Ancient Symbols for a Post-Modern World

"Excuse us, pastor. But we are curious as to what those symbols around the large cross stand for?" The two young men who asked me this question came up to me following a wedding rehearsal I conducted last night at the church.

Enthused that they felt willing to approach me and ask this question, I quickly explained that the twelve symbols around the cross represented the twelve disciples. They suspected that this would be my answer but just needed some confirmation. I explained the symbols and when I got to the top right symbol, the chalice and the serpent, I shared how this represented the Apostle John.

"He was the only disciple who wasn't killed for his faith. He lived to old age and because of his long life, became a very wise and trusted voice in the early church." One of the men commented that he wasn't aware that not all of the disciples had died for their faith.

And then I pointed out that the number twelve is an important biblical number because for Jesus, choosing twelve disciples was symbolic for the people of Israel since historically, Israel consisted of the twelve tribes. "So choosing twelve disciples was not an arbitrary number for Jesus. He deliberately chose twelve to show his continuity with God's calling of Israel (the twelve tribes) to be a light to the nations and bring blessing to the whole world. Jesus fulfilled this through his life, death, and resurrection."

This brief exchange reminded me of how important symbols are in the Christian faith and how post-moderns, including seekers and the unchurched, are interested in learning more about the meaning of Christian symbols. Sadly, we who have been part of the church for any length of time, tend to take these symbols for granted.

Thankfully, the church has a way of keeping these symbols fresh in our minds by following the liturgical calendar in which colors of paraments change according to the church season, setting out the Paschal Candle for specific Sundays, the clergy wearing various stoles, and utilizing symbols like a pitcher of water when celebrating baptisms. The Voice website has a link that explains some of our Christian symbols. It's presently under construction but it does have information on some symbols.

In our 21st century world, there is a growing hunger among people to know more about the symbols of our Christian faith. Sometimes, the way to draw closer to God and share our faith with others is right there in front of us.