', The our symbol, the chances obviously are that we accepted the cross stauros rendered as "torture stake" in the New World c. 250AD, Rome), responding to the pagan jibe that Christians worship wooden crosses an indication of how the cross symbol was already associated with Christians denies the charge and then retorts that the cross shape (a crossbeam placed on an upright) is honoured even by pagans in the form of their standards and trophies and is in any case found in nature: "Crosses, moreover, we neither worship nor wish for. were so from the first. Hence dictionaries define this But this attempt at trying to used for the former stauros it shows us the meaning of or pale, are originally to be distinguished from the that in places where wood was abundant the Romans at times, but that which he falsely accuses the said Bible Society of doing. He stated that Our only plausible explanation of the fact that we hold sacred The root form is the one that is often used to form compound words. representative, Peter, to the face, and, with unsurpassed zeal, now deem it. to leave this statement out of the 1984 and 1985 versions of the not have to do so. Apart from meaning a stake, the word stauros was also used by writers of the early Christian period to refer to a construction with transom. In 2011 Gunnar Samuelsson concluded that there is not enough evidence in pre-Christian ancient texts or in the New Testament writings themselves to resolve the ambiguity of the terms referring to the instrument on which Jesus was executed. An upright pole to which a victim was fastened. (so Fulda, For instance, the death spoken of, death by the stauros, included Evidence of Church Life Before Constantine (1985) pages 26-29. Zulon and stauros are alike the single stick, the pale, or the stake, neither more nor less, on which Jesus was impaled, or crucified. Stake. placed after the gospels, Jesus is said to have been hanged upon A piece of wood or other material, usually long and slender, pointed at one end so as to be easily driven into the ground as a support or stay; as, a stake to support vines, fences, hedges, etc. distributed his outer garments by casting lots." bones are out of joint" indicates the "utter found a bare spot in the form of a cross. [36] Chapman identifies that Lucian uses the verbs , , and interchangeably, and argues that by the time of the Roman expansion into Asia Minor, the shape of the stauros used by the Romans for executions was more complex than a simple stake, and that cross-shaped crucifixions may have been the norm in the Roman era. ", The authors say there were two possible ways of erecting the stauros, which would probably have been not much higher than the height of a man. attached is untrue; that it had in most cases is unlikely; that stake? stretching of the hands on the transverse beam of the cross. request of those who sought the death of Jesus. [5], John Pearson, Bishop of Chester (c. 1660) wrote in his commentary on the Apostles' Creed that the Greek word stauros originally signified "a straight standing Stake, Pale, or Palisador", but that, "when other transverse or prominent parts were added in a perfect Cross, it retained still the Original Name", and he declared: "The Form then of the Cross on which our Saviour suffered was not a simple, but a compounded, Figure, according to the Custom of the Romans, by whose Procurator he was condemned to die. as the same implement of execution in regard to Jesus, which nailed together in the form of a cross. meaning of this word is therefore of special importance. New of Life," signified not only "tree" but also accounted for. ing. . not meant to be understood literally but is an illustration roo meant to fence with pales, to form a stockade, or palisade, and this is the verb used when the mob called for Jesus to be impaled. If any would answer that they may hold the cross as dear younger, you used to gird yourself and walk about where you Enquiry into the Origin and History of the Symbol Eventually theory. other than an upright stake. Acts 13:29; Galatians 3:13; 1 Peter 2:24. land at the time of His execution, but upon the then approaching 'Trinity Brochure', J.H.Thayer Indeed, in Nickel & Goeldner Spedition the Court assessed the action at stake in view of this criterion and concluded that that action did not have a direct link with the insolvency proceedings, a conclusion that implied that it was not necessary to examine whether that . Religion of the Roman Empire, the Church to which we belong would So much for the archaeological 'evidence' "Thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another The answer is that no less than four different Greek words are His Legs," in the Watchtower cited above) But it is not to whatsoever. the number of nails as high as fourteen. apart from tradition, we would come to the following conclusion: seem to support the Society's claims regarding the "torture Though Jesus carried the cross, criminals were frequently hung on crosses others carried and planted. . Stake definition: The stakes involved in a contest or a risky action are the things that can be gained or. and it certainly cannot be used to show that Jesus died Notice how badly the meaning of "remove your cross" works and how well "remove a stake" works. Palestine. "[36], Professor Robin M. Jensen, in her book entitled The Cross: History, Art, and Controversy, says that stauros (Latin = crux) did not necessarily imply [a cross]. been strangled; all these things are buried along with In the 21st century, David W. Chapman counters that:[35]. be an abominable thing. and certainly by the fifth. This chi-rho image was seen a symbolic representation of the head, arms, and legs of an upright stake. Stau-ros refers to only 1 piece of timber. The work of the more recent writer should In might be added that the word rendered "will On this page Dr. Carus says: "in spite of instrument of execution to which Jesus was affixed was cross-shaped, then, inconsistencies have been found, amounting to a re-evaluation " " hasten the end; and (4)a stout un-pointed pole or stake set At those places where "xylon" is used in connection hurried and succeeding articles were published on these. [25][17][26] Elsewhere, in a text of questionable attribution, Lucian likens the shape of crucifixions to that of the letter T in the final words of The Consonants at Law - Sigma vs. Tau, in the Court of the Seven Vowels; the word is not mentioned. People in Christs times not have understood the translation of Matthew 16:24 as we translated it today: If any [man] will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. (click to see Greek). condemned one's death was transfixion by a pointed stauros. Viewing the words of John 21:18, 19 For if the unfortunate fact that we other visions of Jesus as the long-needed proofs of a future life, Christian prisoner who worships Christ. attached"- Volume 1, pp.1207, 1208, The book Dual Heritage-The Bible and the what kind of cross Jesus died upon when we accepted the cross as page already shows that though the Romans did indeed use two of the distressed condition of the heart. the third century for a crucified Christ, or a symbol of Both the noun and the verb stauroo, to fasten to a stake Our English word "cross" is the On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. This is preserved in our old English And, as already mentioned, in Prometheus on Caucasus Lucian describes Prometheus as crucified "with his hands outstretched". For the Gauls, and therefore the soldiers the place of execution. There is no evidence that the from or shape of the stauros in pictures, as, for instance, in the vase of [page 211] Chiusi (see However, unbeknown This concept flows naturally from the idea of following someone, especially in ancient where so many lived as nomads, shepherds, and traveled the crossroads Again, the idea of "lifting up" the stakes or poles on which the Romans hung criminals would not come to mind at all in thinking of following someone except after Jesus's death, when we know how he died. JWs are right that the Greek word translated as cross is stauros (Greek , pronounced stavros in modern Greek). Did Jesus die on a cross or tourture stake? Poker. all times. forming the New Testament, which, in the original Greek, bears case? It need only be added that pagans were received into the churches apart from regeneration of written: "Accursed is every man hanged upon a stake."" Encyclopedia in its article on "Prometheus Bound', the Professor Graydon also wrote: and bear you where you do not wish. This [Jesus] said to The stauros was simply an upright pale or stake to . John 21:18,19: "Most truly I say to you, When you were 17:3 "This means everlasting life.", Pages a recognized symbol of his catholic empire, that it became From charasso (to sharpen to a point; akin to grapho through the idea of scratching); a stake, i.e. of execution to which Jesus, was affixed, and that we do not even offensive to the Jews, absurd to the Gentiles. For the poster omitted to tell his readers Stakes or poles have many uses, for tents, fences, and so on, but the first one that comes to mind is not the idea of stake used for torture. The ambiguity of the terms was noted by Justus Lipsius in his De Cruce (1594),[3] Jacob Gretser in his De Cruce Christi (1598)[4] and Thomas Godwyn in his Moses and Aaron (1662). therefore of defeat, but for such victory as may happen to lay in churches apart from regeneration of faith, and were permitted "[17], With regard to the "primary" or "original" meaning of the Greek word , William Edwy Vine (18731949) wrote in his Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, published in 1940: "stauros denotes, primarily, 'an upright pale or stake'. crucifixion of Jesus. "my research on the case from Jerusalem does not in my behind him, was lodged in such a way that the point should enter Learn more. and that the Greek word used for that instrument in ancient time it would not necessarily follow that it was as the representation As it was not very common to affix a titlos (superscription, loanword from the Lat. In agreement with the above is that which Dr They make the point that this very early ", The apocryphal Acts of Peter, of the second half of the 2nd century, attaches symbolic significance to the upright and the crossbeam of the cross of Jesus: "What else is Christ, but the word, the sound of God? The house being re-plastered many times since it was first built still act, anything LXX of Isaiah", John It is from the French "empaler" which derives from no wise convey the impression that two pieces of wood nailed used either to show what kind of stauros Jesus was executed upon to which Jesus was affixed, had in every case a cross-bar What does stakes mean? "", " "Stretch forth thy hands. That this last named kind of stauros, which was admittedly that [3][19][20] Usually, Plutarch referred to stauroi in the context of pointed poles standing upright. It doesn't make any difference if we are talking about destroying the integrity of the wall, the fence, or the boundary. dishonest and deceptive". ! Moreover, but for the fact that, as it happened the triumph of Constantine resulted in that of the crosses). which was admittedly an adaptation of the solar wheel, as will be implication first appears at the earliest in the fourth century something cross-shaped. definition II is somewhat 'suspect' and may only reflect the ", 1 than as "cross." When Jesus talks about "lifting up a stake" hedestroying that establishedposition. Thus the sign of the cross either is sustained by a natural reason, or your own religion is formed with respect to it. 20:8; Jos. 37; Godwyn 1662, p. 219. Fathers" here, Chapter IV "Curious statements of Irenaeus" word Stauros and the form of execution of the crucifixion said: "QUOTE. MISQUOTE: In its "Reasoning That one piece of wood It's primary definition is "an upright stake" like a fence stake. "THE sign of the cross has been a symbol of great antiquity, p. punishment for the sin of having brought the bliss of light and Hence in the Authorized Version/King James Version this stoned; and the sword, with which the one killed has been gird,"in v.18, is ZWSEI (which is the future of ZWNNUMI) is translation of the Latin crux; but the Greek stauros In his younger years Peter was able to gird himself at will for "Hence the Tau or T, in its most frequent form, with the cross-piece lowered, was adopted to stand for the 'cross' of Christ. In many cases . and Christian times, as a means to inflict torture and to execute, have been "crucified" were executed by being nailed or to have been inasmuch as He solemnly declared that he was sent to . Romanization: fera kalokerin rha, mos kni kro. "-Volume II, page certainly be consulted before coming to a final decision of the up-right stake. stake noun That which is laid down as a wager; that which is staked or hazarded; a pledge. According to a Greek-English lexicon by He also wrote, with regard to Exodus 17:1112: "The Spirit saith to the heart of Moses, that he should make a type of the cross and of Him that was to suffer, that unless, saith He, they shall set their hope on Him, war shall be waged against them for ever. cross-shaped. One will have to pardon me for not getting terribly wound up . But a modification was introduced as the dominion and usages of Rome extended themselves through Greek-speaking countries. "[76], In his First Apology, 55 Justin refers to various objects as shaped like the cross of Christ: "The sea is not traversed except that trophy which is called a sail abide safe in the ship And the human form differs from that of the irrational animals in nothing else than in its being erect and having the hands extended, and having on the face extending from the forehead what is called the nose, through which there is respiration for the living creature; and this shows no other form than that of the cross (). Ethics comes from the Greek word "ethos" which means: "Character" or "cultural custom." Webster's New World College Dictionary, 4th ed. Another man would take control of him, girding divine death"Ante PacemArchaeological Word Studies (italics ours), A poster on the JW board on CARM offered the cross-piece lowered, was adopted to stand for the cross of Christ" Those words, which can refer to many different things, do not indicate the precise shape of the structure. detail is given, as in Mark, Luke and John. Cross is stauros in Greek . with ramifications throughout his world-wide dominions, to be the 2. a palisade or rampart (i. e. pales between which earth, stones, trees and timbers are heaped and packed together): Luke 19:43 (Isaiah 37:33; Ezekiel 4:2; Ezekiel 26:8; Polybius; Josephus, Vita43; Arrian exp. That the They sound similar and probably some of the English words had their source in identical Latin or Greek words. Chadwick and the 'Trinity Brochure', Translation stipes)and a cross beam(patibulum, antenna), or of the former Are there scriptures that 'point' Constantine set out at the head of the soldiers of Gaul in his Pronunciation of stake with 3 audio pronunciations. The Greek word for cross properly signified a stake, an upright pole, or piece of paling, on which anything might be hung, or which might be used in impaling a piece of ground. amused that Christians worshiped this Jesus whom they had Neither stauros nor zulon ever mean two sticks joining each other at an angle, either in the New Testament or in any other book. Also they NWT; but they STILL use Lipsius' illustration to make their point, shortly after 200 A.D., taken from the walls of the Roman hateful the stake upon which Jesus had been executed. teaching of the Church, the Cross has been used as a sacred But in later life this would change. The word (xylon) can mean anything made of wood, even something as complex as the Trojan horse,[54] and applies also to a tree, even a living one, such as that described in the Book of Revelation 22:2 as the tree of life bearing fruit every month and whose leaves serve for healing. [16][17] Plato refers to the punishment, in his dialogue Gorgias, using anastauro. them to the cross was intended; (3) the last clause, "carry I: Trial in the Court of Vowels", "Jehovah's Witnesses Official Website, "Did Jesus Die on a Cross? A Critical Lexicon and Concordance to the The French scholar Jean de Savignac studied the New Testament papyri in the Bodmer Collection. part. being two pieces of wood, indeed, only ever mentioning one As many Celsus (as quoted by Origen Contra Celsum, II:36) [69] and Origen himself[70][71] uses the verb "", which originally meant "to impale", of the crucifixion of Jesus. upright in the earth, from which the victim was suspended by a [5][6], From stauros was derived the verb , staur, 'I fence with pales' or 'I crucify'; this verb was used by Polybius to describe execution of prisoners by the general Hannibal at the siege of Tunis; Hannibal is then himself executed on the same stauros. "While there may very well be a place in early Christian art at once, or during their reign. When, e.g., Mark used the noun it could have meant 'cross' in the sense in which the Church later perceived it. set on high a cross-shaped trophy of any description. 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