Coptic cross facts for kids

Contemporary design used by the Coptic Orthodox Church;
Coptic letters (Ⲓⲏ̅ⲥ̅ Ⲡⲭ̅ⲥ̅ Ⲡ̀ϣⲏⲣⲓ ⲙ̀ⲪϮ) are abbreviated nomina sacra for "Ⲓⲏⲥⲟⲩⲥ Ⲡⲓⲭ̀ⲣⲓⲥⲧⲟⲥ Ⲡ̀ϣⲏⲣⲓ ⲙ̀Ⲫ̀ⲛⲟⲩϯ" (Iêsous Piekhristos Epshêri Emefnouti; Jesus Christ, Son of God)

The Coptic cross is any of a number of Christian cross variants associated in some way with Coptic Christians.

Typical form

The typical form of the "Coptic cross" used in the Coptic Church is made up of two bold lines of equal length that intersect at the middle at right angles. Each line terminates in three points, representing the Trinity of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Altogether, the cross has 12 points symbolizing the Apostles, whose mission was to spread the Gospel message throughout the world.

This form of Coptic cross is widely used in the Coptic church and the Ethiopian and Eritrean churches, and so this form of the cross may also be called the "Ethiopian cross" or "Axum cross". Bertran de la Farge dates it to the 4th century and cites it as a predecessor of the Occitan cross.

History and variation

Old Coptic crosses often incorporate a circle, as in the form called a "Coptic cross" by Rudolf Koch in his The Book of Signs (1933). Sometimes the arms of the cross extend through the circle (dividing it into four quadrants), as in the "Celtic cross".

In 1984, a modern variant of the Coptic Cross composed of three bars intersecting at right angles in three dimensions was given as a gift by the Coptic Orthodox Church and mounted on the top of the All Africa Conference of Churches building since the Coptic Church is considered to be the mother church in Africa.

Gallery

See also

• Alexandrian rite