Can anyone explain the origin of the halo symbol, specifically in Christianity?
The halo appears in the art of ancient Greece and Rome, and was incorporated into Christian art sometime in the 4th century. Round halos are used to signify saints. A cross within a halo is used to represent Jesus. Triangular halos are used for representations of the Trinity. Square halo are used to depict unusually saintly living personages. The use of halos to designate Christian saints presented a problem in the translation of the Hebrew Bible. When Moses came down from Mount Sinai carrying the tablets of the law, he is said in the Hebrew text (Exodus 34,29) to have a glowing or radiant face. However, this would have implied a halo, which was reserved for Christian-era saints. Jerome avoided this by translating the phrase into Latin as “cornuta esset facies sua” (his face was horned). This description was taken literally by Medieval and Renaissance artists, who depicted Moses with small horns growing from his forehead. Especially noteworthy in this respect is Michelangelo Buonarroti
Most of Christendom’s icons portray a circle of light around the heads of Jesus, Mary, angels, and “saints.” This is called a halo. Where did the halo originate? “Its origin was not Christian,” admits The Catholic Encyclopedia (1987 edition), “for it was used by pagan artists and sculptors to represent in symbol the great dignity and power of the various deities.” Furthermore, the book The Christians, by Bamber Gascoigne, contains a photograph obtained from the Capitoline Museum in Rome of a sun-god with halo. This god was worshiped by pagan Romans. Later, explains Gascoigne, “the sun’s halo” was “borrowed by Christianity.” Yes, the halo is connected with pagan sun worship.
