The word that one should not be ashamed to glorify the Honest Cross

That by the Cross Christ saved us and that we should boast in him; also about virtue, about how (Christ) desires our salvation, and about almsgiving 1. This, brothers, is the sign that the Lord promised to give to everyone, saying: “An evil and adulterous generation seeks a sign; and no sign will be given to him except the sign of the prophet Jonah” (Matthew 12:39). The Lord meant death, burial and resurrection. And again, on another occasion, clarifying the power of the cross, He said: “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that it is I” (John 8:28). “When you crucify Me,” He says, “and you think that you have defeated Me, then you will know My power most of all.” And in fact, after Christ was crucified, Jewish ritual institutions ceased, preaching flourished, the word about the Lord spread to the borders of the universe; The power of the Lord is always proclaimed by both land and sea, both inhabited and uninhabited parts of the world. Therefore, let no one be ashamed of the sacred symbols of our salvation and the foundation of the blessings by which we live and thanks to which we exist; but we will wear the cross of Christ as if it were a crown. Everything that has to do with us is accomplished through the cross: if we need to receive rebirth, the cross appears; whether to be fed by that mysterious food, or to be ordained to a certain church office, or to do anything else, is everywhere a symbol of our victory. Therefore, with great care we draw it in our homes, on the walls, on the doors, on the forehead, and in the mind. This is a sign of our salvation and universal freedom and proof of the mercy of our Lord: “He was led like a sheep to the slaughter” (Isa. 53:7). Therefore, when you protect yourself with the sign of the cross, then reflect in your mind on the whole meaning of the Cross and quench your anger, as well as all other passions. When you protect yourself with the sign of the cross, fill your forehead with great boldness, make your spirit free. Know, in any case, what gives us freedom. Therefore, Paul, urging us to this very thing, that is, to the freedom that is due to us, instructs us in this way, reminding us of the Cross and the Blood of the Lord. “You were bought,” he says, “at a price; Do not become slaves of men" (1 Cor. 7:23). “Think,” he says, “about the price that was paid for you, and you will not be a slave to any people.” He calls the price the Blood shed on the Cross. It should not just be imprinted with a finger, but first of all with the disposition of the heart with great faith; and when it is thus inscribed on your face, then not one of the unclean demons will be able to stand near you, seeing the sword with which he was stabbed, seeing the knife from which he received a mortal wound. And if we are horrified when we see those places where those condemned are subjected to the death penalty, then think what the devil will experience when he sees the weapon with which Christ destroyed all his power and cut off the head of the dragon. 2. So, do not be ashamed of such a great good, so that Christ will not be ashamed of you when He comes with His glory and when a sign appears before His face, shining more powerfully than a ray of sunshine. Then the Cross will appear, which will speak with its outward appearance and, in the face of the entire universe, will begin to defend in favor of the Lord and prove that the Lord has not neglected anything related to the salvation of people. Even in the times of our ancestors, this sign opened closed doors, it extinguished the power of destructive poisons, it paralyzed the power of the poisonous hemlock plant, it healed the bites of poisonous animals. If it opened the gates of hell and opened the vault of heaven, if it restored the entrance to heaven and crushed the fortress of the devil, then what is surprising if it overcomes destructive poisons, and animals, and the rest of the same? Therefore, inscribe it in your mind and embrace it - the salvation of our souls. This Cross turned the universe to the true path, drove out error, returned truth, made the earth heaven, made people angels. Therefore, demons are no longer terrible, but despicable; and death is not death, but sleep. From here, everything that was at enmity with us was cast down to the ground and trampled under foot. Therefore, if someone says to you: “Do you worship the Crucified One?”, then answer in a clear voice and with a joyful face: “And I worship, and I will never cease to worship.” And if he mocks, mourn him because he is mad. Thank the Lord for surrounding us with such blessings that no one can even comprehend without heavenly revelation. He laughs for the reason that “The natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God” (1 Cor. 2:14); after all, children also experience the same thing when they see something great and worthy of wonder. The child will laugh, even if you introduce him to the mysteries. The Hellenes are similar to these children; it would be better to say: they are more imperfect than even the latter, and therefore more unhappy, since they do not experience the same thing as children in their immature years, but in their perfect age, which is why they do not even deserve leniency. We will begin to proclaim and speak with a ringing and strong voice, and, even if all the Greeks were here, we will say with special boldness that the Cross is the subject of our pride, that it is the foundation of all blessings and that, finally, it is our boldness and every kind of crown. I would like to be able to say with Paul: “The world is crucified to me, and I to the world” (Galatians 6:14), but, prevented by various passions, I cannot. Therefore, I advise both you and yourself before you to crucify the world and have nothing to do with the earth, but to nurture love for the heavenly fatherland, for the glory that we expect from there, and for eternal blessings. We are warriors of the King of Heaven, and we have put on spiritual weapons. So, why should we spend the life of innkeepers and collectors, or better yet, worms? Where the king is, there the warrior must be. After all, we have become warriors not of those who are far from us, but of those who are close. The earthly king, of course, would not tolerate everyone being in the royal palace or everyone crowding around directly around him; The Heavenly King wants everyone to be near the Royal Throne. “But how is it possible,” someone will say, “that we who are here should stand near that throne?” Perhaps because Paul, while on earth, was, however, where the seraphim and cherubim are, and he was closer to Christ than these shield-bearers were to their king. These often turn their eyes to many places, but nothing else made an impression on him, nothing else entertained him, but he directed his whole mind towards the King and Lord. 3. Therefore, if we wish, then it is possible for us too. If the Lord were separated from us by a place, then you would be thoroughly perplexed; and if He is present everywhere, then, therefore, He is close to the one who shows zeal and uses extreme efforts in seeking Him. For this reason, the prophet said: “I will fear no evil, because You are with me” (Psalm 23:4). And, in turn, God Himself said: “Am I God only near, and not God far away?” (“God draw near, I am, ... and not God is far off”) (Jeremiah 23:23). Therefore, just as sins separate us from Him, so righteous deeds unite Him and us. “Then you will call,” he says, “and the Lord will hear; You will cry out, and He will say: Here am I!” (Isa. 58:9). What father could ever be so attentive to his children? What kind of mother is so determined as to continually stand around waiting to see if her children will one day call her? There is no one - neither father nor mother. And God stands, constantly waiting to see if one of His servants will ever call Him, and if we ever called Him properly, He never left our request unheeded. That’s why he says: “I don’t wait for you to finish your prayer, but I will hear you right away.” So let us call Him as He wants to be called. How does He want this? “Loose,” he says, “the shackles of unrighteousness, untie the bonds of the yoke, and set the oppressed free, and break every yoke; divide your bread with the hungry, and bring the wandering poor into your home; when you see the naked, clothe him, and do not hide from your half-blood. Then your light will open like the dawn, and your healing will quickly increase, and your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will follow you. Then you will call, and the Lord will hear, and He will say, “Here am I!” ("Loose every bond of unrighteousness, destroy the favors of forced scriptures, tear apart every scripture of unrighteousness. Break your bread for the hungry, and bring the bloodless poor into your house. If you see the naked, clothe, and do not despise those of your tribe. Then your light will open early, and your healing will soon shine, and your righteousness and glory will go before you God will embrace you. Then you will call, and... when I hear you, I will say to you, “Behold, I have come” (Is. 58:6–9). “And who can do all this?” - someone will say. Tell me: who can't? What's so hard about what's being said? What's difficult? What's not easy? All this is not only possible, but also so easy that many have even gone beyond the limit, not only tearing up accounts that do not agree with the truth, but even stripping themselves of everything they had, not only welcoming the poor into their home and inviting them to their meals, but even working until they sweat to feed them, benefiting not only relatives, but also enemies. What, in a word, is difficult in what was said? He did not say: “cross the mountain, cross the sea, dig up so many and so many pieces of land, remain without food, put on sackcloth”; but: “Make others participants in the use of your house, allocate your bread, tear up accounts that do not agree with the truth.” What is easier than this, tell me? And if, in your opinion, this is difficult, then please look at the rewards, and then everything will be easy for you. Just as kings, during competitions on the horse lists, place crowns, robes and victorious awards in front of the competitors, so Christ places the victorious awards in the middle of the lists, holding them out, as if with many hands, in the words of the prophet. But with kings, like people, their abundance is exhausted and the items they generously distribute are spent; Therefore, kings zealously try to show the insignificant as important. For this reason, handing over each individual object to a separate one of their servants, they thus carry them to the middle. Our King, on the contrary, having gathered everything together, since He is very rich and does not do anything for show, thus puts everything that is collected in the middle; otherwise it will be countless and will require many hands to take it. And so that you understand this, consider each of God's promises with care. “Then,” He says, “your light will open early.” Don’t you think that we are talking about one gift? But it is not alone. It contains a lot inside itself: crowns, victorious awards, and other rewards; and if you wish, we will show all the wealth in its individual parts, as far as, of course, we are able to show this; just don’t get tired listening to us. And first of all, let’s try to understand what “will open” means. ? It shows us speed and abundance and how much He desires our salvation, how concerned He is that the blessings themselves will pour out, and how He tries to do so. And nothing will be able to hinder His indescribable swiftness. All this shows the abundance of blessings and the infinity of their wealth. And what does “early” mean? This means that not after you find yourself in temptations, and not after misfortunes visit you, but before all this appears. Just as with regard to fruits we say that such and such a fruit is early, namely, appearing before time, so here, in turn, denoting speed, He said in this way (i.e., using the word “early”), just as He said above: “I will also say to the one who speaks to you: “Here am I!” But what kind of light is He talking about, and what kind of light is it? Not this sensory one, but another, in many ways better, which shows us heaven, angels, archangels, cherubim, seraphim, thrones, dominions, principalities, powers, all the army, royal cities, monasteries. If you are worthy of that light and see what is said, then you will get rid of Gehenna, from the poisonous worm, from the gnashing of teeth, from painful bonds, from sorrow and suffering, from hopeless darkness, from cutting you in half, from rivers of fire, from curses and from places of torment, and you will retire to a place where there is no sorrow and sorrow, where great joy, peace, love, pleasure and joy, where life is endless, glory ineffable and beauty unspeakable, where the abodes are eternal, the glory of the King is unspeakable and where there are those blessings that our eyes have not seen, our ears have not heard and the thought of which has not occurred to man; where is the spiritual Bridegroom, the heavenly palaces, maidens with bright lamps and servants holding the wedding robe in their hands; where are the palaces of the Lord and the treasuries of the Kings. Have you seen how great and how many victorious rewards He indicated in one word, and how He gathered everything together? Thus, if we opened each of the following words, we would find great abundance and an immeasurable sea. So, let us not postpone indefinitely and not be slow in showing compassion to those in need; no, please; but, even if we had to give up everything, even if we had to be thrown into the fire, or dare against a threatening sword, or jump on knives, or endure anything else, we will endure everything calmly in order to receive the robe of the Heavenly Kingdom and that ineffable glory. Oh, that we would all achieve it, by the grace and love of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. Doubtful works (Spuria) attributed to St. John Chrysostom.