Place of the Cross becomes uncertain in modern society
Do Crosses belong on mountain peaks, in courts, schools or on the Berlin Humboldt Forum? Or should they go out of consideration for all non-Christians? The cross remains offensive - and that's a good thing, says theologian Tück.
In the debate about the visibility of Crosses in public space, the Catholic theologian Jan-Heiner Tück warns against politically instrumentalizing the Christian symbol with the intention of fighting culture. On the one hand, it is not the task of the ideologically neutral state to make religious symbols disappear from the public, he said on Monday evening in Berlin. Then, in the end, non-religious people would be given preference over religious people.
On the other hand, it is just as little the task of the state to counteract the social loss of acceptance of the Cross through political intervention. For example, the CSU government in Bavaria has been trying to do this since 2018 with its decree to hang crosses in public buildings.
The cross is always offensive in its meaning, the theologian added. But this could also give a very secular and little religious society important impetus. A cross makes it possible to deal with existential questions of life, including suffering and death. This is often suppressed in a secular society.
More than a cultural sign
The Cross is more than a cultural symbol, Tück added. One should not "amputate" the theological content. From a Christian point of view, the cross also stands for solidarity with those who are suffering, for a culture of reconciliation and for overcoming death. In a secular world, the cross is like a countersign that warns scientific reason against megalomania. Tück asked the churches to make the offensive meaning of the cross clearer.
The theologian, who teaches dogmatics in Vienna, spoke at an event organized by the Catholic Academy and the Archdiocese of Berlin on the subject of "Where to put the cross? In the area of tension between ideological neutrality and positive religious freedom".
The Archbishop of Berlin, Heiner Koch, also defended the visibility of Crosses: The fact that the cross is repeatedly used for political purposes and that injustice is also done in its name does not diminish the message of the symbol of hope and reconciliation. The cross has gone from being a sign of misery to the good news of the Christian faith for all people, Koch continued: "We will never be finished with the Cross!" It is an imprint of human suffering and at the same time an imprint of God's love.
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