The FBI is investigating a white South Carolina couple for racial discrimination after they set a cross on fire in their yard facing toward their Black neighbors’ home.
I’m on mobile with short time so I’ll search it later, but what’s the origin/symbology of a burning cross? I know the kkk did it, but it seems a bit weird since they leaned towards christian and it’s effectively destroying a symbol of their religion.
Typically when we think of burning things it’s because the group doing the burning is against the symbol being burned… Flags, books, etc.
Scottish Highland clans would use something called the “Fiery Cross” or “Cross of Shame” as a symbol for a call to arms/war. Basically sending a person carrying the thing from village to village and every able-bodied man had to get ready for war or be shamed.
But whether or not they actually used a burning cross is very disputed. The main source for this is the author Walter Scott. He wrote Rob Roy, The Lady of the Lake and other Scottish mythology/historical fiction. While he claimed to try to be as historical accurate as possible, there are a lot of made up facts in his books. So not really a good source and sometimes even the only source for Scottish mythology.
The original KKK didn’t burn crosses. But in the early 1900s Thomas Dixon wrote a book series that romanticized the KKK. He was very inspired by Walter Scott and included the Fiery Cross in his novel. Saying the flames symbolizing purity, purifying the people of their sins, and the light it gave is a symbol for “The Holy Light”.
His books were the source for the movie " The Birth of a Nation" and that movie included the burning cross scene. And KKK members thought it looked cool and started to use cross burnings using the made up justification of purity and holy light.
In Scotland, the fiery cross, known as the crann tara, was used as a declaration of war. The sight of it commanded all clan members to rally to the defence of the area. On other occasions, a small burning cross would be carried from town to town. It was used in the War of 1812 between Britain and the U.S. as a means of mobilizing the Scottish Fencibles and militia which were settled in Glengarry County, Ontario against the invaders.
I’m on mobile with short time so I’ll search it later, but what’s the origin/symbology of a burning cross? I know the kkk did it, but it seems a bit weird since they leaned towards christian and it’s effectively destroying a symbol of their religion.
Typically when we think of burning things it’s because the group doing the burning is against the symbol being burned… Flags, books, etc.
I somehow never thought of this angle before
Scottish Highland clans would use something called the “Fiery Cross” or “Cross of Shame” as a symbol for a call to arms/war. Basically sending a person carrying the thing from village to village and every able-bodied man had to get ready for war or be shamed.
But whether or not they actually used a burning cross is very disputed. The main source for this is the author Walter Scott. He wrote Rob Roy, The Lady of the Lake and other Scottish mythology/historical fiction. While he claimed to try to be as historical accurate as possible, there are a lot of made up facts in his books. So not really a good source and sometimes even the only source for Scottish mythology.
The original KKK didn’t burn crosses. But in the early 1900s Thomas Dixon wrote a book series that romanticized the KKK. He was very inspired by Walter Scott and included the Fiery Cross in his novel. Saying the flames symbolizing purity, purifying the people of their sins, and the light it gave is a symbol for “The Holy Light”.
His books were the source for the movie " The Birth of a Nation" and that movie included the burning cross scene. And KKK members thought it looked cool and started to use cross burnings using the made up justification of purity and holy light.
Apparently the KKK were inspired by the Scots
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross_burning
I was thinking some kind of righteous fire?