Tuesday, September 14, 2010

The Crosses in our day

And I don't mean "cross" in the metaphorical sense! Just reflecting on the homily from today's Mass of the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross (which commemorates St. Helena's "finding of the True Cross" in Jerusalem" in the early 4th century). Father pointed out that we daily Mass-goers sign ourselves with the Cross five times during the course of the liturgy alone; add the blessing as we enter Church, the gigantic crucifix we face in the sanctuary at St. Peter's and the even bigger one we pass under as we enter and leave the Church, that's a lot of contact with the mystery of the Cross, just in the course of formal prayer. Then there's the Sign of the Cross before and after grace at meals (before and after?) (just checking); the Sign of the Cross when you pass a Catholic Church (do people still do that?), when traveling, when rising or going to bed or starting to pray the Rosary (not to mention before a key play in an athletic event)... All reminders of what the Entrance Antiphon for today's Mass said (in words that are also part of the Eastern liturgy): We should glory in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ: he is our salvation, our life and resurrection. Through him we are saved and set free.
When  else do you typically make the Sign of the Cross?

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