Today the Church celebrates the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. And if we really think about it, that title is kind of strange, isn’t it? We’re celebrating and honoring a cross. We’re celebrating an ancient instrument of torture and death. To the world, it’s a symbol of humiliation; but to us as Catholic Christians, it’s a symbol of glory. How did we make that transition? How do we get to a place where we recognize the Cross not just as a moment of suffering, but as something that is working for our salvation and our glory?

That question isn’t just about history or theology…it’s about us, right now. Because when we look at the world today, we see plenty of humiliation, plenty of suffering, plenty of crosses. We see nations at war with one another. We see people being hated for their faith and their ethnicity, openly being threatened in places around the world. We see people of faith discriminated against, and in many cases, mocked for those beliefs, especially on issues like abortion, the death penalty, same-sex marriage, gender ideology. We see migrants being reviled because they are seeking a better way of life for themselves and their families, many of whom have fled their homes because of circumstances beyond their control. We see people despised because of their political leanings, how they feel about issues that are facing this country that we love. And as we saw this week, that is now taking the form of political violence with Wednesday’s tragic assassination. And the most disgusting part of it all was what some people have been posting on social media in the last few days, celebrating the fact that a husband and father of two small children was murdered, saying: “he got what he deserved.”

Are we serious, y’all?! What are we doing to each other? This is not how we are called to live. The Devil is having a heyday and so many of us are playing right into his hands. So many of us are treating one another as enemies instead of brothers and sisters. And a lot of that is coming from a place of fear. There’s so much uncertainty and discord that it can feel overwhelming. And yet, the same question remains: how do we move from humiliation to glory, from fear to hope? The answer is the same today as it was two thousand years ago: we look to the Cross.

Our readings today give us the answer. In the Book of Numbers, the people of Israel are in the desert, complaining. They’re thirsty and tired, and they get impatient with God. In response, God sends kind of an interesting punishment in the form of these annoying snakes. Soon, many of the people begin to get bitten by these snakes and die as a result. So, Moses asks God for help, to which God replies by telling him to do something that’s a bit strange. Moses is told to make a bronze snake and put it on a pole. Anyone who looked at that snake would be healed. Do we see what God was doing there? It’s a powerful preview of what was to come. In the middle of all that death, this weird statue of a snake became a sign of salvation, a sign of healing, a sign of God’s goodness to His people. In the same way, Jesus was lifted up on the cross. And in that very moment of His suffering, our salvation was won. He became for us not a curse, but a cure.

Saint Paul gives us a beautiful explanation of how that happened in his letter to the Philippians. He says Jesus, though He was God, did not cling to His equality with the Father as something to be grasped for His own advantage. Instead, He emptied Himself (not of His divinity, but of privilege and glory), taking on our humanity and humbling Himself in obedience, even to the point of death on a cross. The King of Kings chose the lowest, most painful path, not because He had to, but because He loved us. This incredible act of self-giving is what gives the cross its power. It’s a love so total that it changed everything for us.

And that leads us to that famous line from the Gospel of John that we all know: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him might not perish but might have eternal life.” The cross isn’t a sign of God’s cruelty; it’s the most powerful and clearest sign of His immense love for us. It’s the ultimate love story. God the Father loved us so much He was willing to give up His Son to save us. And Jesus didn’t come to condemn us; He came to save us through that act of love.

When we look at the Cross today, we shouldn’t just see pain and nails. We should see a love stronger than death. We should see victory in the midst of what looks like defeat. We should see the very throne of our King. The Cross is the tree of life watered with Christ’s blood. It is the key to heaven. It is the foundation of our hope.

And here’s the challenge for us: if the Cross is in our hearts, then it must shape the way we live in this world. When the world shouts division, we answer with reconciliation and mercy. When the world gives in to violence, we stand for peace. When the world is driven by fear, we walk with hope. The Cross is not just jewelry to wear or art to hang on the walls of our homes and offices; it is the power of Christ alive in us, calling us to live differently.

So, let’s leave here today carrying the Cross not as a burden, but as our joy and our glory. In this sign, we have been saved. In this sign, we have been redeemed. In this sign, we have been given life. May the Cross not just mark our churches and our homes, but mark every single one of our hearts, reminding us of both the solemn price of our salvation and the boundless joy of our victory. Because the Cross is and always will be our glory and our triumph.

Image: King of the World, Gianna B. Used with permission under Unsplash license.