***
Gospel: John 3: 13-17
Jesus said to Nicodemus:
“No one has gone up to heaven
except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man.
And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,
so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.”
For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him might not perish
but might have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but that the world might be saved through him.
The Gospel of the Lord.
***
***
Anyone who enters our church is immediately confronted with the life-size crucifix suspended over the altar.
What makes it unique is the fact that it’s been carved to scale; literally life-size, within a matter of pounds and inches of what Christ’s body would’ve been on the day he died on that horrible, sacred cross.
While seated in the pews, you can gaze upon him from the angle that John and Mary would’ve seen him. But if you come closer and stand near the altar where I celebrate Eucharist, then you can see Jesus in even greater detail.
His toenails; his teeth; the curl of his fingers; his dirt-stained knees; his lungs expanding as he breathes, praying, “Father, forgive them…. Why have you abandoned me?… Into your hands, I commend my spirit.”
***
Artists in every age have had to decide what to depict – and what not to depict – when sketching, painting, or carving a crucifix.
Should the Lord’s head be held high in defiance? Should it slope down to one side, burdened by the weight of the world? Are his eyes in agony? Do they portray confidence in his Father? Is he a victim? The victor? Is he both?
***
Often the answer reflects the culture and experience of the local Church within a particular time and place.
The first known images of the crucifixion date back to the 5th century, when the Church was still young. Christians had endured several centuries of sporadic persecutions as earthly kings tried forcing them to bend the knee to civil power.
Many died refusing to do so.
They proclaimed with their lives that Christ is their King. This is why Jesus was depicted on the cross wearing vestments – much like a priest at Mass – showing him to be their victorious high priest and king.
***
Centuries later, artists increasingly reflected upon on the humanity of Christ. Jesus was portrayed as the Suffering Servant. His body mangled in agony, crowned in thorns, serving as a reminder to Christians to serve the Lord in their neighbor, especially the poor.
In the Middle Ages, artists contemplated both the humanity and divinity of our Lord. Angels floated beneath his cross, collecting drops of his blood into precious chalices, as he hung higher than the thieves beside him.
In modern times, he has been depicted in nearly every color and ethnicity as people seek to connect him with their own lived experience.
In Asia, Jesus has been depicted as a sage with a drooping mustache; in Central America, a dark-skinned peasant farmer, hanging from a cross in his work clothes, abandoned in a field.
In Cameroon, artists have portrayed an ebony Christ crucified with just one leg – an ode to all of the children there who have either died or lost a limb after stepping on a landmine.
***
Today we could imagine Jesus suspended over the 9/11 memorial in Manhattan.
Over a makeshift campus stage in Utah.
Over the altar of the Church of the Annunciation in Minneapolis.
Buried beneath the rubble of the only church in Gaza.
Or in an underground subway station turned temporary bomb shelter and school in Ukraine.
****
Throughout the centuries, artists have reflected on that question we sing every Good Friday: “Were you there when they crucified my Lord?”
Were you there in the slums? Were you there in the trenches? Were you there in Manhattan, Utah, or at Mass in Minneapolis?
But all of us must wrestle with the mystery of human suffering – and God’s response to it; the Son of God came to live and die like one of us, only to rise from the depths, open the gates of paradise, and provide a way for all to live eternally.
As John proclaims in today’s Gospel, “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son so that all who believe in him might not perish, but might have eternal life.”
***
If you were to create your own crucifix, what would Jesus look like? Where would he be? Would he be in your home, watching over your family as you teach your children to adore him? Would he be in a cancer ward? A homeless shelter? A war-torn land?
***
Ultimately, every answer is just.
As we celebrate this Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, we are reminded that we are the ongoing interpreters of what the Cross means.
We are the ones who must ponder, process, and share this mysterious truth of our faith – that God suffered for us; that in dying, we, too, will rise; that by suffering we are redeemed; that we only truly live when we give ourselves away.
Christ Crucified, have mercy us.
***
***
Image credits: (1) Pieta, Baptist News Gospel (2) Cristo Crucificado, Goya (3) Adobe Stock
