The Processional Cross: a catechism of sacrifice and revelation

Sir Stephen Enzweiler

Cathedral Historian

It has been a part of the Cathedral Basilica’s pontifical liturgies for decades. It is a golden, bejeweled work of sacred art carried by gloved crucifers in high ceremony and with great solemnity leading the entrance processions of each Pontifical Mass. It is a striking object, made of fine hammered gold and gold filigree, enameled inlays, and ensconced with precious and semi-precious stones.

It is the Episcopal Processional Cross of the Bishop of Covington. Also known as a “processional crucifix,” the cross is larger and heavier than most and dates back more than 70 years to 1953 and the episcopacy of Bishop William T. Mulloy. It was in that year that St. Mary’s Cathedral was elevated to the rank of Minor Basilica by Pope Pius XII. Bishop Mulloy, who was known for his predilection for highly decorative sacred art, commissioned the cross for the occasion.

It is said to have been made for him at the Benedictine Abbey of Maria-Laach in Germany. The cross is elaborately decorated on both sides. The front, or crucifix side, depicts the sacrificial themes of the Old and New Testaments, while the reverse, the Marian side, depicts symbols of Mary and themes related to Revelation and her Assumption and Coronation.

The crucifix side is dominated by the central figure of Jesus Christ in his sacrifice on the cross. Beneath his feet we see the serpent crushed in defeat by the victory of the cross. On either side of Christ’s head are depicted the sun and the moon, titles the Church has given to Jesus and Mary. The sun is the source of light, and Jesus is “the light of the world,” while Mary, like the moon, can only reflect the light of her son. Standing beneath the dying Jesus are the weeping figures of his mother and St. John the Evangelist.

At the ends of the cross are four enameled medallions illustrating sacrificial themes found throughout the Bible. At the top, Moses stands with the bronze serpent mounted on a pole, a reference to Numbers 21:9. Here Yaweh relents and heals the sin of his people, so that anyone bitten by a snake who gazes upon the bronze serpent would live. The passage also prefigures Jesus’ own crucifixion and promise of salvation: “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself” (Jn 12:32).

On the right is depicted the sacrifice of bread and wine offered by Melchizedek, the “priest of God Most High” (Gen 14:18). A messianic Psalm written by King David a thousand years later would compare the coming Messiah with Melchizedek: “You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek” (Ps 110:4). To the left, another medallion depicts Aaron holding a lamb in offering to God, reflecting the passage in Exodus 12 that describes the sacrifice during the Passover ritual. This ritual is repeated in the New Testament, where Jesus fulfills his role not only as high priest but as the Lamb of God who sacrifices himself for his people. A fourth medallion on the bottom speaks to us of the story of Abraham’s sacrifice of Isaac. We see God’s hand reach out to stop him, pleased with Abraham’s unwavering faith.

Six kinds of precious and semi-precious stones ensconce the cruciform front. These include Chrysolite (a type of yellow quartz), Topazos, Calcedony, Beryl, Amethyst, and Chryoprase. Each stone was selected because each decorated the breastplate of the high priest Aaron in the Old Testament; they were also chosen because they are listed in Revelation as among the foundation stones in the New Jerusalem (Ex 28:15-30 & Rev 21:20). Encircling the figure of Jesus are twelve individual stones made of Beryl and Calcedony, a reference to the 12 stones of Aaron’s breastplate, the 12 tribes of Israel, 12 Apostles, and the 12 foundation stones in the New Jerusalem.

Inscribed on the round stem node beneath the cross is the promise of Christ himself: “I am the way, the truth, and the Life.”

The reverse side of the processional cross is devoted to Marian imagery and evokes her as the Mary of the Book of Revelation. In the center, surrounded by gold filigree and 12 semi-precious stones, she ascends in the glory of her Assumption and Coronation as the woman clothed with the sun, the sun and moon beneath her feet (Rev 12:1). Above her, two angels with the Holy Spirit gently place the crown of glory upon her head. Four gold medallions surround the scene with images of her royal titles: the New Ark of the Covenant, the Tower of David, Mystical Rose, and Gate of Heaven.

Together, both sides of the processional cross speak to Revelation history, the prophecy and prefigurement of the Old Testament revealed in the new sacrifice made in Christ and brought about through Mary, the premiere member of the Church whose Fiat brought about Emmanuel, God with us.