Disciple: Plain or with the Little Man?

Brendan Murphy on April 30, 2015

Cross or Crucifix?

By The Reverend Donald Lowery

Some years ago, a friend was shopping for a cross for his goddaughter. In an effort to help narrow down the selection, the sales clerk asked, “Do you want a plain one or one with the little man hanging on it?”

That is a true story, and as startling (or chuckle inducing) as the clerk’s question might be, it provides a simple definition for a sometimes complex question. What is the difference between a cross and a crucifix? At the heart of it, a cross is the bare, “plain” symbol, while the crucifix has the image or corpus of Jesus hanging on the cross.

“TAKE UP YOUR CROSS”

Though the sign of the cross appears early, until the reign of Constantine the Great from 306-337 A.D., Christians rarely used depictions of crosses or crucifixes. The reason was stark: Until Constantine made Christianity legal, the Roman government crucified believers. To “take up one’s cross” was not a metaphor for embracing suffering; it was a literal, real and likely possibility in times of persecution, and no one wanted to be reminded of that reality.

But then Constantine outlawed crucifixion, and Christians began to use both cross and crucifix to decorate their churches, houses and burial places. The original crucifixes did not depict the suffering of the Lord in a graphic manner. Jesus was generally represented reigning serenely from the cross, reflecting the theology of the Gospel of John. As years progressed and the world fell apart with the various plagues and invasions that afflicted the failing Roman Empire and its medieval successor states, the crucifixes became more realistic to show Jesus’ solidarity with his suffering people. As the Reformation dawned, there was tendency amongst some reformers (though not Luther) to associate both the cross and crucifix with the Eucharistic theology of the Roman Catholic Church, and for this reason many of the reformers rejected both. It was not until the 19th and 20th centuries that there was a renewal of interest in the cross and the crucifix as symbols of faith for all Christians.

WHICH ONE IS FOR YOU?

So which one is for you? Like many, I was taught the cross was used by Protestants, who rejoiced in a Risen Savior, while the crucifix was Roman Catholic and fixated on Jesus’ sufferings.

Of course, the actual truth is more complex. Other non-Roman Catholic denominations use the crucifix. One can find them in High Episcopal parishes, in many Lutheran churches and in various Orthodox communions. In these ecumenical times, one of the most conservative Southern Baptist churches in Henderson, North Carolina, recently erected a magnificent, life-size crucifix on its front lawn. It is not a matter of some Christians rejoicing in the Risen Lord while others fixate on earthly sufferings. It is not even a matter of one versus the other, as the depiction of Jesus on the cross changed over time in response to events and politics of the day.

What matters is this: The Romans crucified tens of thousands of people before the practice was outlawed, but only one is remembered with both cross and crucifix, and that is because God raised him from the dead.
Which one should you choose? As long as it is worn as a sign of allegiance to the Crucified and Risen Lord Jesus, choose whichever symbol most appeals to you.

 The Rev. Donald Lowery is the rector of Holy Innocents, Henderson. Contact him.