Exaltation of the Cross

On September 14th, Christians east and west celebrate the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross.  It is one of the twelve major feasts on the Orthodox liturgical calendar.  In the following video, we learn about the celebration of the discovery and elevation of the holy cross. We explore how this instrument of torture became an icon of veneration, and also examine the contemporary traditions of its celebration. This video is part of a series named “Exploring the Feasts of the Church” by the Department of Religious Education of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America which explores the major feasts of Christ and the Theotokos as well as the meaning and purpose of Christian worship in the context of the Church’s annual liturgical cycle.

Pilgrimage to the Holy Sepulcher

The church that is honored far above all others is that of the Holy Resurrection, which Saint Constantine the Great constructed at the place of Golgotha, where our Savior was crucified and buried.  On Sept. 13th, we commemorate the Consecration of the Holy Sepulcher.  In 2014, Fr. Panayiotis Papageorgiou and a group from his parish went on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land.  The following video is from their visit to the Holy Sepulcher.

For Further Study

We recommend the following podcasts if you’d like to explore the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross further:

• The Universal Exaltation of the Precious and Life-Giving Cross:  Podcast by Fr. Thomas Hopko on Ancient Faith Radio.
• The Outsider God: The Cross and the Divinity of Jesus:  Podcast by Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick on Ancient Faith Radio.