The Cross — Attraction in Effingham

I am not a very religious person, but this is a very lovely place to visit.

I visited it around 8 AM on Sunday Christmas Eve 2017 on my home to the Saint Louis exurbs from New England. Normally, I just drive by it, but that day, I had extra time, it wasn't at night, and just felt inspired to go. For one thing, my doctor told me I didn't have cancer 3 days earlier...

If you have the time and the weather is nice, it is worth getting off the interstate and visit. There are places to sit. There is also a visitor center, but it was closed when I was there. Surrounding the cross are 10 blocks, one for each of the Ten Commandments.

While I am sad that I didn't get to see the visitor center, I am really glad that I went that morning - all by myself with no one else around. It gave me time to reflect on how lucky I was - not just that I wasn't dying, but of the little things I did have.

Some might complain about the cross, but it's private so it's not a violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. However, this place is more than a cross. It's simply a wonderful place to reflect and find some inner peace. Even if you are a New Age person or atheist or whatever, just visit and enjoy the solitude, self-reflection, and inner peace that you will find when you visit.

And you can visit at night too when it is gorgeously lit.

For these reasons, I...

Visited the morning of 10.9.2025. The Cross and the walkways around it are amazing. There are statutes referencing God's teaching along with the Ten Commandments. However, what happened at the cross is more important. I met a woman named Jodie who was sitting in her car and we started a generic conversation. She was deeply connected in spiritually and gave me a book "Golden Nuggets of Thought" to read during my travels and shared a Psalm to keep me safe on the road. I accepted and appreciated her gesture and she drove away. When I sat my car, I opened the book to a random page and the topic was "Thinking". It was ironic and a coincidence that this topic was my introduction to the book, because I had been battling my thoughts for several months. After reading the short passages, I felt at peace and continued on my journey. This book has made my world brighter each day since I visited the cross. I'm sure that Jodie was one of God's angels looking over me....

Larger than the cross in Groom Texas that is 190 feet tall on Interstate 40, this is truly the Largest Cross at 195 feet. The land here isn't as flat as it is in Texas, so you don't have 20 miles of driving up to it to have some building Cross tension. This cross is at the intersection of the two major highways, Interstate 70 (between Indianapolis and Saint Louis) and Interstate 57 (between Champaign and Sikeston). It is only visible from the near vicinity and it is accessed through an industrial office park with good signage.

At the base of the cross is a gravel parking lot that is big enough for the largest of vehicles. There are plaques for each of the Ten Commandments and a donation box next to the visitor's center.

Interesting? Yes....