The Cross as ‘Triumphant?’
I’ve had trouble with this expression. Maybe you have too. How on earth can we understand an instrument of torture to be a cause for triumph? Triumph comes with the resurrection, right? But what is the ‘law of the cross’ that makes this death instrument also a cause of triumph? The answer hit me like a ton of bricks in reading through some old notes. The cross is the symbol of every tear, every pain, every evil, every torture, every despicable human experience we can name. It’s that part of life that we wish we could do away with. It’s physical or emotional, and yes, even spiritual suffering, all too familiar to each of us as it comes our way. The key is in what happens to it. What happens to the cross? This instrument of torture is changed. It has become holy. A part of our Good Friday liturgy is the ‘Adoration of the Cross.’ Why do we ‘adore’ the cross? What has happened? The Paschal Mystery has become a transformation mystery. Which means, by the w...