1. Religious Object Essay
Jessica Heetland
Religious images are an important aspect in every Christian’s daily life. They
bring meaning to their lives because they show their religion to others and remind
them of their faith every day of their life. The main reason Christians find religious
images meaningful is because they help them to remember their faith daily, and they
protect them in their homes and in their journeys through life.
From the beginning of time, Christian images have been used to reach into
culture in order to make the Christian message meaningful for not only Christians,
but for diverse peoples and cultures. There are several pictures that portrayed the
Christian religion back then and continue to portray it now. One of these pictures is
the Head of Christ. The Head of Christ is a picture of Jesus’ head. Christians usually
hang this picture in their dining room to make it known to guests that they are a
Christian family and that Christ is always welcome at their table. It is usually placed
at the head of the table to show that Christ is the ultimate head of their dining table.
Another picture that is used to show Christianity to others is the picture of the lamb
that has his blood pouring into a cup to show that Jesus gave his blood for us. This
image is a great example of figurative language.
The dictionary definition of figurative is: departing from a literal use of
words; metaphorical. Figurative language is used in religion all the time. Religious
metaphors are also used in describing Christianity. Metaphors help us to articulate
experiences that defy everyday language. They are used to explain activities that

2. happen throughout the day that cannot be described using regular words. These
activities need to be described using metaphors and comparisons in order to be
understood by outsiders. Metaphors also make the unknown familiar by creating a
bridge that relates the known and unknown. By using metaphors to describe
experiences, outsiders can have their eyes opened to the unknown and they will be
able to understand the religion better if they can see it through a comparison.
Metaphors are also a lens through which we can view mystery and they help us
grasp ultimate order and meaning. Metaphors are used as a lens because the help
us to focus on what we really need to learn. Metaphors also help us represent the
ideals and aspirations of ourselves and our communities, while also fostering
spiritual growth. They help foster spiritual growth because they open a door into
the religion and they enable us to understand the religion deeper, which fosters
spiritual growth. The last work that is done by religious metaphors is building
connections between persons and among communities. Metaphors relate certain
aspects of life to religion and help create a bond between members of the
community. One metaphor that is very important to Christianity is the photo of Our
Lady of Guadalupe. She is important to the Mexican Christians because she
represents them and how they were being treated by the Spaniards. The Spaniards
wanted to share a religion with the Mexicans, but they were raping and
disrespecting their women, so the Mexicans did not want anything to do with the
Spaniards. Our Lady of Guadalupe closed the gap between the two peoples because
she was not European, she was a victim of rape and could understand what the
women were going through, she knew what it was like to be pregnant out of

3. wedlock, she had an aura around her that portrayed Aztec religion, she enabled
them to grow in their faith, and she was not dressed fancy like all the other photos
of religious people. She was dressed in clothes that looked like the material a potato
sack was made out of, and that comforted them because they could relate more to
her because she looked like them, based on what she was wearing. The specific
picture of Our Lady of Guadalupe was a very important religious image or object in
their lives.
My religious object is associated with the ritual of prayer, mostly. It is a cross
that is found on the wall of our dining room. It is associated with prayer, along with
a bible usually. The cross is about a foot long, weighs about 5 pounds, and is brown.
It is made of metal, and the making of it is not part of a ritual. The object is either
held between the hands during prayer or looked at during prayer. The person
performing the ritual usually looks at the cross before and after the ritual, to make
sure that it is in their brain that they are praying to God. The cross is in the custody
of me, and it is kept on the wall of the dining room. There are not really any uses
that would profane it, besides throwing it around and disrespecting it. It does not
have to be in one particular position. It could be hanging on the wall or sitting on a
dresser. It just needs to be in plain sight of the person using it. The object
symbolizes Jesus dying on the cross for our sins, and it also symbolizes the
relationship between us and God, and us and the others around us.
The object became special because of Jesus being nailed to the cross by
Pontius Pilot, and dying for our sins by hanging on the cross. The story that is told
about the cross is Jesus being forced to carry the cross up a mountain, and then

4. being nailed to it, after being beaten and scorned by the Romans. They shoved a
crown of thorns into his head, whipped him, and pierced his side with a sword.
After beating him, they nailed him to the cross in between two criminals. If it were
missing, there would not be anything to remind the people about their faith or
whom they are praying to. The power is resident in the object. It is always there, no
matter what you do with it or where you place it. The power within the object is
personified. It represents Jesus. The object does not have a specific name, and its
efficacy does not require the presence of other objects. The cross is valued more for
what it means, rather than what it does. The object is never considered dangerous.
The object could be considered valuable, but not to outsiders because they do not
understand the meaning and importance of the object. The object could be
inherited, given away, replaced, or sold. The cross can be found in a lot of different
places. The object could be viewed as a work of art, but only to certain people who
understand the meaning of it. It does not have a “home spot”. It is worn a lot as
jewelry. It can be found on necklaces, earrings, bracelets, and rings. Many people
get the cross tattooed on their body in order to have a permanent reminder of their
faith and what Jesus did for them on the cross. The placement of the object in the
home or on your body has a different meaning depending where it is found.
David Morgan did research on the different religious objects found in the
different rooms of the home. There are several different reasons that a religious
object could be found in the bedroom, dining room, living room, entranceway, or
next to family portraits. My object could be found in any of these rooms, so I will
discuss what it would mean in each separate room of the home.

5. If the cross is found in the bedroom, it is to give comfort and protection to the
person sleeping in the room. It creates a rhythm for daily religious life because the
person wakes up looking at that particular religious image every day. It is used to
start your day with Jesus and end your day with Jesus. Another positive thing that
comes with having a religious image in the bedroom is that the person who lives in
that room could have their prayer life or devotional life strengthened by having that
reminder everyday.
If the cross is found in the dining room, it shows guests that the family they
are visiting is a Christian family. It communicates religious beliefs to others, and
shows that Jesus is important in their lives. In the dining room, it protects the family
while they eat. Normally, the religious image is placed at the head of the table to
show that Jesus is the ultimate head of the family, even though the father of the
family sits at the head of the table. David Morgan’s research showed that having the
image in the room made the family members ore respectful of each other because
they were in the presence of Christ.
The cross could also be found in the living room. If it is in the living room, it
is used to show the family Christian identity. Some families place their religious
object above the fireplace, and use that location to be able to have devotion or pray
around it as a family. Wealthier families had parlors in their houses, and they often
had religious images in their parlors, but they were mainly to show their class
status, instead of portraying their faith. They bought expensive paintings and
images that were not printed more than once, to show how wealthy they are. The

6. images found in the living room are cheaper and mass-produced images. They are
used to show their religious identity instead of their class identity.
The cross can be found in the entrance hall as well. This is mainly to protect
the members of the home as they are leaving and to make sure they take Christ with
them when they leave the house. When the members of the home come back inside,
the image is there to remind them that they are under the protection of Christ while
they are inside the house. One specific reason to have a religious image in the
entrance hall is to show anyone that comes to the door that this is a Christian family.
It can make unwanted guests go away, such as thieves or people who are trying to
convince you to be Christian.
If the cross is found next to a family portrait, it is used to show that the family
is a Christian family. It is also used to portray the fact that Christianity is
intergenerational in this specific family. Other reasons to place a cross next to a
family portrait is to have stability in the family, to have a highly mobile generation,
and to show Christian identity.
Christian objects and activities are key things that strengthen faith. Many
people do not talk about what they believe, but they always act on their beliefs.
People need several things to be engaged in a topic. If we can see a religious image,
our senses are involved and we instantly become more engaged. Objects trigger
memories, and that will also cause us to be more engaged. Having religious objects
in the home makes it so the home is the key sacred sight in members of the family’s
eyes. Religious objects force us to be engaged in religion because they force us to
see the meaning behind images.