Gunter 1

Courtney Gunter
Date of my oral presentation: Wednesday, November 20, 2019
I contributed 23 out of 24 on time reading responses to World Religion discussions.
Word Count: 2481

Christian Qiblah

As Christians, we are part of a community: it includes those of us who are alive now,

those who have gone before us, and those who have not yet come. This community is a

tremendous gift; it is important to engage in and learn from this community. With that in mind,

there is a great deal to learn from our sisters and brothers who form the medieval Eastern

Christian community. Their dedication to cross veneration was one of their most common

religious practices. However, many of these communities existed in mainly Islamic contexts, and

so their practices of cross veneration were criticized and often resulted in accusation of idolatry.

The book Cross Veneration in the Medieval Islamic World: Christian Identity and Practice

Under Muslim Rule, by Charles Tieszen, discusses Christian and Muslim conversations about

cross veneration. It seeks to present how Christians responded to accusations of idolatry and why

they advocated for the preservation of cross veneration, even when it when it resulted in

confusion and contempt. This book essentially follows the life of cross veneration in the midst of

Islamic environments.

To begin with, a few concepts need clarification for a just treatment of this text. First, the

book establishes that “there is a relationship between icons and crosses as Christian symbols,

[but] they are also distinct symbols and functioned differently in different Christian

communities”.1 In essence, icons and crosses are not the same. They are both symbols, but they

are distinct. Next, this book references a wide variety of Christian traditions and confessions.

1
Charles Lowell Tieszen, Cross Veneration in the Medieval Islamic World: Christian Identity and Practice Under
Muslim Rule, (London, I.B. Tauris, 2017), 10.
 Gunter 2

Some of the church traditions represented in the book were overflowing with icons while others

did not use them; some utilized depictions of the cross to enhance their worship, while others did

not.2 In addition, there are a few specific terms that need clarification. First, the term symbol in

this book “refer[s] to religious icons and crosses and the figures and events they symbolised.”3

As stated, icons and crosses are both examples of symbols. Next, the term veneration: “To

venerate an object was to bow [. . .] before or even kiss [. . .] it”.4 Veneration is high respect and

honor; it is not worship.

Figure One will be the visual base for this

discussion of cross veneration. This image, an

icon of the Crucifixion, is estimated to have been

created around the 1250s. The Virgin Mary,

prophets Elijah and Moses, and 13 other saints

are depicted around the cross and Christ. In this

image, Jesus is depicted with his eyes closed,

and he is naked. It is argued that this depiction of

Christ is a response to Islam not wanting to

depict Christ as having died. This concept, the

Fig. 1: Crucifixion, ca. 1200s. Tempera on wood, the Holy
Monastery of Saint Catherine, Sinai, Egypt.
divinity of Christ, is one of the main theological

differences between Islam and Christianity. The Qur’an states, “And [for] their saying, ‘Indeed,

we have killed the Messiah, Jesus, the son of Mary, the messenger of Allah.’ And they did not

kill him, nor did they crucify him; but [another] was made to resemble him to them. And indeed,

2
Tieszen, Cross Veneration, 11.
3
Ibid., 13.
4
Ibid., 13.
 Gunter 3

those who differ over it are in doubt about it. They have no knowledge of it except the following

of assumption. And they did not kill him, for certain”.5 Clearly, Islam teaches that Christ did not

die on the cross. Figure One can be seen to be a response to Islam in that respect.

One additional image needs to be

discussed to provide context for the

discussion about cross veneration. Figure

Two is the Alexamenos Graffiti. It is a piece

of graffiti found in 1857 on the Palatine Hill

in Rome. This image is necessary for two

specific reasons. First, it is thought to be the

first image of the crucified Christ. That

Fig. 2 Alexamenos Graffiti, found on Palatine Hill, Rome. reality is in itself is massively significant.

Secondly, the image is considered to be mocking of Christianity, perhaps ridiculing a man

worshiping the crucified Christ.6 The artist of this graffiti does not understand or respect the

crucifixion or worship of a crucified Savior. This theme of confusion and contempt over the

crucifixion will also be seen in conversations between Christians and Muslims over cross

veneration.

Historically, Christians venerate crosses for a variety of reasons. It is a way of making

public your faith and helps establish your religious identity.7 It shows your belief in Christ’s

divinity and his redemptive work on the cross.8 Moreover, Christians explained cross vernation

differently in different contexts. In a Muslim context, different explanations were given than in a

5
Qur’an 4:157 (Sahih International).
6
Jeffrey S Siker, "Alexamenos (inscription),” (2018).
7
Tieszen, Cross Veneration, 9.
8
Ibid., 3.
 Gunter 4

pagan or Jewish context. Muslims objected to Christian cross veneration despite the fact that the

Qur’an does not explicitly mention cross veneration.9 The cross represents one of the main

theological differences between Christianity and Islam, namely the divinity of Christ. The cross

became one the main points of accusation in Christian-Muslim discourse.10

In response to accusation of idolatry, Christians responded in a variety of ways. First,

Christians explained the Cross as a Symbol of Honor. It ultimately leads to true worship. For

Muslims, the cross represents the shame that is associated with the criminal who is punished on

it.11 How can the cross bring honor, when it is a sign of death and humiliation? However, for

Christians, the cross is the “means by which Satan sought to defeat Christ,” so the death and

dishonor of the cross become the way Christ obtains victory.12 The cross is a kind of “sign of

reproach” to Satan, and it is argued that Christians make the sign of the cross as a way to shame

him.13 For Christians, through Christ’s crucifixion comes death, and through that death comes

life, and then in turn, worship.14 Timothy I, an East-Syrian Christian in the late eighth century,

concludes, “it is only just, therefore, [. . .] that the medium through which God showed [his] love

to all, should also be the medium through which all should show their love to God”.15 In other

words, “the cross becomes the conduit through which humanity can show its love and

thankfulness to God since it was the means by which he showed his love to [us]”.16 With that in

mind, the cross was a source of love, not death, and it is deserving of honor. It “is God’s great

triumph. [. . . T]he cross is the point where weakness transforms into strength. [. . .] Christ’s

9
Ibid., 3.
10
Ibid., 6-7.
11
Ibid., 62.
12
Ibid., 63.
13
Ibid., 63.
14
Ibid., 64.
15
Ibid., 64.
16
Ibid., 65.
 Gunter 5

crucifixion on a cross was not a point of humiliation, but rather an occasion transformed into a

moment of glory”.17 Abd al-Masih ibn Ishaq al-Kindī, a medieval Christian theologian, says that

the cross is “the symbol before our eyes to stir our hearts that we may give thanks to him who

ministers it and has bestowed it upon us. It is to Him we direct our worship and praise, not to the

wood or anything else of which the cross is made”.18 He beautifully points out that the cross can

stir our hearts to point us to true worship of the one God. It is a symbol of honor.

Next, the cross was explained by appealing to biblical exegesis. By doing this, Christians

appealed to biblical precedent and argued that there are pre-cursors to cross veneration located

throughout the Old Testament.19 Theodore Bar Koni, an Assyrian exegete and apologist in the

eighth century, presents the argument that Christ is worshipped through cross veneration

similarly to the way the Ark of the Covenant represents God’s presence.20 Leo III the Isaurian, a

Byzantine Emperor, references the book of Exodus to claim that the practice of Christians cross

veneration comes from a command given to Moses by God. This passage in the Bible states,

“Make a plate of pure gold and engrave on it as on a seal: holy to the Lord. Fasten a blue
cord to it to attach it to the turban; it is to be on the front of the turban. It will be on
Aaron’s forehead, and he will bear the guilt involved in the sacred gifts the Israelites
consecrate, whatever their gifts may be. It will be on Aaron’s forehead continually so that
they will be acceptable to the Lord”.21

Leo claims that the turban mentioned in this passage “prefigures the cross as a symbol” and that

this passage “is the source of the Christian tradition of making the sign of the cross on their

foreheads”.22 One additional example of appealing to biblical exegesis comes from Jirjī the

monk, a Melchite monk from a monastery southwest of Antioch in the 1200s. He explains that

17
Ibid., 67.
18
Ibid., 68.
19
Ibid., 76.
20
Ibid., 77.
21
Ex. 28:36-38 (English Standard Version)
22
Tieszen, Cross Veneration, 79.
 Gunter 6

cross veneration is a way to remember God’s kindness and mercy. For example, he cites the

example of the parting of the Red Sea in Exodus 14, and “for Jirjī the implication is that the sea

obeyed God when Moses made the sign of the cross over it with his rod”.23 Biblical exegesis is a

way many Christians have used to explain the thought-process behind cross veneration.

A third way that Christians explained veneration is by explaining the Cross as a Source of

Power. For all the Christians mentioned, the cross was more than just a symbol. Christ’s victory

on the cross was full of power – “power over sin, evil, sickness, death, displeasure and even

demons”.24 Jirjī the monk sums up it up best when he says,

“[N]o one should blame the Christians for their love of the cross, because many successes
[. . .] have come to them through it. This is because the cross is the standard of power, the
banner of victory and of salvation from error. If a Christian professing belief in Christ
and in the sign of the cross wished to drink lethal poison, to expel demons by force, or to
enter fire naked, in the name of Christ and with the sign of the cross he could do it”.25

Christians explained cross veneration by appealing to its honor, biblical exegesis, and its power.

Additionally, the book presents the idea of a “Qiblah” – Making the Cross a Qiblah and a

Proxy for Christ. In Islam, the Qiblah is the direction a Muslim must face when praying – it is a

required religious duty for every Muslim. The Qiblah is fixed in the direction of the Kaabah in

the city of Mecca. Most mosques contain a wall niche that indicated Qiblah. It is essentially what

orients their worship. Muslims all praying towards the same point is an incredible sign of unity;

it is unity of a community of people under their law. Abū Rā’itah, a ninth century Syriac

Orthodox theologian and apologist, presents the idea of the Cross as Qiblah. He says that the

reasons Christians exalt the cross is because “it has become for us a Qiblah, and something

particular apart from all other things [. . .] [T]he cross, despite its austerity or connections to

23
Ibid., 80.
24
Ibid., 84.
25
Ibid., 85-86.
 Gunter 7

contempt, was indispensable to Christian worship. It was so [. . .] because it was the Christian

Qiblah”.26 He suggests that for Christians, the cross is, metaphorically, what indicates the

direction of prayer. The cross as Qiblah serves as a magnet: it pulls those who honor it away

from distractions to focus on true worship. Muslims do not worship the Kaabah in Mecca. It

“simply points them in its direction as a way of orienting their worship towards to one God. [. . .]

Similarly, while Christians do not worship the cross, it deserves their honour since it points them

towards Christ, the true object of their worship”.27 The Cross as Qiblah helps Abū Rā’itah

explain cross veneration to a Muslim audience, but it also helps in “to accuse Muslims in a very

subtle way of facing the incorrect direction” when they worshiped.28 Christians venerated crosses

in contexts where different religious communities would pray publicly; cross venerating would

establish you clearly as a Christian. Muslims would face a certain direction in worship, but

Christian communities were distinct as those who faced the cross.

In a review of this book, Sidney H. Griffith, scholar of medieval Christian-Muslim

encounters, tells how in most texts that cover Christian-Muslim controversy, cross and icon

veneration appear as a minor topic – he affirms their importance to understanding

Christian/Muslim relations, and says that this books gets at the heart of Christian/Muslim

dialogue through discussions of cross veneration.29 Discussion of cross veneration deserve an

important place in conversions about Christian-Muslim relations. I am thankful for the

information I have learned through this project: I had I had never stopped to examine my own

faith and consider what I think about the importance of the cross as a symbol in my life. In her

26
Ibid., 100.
27
Ibid., 101.
28
Ibid., 102.
29
Sidney. H. Griffith, Cross Veneration in the Medieval Islamic World: Christian Identity and Practice Under
Muslim Rule by Charles Tieszen, (London, I.B. Tauris, 2017).
 Gunter 8

book The Cross: History, Art, and Controversy, Robin Margaret Jensen tells how throughout

history, “the Christian cross has been simultaneously a historical artifact, a symbol of religion, an

agent of miracles, a recipient of devotion, an infinitely reproducible image, and a narrator of its

unique and tragic legend”.30 Some people see the cross as “a sign of hope, healing, or the

comforting assurance of divine love, others see an emblem of exclusion, intolerance, or

domination”.31 This book did a good job of opening my eyes to this reality.

In my opinion, this information is important not only for accurately understand history

and our own faith walks, but it is important for faithfully engaging in our world today. Soon,

Christians and Muslims together will make up two thirds of the world’s population.32 That is a

massive number of people. The book Theological Issues in Christian-Muslim Dialogue tells how

Christians and Muslims must understand both themselves and each other in order to navigate the

crossroads of a multi-faith world. Christians often want to simultaneously engage with the world

and maintain a strong Christian identity.33 However, to engage with the world, we must come to

understand our neighbors well. Understanding the history of Christian-Muslim conversation can

enable us to better live out our calling as Christians, and it can open doors to more effectively

share the gospel.

30
Robin Margaret Jensen, The Cross: History, Art, and Controversy, (Cambridge, Massachusetts, Harvard
University Press, 2017), viii.
31
Jensen, The Cross, viii.
32
Charles Lowell Tieszen, ed, Theological Issues in Christian-Muslim Dialogue, (Eugene, Oregon, Pickwick
Publications, 2018), 125.
33
Tieszen, ed, Theological, 125.
 Gunter 9

Bibliography

Griffith, Sidney H. 2018. “Cross Veneration in the Medieval Islamic World: Christian Identity
and Practice Under Muslim Rule. by Charles Tieszen. the Early and Medieval Islamic
World. London: I. B. Tauris, 2017. X 229 Pp. $95.00 Hardcover.” Church History 87 (1):
196–98. doi:10.1017/S0009640718000215.

Jensen, Robin Margaret. The Cross: History, Art, and Controversy. Cambridge, Massachusetts:
Harvard University Press, 2017.

Nelson, Robert S, Kristen M Collins, and J. Paul Getty Museum. Holy Image, Hallowed Ground:
Icons from Sinai. Los Angeles: J. Paul Getty Museum, 2006.

Siker, Jeffrey S. "Alexamenos (inscription)." The Encyclopedia of Ancient History: 1-2, 2018.

Tieszen, Charles Lowell. Cross Veneration in the Medieval Islamic World: Christian Identity
and Practice Under Muslim Rule. The Early and Medieval Islamic World. London: I.B.
Tauris, 2017.

Tieszen, Charles Lowell, ed. Theological Issues in Christian-Muslim Dialogue. Eugene, Oregon:
Pickwick Publications, 2018.