Having passed beyond the middle point in this holy season of the Fast, with joy Let us go forward to the part that still remains, anointing our souls with the oil of almsgiving. So may we be counted worthy to venerate the divine Passion of Christ our God, and to attain His dread and holy Resurrection. (Third troparion of Vespers, fourth Sunday of Lent) 12
THE THIRD SUNDAY OF LENT is dedicated to the Cross. The reason for this is given to us in the Synaxarion (13) for the day:
On this third Sunday of the Great Fast we celebrate the Veneration of the precious and life-giving Cross. Since during the forty days of the Fast we are also in a way crucified, mortified to the passions, contrite, abased and despondent, the precious and life-giving Cross is offered to us as refreshment and confirmation, calling to mind the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ and comforting us . … Just as those who have traveled a long hard road, weighed down by the labors of their journey, in finding a shady tree, take their ease for a moment and continue their journey rejuvenated, so now in this time of the Fast, this sorrowful and laborious journey, the Holy Fathers have planted the life-giving Cross before us, for our relief and refreshment, to encourage and make easier the labors that lie ahead.
It is clear, then, that the Sunday of the Veneration of the Cross is directly connected to our Lenten effort. If we have taken Lent seriously so far, by now we are probably feeling the strain of this effort. Our fasting is perhaps becoming harder to maintain, our acts of charity are perhaps dwindling or growing cold, sloth may be persuading us to stay at home rather than attend the evening Lenten services. We may be missing the worldly things in our lives that we may have chosen to cut back on or cut out altogether during Lent. And so the Cross is placed before us to remind us of the suffering Christ endured for us.
Furthermore, this day reminds us not only of the Cross but also of the Resurrection—the ultimate goal of our ascetic struggle and of the Lenten season—Pascha. The theme-hymns, or hirmoi, for this day all make reference to the Resurrection, and the canon for the day is chanted according to exactly the same melody as the canon of Pascha. Thus the Church reminds us, not only in words but even through melody, that Lent is the necessary journey to Pascha, and we cannot reach the joy of the Resurrection without going through the Cross. And so we hear in the Gospel reading for this day the words of our Lord: “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross, and follow Me” (Matt. 16:24).
The Cross and Resurrection are not to be seen in isolation. From the moment we see the Cross, we see also the impending Resurrection. Thus the Cross is a symbol not of sorrow, but of joyful expectation. As we say at every Sunday Matins service:
Having seen the Resurrection of Christ, let us worship the Holy Lord Jesus, the only sinless one. We worship Your Cross, O Christ, and we praise and glorify Your holy Resurrection. For You are our God; we know no other but YOU; we name You by name. Come, all the faithful, let us worship the holy Resurrection of Christ; for behold, through the Cross, joy has come into all the world. Ever blessing the Lord, we sing His Resurrection. For having endured the Cross for us, by death He has destroyed death. (Prayer after the reading of the Sunday Matins Gospel)
~Vassilios Papavassiliou, Meditations for Great Lent: Reflections on the Triodion
12 Translation by Mother Mary and Kallistos Ware, The Lenten Triodion, St. Tikhon’s Seminary Press (South Canaan PA, 2002), p. 368.
13 The Synaxarion is to be found in the hymnbooks of the Church. It provides an explanation of each feast day of the Church year and contains information about the lives of the saints.
