Q: What IS the preferred “cross” for Good Friday veneration? A cross or crucifix ? I see the pope uses a large crucifix. Any thoughts ?
A: I’ve treated this in Glory in the Cross, but in short, you can make an argument for using either a cross or a crucifix. The rubrics all say “cross” on Good Friday, and I think that that is the better practice. We are not adoring an image of Christ, we are adoring the cross on which he died. “Behold the wood of the cross…”