Faith/Spirituality Forum: Re CRUCIFIX, posted by Kevin Smith
Re CRUCIFIX, posted by Kevin Smith QUESTION from Luis July 13, 2001 Dear Brother John-Paul:
In reading Kevin's question, I remembered another possible explanation for this, and thought I should share this as my small grain of sand for your website.
As I remember, the place where Our Lord Jesus Christ was crucified, was called Gólgota (this could be a translation to spanish of the original word), which means hill of the skull, and that may be the reason for depicting one at the bottom of this crucifix.
I'd also like to say that I've been following your website for a while, and has been very enlightening to me. Unfortunately many catholics are very ignorant on religious matters, but you are doing a magnificent work on helping many of us correct that.
May God bless your work, make it fruitful and give you all the strength and graces required to continue, for His greater glory.
ANSWER by John-Paul Ignatius, OLSM on July 13, 2001 Dear Luis:
Thanks for the additional information. Yes, Golgotha was the place of the skulls.
And thanks for the kind comments.
Unfortunately there are a profound number of people who really and truly lack information and knowledge about the Catholic Faith -- even, or especially, the cradle Catholics.
I have seen 100s of arguments about things that would not have been argued if the parties had cracked open a bible or a catechism.
We also live in an age of self-indulgence and individualism. All of us are contaminated by this indulgent and individual worldview. We need to expunge those elements in ourselves whenever we find them within ourselves and bring to ourselves a true inculcation of the Catholic Worldview.
But, this phenomenon leads many to hang on to their individually developed opinions and they won't let loose of them even when instructed with the accurate and proper information.
I know that I am like a grammar teacher who corrects one's grammar in mid-sentence. That is irritating. I am a doctrine teacher, I guess, correcting one's doctrine in mid-sentence. That is irritating. I find it irritating. But an honest person, after getting over any initial defensiveness, will want to accept the truth.
Others, well, others tar and feather the messenger :-) I have to struggle to walk from the office to the kitchen with all the tar that is on the floor :-)
God Bless
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