by Deacon Lawrence A. St. Onge

Today is the second day of the Church’s celebration of the Holy Tridiuum, which takes place over a 3-day time span. The focus of our 2^nd day of celebration is on the cross and crucifixion of Jesus.

It is unfortunate that many do not understand the importance of the cross. Many Christians want to ignore the cross and look only at the Resurrection as the most important event of our Christian faith.

For example, recently, there was a certain church marketing newsletter, which developed a campaign to attract people to church during the Easter season, which is admirable. But, in the campaign it was suggested that the cross be removed from the altar, because a survey had disclosed that the cross is one of those symbols that the new generation of church goers consider to be too "churchy." Sadly, there was one pastor who was interviewed that whole-heartedly endorsed this campaign. He said, "We are going to attempt to concentrate on the resurrection and not the death of Jesus."

The pastor’s statement poses an interesting consideration for us to ponder. Is it possible to have the resurrection without the crucifixion? That answer, my brothers and sisters, is absolutely not, no way, can’t be, it is impossible. It would totally distort the whole gospel if we tried to make that separation. The road to the empty tomb of the resurrection on Easter Sunday will forever pass by a cross. Jesus who was raised from the dead is none other than the crucified Christ. The Easter resurrection without a cross is a hoax.

All of the New Testament writers take the same approach to Jesus, saying to us that somehow the Crucifixion sums it all up. If we want to get close to Jesus, to really know who he was and what he was about, we can only do it through the cross and crucifixion.

Jesus has made it unmistakably clear to us that if we want to identify with him and to make his life a model for our own, we must be ready and willing to accept suffering, pain, and possibly even death for the sake of others. That is what it means to belong to Christ – what discipleship means.

It means we must adopt a style of living and life in which we care about others so much that we are willing to sacrifice on their behalf – to give of ourselves on their behalf. Jesus said: "There is no greater love than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends."

Jesus taught us that God the Father, who sent him to us as the Lord of Life, works through the process of death/resurrection. It is the way that God, himself, chose to bring new life into the world. Jesus told us: "unless a grain of wheat falls on the ground and dies, it remains only a single grain; but if it dies, it yields a rich harvest." When Jesus spoke this parable to his disciples, he was trying to help them understand that out of his death would emerge new life.

There isn’t one of us here that is in any way compelled to be a disciple of Christ. Each of us is can do so or not of our own free will. But if we choose to follow him, we need to realize that there is a price to be paid, which is our willingness to follow Jesus’ example of sacrificial love – that is the cost of discipleship. But when we do make this choice, we find that the new life we have chosen is the most glorious, the most fulfilling and the most joyous life of all.

It is in the Cross of Christ that we see the triumph of Jesus over his enemies of sin, Satan and death. Abbot Rupert of Deutz once wrote, "The cross of Christ is the door to heaven, the key to paradise, the downfall of the devil, the uplifting of mankind, the consolation of our imprisonment, the prize for our freedom." In other words, the Cross of Christ is the safeguard of our faith, the assurance of our hope, and the throne of love. It is also the sign of God’s mercy and the proof of forgiveness. By his cross Jesus has redeemed our sin and atoned for our punishment.

The way to peace, joy, and righteousness in the kingdom of God and the way to victory over sin, despair, and death, is only through the cross of Jesus Christ.

I want to end with a short story, which told by a pastor of a dramatization of Christ’s trial and crucifixion put on by the youth group of his church. The director of the youth group played the role of Christ, and the youth group the jeering mob.

"Crucify him! Crucify him!" they shouted, and then they dragged the youth director into the back yard of the church and hung him on an improvised cross.

The pastor told how he stood to the side, to see how the drama was going, and how the crowd became quiet as "Christ" hung there and spoke these words to the youth group: "Even though you are doing this to me, I still love you." Then, the pastor noticed an 8-year old girl standing in front of the youth group, transfixed by the scene. He looked at her and saw tears streaming down her face.

The pastor related, "I was envious of her." For the rest of us it was a performance; for her, it was the real thing. She was there, present at Jesus’ crucifixion. So often most of us come to a Good Friday service and merely observe what is happening to Christ. We are uninvolved spectators. And yet, the reality is that the savior of the world is hanging here on the cross, suffering and dying for all our sins.