Atmospheric Optical Illusions 
Hundreds of townsfolk in the east of England, just above 
the Strait of Dover, testify that, late one afternoon just be- 
fore an air raid during World War IJ, they saw a vision in the 
sky, of Christ on the Cross. Eyewitness reports ran as follows: 
A housewife: “I went into the garden. Something strange 
in the sky attracted my attention and rooted me to the spot. I 
looked up and saw a cross clearly!” 
An engineer: “I saw the sign of the cross actually start to 
form. There was no mistake in either the shape of the cruci- 
fix or in the figure nailed to it.” 
Now, as to whether there actually was a real cross with 
Christ on it in the sky, we may be relatively assured that such 
a miracle did not occur. But undoubtedly there was the 
image of a cross in the sky; perhaps clouds and the devout 
imagination of the observers supplied the figure. 
Such optical illusions are by no means uncommon; history 
tells us of many crosses in the sky that have been seen from 
time to time. The Emperor Constantine (311 A.D.) was said 
to have embraced Christianity as a result of having seen such 
a vision. Modern scholars are tempted to think he did so 
for more practical political reasons. But who can venture to 
interpret with assurance the motives or statements of the 
leaders of nations? | 
Crosses in the sky, as a matter of fact, are much over- 
rated as optical illusions because of their religious signifi- 
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