The Cross

Today is the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. It is sometimes referred to as the triumph of the Cross. The Cross was the instrument of Our Lord's most cruel death. But it was also the means of our freedom from the slavery to sin and from the punishment of eternal death. That is why we can rightfully find peace in commemorating the Exaltation of the Cross. A tool for an agonizing torturous death is our triumph. Satan may have thought that he would once and for all get rid of our Savior; but the opposite happened. Through the Cross we have God's Life; we have his ever abiding Love.

All kinds of perversity and evil came into the world because of sin, original and personal. Jesus, the Son of God, took all this on Himself in his Passion and Cross so that we could overcome sin in our lives. By Him, sin has no power over us. We just have to let Him help us. Remember: He does not force us to accept his help and forgiveness. Through prayer and good confessions, we share in his triumph.

Tomorrow, the 15th, is the day in which we commemorate the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows. Then, we especially recognize our Lady's spiritual martyrdom as she stood at the foot of the Cross. She suffered as she witnessed the cruelty inflicted upon Jesus her Son. She endured the anguish of a mother and of a daughter of God. How could anyone truly appreciate the pain that entered her heart? She is referred to as the co-redemptrix. Christ allowed his mother to undergo the agony of his Cross; so, He brought her into the mystery of our salvation.

St. John Paul II's coat of arms had on it the words Totus Tuus, meaning that everything is for Mary. He was inspired by St. Louis de Montfort who said that whatever we give to Mary is in turn given by her to Jesus. Mary will always help us to do what her Son asks of us. She will help us to bear our own crosses in union with His. She leads us to Him, Who is our Salvation. 

Father Stanley