Embracing the cross

THIS, to be up-front about it, is what Christian life adds up to. Indispensable in our life, the cross assures us of being with Christ and of participating in his redemptive work and merits. As saints consistently affirmed, “no cross, no Christ.” It’s as simple as that.

This truth will always be breaking news for us. Even if it’s an old item, it will always strike us as something new since it will always make fresh demands on us to correspond to Christ’s love. It will also lead us to learn new things.

As St. Paul said: “We glory also in tribulation, knowing that tribulation works patience, and patience trial, and trial hope, and hope confounds not, because the charity of God is poured forth in our hearts…” (Rom 5,3-5)

Bearing the cross can never be routine. We are expected to issue another new impulse of love every moment. In short, the cross makes sure we are always vibrating with love—for God and for everybody else. And it’s love that makes things new!

Thus, we have to lose any fear we may have toward the cross. Of course, loving it has to be understood properly. It’s not loving in the masochistic or self-interested way. It’s loving it in the way Christ loved and continues to love it. Loving it means obeying God’s will, which was how Christ embraced the cross.

If the distinction fails you, try studying Christian Spirituality 101. In fact, I think this is what is needed urgently and massively these days.

How ironic that though we in general have already acquired great theological literacy and the cross in all its forms are unavoidable in our lives, we still miss the mark of loving the cross properly.

We are held hostage by a certain popular mentality that fails to digest this truth properly. In fact, it’s a truth that is still waiting to be made mainstream, already 20 centuries after Christ.

Christ was very direct about this. “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” (Mt 16,24) Variations of this teaching are plenty. And saints down the ages come methodologically confirming this.

Embracing and loving the cross is not an impossible act to do. Again our spiritual nature, more than our bodily aspect—and this propped up by grace with its faith, hope and charity—can turn the cross into an object of attraction.

The cross correlatively purifies and strengthens our faith and love for God and others. It makes sure that such faith and love is genuine, not simply put-on. And today, our pretending skill is no pittance. But the cross can unmask that.

One area we can learn to embrace the cross today is to practice a certain detachment from our opinions, no matter how excellent and superior to those of others we believe ours to be.

The weakening of our faith and charity, and of our Christian life, especially as we live our social and political life as a nation, is due to this inordinate frenzy to uphold and impose our political opinions at all costs.

I think this is madness. When one has in a narrow sense a grip of the truth and with that flaunts and extrapolates it to justify his sweeping judgments, we have a clear case of a righteousness that has gone berserk.

Even some bishops, priests, nuns and other public icons are not exempted from this illness. No matter how much I triangulate their position, giving them the utmost empathy, I still could not understand why they are so close-minded that any view contrary to theirs appears like a mortal sin.

The gospel has already warned us about foolish virgins. Our Lord was clear about this: “Be wise as serpents and simple as doves.” (Mt 10,16). Let’s just do whatever we can to clarify and expand their minds to show other possibilities of resolving and Christianizing political issues.

We can presume everyone is for the truth. But if that truth is pursued without charity, we will never get near it. A certain detachment from our opinions can truly constitute embracing the cross these days. It makes our mind more nimble and open to other options.