Saturday, September 13, 2025
Letter from the Editor //
Dear Sister,
On this Sunday, we celebrate the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross marking the finding of the Holy Cross, the very one on which Jesus was crucified, by Saint Helena in the fourth century in Jerusalem. In the Gospel, Jesus explains how the bronze snake from the First Reading from Numbers prefigures His Death on the Cross: “And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up” on the Cross, “so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life” (John 3:13, 14). Like the Israelites, freed from slavery in Egypt, we often complain about how hard it is to live in freedom from sin. Our daily struggles with sin are like the snakes that bite the Israelites and make our souls sick. When we look upon Christ on His Cross, our own little crosses become a means of our healing.
How fickle we often are, unfaithful to God’s covenant with us. But the Lord, “being merciful,” forgives our sin and destroys us not (Psalm 78:38). He gave all for us, for “Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped” (Philippians 2:6). No, instead He showed us how to embrace our littleness, to acknowledge that we need the Father’s outpouring of love at every moment of our day. And when we truly know our need for a Savior, deep in our hearts, and humble ourselves to embrace all our sufferings, then we will be exalted with Him, Whose name is exalted above all names. Let us bend our knee before the Cross, and thank the Lord for His great mercy.
In Christ’s Love,
Susanna
Read the Readings for the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross:
First Reading // Numbers 21:4b-9
Psalm // Psalm 78:1bc-2, 34-35, 36-37, 38
Second Reading // Philippians 2:6-11
Gospel // John 3:13-17
Live Liturgically // This Week’s Feast Days
Saturday, September 13 (today!) // Memorial of Saint John Chrysostom, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
Sunday, September 14 // Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross
Monday, September 15 // Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows
Tuesday, September 16 // Memorial of Saints Cornelius, Pope, and Cyprian, Bishop, Martyrs
Wednesday, September 17 // Optional Memorial of Saint Hildegard of Bingen, Virgin and Doctor of the Church // Optional Memorial of Saint Robert Bellarmine, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
Friday, September 19 // Optional Memorial of Saint Januarius, Bishop and Martyr
Susanna Spencer holds a master's in Theology from the Franciscan University of Steubenville and is the Devotions Editor for Blessed is She. She is a freelance writer and editor and a teacher-in-training living with her philosopher husband and four kids in Saint Paul, Minnesota. She loves reading theology, attending beautiful liturgies, cooking delicious food, and casually following baseball. She is the author of the Gospel Studies including Seek His Kingdom: A Meditation on Matthew , Listen to Him: A Meditation on Mark, and Abide in His Love: A Meditation on John. She was narrator for Found: Advent With the Good Shepherd and Rescued: Lent With the Lamb of God and a contributing author and editor for our children’s devotional prayer book, Rise Up. She was the Theological Editor of the Blessed Conversations Studies. Find out more about her here.
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