(Colossians 2:6-15; Luke 6:12-19)
The Coptic Christians in Egypt are said to be tattooed in
childhood with the sign of the cross.
The mark not only brands them for Christ among the Muslim majority, it
also reminds them of their salvation.
The reading from the Letter to the Colossians today
charts the dimensions of that salvation.
Our selfish desires are buried through our participation in the cross by
means of Baptism. Its power also raises us
up to live in the world as free men and women attracting others to Christ. Any debt that we owed because of past sins
the cross of Jesus pays in full through the blood of the cross. Finally, it subdues the powers of evil that
might allure us from the path of righteousness.
We may not want to be tattooed, but we are wise to keep
an image of the cross before us. Could
anyone claim that a Christian who lays a crucifix on her desk at work is
imposing her religion on others? Could
not a cross or crucifix be found to accommodate any decor or style of household
furnishings? Of course, the concern of
somehow offending others or even good taste is hardly what keeps us from retaining
a cross before us. The real issue is
whether or not we want to be dominated by the one we call “Lord” who hung upon
the cross.
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