CROSS
581
CROSS
KZid aome have sapposed that a kind of seat was phiced, Kn 'wbich the sufferer may be said to have in some T'.ajr sat. The controversy is treated at length in the :ars1; of the four Hypomnemaia de Cntce of Bartholinus Slafn. 1661, Amst. 1670, L. B. 1695).
JL coDunon tradition assigns the perpetual shiver of l:ie aspen to the fiict of the cross having been formed *^ its wood* Lipsius, however {De Crvce, iii, IS), >iln'k« It was of oak, which was strong enough, and common in Judaea. Few will attach any consequence jo liis other reason, that the relics appear to be of oak. KTlije legend to which he alludes,
*>* Pes crnds esi oedrue, corpus tenet ilta cnpressos, Pahna numua refcinet, titulo tetatar oUya" CThe foot is eedar, cypress forms the shaft, The arms are palm, the title olive bears),
kisTdly needs refutation. It must not be overlooked blittt crosses must have been of the meanest and readi- est materials, because they were used«in such marvel- lous numbers. Thus we are told that Alexander Jan- EiABYis crucified 800 Jews (Josephus, Ant, xili, 14, 2), cand Varus 2000 (ib, xvii, 10, 10), and Hadrian 500 a ^Ltky ; and Titus so many that " room failed for the Grosses, and crosses for the bodies" (Josephus, War^ ^vi, 28, where Reland rightly notices the strange retri- l^ntion, '*so that they who had nothing but * crucify' in tlieir mouth were therewith paid home in their own iKMlies,'* Sir T. Browne, Ftt^. £rr. v, 21). In Sicily, JV^u^ustus crucified 600 (Orosius, vi, 18). — Kitto, s. v. ; Smith, 8. V. See Crucifixion.
CROSS, Bull op the (Cruzadd)^ a bull by which pope Caliictus III, in 1487, granted very extensive in- dulgences to all who would take up arms, under king fietiry of Castile, against the infidels, or pay to that ^ng a certain sum for defraying the expenses of the -WB.T. The indulgence was at first granted for only five years, but was from time to time renewed and en- larged, so as to include many privileges, such as ex- emption from the commandment of abstinence. The proceeds of the Bull of the Cross constituted a consid- erable portion of the public revenue. The last renewal of the bull is of the year 175B. A similar bull was is- sued in 1514 by pope Leo, in favor of king Sebastian of Portugal, to whom, in consideration of his endeav- ors for the conversion of infidels in Africa, the third part of the tithes and the tenth part of the taxes due to the churches and ecclesiastical benefices of the Idngdom was conceded. — ^Wetzer u. Welte, Kirchen- Lex, vi, 265.
CBOSS, Exaltation of the, a festival in the Ro- man Catholic Church, instituted in commemoration of the exaltation of the supposed cross of Christ at Jerusa- lem, after its recovery from the Persians. The latter, Tvhen conquering Jerusalem in 614, carried off with them the rdic which, since its "invention" [see Cross, Csbist's] by the empress Helena, had been venera- ted as the ** Holy Cross." With a view to a heavy sum of ransom, they had it sealed up by the patriarch Zacharias with the patriarchal seal, and took it to a strong castle in Armenia. When, in 627, the empe- ror Heraclius conquered the Persians, he stipulated in the treaty of peace for the restoration of the Holy Cross, and took it with him to Constantinople. From there, in 629 (according to others in 630), he took it himself, accompanied by a large retinue, to Jerusalem, where it was again set up with great solemnities. It is this restoration of the cross to Jerusalem wbich is annual- ly commemorated on Sept. 14 in the Church of Rome as the Exaltation of the Cross.— Wetzer u. Welte, Kirchen-Lex. vi, 268.
CROSS, Thvention of the, the name given in the Roman Catholic Church to a festival which commem- orates the finding of the alleged true cross of our Sa- viour, and which is celebrated on the 8d of May. An order of friars, founded in honor of the invention of the cross, and carrying in their hand a staff, on the top of which was a cross, received the name of Croisiers
(Ft. croix^ cross), corrupted into Crouched or Cntiched Friars. They came to England in the 18th century, and had monasteries in London, Oxford, and Ryegate. The festival of the Elevation of the Cross (September 14) commemorates its re-erection in Jerusalem by the emperor Heraclius, after it had been carried away by the Persians. — Chambers, Encyciop<Bdia^ fi, v. See Cboss, Exaltation of.
CROSS, Metaphorical Sense of. This word (1), in its most comprehensive sense, as figuratively used in N. T., designates not only the whole passion of Christ, culminating in the death on the cross, but also the whole Gospel system, as a means of reconcil- iation with God through Christ. (2) It is also used to designate the sufferings and trials sent upon Chris- tians for their moral improvement, and which have the effisct of strengthening fiuth, and teaching humili- ty, love, and submission. The command to '^ take up the cross" daily (Luke ix, 28) signifies that we are cheerftiUy to submit to all the evils of life, circum- stance, and position, which God, in his wisdom, sees fit that we should encounter ; we are even to rejoice at misfortune, as the discipline of suffering brings fruits of sanctification to those who patiently submit for Christ's sake, remembering that all things work for good to them that love God (Rom. viii, 28). Four kinds of " crosses" have been recognised : 1, the cross of martyrdom, the witness unto death for Christ and the Gospel ; 2, the cross of trials, for the preservation of fiuth, love, and hope ; 8, the cross of discipline, for the purification of the heart and the subjection of sin- ful desires and inclinations ; 4, the cross of punish- ment, for the chastisement of sin ; though the aim of punishment also is the improvement of the sinner. God is love, and therefore lays the ** cross" on every one as he needs it. He chasteneth whom he loveth. It is a sad mistake to consider suffering as the result of caprice or anger on the part of God (2 Cor. iv, 16- 18; xii, 7; Heb. xii, 1-12; Gal. vi, 14; Eph. ii, 16, 17; CoL i, 19-22; 1 Cor. i, 17, 18; Gal. v, 11; PhU. iii, 18).— Krehl, N. T. Handworterlmck, s. v. Erouz.