Otto Zoeckler

The Cross of Christ: Studies in the History of Religion and the Inner Life of the Church (Classic Reprint) Otto Zoeckler

Publisher Marketing: Excerpt from The Cross of Christ: Studies in the History of Religion and the Inner Life of the Church The cross as "the emblem of Christianity universally," as the symbolic "representation of the one great truth, out of which a multitude of truths may be developed," is only apparently on a level with a number of other religious emblems, the study of which can call forth no interest beyond that of an art-historical or liturgical examination. It may be that a false externalising, specially in the Church of the Middle Ages, has attached itself to the reverence manifested towards the cross. An exact and critical detailing of these superstitious extravagances and mystical playings of the imagination may more than once run the risk of producing a wearying or even repelling effect. Nevertheless there is inherent in this particular sign a stronger power of attraction than in any of the other symbols of Christianity. The externalising and corrupting influence upon the essence and life of our religion proceeding from it, from the time of Constantine and Helena, was followed in the period of the Reformation by a purifying and spiritualising process, which, equally with that process of degeneration, took its point of departure in the original expression of believing and enthusiastic attachment to the symbol of redemption. The Catholic devotion to the Cross, and the Evangelical preaching of the Cross, have their roots in the same soil. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.