To the early Christian community, this signified, “Iesous Christos, Theou Yios, Soter,” or in the English translation of the Greek, ” Jesus Christ , Son of God, Savior.” When a Christian met a stranger on the road, one would draw one-half of the outline of the fish on a rock or in the dirt.
The book of Jonah describes the rebellious prophet’s rescue from drowning in the storm-swept sea when God sent a fish to swallow him. Beyond the historical account, the great fish also stands as a picture of God’s deliverance and mercy. The account clearly shows that the fish was Jonah’s means of salvation.
ἸΧΘΥΣ (ichthys), or also ἸΧΘΥϹ with a lunate sigma, is an backronym or acrostic for “Ἰησοῦς Χριστὸς Θεοῦ Υἱὸς Σωτήρ”, Iēsous Christos, Theou Yios, Sōtēr; contemporary Koine, which translates into English as ‘ Jesus Christ , Son of God, Savior’.
The ichthys is a symbol consisting of 2 intersecting arcs which resemble the profile of a fish . Early Christians used the ichthys to mark meeting places and tombs and to distinguish friends from foes.
Mary is almost always decked out in blue , while Jesus typically wears red.
In the Bible The Gospel of John (chapter 21:1–14) includes the narrative of the miraculous catch of 153 fish as the third appearance of Jesus after his resurrection.
Fish can also be symbolic of the faithful submerged in the waters of life. Yet fish are also cold-blooded, not driven by passion, and often represent such emotionless entities. In latin Christian symbology, the fish is related to Christ.
This has become known popularly as the “153 fish ” miracle. In the Gospel of John, seven of the disciples—Peter, Thomas, Nathanael, the sons of Zebedee (James and John), and two others – decided to go fishing one evening after the Resurrection of Jesus , but caught nothing that night.
Three represents the triad of family; male, female, and child; beginning, middle, and end; birth, life, and death.
In Christian numerology, the number 888 represents Jesus , or sometimes more specifically Christ the Redeemer.
The crucifix is a staple in Catholic and Orthodox Christian churches. Not so much in Protestant churches. “Some people say they don’t want to see a crucifix because Jesus came down off the cross .
The ichthus symbol in Greek letters spells out ‘Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Saviour. ‘ The word is also a monogram , as ichthus is the Greek word for ‘fish’. In the early Church, when Christians were being persecuted, Christians would use the fish symbol as a secret sign symbolising to others that they were Christians.
In 380 CE, the emperor Theodosius issued the Edict of Thessalonica, which made Christianity , specifically Nicene Christianity , the official religion of the Roman Empire.
At first, they were scared to display it publicly in case they were persecuted or mocked. But after the Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity in the 4th Century , crucifixion was abolished as a punishment, and the cross was promoted as a symbol of the Son of God.
Cross, the principal symbol of the Christian religion, recalling the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ and the redeeming benefits of his Passion and death. The cross is thus a sign both of Christ himself and of the faith of Christians .