Also, J. Hall in his Dictionary of Subjects & Symbols in Art writes: “After the recognition of Christianity by Constantine the Great, and more so from the 5th cent., the cross began to be represented on sarcophagi [stone coffins], lamps, caskets and other objects.” (Italics ours.) Adds Sir E. A. Wallis Budge in Amulets and Talismans: “The cross did not become the supreme emblem and symbol of Christianity until the IVth century.” No, there is no record of the use of the cross by first-century Christians.

Interestingly, the cross that Constantine is reputed to have seen in the sky and then used as his military banner was not the Latin cross but the sign [Artwork​—Greek characters] that some relate to sun worship (Constantine himself was a sun worshiper) and others to the Chi-Rho monogram—​the first two letters of “Christ” in Greek. Since then the cross has been frequently used to add an aura of righteousness to unchristian military activities such as the Crusades, when many vile atrocities were committed by “soldiers of the Cross.”

A ROMAN emperor was preparing for battle and felt the need of help from the gods. As the story goes, he saw a bright light in the sky in the form of a cross and with it the words: “By this conquer.” Adopting the sign as the standard for his army, he went on to win a series of crucial victories that led to his becoming sole ruler of the Roman Empire in 324 C.E.

The hero of this famous story was Constantine the Great. From that time on, the Roman Church became the official religion of the empire and grew rapidly in prestige, popularity and power. At the same time, the cross became the official symbol of the church​—it gradually adorned religious buildings, was erected on hilltops and mountains, at crossroads and in public squares. It was hung on the walls of homes and around the necks of millions of people.