X (Chi) and P (Rho) 2 of 2

Good day Worthy Knights

In this part 6, you will find the final essay from Les Woodbridge on the X and the P.

The next part will be on the military aspect of the Battle of the Milvian Bridge.

It is generally accepted in all Christian historical records that this XP referred to Christ, and in the Greek Gospel of John, Jesus is called the Logos, which is a  word having a similar meaning. Therefore, we see that the term Christ was a title to be specifically applied to and attained by one who had been especially born and deified as a messenger of God.

Now the word Jesus presents the same understanding. The old Hebrew form of the word as found in the Old Testament is Joshua, or Jeshua, and was often rendered as Jesu. The Greek form of the name is responsible for the final ‘s’, making Jesus. Originally, the Hebrew form of Joshua meant “helped of Yahveh,” while the later Hebrew form means “to deliver” or “to save.” Therefore, Jesus came to be known as meaning “saviour.”

In the Synoptic Gospels we do not find the disciples at first calling their master by the name of Jesus, but they did call him Rabbi meaning “teacher” and Adonai meaning “master,” and other titles of respect and love.

The symbol to the left is called in Christian mysticism the Monogram of Christ. It is also often used as a symbol of Christianity. The monogram has been traced to and appears upon the face of a number of tombs in the catacombs at Rome and in some of the ancient carvings of Egypt. Early Christian missionaries were misled by the discovery of this symbol in foreign lands, and believed it indicated the presence of earlier Christian missionaries.

The symbol was in use long before Christianity adopted it. It was the original monogram of Osiris.

The sacred banner of Constantine called the Labarum, on which was placed the sign by which he was to conquer, was inscribed with the sacred monogram. It was also the mystical sign of Jupiter Ammon.

The monogram had a mystical origin in the mystery teachings of the Egyptian Mystery Schools, and it has been found engraved on a medal of Ptolemy, king of Cyrene. An identical monogram was also found on the coins of Herod the Great, issued before the Christian era. The Roman Catholic Encyclopaedia claims that the X and the P are the first two letters of a Greek word meaning “Christ.”

This authority also admits that the monogram was used in pre-Christian periods as a mystical emblem. The monogram composed of X. RN., shown on the right, is another symbol of the title “Our Lord Jesus Christ.”