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| Coptic Christian Tattoos: Redemption, Reign, Resurrection |
"Tell Me About Your Tattoo."
This will be a special series of posts focusing on the historic Christian artwork that is wrapped around my right forearm.
Due to the history and unique line work of Jerusalem Tattoos, along with the strong artistry of my friend, Kevin Shattuck, with Iconic Ink, I get the privilege to talk with curious people who lean in and wonder about the meaning behind each of my tattoos. One Eastern Orthodox friend said, "It's like you have your own icons to turn you back to Christ every time you look at your arm."
Some have even wondered if I could try doing an Instagram or TikTok video sharing about the history and symbology of the various pieces. Maybe someday. But for now, this is the first of a series of posts sharing about each tattoo.
Quick History of Jerusalem Tattoos
For a pithy overview of where this particular style of tattoos comes from, it originates in North Africa nearly 800 years ago. In this area of the world, Christians have often suffered intense persecution, particularly among Coptic Orthodox Christians. One family, the Razzouks, were Christians living in Egypt in the 1300s. Seeking to escape the violence, they became refugees who settled in Jerusalem where they set up Razzouk Tattoo, which still exists today and welcomes pilgrims from all over the world.
Redemption Tattoo
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| Redemption Coptic Jerusalem Tattoo on Right Forearm |
This tattoo on the top of my forearm mirrors a Coptic tattoo that has existed for centuries. The central imagery around the cross, featuring the Spirit (dove) above with the moon and sun, the angels side by side, the two bystanders standing next to Jesus on the cross as the skull of death is under His feet, as well as the oval shape of stars can be seen in other Jerusalem tattoos that Christians from around the world go to the Razzouk Tattoo shop to have inked.
I call this my "Redemption Tattoo" (the others in future posts I will refer to as my "Resurrection" and "Reign" tattoos) because it showcases how:
Jesus gave Himself
to buy us back from everything
we were selling ourselves out to.
He's the Redeemer that became a slave
even unto death on the cross
to buy us back from everything
we were selling ourselves out to.
He's the Redeemer that became a slave
even unto death on the cross
so we could be freed from evil,
sin, death, and hell,
destroying the works of the devil,
overcoming death by His death.
The elements I have specifically adapted are listed below with brief explanations for each, beginning from the top to the bottom.
+ Sacred Heart Longing
The top image is often used in Catholic imagery to represent God's heart for us. It's a heart that is pierced by cross, crown of thorns, and spear like Jesus was, yet is still alive with compassion, a consuming fire that warms us to God's holy and whole-making presence.
The Holy Spirit in the shape of a dove, the moon and sun, and the angels watching everything that is happening on the cross showcases that all the things we see, as well as what we cannot see, were centered on this seemingly small moment of a man from Nazareth who could call on angels to rescue Him, but chooses out of love to lay down His life and be crucified as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.
+ Wales Window Jesus
The intentionality of this specific depiction of Jesus is in reference to the Wales Window that was crafted in Wales and then generously given to 16th Street Baptist Church in an act of solidarity and sorrow after the 1963 bombing of the church building by the Ku Klux Klan in Birmingham, Alabama.
Here on the cross,
Jesus' right hand is positioned
to showcase how He continues
to push away the destructive forces
of violence, murder, slavery, and racism,
even as His left hand is positioned
open to welcome in love
the oppressor and the oppressed
to be healed by His forgiving love
and power to transform all
who follow Him
and love their enemies
like He does.
Despite this seeming defeat of Jesus, the skull represents that death is at His feet because death is the last enemy He has defeated, not only for Himself, but for all those who are freed by Him.
+ Heaven Breaking into Earth
The oval shape of stars surround the cross and reach from the sacred heart down to the place of death. An oval is an ancient and fresh Coptic Orthodox representation of the divine and human, heaven and earth, the seen and unseen coming together, meeting in this excruciating, yet exhilarating moment of Jesus somehow overcoming for us on the cross.
On one side the stars begin to crack and reveal a break in the chains, showcasing that the evil on earth and in the hearts of humanity has no hold on what the King of heaven and earth is doing to set people free.
On the other side, the stars begin to form into drops of water, or even more, seeds that are falling into the place of death, bringing forth the signs of new creation, blossoms hinting at the resurrection evident in creation itself when one seed dies and yet springs to life to bring a harvest.
+ Servant of All
Also at the place of death is a drop of water and a towel in a basin. This is to represent how Jesus washed the feet of those who would betray, deny, and desert Him. As the King with the power to confront evil and death, He bent down in humility and vulnerability to cover a multitude of sins through His sacrifice that washes away our sins.
We're invited to join Him in this cruciform posture of love for our family, friends, neighbors, and enemies. We wash in silence. We wash through His Word. We serve at the feet of others, remembering the feet that were pierced to save us.
+ Worcester Saints Underground
The final piece of the tattoo above the verses Isaiah 61:11 and Romans 6:3-8 that pull together the meaning of all the imagery is a large "W" with an abbreviation of saints in "Sts" along with a "U" that's beginning to sprout.
This is a dream of my city of Worcester becoming a place where:
More are Welcome at the Cross.
More are Welcome at the Cross.
More Wonder about the Cross.
More Worship the One on the Cross.
More are Witnesses from the Cross.
More become part of the
"thousands of nameless,
faceless Christians humbly submit
to the task of contributing
their bucket to the torrent,"
cruciformed unseen saints
who love their neighbors,
laying down their lives
for the life of the world
while sharing that Good News
has come even from a
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| Coptic Christian Tattoos: Redemption, Reign, Resurrection |
Many blessings of peace and presence,
Rev. Mike “Sully” Sullivan
