Discuss.

You don't have to, but why would you if you're not?

I not only have a cross but plenty of garlic around the house too.

I was going to ask the same thing.

I also ask the same question. I don't know people who wear crosses that would say they are NOT a Christian. However, I do know non-Jews who wear the Star of David on a necklace.

why not? i'd ask why would you wear one of those cross with jesus, but only a cross doesn't have to be a christian symbol, it can be an ornament, can't it?

If you are into art, or collection then it's okay to wear it. If you're a religous zealot, then you may be very bitter about wearing it.

I guess it COULD be an ornament, but I don't know anyone who wears it for that reason. It has strong symbolism to it - so I don't think MOST non-Christians WOULD wear it.

My hubby has a dozen or so watches. Two of them are swiss army watches that have a tiny cross on them... he wears them and is not christian.

oh wait... that wasnt the question. n/m

Pretty much sums it for me.

To better "blend in", if you're a Muslim terrorist.

Yes

Saludos,
Caro

This example sounds absurd, but people do it all the time with other religions -- especially Eastern ones. Think of the way people wear Hindu symbols and the like. Buddhist paraphernalia. Etc. etc.

The cross as a religious icon pre-dates Christianity, so why not?

Good point

Cross has a spiritual meaning not physical. Christianity is not about tradition or wearing crosses. Golden cross doesn't save you from the Hell. If we are sinners and never have relationships with Heavenly Father nothing can save us!! I used to be a religious person when I was kid. Now God is My Father and not any cross or traditions can make me so satisfy so safe as I am now.

I have several necklaces with a cross and I'm definitely not Christian. I bought them and wore them only because I found them beautiful, as necklaces, not as religious symbols.

I kind of stopped wearing them because people were constantly asking them why I did wear them since I'm not a Christian... and when it never stops that's annoying.

No, you don't need to be Christian.
Some people like it because of the symbolism,even if they are not Christians,and that's fine.
But I don't like it when people treat the cross like a fashion accessory,like these girls who wear rosaries around their necks for fashion-reasons. Crosses and rosaries should be more than that.

And now even worse gang symbols.

yes.

adriano told me he wanted to buy me a cross necklace and i told him that i would never wear it if he did. i would never wear an icon that is symbolic of something that i dont believe in.

he is catholic (even though he doesnt practice) and i am an atheist (but was raised catholic)

No. I've worn a cross for many years because it was given to me as a gift from someone special. I am not Christian.

Madonna, who showed open contempt for Christianity through her videos is known to sport a cross.

But--would you really want to sport one of the following (even greatly reduced in size) as a pendant?:

• gallows
• guillotine
• electric chair
• gas-chamber

If any of those were the method by which Christ was slain for the sins of the world, then yes.

really? please tell on

*interested*

From Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross

The article is too lengthy to cut and paste, sorry...

Not in my opinion, no.

very interesting... thanks

the ones that pre-date Christianity don't look much like the sort of thing you usually find on a necklace though... so for the purposes of this discussion/poll, it's of limited relevance

Exactly what I was going to say.

I CAN wear anything I want; but if it misrepresents me, why would I?

You could also wear a necklace with the swastika symbol and not be a nazi, but I doubt many people would.

This woman at work was wearing an Ohm t-shirt one day and when I said, oh, nice shirt, she said she didn't know what it was but thought it "looked nice". When I told her it was a meditation symbol of Hindus, Buddhists and Jains, she FREAKED, said oooh, those are the "baddies", right? BADDIES! Good grief. And I just had to think, sheesh, here is someone who not only thinks of people of certain religions as baddies, but she didn't know that she was walking around with the symbol of the baddies huge as life across her chest!!!!

And she never even noticed, and still hasn't, the Ohm ornament I keep hanging on my computer!

I don't think you have to believe in the symbol to wear it, but you should actually know what it stands for.

the lady, you described sister fracas is a chopf##k....and a azzhat

Actually:

Swastik's origin is from India, where it was/is considered auspicious (many Hindus actually use these as part of kolam patterns on their doorsteps, and some actually do wear swastik pendants).

You may want to rent the movie Dho Chor.

You beat me to it. lol

Same with the cross - predates Christianity, however, the point is the historical reference that today's society associates with those two symbols...makes people nowadays less likely to wear either one in public unless they do in fact represent what most people associate them with. I'm all for people wearing whatever jewelry they want...but they can't be upset if people take it to mean something different from their own personal reasons.

Absolutely.
I am Christian but I don't have a problem with someone wearing a cross if they so choose. I would, I think, be bothered by someone wearing a crucifix who was openly anti-Christian, however, but that's just me.

I also own a shirt with the ohm symbol on it, but unlike Sister Fracas's colleague...I do know what it stands for
I agree, she's a chopf###

Correction for Sister Fracas et al (ya, I'm being a technical chopf#ck here).

An "ohm symbol" means an inverted horseshoe or capital omega--for the unit of electrical resistance/impedance (look on the back of any stereo speakers you have). A little hard for me to comprehend what resistance/impedance has to do with religion--

You must have meant "om symbol".

The're so many religion that they called christian too. But for me christian is not a religion but christian is a relationship between Human and God.

About the Cross signs made by human, for me is nothing coz God knows ur heart if u accept and believe Him or not. Jesus Christ is alive since he rose again from the dead! He is not in the cross anymore! But seating on the throne right hand of the Father in heaven. Since Jesus Christ rose again, He left his Holy Spirit upon us.

Some people wearing a cross sign becoz of the fashion.

Can you be upset if you're a Wiccan and your "symbol" is the pentagram/pentacle (which it is) and everyone accuses you of being a Satanist? (which they do)

NO. Coz in my opinion, A "cross symbol" nowadays is treated only a "shapes", just like circle, triangle, oblong, rectangle , etc.

baddies!

I wonder if the people that wear a cross without being christian/catholic would mind someone mistaking them for a catholic/ christian.

btw, I thought christians did not wear crosses? that it's more of a catholic thing?

Saludos,
Caro

Christians wear them too.

mmm interesting. I had a christian question me once in wearing a cross because "it's a symbol" and "Christ is alive and not in the cross" . Maybe different christian churches feel differently about it?

Saludos,
Caro

anyone can wear whatever they want and not believe in it, right?

I, personally, wear

First, Catholics are Christians, they believe in the Trinity, the Deity of Christ, his death on the cross, and his resurrection and ascension. Catholicism is not a separate religion.

Second, many Christians, not just Catholics, do wear crosses and even crucifixes. I'm not Catholic, I'm Lutheran, but I wear a crucifix all the time. A crucifix is not a "Catholic" symbol, it is a Christian symbol. And sure, as was pointed out, Christ isn't still on the cross, but his death on the cross is what saves us, which is the point of the symbol.

Why couldn´t people wear it? Why do so many non-Christians celebrate Xmas, Easter, etc?

for the presents and the chocolate, of course!

Interesting. I think catholicism and christians (lutherans, baptists, evangelics...) are considered different religions, they have many similarities (after all, they used to be one), but they also have differences
*Different sacraments ( catholicism has baptism, penance and reconciliation, eucharist, confirmation, anointing of the sick, holy orders and matrimony)
*Catholics believe in transubstanciation
*Have a different view on the virgin mary
*The head of the church is the Pope

I remember when pope John Paul II summoned the different religions to pray together, the christian church had it's own representative? and I used to watch this show back in Argentina, it was very interesting, different representatives of different religions would discuss their views on different topics, and the panel had a representative from the catholic church, one for the christian church, judaism, muslim and hindu...

but I'm just pointing out the differeces I know from what I've observed, I'm opening the topic for discussion.

And the reason I thought christians did not wear crosses comes from the experience with talking to evangelics, so I guess lutherans and evangelics don't agree on this point?

Saludos,
Caro

I was raised Orthodox Christian and i was always taught that you're supposed to wear the cross necklace you get when you're christened underneath your shirt at all times, but never show it off. And then I was educated by Quakers for 15 years, and they don't really believe in any kind of showy symbols. Even though I'm an atheist now, any kind of big showy cross jewelry seems really odd to me.

Each of the Christian groups you mentioned (catholicism and christians (lutherans, baptists, evangelics...)) confesses Jesus as Lord and God, which makes them Christian, and not separate religions. They are divided from one another, but it is better to think of them as divisions within Christianity, than as distinct religions. If a group can confess the doctrines of the Nicene Creed, whether or not they actually use creeds in their worship, then they are Christian.

As for the representatives you mentioned, there is no institution called "the Christian Church" in the sense that there would be one representative for it, as the Pope as the Bishop of Rome represents the Roman Catholic Church.

Lutherans and "evangelicals" (actually a rather broad term) don't generally agree on crosses, specifically crucifixes. Lutherans were the conservative branch of the Reformation, and basically took the approach of keeping whatever had been handed down that did not get in the way of Christ. So, things like the liturgy of the Western Catholic tradition, crucifixes, icons, making the sign of the cross, etc. don't bother us the way they do some other Christian groups. Some Christians criticize the use of crucifixes on the grounds that since Christ rose from the dead, an empty cross should be used as a sign of the Resurrection. But, even if Christ were still in the tomb, the cross would still be empty, so an empty cross really doesn't symbolize the Resurrection. A crucifix, however, is a sign of the central doctrine of Christianity, that Christ died on the cross for the sins of the world. Also, an empty cross has become merely a symbol of Christianity as a world religion in the same way a Star of David is a symbol of Judaism and a crescent is a symbol of Islam, without really saying anything specifically Christian, as far as doctrinal content goes. Plus, as has been mentioned, a simple cross is not a uniquely Christian symbol. A crucifix, however, is an explicitly, unambiguously Christian symbol, and clearly communicates what Christianity is about.