The Catholic church, as well as, many other denominations that celebrated the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. During Easter Sunday I saw many post on Facebook wishing people happy Easter and rejoice in our risen Lord. A couple of post noted that the cross was empty and that Jesus has risen. The Catholic Church has the corpus on the cross. While many of our brothers/sisters in Christ have just a cross. The crucifix in the Catholic Church is placed in a position of honor, and that is usually over the altar, or the tabernacle. So why as Catholics do we have the corpus on the cross?
The Catholic church requires us to have the crucifix visible during the celebration of Mass. This is to remind us that of the suffering that our Lord Jesus gave for us, which is made present to us every time that we celebrate the Holy Eucharist. Many of our non-catholics brothers/sisters say that we do not believe in the risen Christ. To those I say that this is false. As a Catholic we need to be reminded of what our Lord had to go through before He rose from the grave. This image helps us understand the theology of redemption.
I know that for me when I am going through some suffering for instance, back pain, financial struggles, or just the stress in life. I can go to mass on Sunday see the cross and understand that the suffering that I am going through is nothing compared that our Lord suffered for me over two thousand years ago. That is a comforting image for me to see that God loves us so much that he was willing to put His own son to death. This image that so any question gives us a visual reminder that Christ is the victor over sin.
When I look at the cross I try to think about the cross and what it means to me. It means that no matter what I may go through, I know that my Lord endured so much more for me. I look upon the cross with wonder and awe. During the celebration of the Eucharist I look at the cross, and thank God for what he did and gave up for me. What do you think about when you look at the crucifix? I understand what Christ was thinking about when he was crucified, he was think about me.
I know that for me when I am going through some suffering for instance, back pain, financial struggles, or just the stress in life. I can go to mass on Sunday see the cross and understand that the suffering that I am going through is nothing compared that our Lord suffered for me over two thousand years ago. That is a comforting image for me to see that God loves us so much that he was willing to put His own son to death. This image that so any question gives us a visual reminder that Christ is the victor over sin.
When I look at the cross I try to think about the cross and what it means to me. It means that no matter what I may go through, I know that my Lord endured so much more for me. I look upon the cross with wonder and awe. During the celebration of the Eucharist I look at the cross, and thank God for what he did and gave up for me. What do you think about when you look at the crucifix? I understand what Christ was thinking about when he was crucified, he was think about me.
