{"id":4512,"date":"2019-01-13T08:30:35","date_gmt":"2019-01-13T13:30:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/?p=4512"},"modified":"2020-06-26T23:41:55","modified_gmt":"2020-06-27T04:41:55","slug":"the-origins-of-the-crescent-cross-and-star-of-david","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/en\/the-origins-of-the-crescent-cross-and-star-of-david\/","title":{"rendered":"The Origins of the Crescent, Cross, and Star of David"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Question: What are the origins and meanings of the Christian Cross, Star of David, and the Crescent and star? Thank you. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Salam<\/em>\u00a0Dear Sister,<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thank you for your question and for contacting Ask About Islam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With\n regard to the origins of different religious symbols, I will explain \nthe history of the four examples you mentioned in the question in \ndetails.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Cross<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The chief symbol of \nChristianity today is the cross. Christians view it as a powerful symbol\n of redemption. It was St Paul who said he would glory in \u201cnaught save \nin the cross of our Lord\u201d (Galatians 6:14).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet the cross had been a common religious symbol centuries before Christianity for several nations worldwide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pictures\n of the various forms of crosses held sacred by the ancients would be a \nhardly pleasing sight for people. Like many icons and symbols of \nChristianity, the cross was adapted from paganism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was in 707 C.E that the Council of Constantinople<\/a> decreed that a cross with the figure of Jesus nailed to it should be held as a Christian icon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Until then, a god who would be nailed to a cross to suffer and die was quite abhorrent to the Semitic religious consciousness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paul<\/a>\n was being typically opportunist when he spoke of the \u201ccross of Christ\u201d,\n because he knew how it would conveniently appeal to the pagans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\n worship of the crucifix was a continuation of the pagan cross worship, \nas it was well-recognized as a religious symbol long before the dawn of \nPauline Christianity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Cross Before Jesus<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The ancient \nEgyptians had long before adopted this symbol in their worship of their \npagan gods. Countless Egyptian drawings depict the gods holding crosses \nin their hands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Among them was the Egyptian savior Horus, who is \nalso pictured as an infant sitting on his mother\u2019s knee with a cross on \nthe seat they occupy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The most common of the crosses used by these Egyptians, called \u201cthe Crux Ansata\u201d, was eventually adopted by the Christians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Osiris,\n the Egyptian savior and god of the dead and the underworld, is \nsometimes represented holding out this cross to mortals signifying that \nhe has discarded mortality for the life to come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The vestal \nvirgins, devoted to the goddess Vesta of the Roman religion, who took an\n absolute vow of chastity punishable if broken by burial while alive, \nalways wore a cross as a pendant round their necks just as nuns do \ntoday. (Christian Symbols<\/a><\/em>, last accessed September 13, 2011)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The<\/strong> Star of David<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The\n Star of David, or the hexagram (also known as \u201cthe Magen David\u201d, which \nliterally means \u201cthe Shield of David\u201d), is now the most common and \nuniversally recognized symbol of Judaism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But both within and \noutside of the Jewish community, it achieved this status only in the \nlast two hundred years. Before that, it was chiefly associated with \nmagic or painted on the badges of individual families or communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\n Jewish religion, which prohibits images of God, has always been opposed\n to its representation by any symbols, and neither the Torah nor the \nTalmud recognizes any such emblem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Besides, the Star of David is \nnot mentioned in rabbinical literature. It probably did not originate \nwithin rabbinism, the official form of Judaism for more than two \nmillennia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jewish books and ancient artifacts do not give credence\n to link the Star of David to King David himself; rather, all the \navailable sources suggest that the early use of the hexagram was limited\n to \u201cpractical Kabbalah<\/a>,\u201d that is, Jewish magic, probably dating back to the 6th century C.E.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Legendarily,\n this symbol is linked to \u201cthe Seal of Solomon,\u201d the magical signet ring\n used by King Solomon to control demons and spirits. Solomon\u2019s Seal had a\n pentagram (i.e. a five-pointed star) engraved on it, which also was \nused as a talisman according to researchers, although the name does not \nindicate the Jewish or Semitic origin of the sign. (Solomon\u2019s Seal<\/a><\/em>, last accessed September 13, 2011)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When\n Theodor Herzl, the founder of Zionism, looked for a symbol for the new \nmovement, he chose the Star of David because it was so well-known; and \nalso because it had at the time no religious associations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the \ncourse of time, it found its way to the center of the flag of the Jewish\n state of Israel and has become indicative of Jewish national \nresurgence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Crescent and Star<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The \ncrescent and star sign has nothing to do with Islam, although it is true\n that a fewMuslim countries\u2014mostly non-Arab\u2014have it on their flags.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It should be emphasized that the twin sources of Islam\u2014the Quran and the Sunnah\u2014do not mention such a symbol.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since\n the Ottoman times, there has been the public perception that the star \nand crescent is a symbol of Islam and Muslims, and so it came to be used\n in decorative arts and Saracen architecture, jewelry, and so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As\n a matter of fact, Islamic scholars do not approve of the use of the \ncrescent moon and star or any such figure as a \u201csymbol\u201d of Islam. This \nis because Islam has never adopted any symbol, and so there is no sense \nin Muslims adopting any such sign or emblem.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The real question is whether the Prophet allowed its use; and the answer is emphatically, no.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Remember that the first thing the Prophet did on re-entering Makkah after the Hijrah<\/em>\n (the Prophet\u2019s migration to Madinah), was to break all the idols in the\n Kaabah, including that of Hubal, who has been called a moon god. \nIndeed, we have no evidence to say that Hubal was a moon god either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Islam,\n as taught by Prophet Muhammad, has been consistently and strongly \nopposed to the use of all sorts of idols, icons, and symbols that may \nlead the believers away from the worship of the One and Only God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In\n fact, the crescent and star sign pre-dates Islam by thousands of years.\n Information on the origins of the symbol is difficult to ascertain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Crescent Before Islam<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Most\n sources agree that these ancient celestial symbols were in use by the \npeoples of Central Asia and Siberia in their worship of sun, moon, and \nother celestial gods. There are also reports that the crescent moon and \nstar were used to represent the Greek goddess, Diana.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The city of \nByzantium (later known as Constantinople and Istanbul) adopted the \ncrescent moon symbol. According to some reports, they chose it in honor \nof the goddess Diana.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Others indicate that it dates back to a \nbattle in which the Romans defeated the Goths on the first day of a \nlunar month. In any event, the crescent moon was featured on the city\u2019s \nflag even before the birth of Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the time of the \nProphet Muhammad, Islamic armies and caravans flew simple solid-colored \nflags (generally black, green, or white) for identification purposes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The flag of the Prophet was a black-and-white one inscribed with \u201cNasrun min Allah<\/em>,\u201d (meaning, \u201cvictory from God\u201d).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\n was not until the Ottoman Empire that the crescent moon and star became\n affiliated with the Muslim world. When the Turks conquered \nConstantinople (Istanbul) in 1453, they adopted the city\u2019s existing flag\n and symbol.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the faith of Islam has historically adopted no symbol, and many refuse to accept what is essentially an ancient pagan icon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I hope this answers your question. Please keep in touch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Salam<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Source: http:\/\/aboutislam.net\/counseling\/ask-about-islam\/origins-crescent-cross-star-david\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Question: What are the origins and meanings of the Christian Cross, Star of David, and the Crescent and star? Thank you. Salam\u00a0Dear Sister, Thank you for your question and for contacting Ask About Islam. With regard to the origins of different religious symbols, I will explain the history of the four examples you mentioned in … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":4515,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[109],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4512","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-jesus-in-islam"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/The-Origins-of-the-Crescent-Cross-and-Star-of-David.jpg","uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/The-Origins-of-the-Crescent-Cross-and-Star-of-David.jpg",1080,675,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/The-Origins-of-the-Crescent-Cross-and-Star-of-David-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/The-Origins-of-the-Crescent-Cross-and-Star-of-David-300x188.jpg",300,188,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/The-Origins-of-the-Crescent-Cross-and-Star-of-David-768x480.jpg",768,480,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/The-Origins-of-the-Crescent-Cross-and-Star-of-David-1024x640.jpg",1024,640,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/The-Origins-of-the-Crescent-Cross-and-Star-of-David.jpg",1080,675,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/The-Origins-of-the-Crescent-Cross-and-Star-of-David.jpg",1080,675,false],"gform-image-choice-sm":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/The-Origins-of-the-Crescent-Cross-and-Star-of-David.jpg",300,188,false],"gform-image-choice-md":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/The-Origins-of-the-Crescent-Cross-and-Star-of-David.jpg",400,250,false],"gform-image-choice-lg":["https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/The-Origins-of-the-Crescent-Cross-and-Star-of-David.jpg",600,375,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Site Admin","author_link":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/en\/author\/admin2\/"},"uagb_comment_info":273,"uagb_excerpt":"Question: What are the origins and meanings of the Christian Cross, Star of David, and the Crescent and star? Thank you. Salam\u00a0Dear Sister, Thank you for your question and for contacting Ask About Islam. With regard to the origins of different religious symbols, I will explain the history of the four examples you mentioned in…","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pcT0IL-1aM","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":7064,"url":"https:\/\/www.ask-a-muslim.com\/en\/the-role-of-colonization-on-the-political-system-of-the-muslim-world\/","url_meta":{"origin":4512,"position":0},"title":"The Role of Colonization on the Political System of the Muslim World","author":"Site Admin","date":"06\/07\/2020","format":false,"excerpt":"The Quran and the Sunnah have been the guide of Muslim political and moral activism throughout the centuries. 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