Fast of the Cross Day 7

Fast of the Cross Day 7

Admin: The inclusion of this event in the online calendar is for educational purposes. Please follow the guidance from one's spiritual father. The Fast of the Cross is not found in the Hudaya Canon of Mor Gregorios bar Ebroyo and is not presently one of the fasts currently in vogue within the SOC worldwide.The Finding of the True Cross in the Syriac Orthodox TraditionIn the early Syriac tradition, there were two separate feasts for the Holy Cross, one on May 22 for the Discovery and another on September 14 for the Exaltation (connected with the Jerusalem Encaenia festival).Although most are aware of the standard narrative of St. Queen Helena finding the Holy Cross in Jerusalem with the assistance of St. Macarius the bishop (often citing Wikipedia or sources from the Greek and Latin Churches), the unique features as preserved in the Syriac world are not as widely known. One should keep in mind that even in the Greek and Latin Churches, attempts have been made to account for the various inventio crucis legends, and scholars have noted that even the more familiar story is historically unreliable. The Syriac version(s) of the story have been handed down within our liturgical texts and in the writings of the fathers. Notably, Mor Makarios has no role in any of these discovery narratives. There are 3-4 versions of the inventio crucis in Syriac, but we will consider only two here, The Protonike Legend and The Judas Kyriakos Legend. Although these legends are rarely found together in the same manuscript, they are constituent parts of a two-fold discovery tradition. The oldest manuscript of the Judas Kyriakos legend begins, "The story of how the wood of the Cross which was found in Jerusalem, was found for the second time in the days of the blessed Queen Helena, mother of the victorious and God-loving Constantine, the Christian Emperor."i) The Protonike LegendThis story, as narrated by Mor Addai to King Abgar, is set in the first century AD and concerns Queen Petronice, who is supposedly the wife of Emperor Claudius. She learns of Christ through the preaching of St. Peter the Holy Apostle and travels to Jerusalem, meeting Archbishop St. James the brother of our Lord. He informs her that Golgotha, the True Cross, and Christ's Tomb are in possession of the Jews who are persecuting the Christians. Although an elaborate version of the Protonike/Petronike story is attested in manuscripts as early as the 5th century within the Doctrina Addai, a short version has been recorded in the Chronicle of Patriarch Mor Michael Rabo: "The Queen Protonice, wife of Claudius, believed in the teaching of the Apostles. She went on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem to search for the wood of the Cross. She confided her affairs to Bishop James. Upon entering the Sepulcher, her daughter dropped dead at that moment. They brought three crosses and placed those of the two thieves on her body but nothing happened. When they placed the Cross of the Lord on her body, she came back to life. They knew that this was the Cross on which the Savior was crucified." St. James sends a letter to the Holy Apostles informing them of what has transpired. This is considered the first discovery of the True Cross.ii) The Judas Kyriakos LegendThis legend is the more famous of the four, and it has been disseminated widely in the Middle Ages, including in Greek and Latin. In fact, the salient features of this story made its way into the Synaxariums of all Oriental Orthodox and Eastern jurisdictions. St. Jacob of Serugh's 'Homily on the Finding of the Cross' draws upon this narrative. The Judas Kyriakos legend is astutely aware of the existence of the Protonoike Legend. For example, Judas tells Queen Helena: "Behold more or less two hundred years the Cross has been hidden." These words refer to a later burial of the True Cross during the rule of Emperor Trajan after its initial discovery by Queen Protonice; opening up the possibility for Queen Helen to find it again. In summary, Queen Helen comes to Jerusalem in search of the Holy Cross but realizes that it has been hidden. Queen Helen is then introduced to a Jew named Judas, whom the Jerusalem Jewish community claims has the answer she seeks. After throwing him into a pit, by a divine act he is freed and then reveals the location of the True Cross, which is identified by the miraculous healing of a dying (or dead) person. Judas eventually becomes a Christian and is made bishop, taking on the name Cyriacus. A redacted version of this narrative as found in the Chronicle of Patriarch Mor Michael Rabo: "Helena, mother of the victorious Constantine, journeyed to Jerusalem after having seen a dream. However, she found that the city had been ruined for a long while. She was hardly able to find the Cross of the Savior because the Jews had set on the site a statue of Aphrodite, lest the Christians would find it. She entered Jerusalem on May 25 accompanied by Sylvester, bishop of Rome. She inquired from some Jews about the place of the Cross. She threw their leader Judah into prison. Seven days later, Judah was converted, became a bishop and showed her the place of the Cross. The abominable statute of Aphrodite was removed, and they found three crosses and the tablet written by Pilate. However, they could not recognize which was the true cross. The bishop brought a dying woman on whom the crosses of the two thieves were placed but she did not move. When they placed on her the Cross of the Savior, she rose up. Queen Helena built a church over the Sepulcher (of the Savior) and placed a piece of the Cross in it. She sent the rest (of the Cross) to the emperor who fixed it on a grand imperial column. He fixed the nails of the cross in his crown and the bridle-bits of his horse. Thus, the prophecy was fulfilled [Zechariah 14:20]. Helena also built a church in Bethlehem and another one on the Mount of Olives. She treated the women with great humility. She personally prepared food for the nuns and the poor." This is considered the second discovery of the True Cross.The Quqoyo recited for the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross (and also for MidLent) alludes to to the Judas Kyriakos legend:(Sleebaye vandhippanai-Helenee ragnji)Helen, the Queen went from Rome, – the city of kings, To Je-ru-sa-lem, to a-dore the holy cross. She called on the – Jews and told them,  ‘Come, show me the – place of His Cross’  ‘We have a great teacher,’ they – answered her saying ‘If you ask, he will show the – place where it is laid, Halleluiah, – «the» Cross of our Savior.’ BarekhmorA further elaboration of this story is presented as one recites the First Qawmo of the Cross on Friday's Lilyo from the Sh'himo (Pampakuda text).