Coptic cross - a symbol of Egyptian Christians

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

Ancient painters who painted Egyptian rulers and queens often depicted them with a Coptic cross in their hands. The pharaohs held this symbol of eternal life by the round handle, just like the apostle Peter held the keys to the afterlife.

What is the Coptic Cross

Every Orthodox knows about the power of the Christian cross, but not everyone knows that this symbol appeared on Earth much earlier than Christianity was born on it. The history of the origin of the cross applies equally to paganism and Christianity, Hinduism and the Mayan religion…

The oldest analogue of the traditional Christian cross, according to existing sources, is the Ankh - a Coptic cross (a symbol that is still used by the descendants of the ancient Copts), decorated with a loop. Ankh adorns the utensils and walls of the tombs of the deceased pharaohs - the Egyptians considered him the key that opens the world of the dead.

This ancient hieroglyph had many names. It was called the “Key of the Nile”, “Key of Life”, “Knot of Life”, “Bow of Life”…

The idea of eternal life

According to some historians, life"outside the pyramid", that is, existence in a parallel world, the noble Egyptians considered the main goal of their stay in the material world, so a significant part of the earthly existence of the Egyptian pharaohs was devoted to preparing for death.

Symbolizing the idea of eternal life, the Coptic cross in the religion of Ancient Egypt united two other significant symbols: "cross" - life, and "circle" - eternity.

In addition, Ankh, which was also a symbol of the union of Isis and Osiris, land and sky, male and female, was revered by the Egyptians as a sacred hieroglyph, denoting a higher mind.

The Coptic cross (you can see the photo on the page) is confused by many with the symbol of Christ the Savior, although in fact the cross on the loop symbolizes the Egyptian god of the Sun - Ra. According to some sources, the worship of the god Ra was expressed by the ancient Egyptians through sexual orgies, since the same hieroglyph symbolized fertility. This is probably why the second name of the Coptic cross is the cross of life.

Scientists' opinion

Some Egyptologists argue that the horizontal lines of the Coptic symbol, forming a loop, were identified by the Egyptians with the rising luminary, and the vertical ones with rays. The same lines, according to another group of Egyptologists, are a symbolic reflection of the male phallus (vertically) and the female womb (the loop symbolized female fertility). Together, these two elements became a symbol of reincarnation, that is, continuous life.

Coptic cross (meaning) through the eyes of modern believers

Today, representatives of some religious communities (for example, Christian) consider the Ankh a symbol of debauchery and contempt for virginity, and representatives of a number of modern occult communities use the image of the Coptic cross as their talisman, spreading it in society due to the increased interest of the population in the ancient Egyptian pyramids and mummies, as well as through Tarot cards. The same symbol is often used as an emblem by rock musicians.

Most Christian communities consider the Coptic cross unacceptable and incompatible with Christian morality and faith. The Copts, on the other hand, consider themselves Egyptian Christians. It is difficult to imagine a Coptic temple in which there are no faces of the great martyr George the Victorious and the martyr Mina. These are the most revered saints by Copts.

Church of modern Copts

The Coptic Church, as one of the oldest Eastern temples, ranks second in terms of the number of followers, second only to the Ethiopian. Currently, about 10 million Copts live in Egypt (the total population of Egypt is about 60 million people). It is also known about the existence of a Coptic diaspora scattered around the world, numbering approximately 1 million people.

Ancient tradition to apply a tattoo in the form of a cross on the wrists is explained by modern Copts by the fact that their distant predecessors - the Egyptians and Ethiopians - valued faith more than earthly life. The tattoo made even the very thought of renouncing one's Christian faith during the time of persecution impossible.

The intransigence with which modern Slavic Christians treat the symbols of Ancient Egypt, the researchers explain the inability to explain the significance of the finds discovered during archaeological excavations carried out on the territory of Ukraine, Siberia and Altai. In particular, statuettes of Osiris wearing the Atef crown, bronze cats, the “sacred eye of ujat” amulet, and figurines of Bes were found among numerous items.

Part of Christian symbols…

The Coptic cross crowning the image of the Egyptian god, as it turned out, was not a novelty for the ancient Christians. Now many historians who are interested in the symbolism of Ancient Egypt are convinced of this. It's hard to believe, but an Egyptian would perceive the same sacred face as an image of his ancient god, and a Slavic Christian would see in him his next father-king.

The image of the Egyptian Osiris, for example, surprisingly resembles the face of Christ, and the striking resemblance of the Virgin Mary to the goddess Isis still haunts Egyptian Coptic Christians.

According to the information provided in the textbook by the authors S. Gorokhov and T. Khristov "Religions of the Peoples of the World", there are several branches of Christianity, each of which has its own symbolism. Orthodox use four-, six- and eight-pointed crosses, Egyptian Christians - the Coptic cross, Catholics and some Protestants recognize only the four-pointed cross, and the Old Believers - only the eight-pointed. But they all equally believe in immortalitysouls and acknowledge the existence of heaven and hell.