It is no secret that Satanists, death-metallers and other such lovely people deliberately adorn themselves with jewelery that most Christians find offensive. For example: The horned goat, and pentagram, and if you really want to freak us Jesus Freaks out… the upside down cross.
Ah Yes, the classic inverted cross – the most recognizable symbol of defiance against Christianity. Where did this symbol-abomination originate? When did this most unholy sign come into being? Obviously from the depths of hell itself, surely. Actually no. Not even remotely close.
Early Christian writings describe that when Peter (one of Jesus’ closest friends) was about to be martyred, he requested to be crucified upside down because he didn’t feel worthy of dying the same way as Jesus. Thus, the inverted cross, (otherwise known as Saint Peter’s Cross) has become a reminder of Peter’s incredible display of humility to Catholics worldwide. Interestingly enough, many hardcore Catholics actually consider the upside-down cross a more noble piece of jewellery than an upright one.
I am amused. By wearing an upside-down cross, Anti-Christians are unwittingly showing their humility and unworthiness before Jesus Christ. That makes about as much sense as a Nazi wearing the Star of David. This isn’t just my opinion either. I found the following statement on an non-Christian (understatement) website discouraging the wearing of inverted crosses. It states:
“The upside down cross is not a symbol of rebellion against Christianity. If you are your own god, wear your cross right side up.”
While on the subject of wearing crosses (upside-down or rightside-up)… On our 2010 trip to Israel, we were told by Messianic believers (Jewish Christians) that they view the cross as an instrument of torture and won’t even display them in their churches, let alone wear them. To them, it is more a reminder of their oppression as a people than a symbol of Christ’s victory over death. We must remember that not only Jesus died on a cross, but some 50000 to 100000 Jews were crucified by the Romans in the first century.
The old rugged cross. Such an icon of controversy, but ultimately it is a symbol of death. Made famous by being the torture instrument that Jesus Christ died upon.
The crazy thing is that Jesus told His followers to do what He did! Not to wear a cross, but to carry a cross – a metaphor of dying to our sinful, rebellious nature, and to follow Him – taking on His character and demonstrating His love to an unlovely world and unloving people.
So, next time you see an inverted cross, perhaps Jesus has set you up to demonstrate His love to the wearer of it.
symondrake.com 
Ahh…truly classic posting there Syms. Loving the last last line!
How easy it is to get holier than thou and look down noses at people that are as lost and deceived as I once was.
Here’s to looking on the inside.
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“By wearing an upside-down cross, Anti-Christians are unwittingly showing their humility and unworthiness before Jesus Christ.”
Do you actually believe that?
Do you actually believe you can ignore the hostility, the contempt, the derision and the rejection behind their desire to invert the cross, and instead try to disarm it by labelling it as an unwitting demonstration of worthlessness and humility, just because the church origin of the inverted cross is in Peter’s humility?
If you want to go down that path, you open yourself up to similar mockery: people deciding to “read” your wearing of a crucifix as a celebration of torture and death, as a cross is of course an instrument of torture and death.
You might retort: “No, it now reminds me of the enormous gift of salvation; it’s taken on symbolic meaning, symbolic meaning that you’re deliberately misreading for the purpose of ridicule!” But that is exactly what you’ve done here: deliberately misread the meaning that a disrespectful and intentional inverting of the cross stands for, but appealing to an earlier thing it meant.
A symbol is not defined by its origin, but by it’s common usage. They’re a powerful form of communication, and you do no one any service by deliberately misreading the symbolic intent behind them.
You say its as absurd as a Nazi wearing the Star of David. No; your deliberate misreading of the intention behind the wearing of the inverted cross is as absurd as someone trying to point to a swastika during Nazi Germany, and say: “Don’t worry, there’s nothing sinister behind this symbol, they’re just (unwittingly) celebrating good luck, because they’ve taken the symbol from India.”
(PS: maybe moderate your spam comments!)
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As usual, a challenging, well researched posting 🙂
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