The Cross of Grief

The Cross of Grief
#kabataangkatoliko

Greetings of Peace!

As St. Francis of Assisi is an advocate of Peace, so we launched on his feast day, October 4, 2016, our campaign for Peace.

Alarmed and grieving because of the recent happenings in our country, Kabataang Katoliko (an online Catholic Youth community striving to live the Faith in our age) launches a campaign entitled “Cross of Grief”. We designed a cross that can be used in T-shirts, pins, buttons and others to make our involvement visible and to emphasize our stand in defense of human life and dignity; and in our anxious search for peace amidst all of these as we strive to become instruments of such peace.

Many lives have been lost – that of suspected criminals, victims of heinous crimes, officers in performance of their duties, and innocent ones. Added to that are the misinterpretations and almost loss of morality and values and the exchanges of hurtful words and bashings circulating in social networking sites and various means of communication which have created almost irreconcilable differences and unbridgeable gaps among relationships that these have become very alarming especially that the youth are the ones very much affected and afflicted by all of these.

We have been told of the value of human life as one of the very first basic principles that our parents have inculcated in us. With this in mind, this campaign hopes to show that we are affected, we are involved and we care. Anybody could use the Cross of Grief design as a symbol of subscribing to the advocacy of standing up for what is right in preserving and defending human life as it is God’s most precious gift to us; of being one with those who are mourning the loss of loved ones; and of begging for God’s mercy and forgiveness and praying for His peace. (If you are interested, you can message this page and give us your email so that we can send you the design).

This campaign is not against anybody but it is for everybody since it stands for life – its true value, its defense, its protections and its preservation. Any harm done against human life is harm done against God and this campaign addresses all forms of killings that have caused physical, emotional, moral and spiritual deaths. This is not also condoning criminal activities which have caused deaths, wounds, division, pains and scars in our society. We believe in due process, we believe in the capacity of our law enforcers to carry out their responsibilities with efficiency without jeopardizing the basic call of respect to the dignity of human life and we believe in the goodness in each person that they can live fairly without trespassing each other's rights.

To have this Cross of Grief being used and worn by the members of the different sectors in our society (State and Church alike) is an assurance that efforts are being exerted so that these frightening events darkening our country are being addressed and that we are all doing our part to bring back peace – God’s peace – to our society. Every effort matters.

May we unite our efforts and act as children of God that even in our differences, we can stand up together for the value of life, pray together as a country and take to heart the prayer for peace of St. Francis:

“Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy. O, Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love; For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; it is in dying that we are born again to eternal life.”

Below are the information about the campaign.

The CROSS OF GRIEF

1. AN ASSURANCE OF PRAYER especially for peace, for enlightenment and for fair judgment from all and for all that respect for the dignity of human life will be upheld - our only weapon against violence is prayer.

2. AN INSIGNIA OF GRIEF for the disturbing number of deaths of our countrymen in the hands of fellow Filipinos – we grieve and mourn with their families for their loss is ours too. “We know your grief and sorrow. We feel your pain and anguish. Your tears are our tears too. Your sadness is ours too…We mourn with you at the deaths that we have seen in our communities.”

3. AN ADMITTANCE OF GUILT because many of us are indifferent, unloving, corrupt, and even harshly judgmental with one another, not believing in justice but putting the law in our hands. We have sinned against the Lord and our neighbors for being selfish and indifferent; for being unloving and harshly judgmental; for seeking revenge rather than promoting justice and peace; and for losing our trust in due process, in our law and in God’s uprightness. “Humbly repentant, we recognize that all the evils we see around us have roots in our hearts.”

4. A SYMBOL OF HOPE that God “will turn our mourning into joy” (Jeremiah 31:13) and that all things will be brought to light and the justice of God will prevail in His compassionate love and mercy for all. We live that hope! “We believe that we have the power within us coming from God Himself, despite our human limitations, to contribute to the reign of peace and put an end to hate and violence in our society.”

5. A BADGE OF COURAGE. We deliver our message that we do care! Despite our own fears and apprehensions, we show that we are affected, alarmed, and concerned that we desire to be involved by begging God for His peace, pardon, love and mercy in these our darkest days. We will stand up for the moral right. We will resist the moral wrong. We will stand and defend every person’s life and dignity. We will shield the weak from harm; and

6. A BATTLE CRY FOR PEACE. We stand for what is right and we express our exasperation by making a clear statement that “we desire peace for our country!” As long as we see proudly ourselves like gods, there can never be peace! We need to work together as one and we have to respect each other as persons. Nobody has been given the right to take away what he cannot restore be it with what we think, what we say or what we do. Life is God’s and regardless of the judgment we have against one another, only God has the right to decide for anybody’s life. “Peace is life. If we do not work for peace, we shall all perish.”

MEANING OF THE CROSS:

THE CROSS is a Christian symbol which stands for our identification with the suffering Christ – who was judged, maligned and killed in the hands of man. It is a profound proof of the presence of Christ with us. It was seen, during the Roman times, as an instrument of torture and public humiliation, but for us, the Cross is a symbol not only of Jesus' death but also of his resurrection. We have used the Celtic Cross pattern also known as the Iona Cross with an addition of a circle to represent eternal life; the ring outside the cross symbolizing light and life.

DRIPPING BLOOD – As blood represents life; dripping blood signifies the spilling of God’s precious gift to man – the blood of those who cry out to heaven for justice (Genesis 4:10). Killing is an insult against God – a profanation of what is holy – stealing what belongs to God alone!

RED – symbolizes bloodshed, terror, fear, persecution and martyrdom. It also signifies the death of Christ in the ignominious cross.

BLACK COLOR – represents death, mourning and darkness – descriptions that best describe our present situation. This is the most predominant color in the Cross to emphasize our grief and mourning. We pray that in our darkest, God’s light will shine.

5 CROSS GRAVESTONES – represents the gravestones of all the victims of the unresolved killings of suspected criminals and the deaths of innocent victims caught in conflict, of police officers and military men who, in the call of duty and for our sakes, were killed; and they also depict the five wounds in Christ's (two in both hands and feet and one on his side) – the causes of His sufferings and pains. Five is also referring to the Fifth Commandment: You shall not kill (Exodus 20:13).

ANGEL WITH ASPERSORIUM IN HAND – an image adapted from the Third Secret of Fatima. The angel is using the blood of the martyrs to sprinkle the souls going to God which gives us a powerful symbol of salvation, of the honor shows to the martyrs by God, and of the significance of their blood. Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI pointed out: "Therefore, the vision of the third part of the ‘secret,’ so distressing at first, concludes with an image of hope: No suffering is in vain, and it is a suffering Church, a Church of martyrs, which becomes a sign-post for man in his search for God".

FLOATING OLIVE LEAVES – is a symbol of peace. Peace is always around; it is lurking in the hearts of every one, waiting for us to stand up for it and to promote it by becoming instruments of God’s Peace and forgiveness.

-Kabataang Katoliko