veryone wants his story to be heard. When Christ first spoke, He thundered the beatitudes with the message of the cross; within that it seemed impossible to grasp. "Blessed are the poor ... and those persecuted for righteousness sake, theirs is the kingdom of Heaven." 

The sign of the cross upon a Christian is different from the sign of cats, monkeys and zodiacs. It is a mark that announces his radicalness. St. Francis takes this clue even from the Old Testament when he gave his followers the "Tau", a mark that says we  are wholly for God (Ez. 9:4). This is the man who will not settle for the mediocre or be complacent (Rev. 3:16) but one who is willing to renounce himself and follow the master. 

Today's age is the era of information. News is coming from all directions that entice and captivate. Everyone has something to tell, announce and convince. Can we, Christians, leaders, homilists and evangelists, bring the hardest conviction of all that the Good News is relevant and still good? How can we change heart, mind and will of the plain 'man in the street'? The power to penetrate while informing and transforming. There are numerous ways in which one can live the cross. For a religious, the very vows of poverty, chastity and obedience speak both eloquently and dramatically where these values are staggering to the 'pagan eye'. 

Gandhi, though not a Christian, used the Beatitudes as a blueprint to venture a whole nation by his 'cross-life'. The aspect of the cross in our lives not only transforms us into instruments of meekness, fortitude and humility but also has the cutting edge to penetrate 'numb souls' when everything else has been said and done. 

A Christian today will cease to be an evangelizing Christian without the aspect of the 'cross-life'. St. Francis told his followers, "Go preach the good news by the manner of your lives and if need be, use words." One can have a telling effect without telling!