Meditations & FAQ | Meditations Archive
What is the meaning of the Cross?
Catechism Meditation:
By embracing in his human heart the Father’s love for men, Jesus “loved them to the end”, for “greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” In suffering and death his humanity became the free and perfect instrument of his divine love which desires the salvation of men. Indeed, out of love for his Father and for men, whom the Father wants to save, Jesus freely accepted his Passion and death: “No one takes [my life] from me, but I lay it down of my own accord.” Hence the sovereign freedom of God’s Son as he went out to his death. ―No. 609
REFLECTION. Because Christ’s suffering and death was the instrument of salvation, from what did he save us? We needed to be saved from sin and its damaging effects. God’s plan to save us involved having the Son of God enter into this world to be like us in all things except sin. Divine love made this possible.
Jesus, Son of God, was sent by the Father to restore the harmony between himself and humanity that had been disrupted by sin. He came to teach and show us love. Jesus was without sin, but in his human nature, he was subject to all that human beings suffer, including hatred from others, torture, and death itself. He proclaimed the coming of God’s Kingdom by his words and deeds in obedience to the will of his Father. He showed the full meaning of all that had been revealed in the Old Testament. But some did not want to hear his message. They opposed him and turned him over to the administration of the Roman Empire in Palestine to be put to death.
On the Cross, Jesus freely gave his life as a sacrifice. His sacrifice was an act of atonement, that is, it makes us one again with God by the power of divine mercy extending to us the Father’s forgiveness of our sins. His sacrifice is also called an act of satisfaction or reparation because he lives out fully the Father’s call to human beings to be faithful to his plan for them, thus overcoming the power of sin. It is also an expiation for our sins, which in the understanding of Scripture means that God takes the initiative in bringing about reconciliation to himself. In the words of Christian Tradition, Jesus’ sacrifice merits salvation for us because it retains forever the power to draw us to him and to the Father.
Source: United States Catholic Catechism for Adults
PRAYER. We adore You O Christ and we bless You, because by Your holy Cross You have redeemed the world. Amen.
Timeless Wisdom Quote:
“As in the beginning, [man] was free to accept God or reject Him, so now in history he is free to accept God’s Son, Jesus Christ, or reject Him. The symbol of Christianity for that reason is the Cross, whereunto that Great Figure is nailed. . . . He can only wait for us! But oh! How He waits: arms stretched to embrace; heart open to love!” ― Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen