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Canadian Anglican -

Sat, Oct 17th - 8:32AM

Christus Rex

From the earliest times crosses were placed on altars in churches. The cross generally did not show the body of Jesus, not only because using Jesus' image might be considered idolatrous, but also because the empty cross symbolized Jesus' resurrection rather than his death.

By the 7th century, however, it had become customary to represent the whole figure of Jesus, alive and robed, as the triumphant Christ - Christus Rex - in front of the cross but not attached to it.

Gradually, as the church put more emphasis on his suffering and death, Christ was portrayed naturalistically in a loincloth and crown of thorns, nailed to the cross. The wound in his side was visible. Thereafter, most three-dimensional crosses in the Roman Catholic church were crucifixes.

Most Anglican churches follow the early church tradition displaying the cross alone. The Church of the Epiphany, Scarborough is one of the few Anglican churches in Canada that have a Christus Rex installed above the altar.