Many people regard the cross as a symbol of Christianity, but it is originally a pagan idol. Long before Christianity was formed, the cross had been used as a symbol of pagan religions. The New Testament written in the Apostolic Age has no record of the cross as a symbol of church; rather, the apostles rejected the worship of idols and taught that the wicked idolaters will not inherit the Kingdom of God (1 Co 6:9–10). Nevertheless, how did the cross come to be firmly established in the church?
Origin of the Cross
The cross is not a symbol of faith which first appeared after the crucifixion of Jesus, but originated from ancient Babylon.
“The shape of the latter [cross] had its origin in ancient Chaldea, and was used as the symbol of the god Tammuz (being in the shape of the mystic Tau, the initial of his name) in that country and in adjacent lands, including Egypt.” W. E. Vine, “Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words”, Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1996, 138p
Chaldea was the central territory of Babylon. In Babylon, “T,” the initial of the name Tammuz, was used as a religious symbol to worship him. This was propagated to neighboring countries, and the cross is found in the relics of ancient countries such as Egypt and Assyria. The custom of worshiping the cross continued even after the Roman Empire was established.
Introduction of the Cross Into the Church
The use of the cross in the church began in the days of Constantine. Before Emperor Constantine legalized Christianity, the church was persecuted by the Roman Empire, and the cross was used as an instrument to execute the Christians. Under such circumstances, it was nonsense if the church beautified the cross, which was a terrible instrument for the penalty of death, and used it as a symbol of Christianity. Actually, the church did not set up the cross for about 300 years after Jesus ascended until the time of Constantine.
“The public use of the cross was adopted by the Christians as a symbol at the time of Constantine. For the early Christians, surrounded by crucifixion as a grim fact of common experience, there was no danger of beautifying the cross by sentiment.” Everett F. Harrison, Baker’s Dictionary of Theology, Baker Book House, 1973
However, there was a change after Emperor Constantine legalized Christianity. The church was rapidly secularized as a result of the preferential treatment of Christianity, and corrupt Roman Catholic leaders accepted pagan ideas and symbols in the name of evangelizing more pagans. The cross was one of them. They thought that the cross was a reminder of the crucifixion of Jesus to the converts who regarded the cross image as sacred, and so they brought the cross into the church for them to worship. Besides, they deified Mary, the mother of Jesus, for those who worshiped pagan goddesses, and let them worship saints and martyrs on behalf of various foreign gods.
The pagan ideology and symbols were introduced in this way and took a firm position in the church over years. Believers came to trust that they were instruments for serving God or symbols of Christianity. In A.D. 431, crosses were placed in chambers of the churches, and after that, it was even set up on top of church towers.
“Crosses in churches and chambers were introduced about 431; and set up on steeples about 568.” Harper’s Book of Facts, Harper & Brothers, 1895
Veneration of the Cross Is Idolatry
The cross had nothing to do with faith in the Apostolic Age, rather it was an idol that was introduced while churches were secularized and paganized.
“You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them . . .” Ex 20:4–5
God strongly forbade His people to make idols and worship them in the second of the Ten Commandments. He also told His people not to make any gods for themselves or for serving God (Ex 20:23). The Bible clearly testifies that making idols is a thing detestable to God and to be cursed (Dt 27:15).
Despite these warnings, the Israelites in the Old Testament times accepted idols like Baal and Asherah, which the surrounding pagans worshiped, and they combined the idols with their own faith after entering Canaan. They made various idols and worshiped them, always rationalizing it as an act of serving God. As a result, they were cursed and destroyed by God (Jer 2:27–28).
Today, many churches repeat this foolishness over and over again. They accept the cross, which is a pagan symbol, as a symbol of Christianity and set it up. By doing so, they disobey God’s command, “Do not make an image and worship it.” Moreover, although they insist that the cross is merely a symbol of church, they cannot stop people from giving it a special meaning.
Prophecy About the Cross-Reverence in the History of Israel
The Israelites’ Worship of the Bronze Snake
God prophesied about the worship of the cross in the church through the past history. On the way out of Egypt to Canaan, the Israelites grumbled against God in the desert. As a result, many people were bitten by venomous snakes and died (Nu 21:4–6). The people belatedly repented and asked for salvation. God taught them how to save dying people who had been bitten by the snakes.
The LORD said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived. Nu 21:8–9
An amazing thing happened; anyone who was bitten could live just by looking at the bronze snake on the pole. It was not the bronze snake itself that had power, but God’s words, “Look at the bronze snake and live.” However, as the years passed by, the people thought that the bronze snake had saved them and even worshiped it until the time of Hezekiah.
He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, just as his father David had done. He removed the high places, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles. He broke into pieces the bronze snake Moses had made, for up to that time the Israelites had been burning incense to it. (It was called Nehushtan.) 2 Ki 18:3–4
When Hezekiah broke down idols after keeping the Passover, he broke into pieces the bronze snake as well and called it “Nehushtan” meaning a piece of bronze. He awakened the people to the fact that the bronze snake was nothing but an idol, a piece of bronze.
Churches Still Revere the Cross
The incident of the bronze snake was a prophecy about the work of salvation which Jesus would accomplish on the cross.
“Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.” Jn 3:14–15
Jesus said that just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so He must be lifted up. Moses’ lifting up the bronze snake was a prophecy that Jesus would be lifted up on the cross; just as the dying people looked at the bronze snake and lived, mankind could be saved thanks to Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.
It was not the power of the bronze snake itself that saved the Israelites in the Old Testament times, but the people forgot the power of God’s word and worshiped the visible bronze snake. The same goes for today’s churches. The salvation of mankind is accomplished through the blood of Christ shed on the cross (Eph 1:7; 1 Pe 1:18–19); the cross itself can never give us salvation or the forgiveness of sins. Nevertheless, people who claim to believe in God revere the cross, forgetting the sacrifice of Christ, who saved mankind.
When Hezekiah broke Israel’s old idolatrous custom, God greatly blessed him, complementing that he held fast to God and kept the commands He had given Moses (2 Ki 18:6–7). Today too, blessed are those who break down the idolatry of the cross reverence and know the value of the New Covenant established through the sacrifice of Christ, which is the essence of salvation that we must pay attention to.
