Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross:The Cross, Prayers and Indulgences

Christ Carrying the Cross by Titian

Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross
Today we honor the Cross of Christ.  "Devotion to the Holy Cross dates back to the earliest days of Christianity. The feast itself has been celebrated since the fourth century. Today the Church commemorates the recovery of the True Cross by the Emperor Heraclius following his victory over the Persians." (In Conversation with God, Vol 7, p.140). I recommend reading some of St. Josemaria Escriva's reflections. For now, I would simply like to share some prayer and indulgences related to the Cross. All were obtained from the Handbook/Manual of Indulgences.

22 En ego, o bone et dulcissime Iesu
Prayer before a Crucifix 
Good and gentle Jesus, I kneel before you. I see and I ponder your five wounds. My eyes behold what David prophesied about you: “They have pierced my hands and feet; they have counted all my bones.” Engrave on me this image of yourself. Fulfill the yearnings of my heart: give me faith, hope, and love, repentance for my sins, and true conversion of life. Amen.

(Psalm 22:17-18; Roman Missal, pp. 935-936.) On any Friday during Lent a plenary indulgence is granted the Christian faithful who, after communion, devoutly recite the above prayer before an image of Jesus Christ crucified. On other days of the year the indulgence is a partial one.

55 Signum crucis
Sign of the Cross 
A partial indulgence is granted the Christian faithful who devoutly sign themselves with the cross while saying the customary formula: “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.”

63 Viae Crucis exercitium
Stations of the Cross
A plenary indulgence is granted the Christian faithful who devoutly make the Stations of the Cross. This devout exercise of the Stations of the Cross helps renew our remembrance of the sufferings that our divine redeemer underwent on his journey from Pilate’s praetorium, where he was condemned to death, to Mount Calvary, where for our salvation he died on the cross. The norms for obtaining this plenary indulgence are the following:

1. This devout exercise must be performed before stations of the cross that have been lawfully erected. 
2. Fourteen crosses are required in order to erect the Stations of the Cross. As an aid to devotion these crosses are customarily attached to fourteen tableaux or images representing the Jerusalem stations.
3. In accord with the more common custom, this devout exercise consists of fourteen pious readings to which are joined some vocal prayers. But in order to perform this devout exercise it is required only that one devoutly meditate upon the passion and death of the Lord. It is not required that one meditate upon each of the individual mysteries of the stations.
4. Movement from one station to the next is required. If this devout exercise is carried out publicly and such movement by all present cannot be done without some disorder, it is sufficient that the person who is leading the exercise move from station to station while the others remain in their places.
5. Persons who are legitimately prevented from fulfilling the above requirements can obtain this indulgence if they at least spend some time, e.g., fifteen minutes, in devout reading and meditation upon the passion and death of our Lord Jesus Christ.
6. Equivalent to this devout exercise of the Stations of the Cross — even with regard to obtaining the indulgence — are those other devout exercises which have been approved by competent authority and which call to mind the remembrance of the Lord’s passion and death in a manner similar to the Stations of the Cross.
7. In order to obtain this indulgence, the patriarchs can establish some other devout exercise in memory of the passion and death of our Lord Jesus Christ for those Eastern Christian faithful whose usages do not include this exercise of the Stations.

New Evangelization: Simple Ways To Witness

New Evangelization
A key component of the new evangelization is that of meeting the spiritual and temporal needs of the people precisely where they are. The underlying message is the same: a call to holiness in and through a relationship with Jesus Christ. In other words, it is new only in the sense that it makes use of new methodes of reaching the faithful. Pope John Paul II’s pontificate was indeed a model of the New Evangelization with his many travels and his use of the available communications technology of his day. This has even laid the foundation for evangelization in the world of social media. Practically speaking, this also means we need to be prepared to witness to those we encounter in our everyday, ordinary lives. Mother Theresa put it this way: "You are called to blossom where you have been planted."

Sign of the Cross

I grew with the tradition of making the sign of the cross every time you passed a Catholic Church. I always associated it with a sign of respect. When I came back to the Church, I read an article in which the author was advocating the return to this tradition as a sign of acknowledging the true presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament contained in each tabernacle. While I was recently visiting family, I was in the car with them when we passed a Catholic Church. I "signed" myself and  silently prayed a Spiritual Communion Prayer. One of my family members asked me why and it gave me an opportunity to explain why. It also began a discussion on the true presence in the Eucharist.

Original Catholic Cap

One morning recently, I had to go to Wal-Mart to pick up a few items for a trip I was taking. While I was putting the groceries in the back of my car, a young man in a wheel chair came up to take my cart. He saw I was wearing an Original Catholic baseball cap and asked me where I bought it. This led to a discussion about Catholicism and the priesthood.

Grace Before Meals

I work at a small magnet school and during lunch our entire faculty eats at one large wooden, last supper table in our presentation room. Years ago when I had just come back to the Church, I began praying grace before all my meals. I wasn't loud. In fact, I mostly whispered the prayer to myself, but did not hide that I was praying over my food because I would always conclude with a sign of the Cross. A year or so later one of my colleagues approached me and said, "Don, I have come back to the Catholic Church because of you." I must have given her a strange look and then said, "I don't understand. What did I do?" She said seeing me pray everyday made her realize that she needed to get back to the Church. God then used that simple act to move her heart, to bring her back to the Church. She has since brought back her entire family into the Church and they are all actively involved in their parishes.

Always Be Ready
The point I am trying to make with these three simple examples is that we should always be ready to witness to others. We don't have to do anything dramatic. We don't have to beat anyone over the head with a Bible or Catechism. We just have to be willing and able to share our faith.

Spiritual Toolbox: The Sign of the Cross

[Originally posted 8/5/09, this update contains significant upgrades to the links and has added commentary]

The Sign of the Cross is one of the most basic prayers in the Catholic Church. For many of us, it may have been the very first prayer we learned. The simplicity of the prayer speaks to the perfect simplicity of the Holy Trinity. Proclaiming the name of God is a powerful prayer in itself.

SaintsSQPN describes the prayer this way:

The most important of the sacramentals. It is a symbol of our deliverance from Satan, and an emblem of God‘s mercy as manifested through the crucifixion of Our Saviour. It consists in making a movement with the hands, or with some object, in the form of a cross. 

[T]he words and the action form a summary of the Catholic faith in God and the Redemption. We say “In the name” – expressing the unity of God; we mention the three Persons of the Trinity; the cross itself, made with the hand, manifests our belief in the Incarnation, death, and resurrection of Our Saviour, and shows that we regard Him not only as God but as man – for otherwise He could not die. The use of this sign goes back probably to the days of the Apostles. 

Here are some resources explaining the origin of the Sign of the Cross and why we make this gesture with the prayer.

Catholic Encyclopedia

Early Explanation

Interview with Bert Ghezzi on Catholic Online

Karl Keating (link to audio has expired)

The Sign of the Cross, Bert Ghezzi (the book featured in the picture)