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Sep 18, 2020 · Stevie Wolfe, Staff Writer. 18 September 2020 | 10 min read. There are few states of being that have inspired as much contemplation, discussion and emotion through the ages as death. Here, we look at nine famous, thought-provoking quotes on the subject…. Keep up to date with the latest from Talkabout.
- Overview
- Punishment
- Crucifixion of Jesus
- Crucifixion in art
crucifixion, an important method of capital punishment particularly among the Persians, Seleucids, Carthaginians, and Romans from about the 6th century bce to the 4th century ce. Constantine the Great, the first Christian emperor, abolished it in the Roman Empire in the early 4th century ce out of veneration for Jesus Christ, the most famous victim...
There were various methods of performing the execution. Usually, the condemned man, after being whipped, or “scourged,” dragged the crossbeam of his cross to the place of punishment, where the upright shaft was already fixed in the ground. Stripped of his clothing either then or earlier at his scourging, he was bound fast with outstretched arms to the crossbeam or nailed firmly to it through the wrists. The crossbeam was then raised high against the upright shaft and made fast to it about 9 to 12 feet (approximately 3 metres) from the ground. Next, the feet were tightly bound or nailed to the upright shaft. A ledge inserted about halfway up the upright shaft gave some support to the body; evidence for a similar ledge for the feet is rare and late. Over the criminal’s head was placed a notice stating his name and his crime. Death ultimately occurred through a combination of constrained blood circulation, organ failure, and asphyxiation as the body strained under its own weight. It could be hastened by shattering the legs (crurifragium) with an iron club, which prevented them from supporting the body’s weight and made inhalation more difficult, accelerating both asphyxiation and shock.
Crucifixion was most frequently used to punish political or religious agitators, pirates, slaves, or those who had no civil rights. In 519 bce Darius I, king of Persia, crucified 3,000 political opponents in Babylon; in 88 bce Alexander Jannaeus, the Judaean king and high priest, crucified 800 Pharisaic opponents; and about 32 ce Pontius Pilate had Jesus of Nazareth put to death by crucifixion.
The account of Jesus Christ’s crucifixion in the Gospels begins with his scourging. The Roman soldiers then mocked him as the “King of the Jews” by clothing him in a purple robe and a crown of thorns and led him slowly to Mount Calvary, or Golgotha; one Simon of Cyrene was allowed to aid him in carrying the cross. At the place of execution he was s...
The representation of Christ on the cross has been an important subject of Western art since the early Middle Ages. Concerned primarily with simple symbolic affirmations of salvation and eternal life, and repelled by the ignominy of the punishment, the early Christians did not represent the Crucifixion realistically before the 5th century; instead, the event was symbolized first by a lamb and, after the official recognition of Christianity by the Roman state in the early 4th century, by a jewelled cross. By the 6th century, however, representations of the Crucifixion became numerous as a result of current church efforts to combat a heresy that Christ’s nature was not dual—human and divine—but simply divine and therefore invulnerable. These early Crucifixions were nevertheless triumphant images, showing Christ alive, with open eyes and no trace of suffering, victorious over death. In the 9th century, Byzantine art began to show a dead Christ, with closed eyes, reflecting current concern with the mystery of his death and the nature of the Incarnation. This version was adopted in the West in the 13th century with an ever-increasing emphasis on his suffering, in accordance with the mysticism of the period.
Parallel to this development in the representation of Christ himself was the growth of an increasingly complex iconography involving other elements traditionally included in the scene. The principal mourners, the Virgin Mary and St. John the Apostle, are frequently the only other figures included in the composition. In various expanded versions of the theme, however, there are several other pairs of figures, both historical and symbolic, that traditionally appear to the right and left of the cross: the two thieves, one repentant, who were crucified with Christ; the centurion who pierced Christ’s side with a lance (and afterward acknowledged him to be the Son of God) and the soldier who offered him vinegar on a sponge; small personifications of the Sun and Moon, which were eclipsed at the Crucifixion; and allegorical figures of the church and the synagogue. Other figures might include the soldiers who cast lots for Christ’s garments and St. Mary Magdalene.
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Find the quotes you need in Cormac McCarthy's No Country for Old Men, sortable by theme, character, or chapter. From the creators of SparkNotes.
Perhaps we should consider the last words of Jesus Christ, who, even in His death, taught us how to live and what our priorities ought to be: “IT IS FINISHED!” The three most profound words in all of human history.
The crucifixion of Jesus was the death of Jesus by being nailed to a wooden cross. It occurred in 1st-century Judaea, most likely in AD 30 or AD 33. It is described in the four canonical gospels, referred to in the New Testament epistles, and later attested to by other ancient sources.
“The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life” – Jesus’ death is not the end because God has power over death and will raise Jesus to life.
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May 15, 2018 · From the words of Steve Jobs to the wisdom of Anne Frank, these inspirational quotes about death will speak right to your heart and your mind. “Death is nature’s way of saying, ‘Your table is ready.’”