A protestant who entered a Catholic church for the first time had the shock of his life when he saw the huge cross with the life-size body of Christ hanging—dead, bloody, hands and feet nailed on the cross.
To him, the crucifix was bizarre and blood-curdling. By no stretch of the imagination could he worship a grotesque and tortured body.
The crucifix is an idea that contradicts the very definition of an omnipotent God. It can be understood only in light of the Gospel. Its meaning becomes clear only in human terms.
Unconditional love. Humility and sacrifice. Charity. “No greater love has one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” This probably explains the enormous time and devotion spent by Filipino Catholics in reflecting on the passion and death of Jesus Christ during Holy Week.
One of the most moving prayers said by millions of Filipinos combines the oral and physical—the Stations of the Cross, popular during Holy Week.
The crucifix is one of the most powerful symbols in the world of religion. Its impact comes from the concept of martyrdom as the supreme offering. Its power lies in the mystery of faith. That God became man in order to interact physically with human beings, to communicate the message of hope and the promise of eternal life.
Humble talk
When a Christian kneels before a crucifix, it is an emotional experience. It is the moment for humble talk. No human tragedy, no personal sorrow can match the pain and death of Christ on the cross.
A mother dies, a husband abandons his family, a son takes drugs, a man loses his job, a brother is murdered, a father is dying of cancer. All these misfortunes, when discussed with God beneath the crucifix, can be perfectly understood and bearable. The crucifix does an excellent job of wiping away our tears, and making us feel loved by God.
The crucifix is the ultimate struggle for perfection. It involves the biggest virtues of man. Love, service, charity, obedience and total surrender. In front of a crucifix, we acknowledge Christ’s ultimate love for man—a love that’s humbling for us all.
Before Christ came to earth, humans invented powerful deities that they could worship. Classical Greeks, for all their intellectual prowess, could only resort to myths. They created all sorts of gods, enthroning them on Mount Olympus. Zeus, the mightiest, hurling lightning and thunder; Ares was the god of war; Hermes the winged messenger, and more. They even created a god of wine, Dionysus (from which the word “dionysian” is derived).
Only after Christ and the Gospel did religion change from myth to reality. From falsehood to truth. From guesswork to certitude.
But more than an icon, the crucifix also symbolizes protection from evil (so vividly portrayed in Dracula movies as the ultimate weapon against diabolical creatures). The crucifix also adorns us as the beautiful pendant on our necklace that proclaims our faith in Jesus Christ.
When I was a young boy, I witnessed a poor and very sick farmer die in his small hut. After the crying and wailing of his wife and children, the wife went out of the hut to look for kayakas (dried coconut leaves) which she cut into two pieces, making a cross by inserting the short piece in the long piece.
Then she made her dead husband’s hands clasp the cross. It was the most touching gesture, done by a living person for the dead, that I had ever seen.
The crucifix is the truest symbol of mankind’s aspiration to reconciliation with God after the fall of Adam and Eve. It is a link to our immortality.
Dying, you destroyed our death
Rising, you restored our life
Lord Jesus, come in glory.