Sermon

Sunday, September 16, 2007—

Exaltation of the Holy Cross

Each year on September 14, the Orthodox Church celebrates the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. Tradition holds that the precious cross of Christ was found on September 14 in the year 325 by St. Helen. St. Helen was the mother of St. Constantine. Constantine was a soldier and one day his armies were under attack by a vastly larger force. Despairing that they might be slaughtered, Constantine had a vision. He saw in the sky the sign of the cross, with the words, en touto nika, in this sign you will win. He ordered his soldiers to put the sign of the cross on their shields and they were victorious in battle against an enemy that vastly outnumbered them. Constantine would later make Christianity the official religion of the Roman/Byzantine Empire.

Because the sign of the cross had such a profound impact on her son, St. Helen had a desire to find the true Cross of Christ. So, with a group of soldiers, she went to Jerusalem, and found the hill of Golgotha, the place where the Lord had been crucified. As they searched the hillside, they were not able to find the cross. St. Helen smelled a fragrant herb growing on the hill, which we call Vasiliko, or Basil. She ordered the soldiers to dig there on the hillside, and underneath the basil was found three crosses. The next thing was to determine which one was the true cross. It so happens that a funeral procession was passing that way, and so the body of the dead man was placed on each of the crosses, and when it was placed on the True Cross, the dead man came to life—thus the name the “Life-Giving” Cross, which gives life not only to that man, but to each person who believes in the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross and His all-glorious 3 day Resurrection. One other interesting trivia note—the word “Vasiliko” means “of the King,” as the word “Basileus” in Greek means King. So, Vasiliko, Basil, is tied to the Precious Cross of the King of Glory, our Lord Jesus Christ.

At the feast of the Holy Cross on September 14, a special procession is held, which we will hold in a few minutes. During the procession, a tray of vasiliko is carried around the church above the heads of the people. And towering over the Vasiliko is the Holy Cross from the altar table. The cross, once a symbol of shame on which criminals were executed, is a sign of triumph for the true Christian. It is the sign that we are Christians.

The cross has rich symbolism—first, it is made of the wood of a tree. The fall of humanity came as a result of eating forbidden fruit from a tree. Mankind is now redeemed through the tree upon which Christ was Crucified. The arms of the cross also have symbolism. The vertical arm of the cross reaches from the earth towards the heaven, and symbolizes the relationship between God and man, and between man and God. It symbolizes God so loving the world, as we read in the Gospel last Sunday, that He sent His only-begotten Son to the earth, so that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. It also symbolizes God’s desire for each of us to have a personal relationship with Him. The horizontal arm of the cross symbolizes that the saving work of Christ is for the benefit of all mankind, for all the nations, panta ta ethni. It represents the loving embrace Christ makes over the whole world as He calls all peoples to Him. The horizontal arm also represents the relationship that each person is supposed to have with others. God is love and so the essence of loving God includes loving other people. In fact, one cannot love God unless He loves other people as well.

Following the Procession this morning, when the offering is made, there will be a second tray passed. The proceeds of this tray will go to Holy Cross Seminary. They will help benefit seminarians from this Metropolis who want to go to the Seminary. One of the rich blessings I had when I went to the Seminary was to be able to venerate every day, a piece from the true Cross of Christ that is in a reliquary in the altar of Holy Cross Chapel. It was also a rich blessing to have been ordained to the priesthood before that altar in Holy Cross Chapel. Being named for the Holy Cross, there was always some sentiment when I went to the Chapel for services, I heard my hymn at every Liturgy and I will always feel fortunate that not only my preparation for the priesthood, but its very beginning, my ordination, were tied to that place. It is not an understatement to say that the Orthodox priesthood in America is in dire straits. There simply are not enough priests. The average age of a new priest is mid-40s. The typical Seminarian at the seminary is in his late 30s or early 40s, and more than half are converts to the faith and are not Greek. There is a need for approximately 600 full-time priests to serve the Greek Orthodox parishes in America. That would translate to 15 new priests needed a year if the same number were being ordained and retiring and if every priest served 40 years. Every year, more priests retire or die than are ordained. We also are suffering through a time when for whatever reason, many people are leaving the priesthood in their 40s. Only about 12 priests are getting ordained per year, and since most are in their 40s, they will only serve 20-25 years before retiring. So, do the math, this is not a pretty picture. You might think this has no bearing on Tampa, but realize that large parishes in Jacksonville and Orlando have not had full time priests in months, because there just aren’t any available to send. And when those two churches get filled, two more will sit for months without one. And so, I ask that you not only be generous in offering something for the Seminary this morning, but I ask that you please pray for young men to answer that call to the priesthood, that you pray for the priests and that you strive to support and encourage the work of the priest in this parish and any other in which you find yourself. The seminary and the priests that come out of it are the lifeline that keeps Orthodox Christianity alive. If there are no priests, there is no church, no sacraments. Our lifeline is hurting—it needs your prayers, it needs your support.

As we prepare for the Procession, I will leave you with two verses of scripture to meditate on during this special service. The first comes from the Gospel reading this morning—“For what shall it profit a man to gain the whole world but lose his own soul? For what can a man give in return for his soul?” (Mark 8:36-37) I’d like to think that I’m still on the uphill side of my life’s journey, however, a look at the obituaries in the paper yesterday, with four people in their 40s being buried, makes me wonder if I’ve already passed the half-way point a long time ago. Some of you are in your 60s, 70s and 80s. And while I pray that you will enjoy long and healthy lives, you aren’t in your 20s and 30s, there isn’t 50 years left ahead of you. Whatever age you are this morning, at some point, we’re all going to die, and at some point we will all ponder the question, what did it all mean? At some point, the earthly life of each person will come to an end—their remains will be deposited into the ground, people will cry, and an obituary will list the members of the grieving family and perhaps offer a brief testament as to what the person did in life. And that will be it for our earthly life. Someone once told me, what is the value in accumulating vast amounts of wealth? It doesn’t accompany you when you die. What good is fame? Even if people speak praises about you when you are dead, you won’t be here to exalt in them. It’s important to do well with your children, they are a living legacy that is left. But as for the rest—fame and fortune, these will leave, and all that will be left is faith. And either you’ll have it, or you won’t. Faith is not just a cross we wear around our necks. Watch a show like Cops and you’ll see plenty of criminals are wearing crosses when they get arrested. Faith in God is something that leads a person to deny himself or herself, to deny the ego, the self-importance, the power, the prestige, the fame, the fortune—and take up the cross of Christ—the faith, the struggle, the hardship, the patience, the endurance, the discipline, the love of others—and all the other things—faith in God is something that leads a person to deny himself or herself and take up the cross of Christ and follow. If a person lives his or her whole life and never figures out what is real faith, it really was all for naught—faith is the only thing we take with us when we meet God and if you don’t have it, it stands to reason that meeting won’t go very well.

And the second verse of Scripture comes from St. Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians that we read on September 14, Chapter 1, Verse 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.” Some laugh at the message of the cross—some laugh at it literally, others laugh through their ignorance. Some enter into God’s Holy house, but they enter with body only, rather than faith, reverence and fear of God. And some do not enter at all. Why is the message of the cross foolishness to unbelievers, or to those who say they believe but do not practice correctly? St. John Chrysostom answers this question when he says, “it is a mark of them that perish not to recognize the things which lead to salvation.” We who bear witness to Christ must not be discouraged when those outside of Him mock, for so did once even St .Paul himself. Being saved, in the words of this verse, refers to the process by which the Cross transforms us with the power of God. (This paragraph taken from Orthodox Study Bible, p. 378)

And so, as we make this solemn procession again this year, think about where you stand in your life today in relation to God. If today was your last day on earth, would you regret that you didn’t take the time to develop your relationship more fully? Think about how you can carry the cross of Christ more prominently in your life. What things should you deny so that there is more room for Christ in your life? And please pray for the Orthodox Church, its priests, its seminary, its future, your future.