Finding of the Holy Cross

Biography

The anniversary of the day on which the Cross of Our Lord was found began to be celebrated, thanks to the interest of Saint Helena, mother of Constantine. Then, at the beginning of the 7th century, the Persians sacked Jerusalem and seized the sacred relics of the Holy Cross, which would be recovered a few years later by the emperor Heraclius. A pious tradition has it that the emperor, dressed in the insignia of royalty, wanted to carry (in exaltation) the Cross to its original place on Calvary, but its weight became more and more unbearable. Zechariah, bishop of Jerusalem, made him see that to carry the Holy Cross on his back he would have to take off his royal clothes and imitate the poverty and humility of Jesus. Heraclius, with poor clothes and bare feet, was thus able to carry the Cross to the top of Golgotha. In the Catholic faith THE CROSS is a sign, a figure, sign or symbol that represents the saving sacrifice of Jesus Christ, all his sufferings until death on a cross. In reality, the material sticks that form the cross on which Christ was sacrificed are not of much interest. What is really valuable is the saving sacrifice of Jesus Christ. If Christ had not died on a cross, surely we Christians would not pay attention to the cross at all. The cross is a sign or symbol that has a very concrete and precise meaning: it represents the saving sacrifice of Jesus Christ, and when Catholics honor the CROSS, we are actually honoring Christ who suffered to save us. Saint Paul says: "Christ made peace by uniting the two peoples in him, creating one new man from the two. He destroyed hatred and reconciled them to God through the cross..." (Eph. 2, 15-16).