Konstantinov cross: value, photo

Every religious tradition has its own set of spiritual symbols. They can both play the role of branded logos, and carry a deep sacral-mystery meaning. Christianity is not an exception to this rule. With all its mistrust (in the orthodox current) to a different kind of symbolism and esotericism, it developed its own, sometimes ornate and multifaceted symbols. One of these signs, namely the so-called cross of King Constantine, will be considered in this article.

The legend of the origin of the cross of Constantine

Strictly speaking, this sign is not a cross. Correctly it will be called a monogram - a symbol formed of several letters, displaying the image of a specific character of the religious doctrine - Jesus Christ. According to the Christian legend, Konstantinov cross played an extremely important role in the history of the church. By strength and significance, he is second only to the ordinary cross.

Why is it so important for Christians? The answer to this question is given by the following legend: at the dawn of the Christian era, at the beginning of the fourth century, a conflict arose in the Roman Empire between two representatives of power - Maxentius and Constantine. The result of the discord was a battle, known as the Battle of the Mulva Bridge (312). On the eve of the battle, a specific symbol appeared in the sky, emperor Constantine , accompanied by the inscription "Under this sign you will win." Inspired by a miraculous phenomenon, Constantine ordered the reproduction of this sign on military shields, as well as placing it on the labarum - the military imperial banner.

Indeed, having won a brilliant victory in the battle, Constantine made this sign a basis for personal printing and a symbol of his state. He himself became an adept of the Christian faith. And although for a long time he remained unbaptized, having established his authority, he permanently stopped the persecution and persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire. This Konstantinov cross is the present Christogram used in the churches. Its other name is christism.

Reflects this legend historical reality or not, but it makes it clear why Christians so cherish and so appreciate this sign. He turned the course of history, turning the emperor - the supreme pagan priest - to the side of Christians, as a result of which a small sect of followers of Jesus became the most numerous religious movement on the planet.

The first mention of the Christogram

The first known source of information, which mentions the cross of Constantine the Great, is the works of the church historian Lactantius (320). He reproduces the above version of events with the addition that the phenomenon was accompanied by a voice that in Greek repeated the Latin inscription.

Another church historian, and also the personal biographer of Constantine, Eusebius, Bishop of Neoecasary, at different times reported on two variants of the origin of the Christogram. According to the early, she appeared to the future emperor long before 312, when he was in Gaul. However, later he refuses this version, subordinating his description to the generally accepted opinion. At the same time, referring to the personal oral report of the emperor himself, he specifies that the symbol that appeared was eclipsed by the sun and, together with Constantine, this sight was observed by the entire army, consisting of forty thousand people.

The third source is just the evidence of one of those soldiers who took part in the battle of the Mulvian Bridge and with his own eyes contemplated in the sky the Konstantinov cross. His name is Artemije, and his story is aimed at exposing the emperor Julian the Apostate, who, as is known, renounced Christianity, deciding to reanimate the pagan institutions in the Roman Empire. Artemy was executed by them.

Origin of the Christogram

Historical research suggests that the Crisis has a pre-Christian background and, most likely, has been borrowed and adapted by church leaders for two reasons:

1. Since Christians for a long time were outlawed, they had to conspire and use common pagan symbols, filling them with their own content. In the same way among the Christians, images of Orpheus, Helios and other gods were popular. And the Constantine cross itself is, most likely, the adapted solar symbol of the ancient Chaldeans.

2. The Greek word "chrestos", meaning "favorable", could also be graphically depicted in two first letters. Because of this, the symbol easily Christianized in the circles of followers of Jesus, who gave it the meaning of "Christ."

One way or another, in pre-Constantine times, several types of Christian monograms and their pagan prototypes are known.

The spread of charisma

Before the Christogram became known as the cross of St. Constantine, it was used mainly in the places of the assembly of Christians. The most ancient examples of it were found in the catacombs - underground cemeteries, which church members used as places of meetings and services. Similar symbols were brought to us by the funerary monuments and sarcophagi of Christians.

After the legalization, this symbol began to be used as a religious sign in the newly built temples. On the other hand, it served as an element of decoration and decoration - they were decorated with bowls, lamps, caskets and other church utensils. In secular circles, as has already been said, the Christogram was the state seal of Constantine himself and a number of his successors, as well as the official military symbol of the labarum, replacing the traditional Roman eagle in this place.

The monogram ιχ

Among other things, the Christogram, visually similar to the Russian letter "F", was used in Christian churches as late as the third century, that is, long before Constantine ascended to the throne. In it there was no letter p (po) - instead of it there was ι (iota), meaning "Jesus". It is even possible that this letter later acquired the symbolic form of a shepherd's (ie, a bishop's Christian) staff - a staff with a twisted end. He then became associated with the letter p.

The monogram χρ

This version of this symbol is the main one and, if I may say so, canonical in the Christian church. It is called "the cross of Constantine". The photo is presented below.

On the meaning of christmas

Various mystical groups, both in the midst of the Orthodox Church, and among other currents, attached great importance to the inner meaning of the Greek letters. Even the New Testament contains unambiguous references to gematria - the method of searching for a secret meaning through the calculation of the numerical correspondences of the letters of words and names. In the same way, you can analyze the cross of Constantine.

The meaning is given to the first two letters of the word "Christ". The sum of their numerical values is exactly 700, which was played out in a special way in complex gnostic theology. Therefore, in the ancient, but little-known tradition today, the number 700 acts as a synonym for Christ. And if, for example, we consider the letters of the Christogram separately, we get the following: χ (chi) - means the macrocosm, the whole universe. The numerical value is 100. A i (iota), on the contrary, denotes a microcosm. Its value is 10. Thus, we obtain a visual symbol of the unity of the microcosm and the macrocosm - the relationship between the part and the whole, the great in the small. In the case of a later version of charisma, where ι is replaced by ρ, the symbol means divine creation (thanks to the semantics of the letter ρ). It carries in itself the value of creative power, world order, female generating energy.

Related Characters

Very often, along with the charisma, two more letters of the Greek alphabet are used - α (alpha) and ω (omega), which are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet and denote the beginning and end of the world, as well as all its ontological essence contained in intermediate letters. The beginning of this symbolism in Christianity was given by the Bible, or rather the book of the Revelation of John the Theologian, where the words "I am Alpha and Omega" are embedded in the mouth of Jesus Christ.