Symbols

Christian Symbols

Around the world and throughout history, people have used signs and symbols in their religions and to represent their faith. In many countries today, the most famous religious symbol is the Christian cross because it reminds people of the death of Jesus.

The New Testament was written in Greek, a language which was widely known and spoken. It is not surprising, therefore, to find that early Christians used Greek letters particularly to represent Jesus Christ.

This is the beginning of John's Gospel in Greek:

ΕΝ ΑΡΧΗ ΗΝ Ο ΛΟΓΟΣ ΚΑΙ Ο ΛΟΓΟΣ ΗΝ ΠΡΟΣ ΤΟΝ ΘΕΟΝ ΚΑΙ ΘΕΟΣ ΗΝ Ο ΛΟΓΟΣ

Greek Letters as Symbols

The Alpha and Omega symbol - seen on the right on a candle

The 'iota-eta-sigma' symbol

The 'chi-rho' symbol

Visit the other symbols pages:

The Alpha and Omega

Alpha and Omega are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. They are used to represent Jesus. In the book of Revelation in the Bible, Jesus said "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end."

The IHS

These letters represent the Greek letters iota, eta, sigma (ΙΗΣ). They are the first three letters of the name of Jesus, in Greek - ...ΙΗΣΟΥΣ.

The Chi-Rho Symbol

These are the first two letters of the name of Christ in Greek - ...ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ - CHRISTOS. Chi-Rho is pronounced 'Kye-Roe'.

Year 7 Topics

Some free graphics used on this site: visit www.crossdaily.com

G. Jones:
The FitzWimarc School, Rayleigh, Essex.