Keywords

Biblical Studies, Crucifixion, Life of Christ

Abstract

A number of years ago some members of the Church heard that I was working on a paper about Christ’s crucifixion.1 They asked me why I was bothering with that topic: Why would I want to spend time studying the Crucifixion? Their questions highlighted for me how little we discuss the cross in classes, except perhaps to note that it took place. This modern situation is a long way from Brigham Young’s direction to the missionaries that if they wanted to be successful on their missions they would need to have their minds “riveted—yes, I may say riveted—on the cross of Christ.”2 My response to my friends’ questions was that although we may not often talk much about it, the cross was not just a historical event, it was a central part of Jesus’s atoning sacrifice and is an important doctrine taught in our standard works. I have often thought about that exchange as I have continued to try to understand more fully the implications of the cross for my salvation.