The Old Rugged Cross

A simple wooden cross is hanging around my neck.

Today is the first time I've ever worn the symbol of Christianity.

Though I've long since abandoned some of the superstitiousness ingrained in my upbringing, the Mormon aversion to the cross stayed with me. It seemed to symbolize violence, suffering, and cruelty.

And of course, it does. I liked that Mormonism focused on the Living Christ rather than the tortured, dying Christ. I still like that about the LDS church, in spite of my complaints about it.

But its symbolism is far richer, and worthier of more thought and respect than it is given by the glib, "we-prefer-to-focus-on-Christ's-resurrection" response.

Over several days, I've been working my way (slowly, for it is dense with ideas) through theologian Jurgen Moltmann's The Crucified God: The Cross of Christ as the Foundation and Criticism of Christian Theology. Here's a decent summary of the book.

The cross is the symbol of faith not merely because we worship Jesus, but it is the crucial link between Jesus' mortal life and his resurrection and immortality. On the cross, the radical Jewish teacher who taught love at the expense of strict adherence to religious custom and the primacy of God's kingdom over all earthly kingdoms, was tortured, suffered, and died, leading to his resurrection, our reconciliation with God, and our salvation from death.

It is in the cross that these two theologies of Jesus - "Jesusology," the mortal life and teachings, and Christology, the theology of salvation, resurrection, and Christ's Godhood - meet. Focusing solely on the social justice aspect of Christianity is deficient theology, and neglects the crucial other half of Christianity: Christ's Godhood, reconciling power, and salvation; the reverse is also true.

So when I wear the cross, I'm bearing the symbol that reminds me of these two key components of being a Christian. I am reminded of the sufferings that he bore, both as a result of and to make possible the key features of Christianity.