Basil: The Sweet Smell of Beauty

Armodoxy for Today: Basil the sweet smell of beauty

The story of the Exaltation of the Cross comes from the seventh century when the Cross of Christ was liberated from the hands of those who desecrated it. After its liberation from its captors, it was elevated, venerated – exalted – throughout the Christian world. The Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross is celebrated in the traditional Apostolic churches in the East and West. In the Armenian Church basil is used during the service and then distributed to the faithful.

Celebrating with basil comes to us from the time of Constantine and his acceptance of Christianity, twelve years after Armenia’s conversion in the fourth century. Constantine’s mother, Queen Helena, after her conversion, went in search of the True Cross of Christ and found in a trash heap. At the foot of the cross there were beautiful purplish-green basil leaves, filling her eyes with beauty and the air with the royal aroma that the plant exudes. Amidst all the debris and filth, there grew this vibrant vegetation, on the spot where the ugliness of hate took our Lord’s life. It was there, where Christ’s Sacred Blood dripped on the ground and mixed with the tears of his mother, the Blessed Asdvadzadin, that basil grew.

I have shared with you how Christ transforms the Cross from an instrument of torture to a symbol of victory. Everything about the Armenian Cross mirrors the ultimate victory found in the Resurrection of Christ, teaching us that beyond troubles there is a safe haven, beyond evil there is good and after crucifixion there is resurrection. Believe. The beauty and aroma of the basil plant, is a reminder of the transformative power of Christ, to make, “all things new.”

Today we pray, an expression from  St. Gregory of Narek, “… the Lord’s cross, a sign of good fortune, glorious and resplendent, unshakable in its exalted light, invincible in the strength on high, standing as an irresistible champion, unmovable forever against the immoral ways of Satan’s tyranny. For the discerning soul, it is a treasure of spiritual goods, showing the defeat of death and the absolution of sin, plus double hopes for each, now and eternally. (Prayer 51)

Translation: Thomas J. Samuelian, Ph.D. St. Gregory of Narek