The current sacramentary gives this feast the title: Triumph of the Holy Cross but the original Latin refers to the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. To understand the significance we might go back to the origin of this celebration as the commemoration or dedication of the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher built by Constantine over the spot believed to be that of Jesus Crucifixion on Sept. 13, 335. On the next day the relic of the cross was held up for veneration by the faithful.

This gesture of "lifting up" unites the crucifixion with the glorification of Jesus. In today's gospel Jesus says to Nicodemus Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of man be lifted up.

This seraph mounted on a pole is very recognizable today by all who work in the medical profession or who like myself wear the Medic alert medallion. It is a symbol -- more than a symbol - a lifeline to healing.

Few today would associate Jesus with this seraph serpent; just as it was very difficult for early Christians to associate Jesus with the cross, the cruelest instrument of torture ever conceived. For a Roman citizen it was strictly forbidden and St. Paul appealed to his Roman citizenship demanding his right of decapitation rather than crucifixion.

When we recall Jesus is lifted on the cross our minds quickly recall the painful agonies of Good Friday; but it is more than a physical lifting up. When the eyes of the Israelites looked upon the mounted serpent, they were healed not only of venomous snakebite but of venomous bickering and bitterness. They were healed not merely by looking with eyes but with the soul.

When we look to the cross as our lifeline, our source of salvation and faith; it is His victory, His triumph in which we share; His glorification by the Father in the splendor of the resurrection and enthronement at the right hand. This is not Good Friday. Glorious exaltation and grace-assured salvation echo throughout this entire celebration.

But the cross continues today to divide like a sword between believer and unbeliever. Some are repelled in total rejection; turning away, never to return. For others it remains a powerful hope even for some who wear it with little faith like a good luck charm. And for still others it is the infinitely enabling power to see life in a totally different light.

In 1900, the Boxer Rebellion in China brought a vicious attack upon the Church. In one instance a crucifix was thrown on the ground and the school children were told if they stepped on it, they would be allowed to go home free; if not they would be shot dead on the spot in front of their classmates.

The first seven students trampled the cross and went home free. The eighth young teen age girl walked around it fell on her knees to kiss it and was immediately shot. The next 100 students followed her example. Nearly 30,000 gave their lives that day rather than deny their God.

There were days when the invitation by Jesus in last Sunday's gospel; Take up your cross, deny yourself, and follow me were more easily understood. It was a simpler and less hurried world. Were the events of Last Tuesday a warning or a punishment? NO - the fact is that we do not always reflect the light of God.

But like the seraph in the desert and the crucified man on Calvary, we can look with darkened eyes of discouragement and vengeance or we can accept the invitation to look with they eyes of hope and wait for the Phoenix to rise from the ashes.