When death looks like defeat, the Cross shows us the path to life.
This week on All Set for Sunday, we step into the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross—a solemnity so important it bumps the 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time. With Fr. Dufresne in the hot seat, we go deep into Scripture, parish grief, and the paradox at the heart of our faith: that we exalt the very instrument of death, because through it, Christ gave us life.
Here’s what to listen for:
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Numbers 21: The Israelites are bitten by serpents (literally and spiritually) and are healed by gazing at the bronze serpent lifted up by Moses—pointing ahead to the Cross.
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Philippians 2: St. Paul’s poetic hymn reminds us that Jesus "emptied himself" and became obedient "to death, even death on a cross"—and for this, God exalted Him (Phil 2:6–11).
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John 3:13–17: Jesus connects the serpent in the desert to Himself: "So must the Son of Man be lifted up… for God so loved the world."
Fr. Dufresne reflects beautifully on how this feast brings both bitterness and sweetness to his parish, which formed from the merger of two communities—one being the former Church of the Holy Cross. He honors the grief of closed churches while celebrating the faithful parishioners who continue to show up, cross and all. Their perseverance is a living witness to the Cross’s paradox: from death, new life.
“We are dying because we’re not dying,”
Fr. Dufresne says. "Only by embracing the cross—personally and communally—can we open ourselves to the new life Christ offers."
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