crucifix

1 representation of the cross on which Jesus died [syn: rood, rood-tree]

2 a gymnastic exercise performed on the rings when the gymnast supports himself with both arms extended horizontally

English

Noun

crucifix (plural crucifixes)

1. A wooden cross used by the Romans for crucifixions.
2. An ornamental or symbolic representation of Christ on a crucifix, often worn as a pendant or displayed in a Christian church.

Translations

• Aramaic:

  Syriac: ܨܠܝܒܐ (Ṣlīwā, Ṣlīwo)

  Hebrew: צליבא (Ṣlīwā, Ṣlīwo)

• Czech: kříž
• Esperanto: krucifikso
• Finnish: krusifiksi, ristiinnaulitunkuva
• Russian: распятие (rasp'átije)
• Slovene: križ , razpelo

See also

• crucifixion
• crucify

A crucifix (from Latin cruciare meaning "to torture") is a cross with a representation of Jesus' body, or corpus. It is a principal symbol of the Christian religion. It is primarily used in the Catholic, Anglican, and Eastern Orthodox Churches and emphasizes Christ's sacrifice— his death by crucifixion.

The Crucifix

On some crucifixes a skull and crossbones are shown below the corpus, referring to Golgotha (Calvary), the site at which Jesus was crucified—"the place of the skull." It was probably called "Golgotha" because it was a burial-place, or possibly because of a legend that the place of Jesus' crucifixion was also the burial place of Adam. The standard, four-pointed Latin crucifix consists of an upright stand and a crosspiece to which the sufferer's arms were nailed.

The Eastern Christian crucifix includes two additional crossbars: the shorter nameplate, to which INRI was affixed; and the shorter stipes, to which the feet were nailed, which is angled upward toward penitent thief St. Dismas (to the viewer's left) and downward toward impenitent thief Gestas (to the viewer's right). It is thus eight-pointed. The corpora of Eastern crucifixes tend to be two-dimensional icons that show Jesus as already dead, as opposed to the depictions of the still-suffering Jesus that can be found in some other Churches. Also, Eastern crucifixes have Jesus' two feet nailed side by side, rather than one atop the other, as Western crucifixes do. The crown of thorns is also generally absent in Eastern crucifixes. Petersfield,Hampshire

References

See also

• Cloisters Cross
• Holy Face of Lucca
• Christian symbolism
• Crucifixion
• INRI
• Rood
• Graven image

External links

• Archæology of the Cross and Crucifix
• The Cross and Crucifix in Liturgy
• Crucifix carving

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