Posted: May 25, 2019 7:30 am
Leucius Charinus wrote:
RE: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LabarumThe labarum (Greek: λάβαρον) was a vexillum (military standard) that displayed the "Chi-Rho" symbol ☧, a christogram formed from the first two Greek letters of the word "Christ" (Greek: ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ, or Χριστός) — Chi (χ) and Rho (ρ). It was [supposedly] first used by the Roman emperor Constantine the Great ...
Yet, from the same Wikipedia page, -
'As for the labarum itself, there is little evidence for its use before 317 [AD].' [Smith, J.H., (1971) Constantine the Great, Hamilton, p. 104: "What little evidence exists suggests that in fact the labarum bearing the chi-rho symbol was not used before 317, when Crispus became Caesar..."
... Since the vexillum consisted of a flag suspended from the crossbar of a cross, it was ideally suited to symbolize the crucifixion of Christ.
As L.C. notes, -
Leucius Charinus wrote:
The "Chi-Rho" symbol ☧ is also found on 2nd and 3rd century Greek inscriptions as an abbreviation for the Greek word ἑκατόνταρχος (hekatóntarkhos) meaning "Centurion" -
"By this sign conquer" !
By the sign of the centurion Constantine conquered. It was standard practice ...
Constantine didn't need Christ in 312 CE: he needed his centurions.
eta: It's also worth noting the † shaped crucifix hardly appeared early on, if at all
I agree with L.C., -