Alfa Romeo badge
They flock to auto shows and car meets instead of tent revival meetings to bond with like-minded strangers.
Workshop manuals instead of the Bible or Qur'an for guidance.
Where Christian souls may be stirred by gospel music or classics such as Jerusalem, classic car adherents get their kick from revving engines.
As with other religions, cars such as the Alfa Romeo have ardent followers and advocates. Even the name "Alfa Romeo" can bring to mind the words Alpha Omega
You get the drift.
As all Alfa Romeo car owners know, "ALFA" is an acronym for Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili (= a car maker somewhere in Lombardy).
And "Romeo" was the surname of a Neapolitan engineer, senator and entrepreneur who progressed the company in 2015. The name also gives the car a romantic connotation, thanks to Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, and a religious connotation of a pilgrim from Rome.
In the car maker's badge we see the red Christian cross from Milan's coat of arms.
To the right of the cross is a biscione (serpent) merrily eating a white man. Or is it a woman? Or child? Whoever's being eaten, the similarity with the Hindu deity Matsya's depiction is uncanny, and the green colour is quite Islamic. But it's generally understood to relate to the Old Testament prophet Jonah who was devoured by the Mesopotamian mythical sea serpent Leviathan.
Yes folks, a Leviathan, not a whale. There are no killer whales in the Mediterranean, only in stories, and the Bible's mention of Leviathan (Job 3:8, 41:1, Ps. 74:14, Is. 27:1) are also just poetic stories. They are Biblical allegories of Satan who'll end up being slain by God for being an enemy of Israel.
(If you haven't heard of Jonah being eaten by a sea creature, you'll be pleased to know he popped out alive three days later. It was a prophecy of what would happen to Jesus, hundreds of year later (Matt. 12:40).
So the Alfa Romeo badge has quite strong Christian connotations, and yet car still sells well in predominantly Muslim countries.
See also:
and please tell us if you know any other car marque which includes a cross.