The Wisdom of the Cross and Us
by St. Louis Mary de Montfort
Eternal Wisdom has decreed the Cross to be the sign and the weapon
of his faithful people. He welcomes no child that does
not bear its sign. He recognises no disciple who is
ashamed to display it, or who has not the courage to
accept it, or who either drags it reluctantly or rejects
it outright. He proclaims, "If anyone wishes to come
after me, let him renounce himself and take up his cross
and follow me" (Mt. 16; Lk. 9). He enlists no soldier
who does not take up the Cross as the weapon to defend
himself against all his enemies, to attack, to overthrow
and to crush them. And he exclaims, "In this sign you
will conquer. Have confidence, I have conquered my
enemies by the Cross (Jn. 16), and by it you also will
be victorious".
He has enclosed in the Cross such an abundance of grace, life and
happiness that only those who enjoy his special favour
know about them. He often reveals to his friends his
other secrets, as he did to his Apostles: "All things I
have made known to you" (Jn. 15), but he reveals the
secrets of the Cross only to those who make themselves
worthy by their great fidelity and great labours. One
must be humble, little, self-disciplined, spiritual and
despised by the world to learn the mystery of the Cross.
The Cross even today is a source of scandal and an
object of folly not only to Jews and pagans, Moslems and
heretics, the worldly-wise and bad Catholics, but even
to seemingly devout and very devout people. Yes, the
Cross remains an object of scandal, folly, contempt and
fear: not in theory, for never has so much been spoken
or written about its beauty and its excellence than in
these times; but in practice, because people lose
courage, complain, excuse themselves, and run away as
soon as a possibility of suffering arises.
If the knowledge of the mystery of the Cross is such a special
grace, how great must be the enjoyment when one actually
possesses it? This is a favour Eternal Wisdom bestows
only on his best friends and only after they have prayed
for it, longed for it, pleaded for it. However excellent
is the gift of faith by which we please God, draw near
to him and overcome our enemies, and without which we
would be lost, the Cross is an even greater gift. "It
was a greater happiness for St. Peter", says St. John
Chrysostom, "to be imprisoned for Jesus Christ than to
be a witness of His glory on Mt. Tabor; he was more
glorious bound in chains than holding the keys of
paradise in his hand" (Acts. 12; Mt. 16). St. Paul
esteemed it a greater glory to wear a prisoner's chains
for his Saviour than to be raised to the third heaven
(Eph. 3 & 4; 2 Cor. 12). God bestowed a greater favour
on the Apostles and martyrs in giving them His Cross to
carry in their humiliations, privations and cruel
tortures than in conferring on them the gift of miracles
or the grace to convert the world. All those to whom
Eternal Wisdom gave himself have desired the Cross,
sought after it, welcomed it. Whatever sufferings came
their way, they exclaimed from the depths of their heart
with St. Andrew, "O wonderful Cross, so long have I
yearned for you!"
