Olive Wood Crosses

The Evangelism and Renewal Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut invite you to share in the extraordinary success of its OLIVE WOOD CROSS PROJECT.


 

About the Project
As of late 2008, over 900,000 of the 1 ¾-inch olive wood crosses have been sold. The crosses are handmade in the Holy Land by Palestinian Christian craftsmen. On Feb. 10, 2009, 3,300 were sent out in one day. The crosses cost 35 cents each in a bag of 100 for $35. (Price increase of $2 in 2009) Almost 2,000 Episcopal parishes and individuals have ordered the crosses. During a recent Lent 700 parishes and individuals of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America bought more than 100,000 crosses! The Parish of St. Clement in Honolulu purchased and strung 15,000 crosses to present to military personnel as they leave for Iraq and Afghanistan. (see more stories, below.) This is NOT a fund raiser. It is Connecticut's gift to the Church. Volunteers on the Evangelism and Renewal Committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut do the sorting, packing and administrative work required to ship the crosses at what they cost us. People have told us they pay as much as $1 each for similar crosses in stores.

How to order:
•      Crosses cost 35 cents each. You must buy a bag of 100 for $35, which includes postage from Jerusalem to any USA address.
•      Buy as many bags of 100 as you want.
•      Allow about 3-4 weeks (usually less) for delivery.
•      Check (made payable to Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut) must accompany your letter giving shipping address.
•      No credit cards.
•      No COD shipments.
•      Mail to:
EVANGELISM COMMITTEE
C/O E. Laird Mortimer, III
PO Box 571 Tariffville, CT 06081-0571
Questions: Phone: (860) 408-1539
Email: ELAIRDM@PRODIGY.NET

Crosses Distributed Worldwide

Crosses have been sold in every one of the 50 states. Many crosses have been bought to take or send overseas with mission trips or with gifts of clothing and books. One church bought 500 crosses to distribute in the Moscow subway. Crosses were given out in the Kakuma refugee camp in Western Kenya. It takes four file cabinet drawers to hold all the letters of thanks received from people using the crosses Episcopal Bishops have purchased thousands of crosses. Several bishops buy quantities of several thousand per year to give away as gifts at confirmations. The bishop of Pennsylvania bought 5,000 for distribution through their Evangelism Committee. All of the American Episcopal Parishes across Europe have received a supply.

Crosses as Gifts
The simple olive wood cross, with a small hole for a neck string (not included) makes an ideal gift. The donor can present crosses under any and all circumstances, and say a little or a lot, or remain silent. The cross speaks for itself. Some people have ordered as many as five times. Others distribute the crosses with a small pamphlet they wrote, telling the story of the crosses. The olive wood cross is as close to a genuine artifact/relic as most of us will ever have. The crosses have unlimited distribution possibilities. Churches give them away to newcomers, the choir and Sunday School, nursing homes, missions, hospitals, families in crisis or grief. Over 10,000 have been distributed in prisons all across the USA.

Servicemen all over the world are carrying the crosses as a sign of Christ's love and the love of the family or friend who gave it. Crosses were given to some FBI agents in Washington, D.C. and a second request was made for crosses to be carried by several agents with dangerous assignments. The Daughters of the King have been regular and repeat purchasers of tens of thousands of the crosses. Many of them are for children, grandchildren, and their own parishes and ministries, stateside and overseas.

One retirement community director keeps a small supply in her desk. When a death occurs, she gives the bereaved an olive wood cross. It is to be kept as a sign of comfort as long as needed, and then returned, so others can share in the healing the cross represents. Church publications have been very generous in reviewing the CROSS PROJECT. Articles have appeared in Anglican Digest, Living Church, Lutheran Seeds for the Parish and many Episcopal diocesan newspapers.