Exaltation of the Holy Cross
For God so loved the world that he gave his only son.
 
Living in the Holy Land and Lebanon helped me to meet a lot of people from different religions. I have great Muslim friends as well great Jewish friends. I respect them. They respect me. We do not discuss that much about religion than how we can work together to make from this our world a better place and join our hands for the best for humanity. In fact serving God for all religions is serving humans.
 
For us Christians, "God had so loved the world that he gave his only son, so that he who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life." John 3:15.  Serving humanity was and is the mission of God. He wants to give us happiness in this world and eternal life after death.
 
The word "so" in "so loved the word", means here the cross. He loves us that much that he accepted to die on the cross for our sake. He has said it "No one has greater love than this, to lay don one's life for one's friends". Jn 15: 13
 
My beloved interfaith friends cannot accept such a thing. God would never choose to die for us. God cannot be a Father. God cannot become one of us so as to save us. He has other ways than becoming human and die for us.
 
For us Christians, the LOVE of God is so great (that is the meaning of "so loved the world") that He would do anything to save humans. Love is to give your life. And God did that St. John says: "The way we came to know love that He laid down his life for us" 1Jn.3:16
 
For us Christians, we cannot understand differently the mysteries of our world and God.

The cross and love who are two words would have one meaning for us: LOVE. “He loved us so much that he gave his life for us.” Only love/cross can make us understand who is really God. “God is love” says St. John 1Jn 4:8. We cannot understand why we should suffer without the suffering of Jesus for our sake. “”In this way the love of God was revealed to us: God sent his only son into the world so that we might have life through him. In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins” 1 Jn. 4:9-10. Only love/cross can tell us why we are called to sacrifice ourselves for the sake of others. Only love/cross can help us to accept the many difficulties, that Jesus would calls daily crosses, during our lifetime. Only love/cross can give us hope of better life and over come despair. Only love/cross can guide my way to continue when everything seems unbearable. Only love can smile through me when I am in pain, sick, depressed, worried and afraid.

Jesus taught us this during his life with us and became our role model. We needed God to show us the way. Many other religions stand with difficulties when they want to explain the mystery of suffering in the world.

The cross is the sign of our unity with God and each other: “Now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have become near by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, he who made both one and broke down the dividing wall of enmity, through his flesh …thus establishing peace and might reconcile both with God, in one body, through the cross, putting that enmity to death by it …So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the holy ones and members of the household of God.” Ephesians 2:13-18

The cross is the sign of our triumph and what we are proud of: “But may I never boast except in he cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I do to the world”. Galatians 6:14

Would you nowadays look to love and cross from the same corner?
Would you start to accept the crosses of your life?
Would you really share with Jesus to carry your cross with love?