03/15/2026
The Sunday of the Crucifixion The meaning and its message
Many believers, in the midst of the Great Forty, ask: What is the Sunday of the Cross and why does the Church then honor the Holy Cross?
This Sunday is the Third Sunday of the Great Lent. It is called because on that day the Church displays the Holy Cross in the center of the temple for worship by the faithful.
During the Orthros procession, the priest or bishop takes out the Cross from the Holy Step and places it in the center of the temple, on flowers and basil, while the famous tropario is sung:
"We bow down to Your Cross, Despota,
and Your Holy Anastasin be glorified.
From that moment and throughout the week believers come and worship the Holy Cross, asking for strength and blessing.
Why the Cross is placed in the middle of Lent
Great Forty is a spiritual struggle.
Fasting, prayer, repentance, abstinence.
In the middle of this road the Church displays the Cross as spiritual reinforcement.
Fathers use a very beautiful icon:
Just as travelers who grow weary on the road find a tree and rest under its shadow, so too believers find rest under the shadow of the Cross.
So the Cross is placed in the center of Lent:
to strengthen us in the fight
to remind us why we struggle
and to show us where the path of Lent leads
The road leads to the Passion and Resurrection of Christ.
The Cross in the Orthodox Faith
For Christians the Cross is not just a symbol.
It is the weapon of salvation.
Christ on the Cross:
put an end to sin
he defeated death
open the heavens to man.
That's why the Church sings:
"Cross, guard the housewife.
Cross, the beauty of the Church.
Cross, the King's captivity.
Cross, the pillar of believers. »
The Cross is simultaneously pain and glory,
sacrifice and victory.
What it means for our life
Sunday of the Crucifixion reminds us of something very deep:
There is no Resurrection without a Cross.
Jesus himself said :
"Whoever wants to come back to me,
i am denying myself
and i bare his cross"
(Math. 16,24).
Each of us has our own cross:
difficulties
diseases
temptations
the trials of life.
The Church does not tell us that life will be painless.
But he tells us that the Cross leads to the Resurrection.
Just as Christ went through Calvary to the Resurrection, so every cross that is lifted by faith becomes the way to life.
A deep message of the day
Sunday of the Cross is like a stop in the spiritual journey of Lent.
The Church says to us:
'Don't be afraid of the struggle.
Look at the Cross.
That's where the winning starts.
And that's why we worship the Cross not with regret, but with hope.
Because we know that behind the Cross always lies the light of the Resurrection.
And maybe this Sunday whispers to us something very personal.
When you get tired from racing...
when fasting, hardships and temptations weigh heavy on the heart...
look at the Cross.
Up there is not only the pain of the world.
God's love for man exists.
Christ didn't come down from the Cross to show us that His love never gives up.
And from the cross the road to Resurrection opened.
That's why the Church, in the middle of Lent, shows us the Cross and tells us:
Don't be afraid.
Keep on the path.
The Cross is not the end.
It's the beginning of the Resurrection. ✝️
