Christian Cross = Bastardized Paganism First Written: September 2002 Last Updated: 29 December 2004 Introduction Christians like to think that they are superior to pagans, heathens, and jews, but they know so little about their own religion that they do not even realize that most of christianity is actually a bastardization of paganism plus judaism. Easter, Christmas, the Cross, these are all originally of pagan origin. No Credible Evidence that Jesus Died on a Cross For the purposes of this section, I will write as if the Jesus depicted in the bible did exist, despite the fact that it is far more likely that he is mostly or entirely a fictional character. Despite what fanatical Christians would have you believe, it is a fact that the original text of the Christian Bible does NOT state that Jesus died on a cross (meaning a structure with 2 intersecting lines). English translations of the original ancient Greek text do use the word "cross", but there is nothing in the bible to demonstrate that this translation is correct. The bible is not even consistent with which word is used to describe the implement of Jesus' death -- there are 2 Greek words that have been translated to "cross", they are "stauros" and "xulou". The primary meaning of stauros is stake, and the primary meaning of xulou is wood. The words also have alternate varying meanings that are based around these primary meanings. In Acts, Peter says this: "The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree." (Acts 5:30, KJV) The original Greek text with a rough translation of each word is: hon humeis diecheirisasthe kremasantes epi xulou that you slew hanging on wood/tree However, xulou can be translated as wood, tree, beam, post, gallows, stake, etc. i.e. its exact meaning is ambiguous. It does not sound like a description of crucifixion on a cross with nails driven through the hands, but it is sufficiently ambiguous that some will claim that meaning. It also seems to be debatable whether the original text means "killed and then hung on a tree" or "killed by hanging on a tree". Anyway the point is that it does not specifically say a cross. The King James Version (KJV) of the bible translates it as "hanged on a tree" in all the following locations. Some other translations say "cross" where KJV says "tree". Acts 5:30 Acts 10:39 Acts 13:29 1 Peter 2:24 Galatians 3:13 Deuteronomy 21:22-3 (OT) Genesis 40:19 (OT) Joshua 8:29 (OT) And now let us talk about the OTHER description of the implement of Jesus' death, the stauros. In all cases where the word "cross" appears in the New Testament KJV, it is translated from the Greek word "stauros" meaning a stake: Cross, Crucify A-1,Noun,4716,stauros denotes, primarily, "an upright pale or stake." On such malefactors were nailed for execution. Both the noun and the verb stauroo, "to fasten to a stake or pale," are originally to be distinguished from the ecclesiastical form of a two beamed "cross." [...] (Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, 1940, by W.E. Vine) "Originally Greek stauros designated a pointed, vertical wooden stake firmly fixed in the ground. Such stakes were commonly used in two ways. They were positioned side by side in rows to form fencing or defensive palisades around settlements, or singly they were set up as instruments of torture on which serious offenders of law were publicly suspended to die (or, if already killed, to have their corpses thoroughly dishonored)." (The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, volume 1, page 825) Autenrieth's Homeric Dictionary also confirms it, as follows. Homeric means relating to Homer, a famous Greek poet who lived around 850 B.C.E. So in the time of Homer, "stauros" meant stake. stauros : stake, pale, pl., Il. 24.453 and Od. 14.11. (Georg Autenrieth. A Homeric Dictionary for Schools and Colleges. New York. Harper and Brothers. 1891) Stauros still means stake, as you can see in the following 1889 definition from the Liddell-Scott Greek-English Lexicon. However the secondary meaning of the Christian Cross has been added as a result of the biblical mistranslation of stauros (the second meaning following is attributed to NTest meaning the New Testament of the Bible). stauros I. an upright pale or stake, Hom., etc.: of piles driven in to serve as a foundation, Hdt., Thuc. II. the Cross, NTest.: its form was represented by the Greek letter T, Luc. (Liddell and Scott. An Intermediate Greek-English Lexicon. Oxford. Clarendon Press. 1889) stauros, ho, upright pale or stake, staurous ektos elasse diamperes entha kai entha puknous kai thameas Od.14.11 , cf. Il.24.453, Th.4.90, X. An.5.2.21; of piles driven in to serve as a foundation, Hdt.5.16, Th.7.25. II. cross, as the instrument of crucifixion, D.S.2.18, Ev.Matt.27.40, Plu.2.554a; epi ton s. apagesthai Luc.Peregr.34 ; s. lambanein, arai, bastazein, metaph. of voluntary suffering, Ev.Matt.10.38, Ev.Luc.9.23, 14.27: its form was represented by the Greek letter T, Luc.Jud.Voc.12. b. pale for impaling a corpse, Plu.Art.17. (Henry George Liddell. Robert Scott. A Greek-English Lexicon. revised and augmented throughout by. Sir Henry Stuart Jones. with the assistance of. Roderick McKenzie. Oxford. Clarendon Press. 1940) So the christian bible does not actually state that a cross was used in the crucifixion of jesus. There is insufficient evidence to say how exactly jesus died (not that he even existed). The Christian Cross is Originally Pagan The main symbol of Christianity is the cross. For example, christian churches are filled with crosses, and christians wear crosses on necklaces, jewelry, clothing, etc. As we saw above, the cross does not originate in the bible. So then where did it come from? The cross is originally a pagan symbol and it existed centuries before Christianity, which demonstrates that Christianity is actually a bastardization of paganism.   The above is from Wilkinson's Egyptians, by Sir John Gardner Wilkinson, first published in London 1837-41. Wilkinson was the first Egyptologist to make a comprehensive study of the tombs in the Valley of the Kings. He published the first complete survey of the main archaeological and historical sites in Egypt and Nubia and the first comprehensive plan of ancient Thebes. He lived 1797 - 1875. Here are some photos of the "ankh", an ancient Egyptian cross:         A dictionary definition of the ankh: "ankh n. A cross shaped like a T with a loop at the top, especially as used in ancient Egypt as a symbol of life. Also called ansate cross." (The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition) Why does the Egyptian cross / ankh symbolize life? Some say it is a combined sexual symbol. The upper portion represents the vulva, and the lower portion represents the penis and testicles. Now before you christian fanatics start claiming that the Egyptian ankh is different and unrelated to the christian cross, read these quotes: "The ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic symbol of life -- the ankh, a tau cross surmounted by a loop and known as crux ansata -- was adopted and extensively used on Coptic Christian monuments." (The New Encyclopedia Britannica, 15th edition, 1995, volume 3, page 753) "A still more curious fact may be mentioned respecting this hieroglyphical character [the Tau], that the early Christians of Egypt adopted it [...] numerous inscriptions, headed by the Tau, are preserved to the present day on early Christian monuments." (Wilkinson's Egyptians, by Sir J. G. Wilkinson, volume 5, page 283-284)   (Hieroglyphs in an ancient Ptolemaic Egyptian frieze, from "The Cross Revealed", by Crichton E. M. Miller.) In fact, the cross is to be found in many places in pre-christian times: "From its simplicity of form, the cross has been used both as a religious symbol and as an ornament, from the dawn of man's civilization. Various objects, dating from periods long anterior to the Christian era, have been found, marked with crosses of different designs, in almost every part of the old world. India, Syria, Persia and Egypt have all yielded numberless examples, while numerous instances, dating from the later Stone Age to Christian times, have been found in nearly every part of Europe. The use of the cross as a religious symbol in pre-Christian times, and among non-Christian peoples, may probably be regarded as almost universal, and in very many cases it was connected with some form of nature worship." (The Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th edition, 1910, volume 7, page 506) For example, the Callanish Standing Stones are situated on the Isle of Lewis, Scotland. These stones are arranged in the shape of a cross, yet they were erected about 2000 BCE, i.e. well before christianity. Here are some photos:   Aerial view of Callanish:   A quote from Alexander Hislops book: "That which is now called the Christian cross was originally no Christian emblem at all, but was the mystic Tau of the Chaldeans and Egyptians -- the true original form of the letter T -- the initial of the name of Tammuz [...] That mystic Tau was marked in baptism on the foreheads of those initiated in the Mysteries, and was used in every variety of way as a most sacred symbol. [...] The Vestal virgins of Pagan Rome wore it suspended from their necklaces, as the nuns do now. The Egyptians did the same [...] There is hardly a Pagan tribe where the cross has not been found. The cross was worshipped by the Pagan Celts long before the incarnation and death of Christ." ("The Two Babylons", by Alexander Hislop, pages 197-199) A quote from Vine's Dictionary: Cross, Crucify A-1,Noun,4716,stauros denotes, primarily, "an upright pale or stake." On such malefactors were nailed for execution. Both the noun and the verb stauroo, "to fasten to a stake or pale," are originally to be distinguished from the ecclesiastical form of a two beamed "cross." The shape of the latter 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. By the middle of the 3rd cent. A.D. the churches had either departed from, or had travestied, certain doctrines of the Christian faith. In order to increase the prestige of the apostate ecclesiastical system pagans were received into the churches apart from regeneration by faith, and were permitted largely to retain their pagan signs and symbols. Hence the Tau or T, in its most frequent form, with the cross-piece lowered, was adopted to stand for the "cross" of Christ. (Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, 1940, by W.E. Vine) So the cross is a symbol for Tammuz. Who is this Tammuz guy anyway? "Tammuz ... in Mesopotamian religion, god of fertility embodying the powers for new life in nature in the spring" (The New Encyclopedia Britannica, volume 11, page 532) Aha, definitely pagan. And That's Not All! The cross is not the only thing that was bastardized and adopted into Christianity. Easter and Christmas are both originally pagan festivals. See my Easter/Yuletide soapbox for more info. Christianity is undeniably also a bastardization of Judaism. We know that (a) Christianity and Judaism share substantial amounts of the same scripture (Old Testament / Hebrew Bible), and (b) Judaism existed well before Christianity, so therefore the Christians must have copied it from the Jews, not the reverse. Conclusion The most sacred revered symbol of christianity is in fact... pagan. However, the vast majority of christians do not realize this because they are blind gullible little sheep who are content to unquestioningly follow the herd. At the very least, they should research the issue and THEN decide whether they believe in it, instead of automatically believing the propaganda that is fed to them. I encourage people to be free and independent thinkers.

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