The Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross

On September 14 the Orthodox Church celebrates the Exaltation (Elevation) of the Holy Cross. This Great Feast commemorates the finding of Christ’s True Cross and its raising for veneration in Jerusalem. In 326 AD, the Empress Helena (mother of Emperor Constantine) traveled to Jerusalem to locate the Cross on Golgotha. Guided by Patriarch Makarios of Jerusalem, she uncovered three crosses and identified the True Cross by its healing power. Patriarch Makarios then lifted the Cross for all the people to see, and from that moment “Life‑giving Cross” became a sign of Christ’s victory over death.

The Church commemorates this raising of the Cross each year on September 14th as a day of solemn fasting and devotion. It also recalls the later return of the Cross from Persian captivity in 630 AD by Emperor Heraclius. In this festival we both honor the Cross’s historical discovery and enter into its saving mystery.

After Constantine’s victory at the Milvian Bridge (312 AD), he legalized Christianity (Edict of Milan, 313) and built churches on holy sites. In 326 Empress Helen journeyed to Jerusalem to find the Cross. Local tradition says an elderly Jew told her the Cross lay under a pagan temple of Venus. Upon demolishing that temple, Helen’s team unearthed Christ’s tomb and three wooden crosses.

To determine which was Christ’s Cross, Patriarch Makarios brought a dead man forward and touched each cross to him; at the touch of the true Cross the man was miraculously raised to life. Convinced, everyone agreed Helen had found the Lord’s Cross.

Constantine had begun building a great Church of the Holy Resurrection (the Church of the Holy Sepulcher) in Jerusalem at Golgotha and Christ’s tomb. Although Helen died in 327 before its completion, the church was dedicated on September 13, 335. On September 14, 335, Patriarch Makarios publicly lifted the Cross high for the people and so inaugurated the annual Feast of Exaltation. The people exclaimed “Kyrie eleison” (“Lord, have mercy”) as the Cross was raised. From then on the Church liturgically relives that first raising each year.

During the Persian conquest of Jerusalem (614 AD) the True Cross was carried off to Persia. Fourteen years later (627/630 AD), Emperor Heraclius defeated the Persians and brought the Cross back. He entered Jerusalem in triumph and raised the Cross again on September 14, 630, with Patriarch Zacharias in attendance. This victory over enemies also became part of the Feast’s significance.

Liturgical Celebration and Symbols

The Elevation is one of the Twelve Great Feasts and is observed with rich liturgical symbolism. On the eve (September 13) a full Vigil (Great Vespers and Matins) is served, followed on the day by the Divine Liturgy (typically of St. Basil).

Key elements include:

The Holy Cross is set on a tray of basil and flowers at Vespers. (According to tradition, St. Helen found a sweet basil plant growing at Golgotha above the buried cross.) Basil (Greek vasilikon, “royal” or “kingly”) adorns the Cross as a sign of Christ’s kingship and the fragrant gift of sanctification. At the elevation service this tray is carried in procession into the church center.

After the Gospel at Matins, the priest carries the Cross to the center and makes petitions toward each of the four compass points. This ancient practice symbolizes Christ’s offering for all the earth. By raising the Cross to the north, south, east, and west (often accompanied by the choir chanting “Kyrie eleison” repeatedly), the Church shows that Christ’s salvific act embraces the entire cosmos.

In the early rite there were three “elevations” of the Cross, each followed by prostrations and hymns. In modern practice (especially on the Sunday of Holy Cross in Lent, which uses similar rites), the Cross is raised and lowered with acclamations three times, recalling the original ceremony. Hymns (such as “Before Thy Cross” replacing the Trisagion) invite the faithful to bow and prostrate in veneration.

Two priests pour holy water (sometimes mixed with fragrant oils or rose petals) over the Cross as it rests on the altar. This reenacts how Helen washed and anointed the Cross when it was found. After the Liturgy, this blessed water is distributed to the people for healing and blessing. Similarly, the basil leaves used to adorn the Cross are often distributed at the end of the service. The faithful take a sprig of basil home to place in icon corners or on home icons – a living reminder of Christ’s sanctification of creation. Scripture Readings and Hymns

Scripture Readings and Hymns

The Feast is rich in biblical and hymnographic themes. Scripture appointed for September 14 highlights the Cross and God’s victory through it. Typical readings include:

• Matins Gospel (Triodion) – John 12:28–36: Jesus says, “When I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all people to Myself” (v. 32). This prophecy foreshadows His lifting on the Cross.

• Epistle (Liturgy) – 1 Corinthians 1:18–24: “The message of the Cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God”. (This text is read on the feast to remind us that the Cross, though scandalous to some, is our salvation.)

• Gospel (Liturgy) – John 19:6–11, 13–20, 25–28, 30–35: The Passion narrative of Christ’s crucifixion (including “It is finished,” John 19:30). Often the full account of Christ on the Cross is proclaimed.

• The hymns of the day likewise exalt the Cross. The Troparion (Tone 1) sings: “O Lord, save Your people, and bless Your inheritance. Grant victories to the faithful over their adversaries, and by Your Cross, preserve Your habitation.”

This prayer links the Cross to victory and divine protection. The Kontakion (Tone 4) goes:

Spiritual Meaning of the Cross

Beyond history and ritual, the Exaltation feast invites the faithful into deep reflection. In Orthodox theology the Cross is both victory and love. Christ’s crucifixion was not defeat, but the means by which He conquered death. As St. Tikhon of Moscow preached, the Cross is “the Cross of the Risen God, the Cross of victory”. On this day the Church lifts the wooden Cross “bedecked with flowers” – showing that what was an instrument of shame has become the “true ornament of saints” and “haven of salvation.”

On the Cross Christ took upon Himself “all the suffering of the world,” willingly embracing death. Yet by His passion He transformed suffering into joy and death into life. “Through the Cross joy has come into all the world,” goes the Paschal hymn – for Christ’s willing sacrifice fills human suffering with meaning. What was once a symbol of torture has become our trophy of life. The Crucified and Risen Lord now bears the wounds in His hands and feet “for our salvation,” glorifying even the Cross as “life-giving”

For the believer, the Feast teaches that taking up one’s own cross (daily struggles, sacrifices) is sharing in Christ’s life. Saint Tikhon notes that if we “fix our eyes on the crucified Savior, all of our pain is accompanied by a higher joy: the presence of Christ himself in our midst”. In other words, the Cross gives Christian suffering a purpose: it unites us with Christ and opens the gate to resurrection. The Feast of the Exaltation thus calls us to venerate the Cross — not merely as wood, but as the source of our life and hope.

Universal and Cosmic Emphasis

The celebration also emphasizes that the Cross touches the entire cosmos. When the Cross is elevated in church, the faithful pray toward each cardinal points. This liturgical act reminds us that Christ’s sacrifice was for all nations and the whole earth. Saint Tikhon beautifully states that “the Cross is always at the center of the Church, the center of our Christian experience.”. Indeed, Christ’s promise was fulfilled: lifted up on the Cross, “He will draw all men to Himself” (John 12:32), drawing the whole world into communion with God.

In Orthodox iconography and hymnology the Cross is often called “the rampart of the Church”, “the glory of martyrs,” and “the invincible weapon” against evil. Through it the invisible kingdom of heaven breaks into the visible world. Even creation participates: we bless the Four Directions and offer basil (a gift of creation) with the Cross. Thus the Feast has a cosmic character — all creation is sanctified by the wood that Christ bore. As one hymn puts it, “All of creation was filled with gladness at the precious and life-creating Cross of Christ.” In venerating the Cross on this Feast, Orthodox Christians unite earth to heaven in worship of “the Precious and Life-giving Cross of Christ”.

Each year on this Feast we proclaim the historic story and live its spiritual truth: by the Cross, Christ has restored creation. As we bow before the Exalted Cross, we join in the ancient hymn of the Church: “We venerate Thy Cross, O Lord, and we glorify Thy holy Resurrection.” In faith we exclaim with Saints Helen and Constantine,

“Truly God is with us” – for on the Cross God drew all of us into His victory over death and sin.