A powerful homily on John 3:13-17 for the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, showing how suffering united with Christ becomes a path of love, courage, and eternal life. ( 14-9-2)
Praise be to Jesus Christ
A sad incident happened to a Polish priest during the dark time of Hitler’s persecution. The Polish priest was arrested and thrown into prison. His captors wanted to crush his dignity. They locked him inside a dog’s cage, which was so small that nobody could stand upright. They tossed food on the floor, forcing him to eat like an animal. If he wanted something, he was forced to bark like a dog. Can we imagine such humiliation? A man of God is treated as less than a human being.
He was given one strange gift in that misery — a pen and a few sheets of paper. He began to write his pain, his hunger, his shame. The pages flowed with grief and agony. But one day that happened…He had a vision of the crucified Christ, and he saw the deep wounds, the torn flesh, the blood, the crown of thorns, the humiliation that the God went through. Weight of his burdened cargo got diminished … The silence of Christ on the Cross became his own silence…He encountered the God in the tranquillity. From that day, he stopped jotting down complaints. His diary became blank making his heart brim-full. He had discovered that when united with Jesus, suffering got a new meaning. It’s stings got softened. A few months later, he died in that same cage. But he died free, because he died in Christ. Even the situation remained unchanged, his perception transformed.
My dear brothers and sisters, this is the power of the Cross. Defeat becomes victory….Curse becomes grace….Pain becomes joy… Sorrow becomes happiness…
Another family shows us the same mystery. A poor but loving husband and wife with three children lived happily until that day the mother was diagnosed with cancer. They had little money, yet the husband sold all he could, borrowed, and cared for his wife. Someone asked him, “Didn’t your faith wavered ?” He answered honestly, “Yes, it did. I do not fully agree with the plan of God. But through this, I learned to love my wife more deeply. I came to understand the pain of lonely husbands who suffer in silence. This suffering taught me love.” He could not explain the mystery of God’s plan, but he discovered the heart of the Cross — love that grows deeper in suffering.
The Cross is not only in prisons or hospitals, or in wars or executions. It is next to us. For some, it is living with a drunkard, and every day feels like a heavy weight. For others, it is a loveless marriage, where words of affection are replaced by cold silence. For some, it is a sickness that eats away at the body. For others, poverty, debts, or children have gone astray. At times, these feel like curses. At times we ask: “Why me, Lord?” World may point at you and mock : “Hey, even God abandon you”.
Little Flower says, He is in the boat just sleeping an the will act on the right time. God is just playing a hide and seek game. It is so beautiful as the soft kiss given by crucified Christ in our cheeks and sting of those thorns are suffering as Teresa of Calcutta remarks . . But the reality is more painful and hard to pass…You may be surrounded by many to console. but nobody can console you… You may be mocked as others cannot empathise the pain…You may turn clueless looking the future… You can see a distinct side of the familiar faces… This pain, this loneliness, this sacrifice, this heartbreaks are beautiful times when God is more closer to you. The truth is, we will not get straight answers. But the Cross is not a question answer section. It is about having Christ with us in our pain. One great thinker said, “When you cannot trace God’s hand, you can trust His heart.” The pain and bitterness of the experience may hide your sight from Faith. But Trust God he won’t allow that is not good for you. Romans 8: 28″ And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose”. Immediate results may not emerge but believe you are in a process of pruning to make you more suitable and capable enough for his plan. Mark 7:37 promises “He has done everything well”. No testing has overtaken you except ordinary testing.
St. Paul knew this very well. In 2 Corinthians chapter 11, he tells us about his own sufferings — beaten, stoned, shipwrecked, hungry, sleepless, in danger everywhere. Yet the same Paul, in Romans 8, shouts with joy: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? No — in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” Paul shows us that the Cross is not the end of life, but the beginning of eternal life. Our life is not going to end here. And in this long journey, sometimes you may be tested to see whether you are capable enough to take heavy loads. It is to entrust you more and new responsibilities. “Each But God is faithful. He will not allow you to be tested beyond your ability, but when he tests you, he will also bring about the outcome that you are able to bear it”(1 Cori 10:13). This world is not the final destiny. The Cross points to heaven, where every tear will be wiped away. A mountain has a valley, sea has a shore, tree has seasons so too life.
The Polish priest saw Jesus’ wounds and realised his pain was nothing in comparison. The poor husband found new love amid his wife’s sickness. Paul and Silas turned a prison into a place of prayer and victory. Following the victorious paths of our elder saints…Let us also embrace the cross…You are not alone … Christ and the saints battalion is there beside you
Your suffering may not vanish, but it will no longer crush you. Your pain may not disappear, but it can be filled with meaning. In the Cross, we find strength, hope, and love. If it was a stumbling block , now it is the bridge for you to walk through….TO HEAVEN
So today, as we celebrate the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, let us not be afraid of our own crosses. But let us try to lift them high, as signs of love. And let us believe: the Cross we carry today will be the crown we receive tomorrow.
Jesus, I do not have the strength to suffer. Please do not give me significant burdens. But if I must suffer, give me the grace to bear it joyfully. Amen.
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God Bless…
Our only hope is on cross
Cross…. It is not merely two lines…. One is to God and is to Brothern ✨Enriching Homily 😇
Many thanks for your deeply enriching homily. It truly inspired me.
Really this reflection is so touching my life . Thank you dear father🙏🙏