Eastern Orthodox Crosses

[SummaScriptura]

Can someone explain it?
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[polishbeast]

If i recall: The top bar is for the sign INRI. The middle one is where the hands went. And the bottom is where the feet were nailed and was done for balancing purposes. Any EO correct me if I am wrong.

 

[Musa80]

If i recall: The top bar is for the sign INRI. The middle one is where the hands went. And the bottom is where the feet were nailed and was done for balancing purposes. Any EO correct me if I am wrong.

Correct. Also, the tilted bottom bar is so as a reminder that the thief to the left was taken to paradise because of his faith.

 

[SummaScriptura]

Wow, with just one post, something that seemed so foreign becomes suddenly familiar.

 

[Chesterton]

And I believe the bottom bar is tilted to represent the fate of the two theives on both sides of Jesus. The one thief repented and went up to paradise, the other did not and went the other direction.

 

[OrthodoxyUSA]

Can someone explain it?
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This picture was taken from the backside.

The slanted bottom leans the other way.

Forgive me...

 

[LittleLambofJesus]

Another version....

The Russian Orthodox cross differs from the Western cross. The top bar represents the plaque that was hung over Christ's head. The middle bar, as in Western Christianity, is the cross beam on which Christ's wrists or palms were nailed. The slanted bottom bar is the footrest - and Christ's feet are represented as being nailed individually rather than together. At the bottom of this particular cross, you can see "Adam's skull." Other emblems appear on more elaborate Russian Orthodox crosses.

 

[OrthodoxyUSA]

Did you know that The Church teaches that Christ's cross stood upon Adams skull on Calvary?

Forgive me...

 

[LittleLambofJesus]

Did you know that The Church teaches that Christ's cross stood upon Adams skull on Calvary?

Forgive me...

Is the greek word for skull where the english word "cranium" comes from

John 19:17 and bearing his cross, he went out in the being said Skull/kraniou <2898> place, which is called in Hebrew Golgotha/golgoqa <1115>

Matthew 27:33 And, coming into a place called Golgotha/golgoqa <1115> that is to say Skull/kraniou <2898> place,

 

[E.C.]

The three-bar is popular in a lot of Slavic areas. It is said that St. Andrew went to a hill, placed a cross on it and prophesied, "There shall be a great city here with many churches". The city? Kiev.
St. Andrew was also crucified on a cross in the shape of an X. Given the above near-legend regarding Kiev, the three-bar is popular in a lot of Slavic circles because the bottom bar, due to its tilt, bears a resemblance to the St. Andrew's Cross.

 

[E.C.]

Another explanation for the tilt of the bottom bar, is that Christ had His legs broken by a Roman soldier. When someone is in that sort of position on a cross and has their legs broken, we can only expect a little... slippage.

 

[LittleLambofJesus]

Another explanation for the tilt of the bottom bar, is that Christ had His legs broken by a Roman soldier. When someone is in that sort of position on a cross and has their legs broken, we can only expect a little... slippage.

They didn't break His legs or the Scriptures would have been broken, though they could have been injured carrying the Cross

Young) John 19:33 and having come to Jesus, when they saw him already having been dead, they did not break his legs;

 

[Musa80]

Another explanation for the tilt of the bottom bar, is that Christ had His legs broken by a Roman soldier. When someone is in that sort of position on a cross and has their legs broken, we can only expect a little... slippage.

I don't see how that can be. His legs were never broken. When the soldiers came to break the legs of all three they found Jesus already dead and put a spear in his side to make sure.

 

[E.C.]

I thought I had heard something like that... hmm...

Maybe it was when they took Him down, most of the weight went to one side... I can not remember...

Aha!

Here it is!

Link to OCA Q&A page.

The significance of the three-bar cross is a simple one. The short bar on the top represents the sign that was placed on the cross which read, "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews" (in Latin the initials are "INRI"). The middle bar -- the longest -- is the bar upon which Our Lord's arms were stretched and nailed. The bottom bar is the footrest which supported Our Lord's body.

While many people popularly refer to this cross as a "Russian" cross, it actually predates the Christianization of Russia in 988 AD, although generally, in earlier depictions of the Crucifixion, the bottom bar is horizontal rather than angled. Very early depictions of the crucifixion, even those originating in Egypt, generally portray the triple bar cross. In certain parts of Central and Eastern Europe, the triple bar cross with a slanted footrest indicates that a given church is an Orthodox one, while a triple bar cross with a horizontal footrest indicates that a given church is a Byzantine Rite, or Greek Catholic, one.

Various reasons have been given for slanting the bottom bar. There is one tradition which states that, at the moment of His death, Our Lord's foot slipped and the footrest tilted. A highly symbolic interpretation states that the slanted bar refers to the thief crucified on Our Lord's right side -- the "Wise Thief" who repented -- who went to heaven and to the unrepentant thief crucified on Christ's left side who did not. Another explanation is that the slant is an attempt to depict that the footrest slanted downward, toward the viewer, albeit in a two, rather than three, dimensional form.

 

[Celticflower]

(lurking to learn)

 

[OrthodoxyUSA]

His legs were not broken. He was already dead.

From the Psalms... "not one of them shall be broken".

Forgive me...

 

[Kristos]

This the cross I wear. This design incorporates the St. Andrew Cross with extensive lettering "King of Glory" appears in Slavonic abbreviation at the top. IC XC for "Jesus Christ" is on the upper cross bar, "Sn Bzhii" for "Son of God" on the lower cross bar. At the base there is a skull with a G and an A on either side for "the skull of Adam", and the letters MLRB for "the place of the skull has become Paradise". To the left of the upright is a spear, and the right a staff with a sponge. On the reverse side is the Slavonic verse, "Let God arise…" Tradition teaches that when the Apostle Andrew preached in southern Russia he placed a life-size three-bar cross at his side. While explaining the Last Judgment he titled the foot plate to signify that those on the right side of Christ will go up into heaven and those on the left will go down into hell.

 

[LittleLambofJesus]

This the cross I wear. ..........and the letters MLRB for "the place of the skull has become Paradise". To the left of the upright is a spear, and the right a staff with a sponge. On the reverse side is the Slavonic verse, "Let God arise…"..........

Interesting and thank you.
Concerning the event of the spearing of JESUS, could you explain the differences in the greek word used in John 19:34 and the one used in John 19:37/Reve 1:7? Thanks

John 19:34 but one of the soldiers spear of Him the side pierces/enuxen <3572> and immediately came forth blood and water;

John 19:37 and again another Writing is saying, `They shall be seeing/oyontai <3700> (5695) into whom they pierced/ex-ekenthsan <1574>.'

Reve 1:7 Behold! He is coming with the clouds, and shall be seeing/oyetai <3700> (5695) Him every eye and/even who any Him they pierced/ex-ekenthsan <1574>. And shall be bewailing over Him all the tribes of the Land. Yea Amen. . [Jeremiah 4:13/Zech 12:10]

 

[SummaScriptura]

They didn't break His legs or the Scriptures would have been broken, though they could have been injured carrying the Cross

Young) John 19:33 and having come to Jesus, when they saw him already having been dead, they did not break his legs;

Good catch. I missed that initially.

 

[LittleLambofJesus]

Good catch. I missed that initially.

I didn't realize I made it into a pun until you reposted it