The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1896-04-05
STORY OF THE
CROSS OF CHRIST
Il Was u Sacred Symbol Long BE-
fore the Period oI the
CrnclIlAiOn.
REvERGp ny Tnr ANCIENTs
II IN Found In Two letters 0t the Alphabet,
Which Have a Mystic History Al
Throughout the Ages
" Time.


laymun aR a slsn ~ distinction ON ocoas
Flona " state, ANA by male and female
n%onuntitira 40 taste may direct II 10
HraVcn on euehariullc vessels. Hmbroidrr'
cd on altar cloths. and eut on tomhs
and monuments. Some Of the greatest
churches and ohthodralp OF chflsiondom
ara fashioned In It's shape, In EuropoHn
countries II h common 60 see larga
crossr. prrotcd In public places, The
famous ChariHK Cohpro rrinel croHu, In
that II Was one OF the places NJ which
King Edward I act up a troas TO mark
where the body ~ Queen Eirator rested
during the progress OF the funeral corr
trEo tn Westminster.
Yet II IN a mistake 10 suppose that tho
cross has only a chfiAtian history.
IL was used as a religious symbol by
the ahorislnus VI North and South Amer
.oa. 40 wolf 40 by the most ancient ma
lions ~ tho Old World. Prescott tells
Us that Tho Spanish found the cross as
an object OF worship IN the temples OF
Mckee, Researches IN Central America
and Peru proves that u Vas used In the
HHANNNN WV W ~ ~ ~ ~
countries. Or urlnkton. IN " Myths Of
thr New World" informs ne that the
Indians fvEard the cross 40 a mystic
emblem OF the four cardinal points 81
tho cUmpasa
AMONG THE ASciENTs
Tho ancient Phosnlolans. fcralaha. AS
pyriahn and uTahminH looked upon tho
cross a. q holy symbol. AZ Ia abundnnuy
aN.Ha. NH ~. Al.WsHlkNANa.
and other pictorial representations OF
their monumental remains Osiris by
tho gross gave light eternal 10 the Hplrits
OF tho lust. buAeath tho cruAB tho Muyaca
mothers laii their babea. trusting BY
that nlgn 10 secure then, from tho power
Of tho cvii splits. ana with that symbol
To protest Thorn the EtruaeSna. the an.
clunt people uf Northern Italy. calmly
iaid them down TO die.
The THAI Of tho Jews AMI tho Tau OF
the urcrka. whence comes the r Of no
itumnu alphabet. were acid To be not
merely leUprp. but sacred symbols. on
account OF their being suEEoated by u
GROSS.
Among the Ba-candinavians Thor Naa
tbs thunder and tho hammer was his
symbol IL Nas with this hammer that
Thor crushed the head OF tho great
Milsard serpent. that he ,rushrd the
Eiautr. tina no restored 10 lie the drad
goats. which ever after drew his car
that no consvcratcd the pyro Of Daldur,
Thin hammer VAS a cross, In Iceland
tho cross OF Thor IA sim used aa &
magical sign Ia connection With rtorma
OF wind and rain. LohEttliNw tells u
hoW King olAf kept Christmas at Dron-
theim,
DER hlH drinking horn. the HlEn
Ito made Of the Cross Divine.
A no drahk and tputtrrcd his prayers;
HuI tho nurHrrkn cvormorr
Made Tho sign OF the Hammr ~ Thorr
over theirs.
Neither King Olaf nor ria llorsorkora,
nor. indeed. LopEtcilow himnelf. seem 20
have realized that the two symbols we're
identical
Comparative mythuloEiatn draw various
deductions from thcno remarkable facts
Lot VS.. however. appeal To - man who
IL not oniy - comparative myuologlnL,
but a Christian priest, Foo my own
part" says Rev. Baring Could. u SEQ
no difficulty In believing that tho cross
formed a portion OF the ptiuiuVnl re-
liEion, traces OF which sNint over the
whole worid. among every people that
trust IN the cross MAS a part OF the an
riont faith which taught men TO believe
In a Trinity. In u war In heaven, a Para.
dlne from viii 'h man ell q Flood ANA
q label. a faith which was deeply im-
prcHard with a conviction that u virgin
should coucolyN and boar a Son. that the
dragons mead should he brt ,rad. and that
through shedding OF blood should como
remission. The uur OF the crosse as "a
symbol OF iifc and regeneration through
water IL as widely spread over The world
An tho belief IN the ark OF Noah. Maybe
tho shadow OF tho crona was cast further
back into the night OF ages, and fell on
II wider range OF country than We arc
aware Of"
IN THE OLD TESTAMENT,
II was only natural that he early and
medieval Christians, fndlng tho aroas a
symbol OF NE among the nations OF an
tiaut,y. should look culiously into the
Oid Testament to see whether there were
moi f-oruuhndowlnES IN II OF the wood
whereby righteousness comoth," Nor
WAS their search unrcwhrdcd. In
Isaac leaving the wood OF tho sacrifice
they saw prcngurcd both Christ aud the
cross, They Jaw the cross In MoHca
with arms expanded ON the Mount. In
tho pole, with transverse bars. upon
which wan wrchthcd the brnAen serpent
In tho two sticks gathered by the widow
OF Hnrpctn. Hut plainoAt OF all they
read Il In Elckiol iN't-t, Go through
the midst of the city. through the midst
OF Jerusalem, and set u mark upon the
forchcnda OF the men" hat they are 10
bc Hvcd from destruction by the sword
The word here rendered mark IN In
IN, Vulgnte sigma thHu' The Thai
WINS tho old Hebrew character, thnpod
like u cross. which was regarded IA the
sign OF life, felicity and safety.
Yet the cross was not always a symbol
of honor. Among the Phocniolnns and
syrlnna. md later among the Romans,
Il was a punishment Inflicted on slaves
robbers, nHsnssins and rebols--tmong
which last Jesus was tcckoned, on nc-
count Of His proclalmlug Himself King
or Messiah, The person sentenced To
this punishment was stripped OF his
clothes, except n covering around the
Iolns. In n state OF nudity he was
bentcn with whips. such was the So
verify OF this iirgellation that numbers
died OF II. Jesus was crowned with
thorna. and was made the subject OF
mockery; but insults OF this kind were
rot common. In this instance they were
owing TO the petulance OF the Roman
soldiers,
CRUCIFIXIoN.
Tho criminal, having been beaten, was
condemned TO the further suffering OF
CARRYING tho cross 10 the place OF pun
Ishment, which was commonly u hill
near the public highway, and out OF the
city. The place OF crucihxlon at Jeru-
salem was q hill to the northwest OF the
city. rho cross, otherwise called the
"post"-the unpropltious or ominous tree
consisted OF II piece Of wood erected
perpcndlculnrly. and lntersected by an
other one at right angles, near tho top,
Tho crime for which the eulprit suffered
was Inscribed m the transverse piece,
near the top Of the perp andiculnr one
There IL no mention mad by the an
Client writer's OF anything on which the
feet Of the c%ruclhod person rested. II
~ known, however, that near the base
a. -. ....a,Nt,uIar haaua thara nr0ioCt-