed on the Roman standards and on the shields of his soldiers. Then came the finding of the True Cross at Jerusalem by St. Helena in 326, commemorated…on May 3rd. In the year 614, Chosroes II, King of Persia, invaded Syria and Palestine, took and sacked Jerusalem, carrying off, with other treasures, the great relic of the True Cross. The emperor Heraclius of Constantinople, at the head of a large army marched into Persia, forced the Persians to sue for peace and to restore the Sacred Cross, which Heraclius piously brought back to Jerusalem in 629. When he reached the city gate on the way that led to Calvary, the Emperor laid aside every robe and mark of royalty, and clothed in sackcloth of penance and barefoot, carried the Cross up the ascent of Calvary and restored it to its place in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. This event is commemorated by the Church on September 14th in the feast of Exaltation of the Holy Cross. Two-thousand years ago Christianity became the spirit of Jesus Christ at work in the world. Jesus gave us His spirit (1 Jn 4:13). Dear Lord, "by Your Holy Cross and Resurrection You have redeemed the world." Thanks for visiting. - Bob Gal 6:3