Pope urges Catholics to rediscover cross as sign of faith

Published: 2005-09-12

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- In the Year of the Eucharist, Pope Benedict XVI urged Catholics to rediscover a simple but profound symbol of their faith: the sign of the cross. The Eucharist and the cross of Christ's crucifixion have a deep connection that deserves contemplation by the faithful, the pope said at a Sunday blessing Sept. 11. A perfect occasion for reflection, he said, was the Sept. 14 feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. The pope said that just as every celebration of the Eucharist is a remembrance of Christ's passion, death and resurrection the cross is the manifestation of the "act of infinite love with which the Son of God saved man and the world from sin and death." The pope said, "For this reason, the sign of the cross is the fundamental gesture of prayer for the Christian."

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