As it turns out, many protestant churches - particularly the evangelical denominations - are not overly fond of crucifixes. They prefer simple crosses. Briefly, the difference between the two is that a crucifix, also sometimes called a rood, portrays the cross with Jesus on it - the cross of Good Friday. The Protestant cross, though, purports to portray the cross of Easter Sunday morning...one without Christ.
In fact, the most common objection I have heard to my crucifix icon is just that, that "Jesus was raised from the dead, so he isn't on the cross anymore." What that objection fails to understand, though, is that while the empty cross seen in most protestant churches is certainly the cross of Sunday morning, so too is the crucified Jesus portrayed on a crucifix.
The gospel accounts of the resurrection of Jesus all portray one particular characteristic of the risen Christ. The risen Christ is still marked by the crucifixion. Thomas is able to touch the wounds of Jesus. Christ's hands are not healed and there are still holes in his feet. His side is still split open from the soldier's spear. The risen Christ is, paradoxically, still the crucified Christ. To be sure, the body of the risen Christ is a glorified body, but it is most certainly not a completely healed body.
It is that paradox - that the risen Christ is and will eternally remain the crucified Christ - that a crucifix attempts to represent. The crucifix on my wall keeps me from falling prey to the temptation to diminish the cross of Good Friday - to succumb to the uncomfortable feeling that a battered, bloody Jesus gives me and just skip right to Easter Sunday.
The fact of the matter is that no symbol - be it a crucifix or an empty cross - completely represents the truth of the gospel and of Jesus the Christ. Each has something to teach us.
1 comment:
I actually had that conversation with your friend Mary Beth. The explaination that she gave me was that the Catholic church is not impressed by the fact that God could raise a dead person (resurrection.) What is impressive is that the creator of all the universe would lower Himself to become human and die on the cross for our sins. I think that for "them" it is a perfect polaroid of the most impressive/important few hours of all time.
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