Phil 2:6-11
Brothers and sisters:
Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God something to be grasped.
Rather, he emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
coming in human likeness;
and found human in appearance,
he humbled himself,
becoming obedient to death,
even death on a cross.
Because of this, God greatly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name
that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bend,
of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
Dawg's thought:
Today's prayer intention is for those who will affected by Hurricane Ivan.
I didn't know much about today's feast day, so I did some research:
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During the reign of Constantine, first Roman Emperor to profess the Christian faith, his mother Helena went to Israel and there undertook to find the places especially significant to Christians. (She was helped in this by the fact that in their destructions around 135, the Romans had built pagan shrines over many of these sites.) Having located, close together, what she believed to be the sites of the Crucifixion and of the Burial (at locations that modern archaeologists think may be correct), she then had built over them the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which was dedicated on 14 September 335. It has become a day for recognizing the Cross (in a festal atmosphere that would be inappropriate on Good Friday) as a symbol of triumph, as a sign of Christ's victory over death, and a reminder of His promise, "And when I am lifted up, I will draw all men unto me." (John 12:32)
- From the Web site: http://elvis.rowan.edu/~kilroy/JEK/09/14.html
The Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, which we celebrate today, started in the city of Jerusalem. According to tradition, the Empress Helen, mother of the Emperor Constantine, found the Holy Cross in Jerusalem in the fourth century. Three hundred years afterwards, the Persians sacked Jerusalem. They destroyed churches and basilicas and stole relics that were in the churches, including the sacred relic of the Holy Cross. Some years later, the Emperor Heraclius recaptured it.
According to an ancient tradition, after the Holy Cross was recovered, it was returned to Jerusalem. The Emperor, in his richest clothing, tried to carry it in procession from Jerusalem to Mount Calvary. The tradition says that when he tried to lift the Cross, he found that it was too heavy and he could not lift it up. The bishop of Jerusalem, seeing this, told the Emperor that the only way to carry the Cross was to do it as Christ had done it. He made the Emperor see that the clothing he wore was not appropriate. So the Emperor changed into the simple clothing of a pilgrim and he took off his shoes. It was only then that he was able to carry the Holy Cross to the top of Mount Calvary.
- From the Web site: http://www.homiliesalive.com/September_14_2003.htm
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All history aside, we know what the cross means for us in our lives, and it is through Christ carrying His cross that we are able to give thanks today. Take care and God Bless.
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