Why do some people wear crucifix necklaces when they symbolize the bloody barbaric death penalty?

Question

There were millions of people who were sacarficed on crosses, your not just wearing it for Jesus, but for everything the symbol stands for.

Answer 1

Because they like to mock Jesus' death.

I'm sure if he was alive, he wouldn't want people wearing something that symbolizes his execution.

Answer 2

It all depends what you put into the symbol.

The symbol is widely accepted as a mark of God's and Jesus' sacrifice to save our souls. Yes that was done in a bloody barbaric execution, but that is only part of the story, the small part.

If you draw a Nazi Swastika backwards was a Jewish good luck symbol, however the symbol has been so corrupted by the horror of the Nazis that no matter how you draw it the symbol would be hated by most people. The fact that it was a Jewish good luck symbol has been lost to history and is often glossed over or forgotten. It is just part of the horror of what can be done with symbols.

Look at the rebel flag. As a symbol of race pride it becomes an anthem for the KKK. As a symbol of racism it represents the subjection, systematic torture of the black race in an attempt to treat them no better than animals. As a symbol of a common Southern heritage it is a symbol of pride. In a famous recent case two high school students had the rebel flag emblem on their purses and they were suspended and told not to bring the purses to school. The school board agreed with the ruling so it stands. No one has tried to file a freedom of speech issue on it, but it could be done.

In another famous case with students wearing gang symbols at school a rule was passed making it illegal to wear any symbol around your neck except for a cross. Needless to say the rule was taken to court because it forgot the Jewish Star and that is an abridgement of the freedom of religion and speech. Now what would happen if someone wanted to wear a Wiccan symbol? It is a valid religion and since it is a pagan religion it is hated by the big three. However, the symbol has been used on some tombstones for soldiers who were killed in the Iraq War, because their families fought for it.

A symbol has a lot packed into it, a lot of meaning and a lot of history; otherwise it is just an emblem like a happy face. An American Flag has become a symbol of patriotism, as it should be, but to not wear it is to be seen as being unpatriotic. The republicans raised a stupid issue of banning flag burning when most of the people burning the American flag were overseas and immune to prosecution. It did make a great distraction issue of no meaning though.

Answer 3

I have a difficult time looking at a crucifix in a church much less hanging from a person's neck. Beyond the fact that it symbolizes the barbaric nature of the death penalty, even more importantly (at least this should be true for Catholics who believe the Bible is law), it is a manmade IMAGE OF GOD. And I do believe God specifically told everyone, and this is in the Bible, Do not even THINK about making an image of me -- DO NOT DO THIS. Maybe it does not say it just like that, but it is definitely the word of God. And what do they do in every Catholic church, Episcopalian church, and other denominations that have the crucifix hanging up? THEY PUT UP AN IMAGE OF GOD. HELLO??? IDOLATRY!!!! And THEN they go home and they HANG HIS BLOODY PICTURE IN THEIR HOMES. Hey -- when did He pose for those????

I think this is an abomination. And they face it every Sunday morning, or every time they go to church, or every time they put on their jewelry or every time they look at His pix at home.

Good Question.

Answer 4

Because some people have forgotten that Jesus rose again and is now in Heaven on the right hand of the Father...

They camp around the cross...he is not there, people...he is gone....if you must wear a cross, then get one that is empty....and BTW...he was crucified on a tree...not a pole with a cross beam...I do wonder what he would think of all the little charms around unsaved people's necks...rappers, boxers, celebs,,,,every one has to have a cross..that should make you think right there...Can you imagine if the press and those who peddle T-shirts, caps,,,etc...had been there when he was crucified...??

Answer 5

If your dearest friend were executed on false charges, would you make an image of the instrument of execution (say a hangman’s noose or an electric chair or the rifle of a firing squad) and then kiss that replica, burn candles before it, or wear it around your neck as a sacred ornament? That would be unthinkable.

The veneration of the cross is not Christian. It does not show love for God or Christ but mocks what they stand for. It violates God’s commandments against idolatry. It reveres a pagan symbol masquerading as Christian. (Exodus 20:4, 5; Psalm 115:4-8; 1 Corinthians 10:14) To consider a pagan symbol as sacred violates God’s command: “Do not become unevenly yoked with unbelievers. For what fellowship do righteousness and lawlessness have? . . . ‘Quit touching the unclean thing.’” 2 Corinthians 6:14, 17.

Answer 6

Please don't mock something just because you don't choose to believe in it. I'm not Christian either, but I respect that for many people, the crucifix or cross is a religious symbol of sacrifice and redemption. If it brings people comfort and helps them be better people, then I'm not going to sneer at it or tell them what they believe. Remember that what the cross symbolizes to YOU, and what it symbolizes to THEM, may be entirely different.

Answer 7

Whether you interpret the Bible as literature or as the final word of whatever God may be, Christianity has given us an image of death and sexuality that we have based our culture around. A half-naked dead man hangs in most homes and around our necks, and we have just taken that for granted all of our lives.
— Marilyn Manson

If Jesus had been killed 20 years ago, Catholic school children would be wearing little electric chairs around their necks instead of crosses.
— Lenny Bruce

Answer 8

It's an ornament. My wife is a non-believer, but often wears a cross. Many wear that Egyptian type ornament. Those who look for little nothings to criticize, have a problem.

Answer 9

Christians wear an empty cross to signify his victory over death. Catholics use the crucifix for who knows why.

Answer 10

because we are remembering that Jesus Christ came to Earth and died so that we could have eternal life! every time we look at a cross we remember how our God is an Awesome God.