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The Cross
By Alon Y Cohen
The Cross is held dearly to those of the Christian
faith. In fact it has a sacred and has deep meaning for
all Christians. The Cross implies redemption of our
sins, because Jesus Christ was nailed to death on a
cross for the sins of mankind. The Cross was not so
common in the first three centuries. It became very
prominent among Christians during the end of 3rd
century.
We can find crosses in different shapes, sizes and
styles. It is often seen on the top churches and used as
jewelry. It is a prominent feature in cemeteries of
Christians where you can find it often either carved
upon gravestones or scriptures. It is widely believed
that crosses were in existence even before the times of
Christ. It was used in sacred acts of the churches. The
grave of kings, heroes and bishops were differentiated
from others by using a cross on them. In the middle
ages, crosses were mostly set up in the market places.
In those days the churches and the cathedrals were built
on the shape of a Latin Cross. In ceremonies of the
church, the clergy and the followers trace the cross
with their fingers. Crosses are also used for
processions.
There are different types of crosses for different sects
of Christians. The Latin Cross is the type of cross on
which Christ died. The characteristics of this cross are
that it has an upright long pole and a crosspiece
fastened near to its top. The cross used by Saint George
or the Greek cross has four arms which measure in same
length. This cross is mostly used with the cross of
Saint Andrew which is a part of the British Union Jack.
In this flag, the cross of Saint Andrew depicts Scotland
and the cross of Saint George stands for England. The
characteristic of a Maltese cross is that there are
eight sharp points and it was the emblem of the knights
in the middle ages.
The earlier references to a cross can be found from 6th
century. The Cross with the dying image of Jesus Christ
is called a Crucifix. The Lord Jesus Christ was
crucified on a cross and this was why Christians regard
cross with such importance. In early times Catholics
prayed with their arms extended which was a sign of the
death of Christ on a Cross. This tradition can be traced
back to the third century and is in existence even now.
Most of us cannot travel to the Holy Land. A unique gift
that a person visiting the Holy Land can bring back is a
cross made out of olive wood. The crosses are mostly
hand made from olive wood, harvested from tress which
are thousands of years old and found only in the area of
Bethlehem. The gifts made out of this olive wood are
considered Holy by Christians and there is much demand
for it.
The Jerusalem Export House has been bringing the Holy
Land to the World since 1969. In 1999 the AZ Trading
Co., an international marketing company based in
Jerusalem Israel, acquired the company from its founder
Mr. Yasha Levitan (RIP). Through the leadership of Mr.
Amnon Cohen and the dedicated work of his sons, the
company has successfully continued to grow and bring
unique products from the Holy Land to the world markets. |
