Christian Icongraphy: The Cross or the Chair

This may be a slightly different view of the cross. By no means is the intent of this article to offend anyone, or to in anyway diminish the significance of what Christ did for us on the cross. However, this post does address the rise of the symbol of the cross as the foremost symbol of the Christian religion.

For sometime now I have looked at the crosses hanging in churches, from necks and atop steeples, and wondered how the cross came to the the ultimate symbol of Christianity. My strange little mind of mine begins to wonder what the Christian symbol would be if Christ was sentenced to death by beheading, the electric chair, or even lethal injection. Would our symbol as Christians then be the "holy axe," the "holy chair" or even the "holy syringe"? Wouldn't that seem weird? And a little morbid? I think so. I was in a church recently where people turned towards the cross when they sang and it all seamed a little weird to me.

I have really never found anywhere in the Bible were the cross has been elevated to a symbol of Christ. Therefore, we have to assume that the Christian symbol of the cross came about from a historic tradition, which is fine; historical traditions are often important things. There is nothing inherently wrong with symbols. However, when did it become so important? When did the symbol of the cross become the ultimate symbol of Christ? And why didn't another symbol come to be that celebrated his resurrection. I mean in all seriousness, many people died on a cross, but not to many rose from the dead and rolled back a stone to leave their grave.

I began a brief research into Christian iconography and was reminded that early Christians did not use the cross as a symbol of their faith, but instead used the ichthys (fish) and after that the Chi-Rho (the first two letters of the word "Christ" in greek). Once again, I am not saying that that Christians should not use the Cross as a symbol of their faith. I am saying that we need to think about why it is a symbol of our faith, outside of the obvious reasons.

All of this to say that I really think it is important to think about what you believe and why you believe it. To ask yourself why you believe something to be true. We create imagined realities in our mind. We create idealized versions of the truth. We remember Noah and all the animals, but have we actually thought about that story recently. I mean its a kid's story right? Or how about the parable of the prodigal son? That ones about rebellion right? Or is about the father, or how about even the oldest son? Or all three?

Just a thought.