The Cross – Christian or Pagan?

I was having a conversation about this the other day with Christians. I was beaten down, they refused to see that the cross is a pagan symbol, a graven image. Their argument was that the cross with Jesus hanging on it was Catholic whereas the one without Jesus hanging on it was Christian and that it was the reminder to us of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice for us.

However it is extremely important to note that no where in the Bible does it tell us that we must wear a symbol like a cross to remind us of who Jesus Christ is, or worse remind us that we are Christian, when we as Christians have the Holy Spirit who does just that for us on a daily basis.

John 14:26 “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.”

Babylon and Tammuz

“Centuries before the Christian era, the cross was honored as a religious symbol by the people of Babylon. It is seen on their oldest monuments. Historians say that it was a symbol associated with Tammuz”

(Babylonian Mystery Religion, p. 51).

From Babylon, the cross spread to other nations and was associated with paganism long before Jesus’ crucifixion in A.D. 31.

“It was not until Christianity began to be paganized that the cross came to be thought of as a Christian symbol. It was in 431 A.D. that crosses in churches and chambers were introduced, while the use of crosses on steeples did not come until about 586 A.D.”

(Babylonian Mystery Religion, p. 50).

A Pole or a Cross?

But now we have to ask the question, was Jesus Christ actually crucified on a wooden cross or a pole made from the wood of a tree? Strong’s give the following meaning of the word ‘cross’ in the bible:

G4716 σταυρός stauros (stav-ros’) n.

1. a stake or post (as set upright).

I am reminded of scripture about Moses and the fiery serpent on the pole:

Num 21:7-9 (KJV)
7 Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against thee; pray unto the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people. 8 And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. 9 And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.

The cross has become a powerful symbol full of rich meaning for Christians. However, the cross is not supposed to remind you that you’re a Christian or show yourself as a Christian to others. Jesus taught His followers to display their spirituality through their actions and deeds y preaching the Gospel Truth to others. (Matthew 5:16)

Again, I say, no where in scripture are we told to wear a cross to symbolize we are Christians. There is not even scripture to show that any of Jesus Christ’s disciples wore a cross.

Dave Hunt from The Berean Call had this to say:

Anti-Christian elements in the secular world would like very much to do away with all public display of the cross. Yet it is still seen atop tens of thousands of churches and in religious processions, often made of gold and even studded with precious stones. Most frequently, however, the cross is displayed as popular jewelry hanging around necks or dangling from ears. One wonders by what strange alchemy the bloodstained, rugged cross of torment upon which Christ suffered and died for our sins became so sanitized and glamorized. No matter how it is displayed, even as jewelry or graffiti, the cross is universally recognized as the symbol of Christianity—and therein lies a serious problem. The cross itself rather than what transpired upon it 19 centuries ago has become the focus of attention, resulting in several grave errors. Its very shape, though devised by cruel pagans for punishing criminals, has become holy and mysteriously imbued with magic properties, fostering the delusion that displaying a cross somehow provides divine protection. Millions superstitiously keep a cross in their homes or on their person or make “the sign of the cross” to ward off evil and frighten demons away. Demons fear Christ, not a cross; and any who have not been crucified with Him display a cross in vain.

https://www.facebook.com/TheRealDaveHunt/posts/10163650845920175

As much as I love Dave Hunt, I have to respectfully disagree with the following comment “and any who have not been crucified with Him display a cross in vain“. The display of a cross, even for a genuine Christian’s is totally in vain as well.

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