Fascinating.

And before Christianity, that was obviously proof that we are held together by the philosophy of torturing runaway slaves to death.

 

Jesus was crucified because that was the common Roman method to torture criminals to death.

The same method was new to the middle east and was traditionally used in Rome to execute participants of slave revolts (and the odd runaway slave as well in extreme cases).

The Christians made the symbol their own.

Before Christianity it was simply the symbol for the execution of slaves, like today the "Electric Chair" is a metaphor for the punishment for murderers.

 

Differences of opinion aside, KFC, do you not find this just a bit sensational?  I've seen the electron microscope pictures of the laminin, and while it is "cross-like" if you were to lay it out flat, that's hardly any kind of evidence for anything.  It just seems like a sensational way to get an emotional response from people.

 

Now if Jesus had been nailed to some really whackily shaped thing, and then that whackily shaped thing was found in every cell of our bodies - THAT would give me cause for some introspection.  But a cross is hardly a complex geometrical device.  Finding one in nature isn't exactly difficult. 

I agree. It made perfect sense for the Christians to choose the symbol of their oppressors as their own. It was symbolic for Christianity's fight to liberate the oppressed.

However, it was chosen by man as a symbol, not by G-d. If it resembles something else, it's either coincidence or the connection is between slavery and creation, not Christianity and creation.

I dunno, looks more like Babylon 5 to me than a cross . . .

And the actual pictures of it (on the right) don't really look like anything cross-like at all.

As a Christian I don't think there is anything wrong with seeing God in the details. That may not work for everyone else, and that's all good, but if I choose to see a cross in the thinga majiggy above, who does it hurt?

I doubt God is angered when we are reminded of His awesome-ness by things He's provided for us.

I believe God is a personal God, and I can talk to Him all day long, and He is listening and attentive, He can and will reach right down into my life to get my attention, to stop something He doesn't like, etc..How He chooses to do it is not written in stone, sometimes its pretty loud and gaudy...

For instance.....

One day I was taking a gal pal to the hospital. She was about 4 maybe 5 (I can't remember exactly) months pregnant, and having complications. I lived in Panama City Florida and she needed to be in Fort Walton Beach (about an hour away) for a special medical procedure or test..

As I was driving, I silently was talking to God. She was worried and crying off and on, I was afraid for her. She was tense and sweating...on the way along side the highway we saw three bill boards. They were spaced about 15 minutes apart.

One said, "God is with you." And the scripture reference.

The second said something else, something about laying your burden at Jesus' feet.

The third, was a psalm of encouragement.

I just glimpsed them. I was driving.

When we pulled into the parking lot of the hospital, we parked behind a car with a bumper sticker that read..."He's got the whole world in His hand. Don't worry. Be happy."

Ok, that day, to me it said nothing except...TACKY.

But my gal pal started laughing through tears and told me she was talking to God all the way there..(and she was, with head bowed most of the way)...and did I notice the bill boards? Because every time she lifted her head she saw a message from God.

I told her yeah, I did see them. She said each one of those came when she needed it, when she was spiraling into a mental hysteria of "what ifs."

They gave her comfort.

And then the last one made her laugh.

(She ended up carrying the baby another month or so and having it early, in perfect shape, if a little small. Then sharing this story with our Sunday school class...)

I can believe God is omniscient, and that he knew she was going to need those physical signs on that day in that situation. In fact, my faith allows me to believe He directed her attention to them, to be re-assured, to be comforted.

Did that mean she wasn't going to miscarry? No. I don't think she read them that way either. They just reminded her God loved her, and was with her and all the worry wasn't going to change the outcome.

That may sound like a load of crap to everyone else, but when you believe God is a present and loving father, ensuring one of His own is comforted in time of need is not so far fetched.

I do think this plays on the emotional side...and we should be careful about that because it sounds so nutty. I DO KNOW it sounds nutty.

As for the cross thing...just like names and numbers, certain symbols recur in my life...so it doesn't surprise me it can look like a cross....but I wouldn't be disappointed if it was a smiley face either.

It's a nice thought, but I don't think everyone needs to believe it.

This reminded me of a similar story. 

I was walking down the streets of CT with a hurting fellow church member.  We were there for a Christian Conference.  She was going thru a painful divorce and had all sorts of questions.  I told her she need to pray to God and ask his direction for a purpose, a plan and a promise  for her life from him.  It just came out of my mouth.

Within a few seconds and I'm not kidding.  We walked by one of those little white two sided sandwich boards and on it it said something about a plan and a purpose.  She, being an ex-Catholic and very superstitous took this very seriously.  She laughed thru her tears when she saw it.  That afternoon in the car as we were leaving there was a very big painted area on the side of a building with the word "promise" in big letters.  She looked stunned and almost afraid when she saw it.  She knew God was there with her. 

I know God uses the little things in life to speak to us. Jesus used simple ordinary things of material life to teach spiritual truths.   Who said that he whispers to us in our good times and shouts to us in our pain?   Well he shouted that day to my friend like it sounds like he did yours T. 

God uses nature all the time to show us his wonderous ways.  There seems to be some commonality when we look at nature and for Christians we just say God's fingerprints are everywhere showing us there is indeed more than meets the eye here. 

More and more Scientists are beginning to know this but being able to express it in a public forum is still not acceptable.