III. The Atonement

We will notice in the third place, the symbolical representation of the great doctrine of the Atonement, in the ground lines and general arrangement of our churches.
As soon as ever Christianity possessed temples of her own, the cruciform shape was, we have seen, sometimes adopted. And so, as we all know, has it continued down to the present day. England, perhaps, has fewer examples of cross churches than any other country : the proportion of those which bear this shape being not so much as one in ten. In France, on the contrary_, the ratio would probably be inverted. Into the reason of this remarkable difference we shall not now inquire : but will merely remark, that many churches which do not, in an exterior view, appear cruci- form, are nevertheless, from their internal arrangements, really so. The transepts do not project beyond the aisles : but have distinct transept arches, and a window of much larger dimensions than those in the aisles. This principally occurs in city churches, or where the founders were confined for want of room. And this is the case as well in churches which have aisles to the chancel, as in Godalming, Surrey, as where the nave alone has them,
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as in Holy Rood, Southampton. They will be distin- guished readily on the outside by the northern and southern gable. In some cathedral churches, there is a double cross : in York, this perhaps signifies the metro- political dignity of that church ; in other cases, it was probably merely a method of imparting greater dignity to the building. Some churches — though they are not frequent — are in the form of a Greek Cross : that is, the four arms are all of equal length. Darlington, Durham, is an example : in this case there is a central tower. In some, as at Westminster, Gloucester, and S. Albans, the choir runs westward of the transept ; in Seville, almost the whole of the choir is locally in the nave ; in others, as Ely, it does not extend westward so far. These peculiarities, curious in themselves, do not affect the symbolism : and probably no modification of meaning is to be attached to them.
Mr Lewis has asserted, that in early churches, a cross was marked on the pavement, the upper part running into the chancel, the arms extending into the transepts, and the body occupying the nave. And some such arrangement, or rather the traces of it, we have ourselves perhaps noticed. The reason it was given up, was probably the anathema pronounced by the second CEcumenical Council, on those who should tread on that holy symbol.
Thus, in the ground plan, the Cross of Christ was preached. It is often said, that the adjacent chapels, more especially the Lady Chapel, obscured the sym- bolism. But it must be remembered that a ground plan can only be judged of in two methods : either from a height above, for example, the tower of the church ; or when marked out on paper. It is surprising, in either of these cases, how easily the most complex cathedral resolves itself to the spectator's eyes into a cross.
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In looking at the details of churches, the Cross is marked on the Dos-d'anes and plain coffin lids of the earliest times : it commences the later inscriptions on brass : it surmounts pinnacle, and gable, and porch ; it is often imprinted on the jambs of the principal entrance, showing the exact spot touched in the consecration with chrism,"^ and possibly having reference to the blood sprinkled at the Passover on the Door Post : and finally, in a more august form, is erected in the churchyard. And here we may notice another curious and beautiful expression of Catholic feeling.t It is very uncommon to find a plain cross surmounting a church : the whole force of Christian art has sometimes been expended in wreathing and embellishing the instrument of redemp- tion : flowers, and figures, and foliage are lavished upon it. And why ? Because that which was once the by- word of Pagans, the instrument of scorn and of suffering, has become the symbol of Hope and of Glory, of Joy, and of Eternal Felicity ; and its material expression has
* It is proper to distinguish between Dedication Crosses, which are generally of considerable size, examples of which may be seen in Moorlinch, Somersetshire, and those small crosses in door jambs, as in Preston, Sussex, the use of which is not ver}' clear, but which were perhaps intended to remind the entering worshipper to cross himself. At Yatton, Somersetshire, inside the northern door, and towards the east, is a large quatrefoil-fashioned cross : this perhaps pointed out a now destroyed benatura.
f That there are some plain crosses, cannot be denied — more especiall}' that on which the weathercock is placed. A little consideration will, perhaps, clear up this difficulty. The cross may be viewed in two distinct lights. It may either set forth that on which our Redeemer suffered — in which case it is the symbol of glory : or it may image that Cross which every true Christian is to take up — in which case it may still be called the Symbol of Shame. In the latter signification, it may well be quite plain. But, inasmuch as our ancestors looked more to the Passion of Christ than to their own unworthiness, the former symbol is that which generally occurs. Yet not always on the church spire, perhaps for this reason : — the spire urges us, by its upward tendenc)'', to press on towards our heavenly home — a home which can only be reached by the cheerful bearing of that cross b)' means of which (as it were) it points. The cross therefore is here, with propriety, plain.
F
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altered proportionately. In that the arms frequently end in leaves and flowers, they signify the flourishing and continual increase of that Church which was planted on Mount Calvary. The Crown of Thorns is sometimes wreathed around them : but so, that it should rather resemble a Crown of Glory. The instruments of the Passion are, as every one knows, of the most ordinary occurrence. The commonest of these are — the Cross, the Crown of Thorns, the Spear, the Scourge, the Nails, and the Sponge on the pole. But in the Suffolk and Somersetshire churches many others are added. Their position is various : sometimes, as in Stogumber, Somer- setshire, they appear amidst the foliage of a perpendicular capital : sometimes, as in the Suffolk churches, they are found in the open seats : often in bosses, often in brasses, often in stained glass; and sometimes the angel that supports a bracket holds them portrayed on a shield. The Five Wounds are also often found. These are represented by a heart, between two hands and two feet, each pierced ; or by a heart pierced with five wounds, as in a brass at King's College chapel, Cambridge. The instruments of the Passion may sometimes be seen amongst the volutes of the stem of the churchyard cross : examples occur at Belleville, near Havre, in Normandy, and Santa Cruz, in Madeira.
Again, the very position of our blessed Saviour on the Cross as represented in the great rood and in stained glass, is not without a meaning. In modern paintings, the arms are high above the head, the whole weight of the body seeming to rest upon them. And this, besides its literal truth, gives occasion to that miserable display of anatomical knowledge in which such pictures so much abound. The Catholic representation pictures the arms as extended horizontally : thereby signifying how the Saviour, when extended on the Cross, embraced the
Exajtiples of Synibolisin Ixxxvii
whole world."* Thus, as it ever ought to be, is physical sacrificed to moral truth. Perhaps for a similar reason S. Longinus is represented as piercing the Right Side, instead of the Left : and in a representation of the Five Wounds, it is the right side of the breast that is pierced (as in a brass at Southfleet, Kent) ; that being the side of the greatest strength, and thereby typifying the strength of that love wherewith our Redeemer loved us. [But this may be doubted. For it appears pretty clear that the ancient Church considered the Right Side to have been that whi(!h was really pierced. According to modern ideas, the effusion of the water was not a miracle. S. John undoubtedly considered it not only a miracle, but one of the most extraordinary which he had to relate, seeming to stop the mouth of the objector by insisting on the fact, that he himself was an eye-w^'tness.] In some old roods, a still further departure was made from literal truth : the Saviour was represented on the Cross, as a crowned king, arrayed in royal apparel.t And his figure was constantly represented as larger than that of His attendants, His Blessed Mother, and S. John, thereby signifying his immeasurable superiority over the highest of human beings.
Another reference to the Atonement will be found in the deviation which the line of the chancel often presents from that of the nave. It is sometimes to the north, but more frequently to the south. There are many
* However, in late stained glass, the modern position is sometimes found ; as in a Crucifixion represented in the east window of the north aisle, in Wiscombe church, Somersetshire.
f To this we may add the conventional representation of Royal Saints, such as S. Edmund, wearing^ their kingly crowns during their passion. That such conventional symbolism is natural to us may be shown by alluding (without irreverence in this connection) to the way in which kings are alwa)'s figured with crown and orb in popular prints : and even, as in a sign-post at Leighterton, Gloucestershire, King Charles II, hiding himself in the Royal Oak, is arrayed in all the insignia of majesty.
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more churches in which it occurs than those who have not examined the subject would believe : perhaps it is not too much to say that it may be noticed in a quarter of those in England. Of our cathedrals, it is most strongly marked in York and Lichfield : among the parish churches in which we have observed it, none have it so strongly as Eastbourne and Bosham, in Sussex, and S. Michael's at Coventry : in all of which the most casual glance could not but detect the peculiarity of appearance it occasions. This arrangement represents the inclination of our Saviour's Head on the Cross. In roods the Head generally inclines to the left
Mr Poole, after noticing the fact in York minster, seems inclined to attribute it to a desire of evading the old foundation lines of that church, which induced the builders to deviate a little from the straight line, rather than encounter the difficulty of removing this obstacle. But in the first place, however much modern church builders might bethink themselves of such an expedient, it is not at all in the character of the church architects of other days : and in the second, the explanation is applicable to York alone, one only out of many hundred churches so distinguished.