March 2013 – Of course, that man was more than just an earthly man, and that cross was much more than a wooden cross. That man and that cross forever left their mark on the world. In fact, without their mark, the mark of the cross, hopelessness would reign over mankind.

Have we become a nation without hope? Almost every avenue of American life seems to be suffering from loss and lack. Even devoted and patriotic Christian citizens find it hard to envision a brighter day for this land of the free and home of the brave. After all, America is seemingly bankrupt – both financially and morally.

What’s the verdict? Is America marked for disaster?

America is marked, alright. Author and clergyman E. M. Bounds once wrote, “All God’s plans have the mark of the cross on them...” So, yes, this nation has been marked from its very inception.

A man explores
Perhaps the first mark of the cross on America’s past was an Easter morning mark.

Scholars believe that on March 27, 1513, Easter Sunday morning, one of the three ships in the fleet of Spanish explorer Admiral Juan Ponce de Leon sighted land off the coast of present-day Point Verde Beach, Florida. Some archaeologists believe the landing could have been near Melbourne.

Regardless of the exact point of landing, it was the landscape itself that first impressed the admiral. Overtaken by the flowering beauty of the land and the festive, sacred season in which it was first discovered, Ponce de Leon christened the place Pascua Florida, the Festival of Flowers. Later shortened to La Florida, this new land truly was a flowering paradise.

With wealth as his primary goal, Ponce de Leon’s explorations might have been considered a failure to his Spanish patrons. He never found the much-desired storehouses of gold. Nonetheless, Florida did prove to be a treasure for the Spanish monarchy. After all, Ponce de Leon claimed the entire Atlantic seaboard as Spain’s La Florida. 

A cross stands tall 
Not far from the site of Ponce de Leon’s momentous discovery, another Spanish explorer later made his mark on America as well when he planted a wooden cross on the sandy shores of St. Augustine, Florida, our nation’s oldest city. In 1565, King Phillip II of Spain sent Captain General Pedro Menendez de Aviles to the Florida coast to colonize for the crown as well as share Christianity with the native tribes known to live there. Menendez’s landing site, near present-day St. Augustine, was eventually called Nombre de Dios, Name of God – a name it still bears today. 

To commemorate the completion of their journey and mark the beginning of their evangelistic mission, the chaplain of the expedition, Father Francisco Lopez de Mendoza Grajales, went ashore first, carrying a cross to mark the moment and prepare for our nation’s first church service.

Lopez documented that historic landing by recording the details in his personal diary. He wrote: “The General, followed by all who accompanied him, marched up to the cross, knelt and kissed it. A large number of Indians watched these proceedings and imitated all that they saw done.”

Most Americans have probably never heard of Menendez, Lopez, that humble cross or those native Timucuan Indians who joined in that first sacred church ceremony on the shores of St. Augustine.

A mission remembers
Today, at the Mission of Nombre de Dios in St. Augustine, director Eric Johnson and his staff hope to change that lack of awareness. They oversee the scenic grounds of the shrine and mission at the site thought to be Menendez’s landing spot in the inlet marshes of the Matanzas River.

They are committed to preserving the evangelistic story of that historic landing and that first cross by means of a larger, more obvious symbol known as the Great Cross. Standing 208 feet tall, this stainless steel structure was erected in 1966 as a testament to the first cross brought ashore 400 years earlier by Father Lopez.

This monument weighs 70 tons and is constructed of 200 stainless steel panels. To stabilize the massive structure against possible hurricane force, the bottom portion, 65 feet of the cross, is filled with concrete.

Local residents find it ironic (and comforting) to note that no major hurricanes have hit Florida’s Atlantic seacoast since the Great Cross was erected. 

Johnson told AFA Journal that Atlantic fishermen declare the Great Cross can be seen as far as 30 miles out to sea. That may or may not be true, but the fact remains that it is highly illuminated at night, truly a beautiful and moving sight to see.

More than three million tourists visit the St. Augustine area annually, and it is virtually impossible to travel the city without noticing the landmark. Many others see it via the Internet. The history of the Great Cross, the mission and the chapel can be studied through picture and text at www.missionandshrine.org. 

The cross stands as a striking reminder of our country’s spiritual roots, the beginnings of Christianity in the New World.

Billy Graham is said to have remarked upon his visit that the Great Cross of St. Augustine is truly a “beacon of faith” for all who pass its way. 

The Mission of Nombre de Dios website says the Great Cross is also a reminder to visitors of “Christ’s ultimate sacrifice on the cross.” Whether liberal nay-sayers and the oh-so-politically-correct pundits ever admit it, the truth is plain – that man and that cross left their mark on us all. The Easter story is the story of mankind.

It is America’s story as well – the story of a man and a cross. If America is marked for a destiny of true freedom and brave world leadership, such a destiny will endure only when American Christians do as Jesus taught: “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me” (Matthew 16:24).

That’s the Easter story. Each man, each woman must be marked by the cross.  

American history, a crash course
St. Augustine, Florida, is only the starting point of our nation’s rich, religious history. Its story is interwoven with numerous accounts of Christian men and women who made astonishing sacrifices in order to ensure their descendants a godly heritage.

A great family resource to learn more about American Christian heroes and their historic impact is the Drive Thru History DVD series.

In this fast-paced, humorous presentation, host Dave Stotts narrates each video as if the viewer is taking a speedy driving tour through America’s past, via the paths of some of America’s greatest Christian citizens.

Designed as both a fun teaching tool and as a moral compass of sorts, each video contains over 80 minutes of thoroughly researched and documented information. From Christopher Columbus to the Pilgrims and all the way to Valley Forge, viewers will enjoy learning the truth about America and her thoroughly godly heritage.

To order or learn more about this series, visit afastore.afa.net, or call toll free 877-927-4917.

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Who was St. Augustine?
Augustine of Hippo (A.D. 354-430) converted to Christianity in A.D. 387 after a youth of apostasy and immorality. Revered by both Catholics and Protestants as one of the foremost Christian thinkers, his contributions to doctrines such as original sin and the centrality of God’s grace are foundational to Christian thought.