The Wooden Logic of the Cross: A Message to Our Parish In these difficult days, the “air we breathe” often feels heavy with a dual pressure on our community. Outside our doors, there is a palpable anxiety regarding rising fuel prices and economic strain, while inside our hearts, many of us feel a sense of powerlessness as we watch the war in West Asia, fearing for loved ones caught in the crossfire. In moments of such scarcity and threat, the world – and even some modern religious movements – offers two seductive lies: the Lie of Prosperity (that faith is a formula for insulation from pain) and the Lie of Power (that we must align ourselves with “strong men” and coercion to survive. However, as we look to the scriptures, we find a “wooden logic” that deconstructs these false gospels. Challenging the False Gospels The prosperity gospel is a modern heresy that suggests wealth is a sign of divine endorsement. Mark 8:31-33 shows Jesus rebuking Peter for wanting power without a cross. When we feel the weight of economic uncertainty, the world may whisper that our struggle is a lack of righteousness, but the cross screams back: “Your worth is