- The Universal Exaltation of the Precious and Life-giving Cross
- "Saint Helen, the mother of Saint Constantine the Great, when she
was already advanced in years, undertook, in her great piety, the
hardships of a journey to Jerusalem in search of the Cross, about the
year 325. A temple to Aphrodite had been raised up by the Emperor
Hadrian upon Golgotha, to defile and cover with oblivion the place where
the saving Passion had been suffered. The venerable Helen had the
statue of Aphrodite destroyed, and the earth removed, revealing the Tomb
of our Lord, and three crosses. Of these, it was believed that one
must be that of our Lord, the other two of the thieves crucified with
Him; but Saint Helen was at a loss which one might be the Wood of our
salvation. At the inspiration of Saint Macarius, Archbishop of
Jerusalem, a lady of Jerusalem, who was already at the point of death
from a certain disease, was brought to touch the crosses, and as soon as
she came near to the Cross of our Lord, she was made perfectly whole.
Consequently, the precious Cross was lifed on high by Archbishop
Macarius of Jerusalem; as he stood on the ambo, and when the people
beheld it, they cried out, "Lord, have mercy." It should be noted that
after its discovery, a portion of the venerable Cross was taken to
Constantinople as a blessing. The rest was left in Jerusalem in the
magnificent church built by Saint Helen, until the year 614. At that
time, the Persians plundered Palestine and took the Cross to their own
country (See Jan. 22, Saint Anastasius the Persian). Later, in the year
628, Emperor Heraclius set out on a military campaign, retrieved the
Cross, and after bringing it to Constantinople, himself escorted it back
to Jerusalem, where he restored it to its place." (Great Horologion) A fast is kept today, whatever the day of the week.
source: http://www.abbamoses.com
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