The Feast of The Cross

The Cross of Christ bears great importance and centrality in the theology of the Assyrian Church of the East. It is so important that it is found in all liturgies, prayers and rites of the Church, in fact, the ‘sign of the Holy Cross’ is so central to our Christian faith that it is held as one of the seven sacraments that is unique to the Church of the East. 

The Feast of the Cross is one of the seven feast days of the Lord that we commemorate annually in the Church Calendar on the 13^th September. Today, as we commemorate this special day in the Church, let us briefly learn more about the significance of the Cross and the special day dedicated to this powerful, life-giving sign.

His Grace Mar Awa Royel explains the importance and centrality of the Cross to our faith as Christians; 
The Cross, therefore, is not just some ‘empty symbol’ (as many, sad to say, so-called Christians would claim) of Jesus that we use or have contrived in order to ‘remember’ who Jesus was and what He did. It’s simply not like the locket that a young child receives in order to remember his/her grandmother! Rather, for the Church and for the Christian it is a living and life-giving sign of the power and the victory of God (in Jesus Christ) over sin, death and Satan. Thus the sign of the Cross participates in the power of Jesus Christ, who was crucified on it, and as such gives life to the Church and the faithful.¹

The True Cross used for our Lord’s crucifixion was discovered in 326 A.D. by Saint Helena, the mother of the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great, during a pilgrimage she made to Jerusalem. After enquiring as to the whereabouts of the holy tomb of our Saviour and the Holy Cross, Helena was brought to a cave-like cistern by a certain Judas, whose family held the tradition of the whereabouts of the Cross. Over the sepulchre of our Lord, on the other hand, was built a temple in honour of the Greek goddess Aphrodite. As workmen were excavating by destroying the temple and preparing to build the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, three crosses were found in the cave beneath.

In order to ascertain which one was the true Cross of our Lord, it happened that a funeral cortege was passing by. The empress ordered them to stop and bring the dead man in order to place him on the crosses; the Cross of Jesus would certainly resurrect the man to life again. They placed him, in accord with the empress’s command on the first two crosses; nothing happened. When they placed him on the third Cross, sure enough he came back to life – that was the Cross of Jesus Christ. Soon after that, the Holy Cross was exalted by the empress, and it was set up in the holy tomb to be venerated.

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre was then built at the site of the discovery, by order of Helena and Constantine. The church was dedicated nine years later, with a portion of the Cross placed inside it.

The date of the feast marks the dedication of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in 335 AD. This was a two-day festival:  the actual consecration of the church was on September 13, and this is the fixed date that we commemorate annually as the ‘Feast of the Cross’ (Eeda d’Sliwa) in our Church calendar. However, many other apostolic churches who also commemorate the Feast, hold it on the 14^th September, for  the cross itself was brought outside the church on this date so that the clergy and faithful could pray before the True Cross, and all could come forward to venerate it.

The Feast of the Cross is a great reminder of the Cross of Christ and the power it possesses in the lives of those who have been sealed by the sign (in baptism) and also a great reminder of the power that the Cross omits to the world; as the sign of God’s incomprehensible love to His creation and the great weapon to conquer sin, death and the great deceiver – satan.

Let this feast day stand as a reminder for us to rely on the power of Christ’s Cross every day, by having a faith that is centred on the Cross and the One who was crucified on it, knowing what He has achieved for us. By crossing ourselves with the sign of the Cross, we will hallow our person and remember this powerful, life-changing sign and sacrament daily.

1 Corinthians 1:18

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God

Todd Wright - The Cross of Christ

1.       Mysteries of the Kingdom, The Sacraments of the Assyrian Church of the East, Pp 330, Bishop Mar Awa Royel, Copyright 2011 by CIRED

Triumph over sin (The Triumphal Entry)

That magnificent time in the Church calendar has arrived where we all gather in the Church on the Sunday of Hosannas (Palm Sunday) to worship the Lord. This day is the first that brings great anticipation of the coming days of the Holy week that will culminate on the Sunday of the Resurrection (Easter Sunday). With this anticipation of the ‘Holy Week’ approaching, the Church celebrates the entrance of the Lord into Jerusalem. 

Although this day is held in joyful celebration, it may also simultaneously bring a sense of sorrow as it introduces us to the all too familiar events that will follow… The betrayal, suffering and crucifixion that our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ experienced; a journey that we will also take part in during this Holy Week.

So as we commemorate the entry of our Lord into Jerusalem today, and remember His coming suffering and death, the Church provides us with the comfort and assurance of the resurrection in the commemoration of Lazarus being the last liturgical day preceding the Palm Sunday feast.

So we enter into Palm Sunday aware of the coming suffering our Lord will endure, but having learned of the assurance of the resurrection that our Lord demonstrated through raising Lazarus from the dead as a foreshadow of the hope to come.

Christ’s entry into Jerusalem is described by a variety of names you may be familiar with such as; ‘Palm Sunday’, the ‘Sunday of Hosannas’ (as mentioned above) and ‘the Triumphal Entry’. There is great significance behind the titles of this event and we will shed some light on the importance of these particular titles that have been passed down since the event took place over 2000 years ago.

Why is it called the Triumphal Entry?

We read of the account of Christ’s entry into Jerusalem in all of the gospels; Matthew 21:1-11, Mark 11:1-11, Luke 19:28-40, and John 12:12-19 and in some translations, these passages have been titled “the Triumphal entry”. So why is it titled thus?

In the times of old, when an army went to war against the enemy and returned home victorious, they were welcomed by a procession of their native citizens holding palm branches to celebrate their victory and honour the men who had overcome the enemy. It was also a customary way to receive a King into the city.

By the same token we witness our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords receive the same honorary welcome as He enters into Jerusalem to fulfill God's will in overcoming the enemy of our souls by His sacrificial death, burial and resurrection and to once and for all gain ultimate victory for all who believe in Him.

Why is it called the Sunday of Hosanna’s?

Simply, the term “Hosanna” is a shout of praise that was reserved for the 'Son of David'. We draw from its use in Psalm 118:25-26 that it means “save”.

It is upon Christ’s entry into Jerusalem that we see the crowds welcoming the Lord into the city, holding palm and olive branches. Palms were to signify victory and praise while olive branches traditionally symbolized mercy. Holding these they chanted:

“Hosanna to the Son of David!”

“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”

“Hosanna in the highest!”

This honorary reception by the crowds demonstrated their desire for the promised Messiah- King, the “Son of David” to enter into the Holy City to save them and restore power to Jerusalem as their ruler. But we learn of Christ’s true salvific mission and the type of victory God wanted to bring to the people by the way that He chooses to humbly enter the city riding on an untamed colt, the foul of a donkey…

St. John Chrysostom explains the depth of meaning behind Christ’s humble actions here:

But let us look also at the prophecy, that by words, that by acts. What then is the prophecy? “Behold, thy King cometh to thee, meek, and riding on an ass, and a young colt; ”not driving chariots, like the rest of the kings, not demanding tributes, not thrusting men off, and leading about guards, but displaying His great meekness even hereby.

But He did these things, as I said, signifying beforehand the things to come. For here the church is signified by the colt, and the new people, which was once unclean, but which, after Jesus sat on them, became clean. And see the image preserved throughout. I mean that the disciples loose[ned] the asses. For by the apostles, both they and we were called; by the apostles were we brought near. But because our acceptance provoked them also to emulation, therefore the ass appears following the colt. For after Christ hath sat on the Gentiles, then shall they also come moving us to emulation (follow their example). ¹

Christ’s taming of the colt is another great typification of how He can tame our rebellious ways when we submit to Him and allow Him to take the “reigns” in our life in order to be lead to a victorious eternity.

This Palm Sunday let us welcome Christ our Lord into our hearts and lives by waving palm branches of praise for His victory over sin and death, and olive branches with which we beseech Him for His mercy. As we remember our Lord humbly riding into the Holy City on an untamed colt, let us emulate Him through the Church’s teachings and continue to tame our souls as we have been doing during the Great Fast.

For just as our Lord Jesus Christ experienced sufferings, trials and ultimate victory, so too we who abide in Him will gain victory over our sins, sufferings and trials and gain redemption by His mercy.

Lead me to the Cross: Brooke Fraser

1.        St. Chrysostom: Homilies on the Gospel of Saint Matthew, Grand Rapids, MI: Christian Classics Ethereal Library

Thursday of Thanksgiving

In light of the conclusion of the Rogation of the Ninevites, and the cultural and religious significance these last three days bear on our Church and community, it is only fitting for our Church to teach us to continue to live in a worthy manner of repentance starting from the first day we break our fast. This is why the mother Church disciples us to understand the meaning of giving thanks to the Lord after the fast and has instated Thursday of Thanksgiving to remind us of what we have faithfully conquered through our last three days of abstaining. This day stands as an initial reminder that as we break our fast, we should not break or put an end to our piety.

Thursday of Thanksgiving is a timely reminder to the faithful of the Church that our righteous deeds of fasting and prayer over the last three days of the Rogation of the Ninevites, the repentant prayers and beseeching that we made before the Lord to have mercy on us sinners, should not be forgotten. Instead, in the passing shadow of the fast, we should be more mindful of the sins we have committed and besought forgiveness from God for. We should be reminded of the great mercy and forgiveness that God has offered us through the death, burial and resurrection of His Son; our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ and continually be encouraged by the faith that our ancestors demonstrated to us through their repentance.

St. Paul exhorts believers to offer thanksgiving to the Lord for showing us His gracious mercy everyday by offering our lives as a living sacrifice to God:

“Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. ² And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.” Romans 12:1-2

The Apostle draws upon the typology of the Old Testament ways of worship, where an animal sacrifice was commanded of the Israelites to be given to the temple as an offering to God for the sins of the people. Today, as we live in the grace and forgiveness of Christ - our one and only sacrifice for our sins (Hebrews 10:11-14), we are commanded by St. Paul to offer ourselves as a living sacrifice to God. This is seen as true spiritual thanksgiving and worship and is what is acceptable to God.

In this post-fast time of our walk, let us continue to offer our lives to God as a living sacrifice in order to thank Him for the great mercy, love and forgiveness He has bestowed upon us His unworthy children. Let us not so easily forget the great spiritual fruits God has grown within us through the fasting and prayer we offered to Him over the last three days. And let us continue to live repentantly and in thanks to our mighty God as we meditate on the power of His mighty Cross daily, always being mindful of what He has offered us (John 3:16) so that we can always be thankful to Him.

This week’s Song: Psalm 95 – Sons of Korah