Apostle Tomb, Heritage, Persian Cross, Saint Thomas Crosses, Thomas the Apostle - Friday, February 29, 2008 22:33 - 58 Comments

Analogical review on Saint Thomas Cross- The symbol of Nasranis-Interpretation of the Inscriptions

The spirit of Christianity can be explained with reference to cross. Cross is the most common symbol of Christianity, intended to represent the redeeming martyrdom of Jesus when he was crucified on the True Cross in the New Testament.

This article is an attempt to look Thomasine Christianity through St. Thomas cross with reference to early Christian writings, traditions of Nasranis, archeological evidences and interpretations of the inscriptions.

1. Cross in Early Christianity, 2. Cross in Early Thomasine Christianity , 3. St. Thomas Cross , 3.1 Tomb of St. Thomas, 3.2 Re-Discovery of St. Thomas Cross at Mylapore , 4. Antiquity of the cross & Interpretation of the Inscriptions, 4.1 Antiquity of the cross, 4.2 Interpretation of the Inscriptions,5.Symbolism in St. Thomas Cross, 6. General Observations , 6.1 Government of India Centenary Stamp, 6.2 Indian heresy a myth , 6.3 Influence on Indigenous art, 6.4 Link with the Apostle , 7. Locations of the Cross , 7.1 Locations, 8. Some Similarities , 9.Conclusion

1. Cross in Early Christianity

A sign stood above the Cross of Jesus, indicating “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews” (John 19:19-20) in Greek, Latin (two international languages of the time) and in Hebrew (the language of the Chosen People).

In the beginning of Christianity cross may have appeared in Christian homes as an object of religious veneration, although there is no such monument of the earliest Christian art has been preserved. This is partly due to the persecution, Christianity had to face in the initial centuries. It appears with archeological proofs that Fish was another widely used secret symbol of Christianity during those haunted days. The initial letters of the Greek phrase “Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior” forms the Greek word ICHTHUS, which means “fish.” This symbol was used by believers in the early days of persecution as a secret sign of their shared faith. The discovery of a beautiful third century church in the northern Israeli town of Megiddo, near the biblical Armageddon shows archeological proofs on usage of Fish as a symbol predating the cross. One mosaics inside the church has fish symbol engraved.The Church was built in third century, decades before Constantine legalized Christianity across the Byzantine Empire. It was ransacked during the persecution years and was excavated in 2005.Public display of Fish as a symbol of Christianity during persecution days definitely shows its wide usage.¹

The punishment on the cross remained in force throughout the Roman Empire until the first half of the fourth century. In the early part of the reign of Constantine, he continued to inflict the penalty on the cross to those guilty of denouncing their masters. Later on he abolished this infamous punishment, in memory and in honour of the Passion of Jesus Christ. Continue…

1. [http://www.armageddonchurch.com/] [↩]