What is the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross?

• Feast with fourth-century origins
• Jerusalem and the Holy Land
• Instrument of Christ’s saving Passion
• Sign of redemption and Christian hope
• Principal symbol of the Christian faith

What is the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross?

In the wilderness, Israel grew impatient and spoke against God. Poisonous snakes came among the people. Many were bitten. Moses prayed for mercy. God told him to make a bronze serpent and raise it on a pole. Whoever looked upon it lived. Centuries later, Jesus gave this sign its fullest meaning.

Jesus spoke with Nicodemus about that desert sign. He said the Son of Man must be lifted up, just as Moses lifted up the serpent. His words pointed toward the cross. The instrument of Roman execution would become the place where divine love was revealed. The hour was approaching.

Jesus was condemned and crucified outside Jerusalem. He accepted death with obedience. The cross carried his wounded body while his disciples watched in grief. Saint Paul later taught that Christ humbled himself even to death on a cross. Then God exalted him above every name. The story did not end there.

Christians began to honor the cross because Jesus had died upon it and rose again. In Jerusalem, believers gathered to venerate a relic of the Lord’s cross. Venerate means to honor with deep reverence. The practice became part of the Church’s public worship. Soon, the cross was lifted before the people.

The feast took shape in Jerusalem around the dedication of churches built under Emperor Constantine. Pilgrims arrived from many places. The relics of the cross were shown with solemn joy. The celebration came to be called the Exaltation, meaning the lifting up, of the Holy Cross. Its memory traveled westward.

The cross reached Rome through churches and liturgical celebrations. By the seventh century, Rome already kept this feast. On Good Friday, the faithful approached the cross and sang, Behold the wood of the cross on which salvation hung. The same holy sign joined sorrow, worship, and hope.

The feast later remembered the recovery of the cross after it had been carried away by the Persians. The Church continued to proclaim its meaning through Scripture and prayer. Christ was lifted up, and he draws humanity toward life. The cross stands at the heart of the Church’s faith.

What can we learn from the Exaltation of the Holy Cross today?

• Trace the Sign of the Cross slowly, naming Christ’s saving love with each movement.
• Place a crucifix where you will see it during one difficult task today.
• When suffering appears, look toward Christ crucified before answering with fear or anger.

The Exaltation of the Holy Cross gathers the whole Gospel into one visible sign. Christ enters suffering freely, gives himself in love, and opens the way to resurrection. Today the Church lifts the cross before us so we remember where salvation was won and where Christian hope begins.

When is the feast day of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross?

Saintly remembers The Exaltation of the Holy Cross on September 14, when the story above is the saint of the day in the app. Read how the Church declares someone a saint, or how to choose a patron saint.

Sources

• The Holy Bible, The New Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition (NRSV-CE)
• Catholic Encyclopedia
• La teología de la cruz en las liturgias occidentales, M. Garrido-Bonaño
• 14 September 1984, Mass on the feast of the Triumph of the Cross of Christ, Pope John Paul II
• General Audience of 15 September 1971, Pope Paul VI

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