The Exaltation of the Holy Cross

The Exaltation of the Holy Cross is one of the 12 great feasts in the yearly Church cycle. Because the cross is at the heart and center of all that we as Christians believe, the Church celebrates the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross, the triumph of the cross of Christ over the power of sin and death. The feast which is celebrated today takes precedence over the ordinary Sunday liturgy. And so this feast provides us with another opportunity to reflect on the central mystery of our faith: that the one who was lifted up on the cross in crucifixion has triumphed over the power of sin and death because God highly exalted him.