Beauty of the Cross / Beauty on the Cross
June 25th, 2007
Can the cross be beautiful? Can a crucifixion be aesthetic?
Of course not, if you consider the historical reality of the punishment of crucifixion in ancient times. The brutal, and furthermore state-ordered killing of a human is in my opinion one of the most disdainful facets of human civilisation, of which we still haven’t freed ourself. The dying of a person is rarely “beautiful”, rarely “aesthetic”, let alone erotic.
It is likely that the fascination with crucifixion stems from its apparent historical remoteness (we believe ourselves free of such barbarism, even though recent happenings keep on contradicting that), while at the same time having a strongly subversive presence in a Christianity-orientated society. Even little children know about the the way and circumstances of the death of Jesus Christ, grow up with the depiction of the crucified, without being able to properly process this. The suffering is endowed with an aspect of the godlike, the impalpable, which is further strengthened by the teachings of the church. The cross becomes something to aspire to; one “bears the cross with joy” and “follows the saviour.” The cross is praised with near lustful intensity—especially in the scriptures of medieval mystics—and the pictures of Christian martyrs more often than not contain the expression of sexual ecstasy.