According to tradition, St Helena, the mother of Emperor Constantine, found the true cross in Jerusalem around 326. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre was built on the site and dedicated on 14 September 335. That date is still the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. On Good Friday, the whole Church kneels before the cross, and many Catholics kiss it.
Historical Context
We Adore You, O Christ
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you,
because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world.
A Prayer Before the Crucifix
Lord Jesus, I look at your cross.
I see how much you loved me.
You stretched out your arms to embrace the whole world, and me in it.
Help me carry my own cross without complaining,
and to help others carry theirs.
Let the cross be my strength in weakness and my hope at the hour of death.
Amen.
From the Vexilla Regis
Venantius Fortunatus wrote this hymn in 569 for the arrival of a relic of the true cross in Poitiers. It’s still sung in Holy Week. One verse in John Mason Neale’s translation reads:
O Cross, our one reliance, hail!
This holy Passiontide, avail
to give fresh merit to the saint,
and pardon to the penitent.
A Prayer for Protection
By the sign of the holy cross,
deliver us from our enemies, O Lord our God.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Best Times for This Prayer
- On 14 September, the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.
- On Good Friday, at the veneration of the cross.
- During the Stations of the Cross.
- Before a crucifix at home or in church.
Scripture Connection
“For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.” — 1 Corinthians 1:18
To the Romans, the cross meant shame and defeat. To Paul it meant power. The same object; a completely different meaning, because of who hung on it.
Related prayers
For the Passion, see the Holy Thursday Prayer and Friday Morning Prayer. For the cross over the altar at home, the Altar Prayer.