Chapter 4

Other symbols of our Lord are formed from monograms of the sacred name, Jesus, and of His official title, Christ. These are used separately and also together. The earliest form of monogram of the sacred name, that often found on tombs of early Christians, is the symbol which is said to have appeared in a vision to the Emperor Constantine.

The story is related by Eusebius, the Bishop of Caesarea, who asserts that it was communicated to him by Constantine himself, who confirmed it with an oath. The story is this: Constantine, whose mind was wavering between Christianity and paganism, was on the eve of a great battle. Knowing that Maxentius, his enemy, was seeking the aid of magic and supernatural rites, and remembering also that his father, who had been well disposed to the Christians, had always prospered, while their persecutors failed, he determined to pray to Christ. While engaged with such thoughts he saw at mid-day a luminous figure in the heavens, with the words, "By this conquer." Both he and the whole army were struck with awe at the sight. At night {72} Christ appeared to him in a dream, holding in His hand the same symbol, which He admonished him to place upon his standard, and assuring him of victory. This symbol Constantine substituted the next day for the old Roman eagle upon the standards and shields of his legions.

What the emperor saw, or fancied he saw, for it cannot be doubted that Constantine believed what he stated, was a symbol already in use among the Christians, and whose meaning he doubtless already knew. It is formed of the first two letters of the Greek word for Christ, _CHRISTOS_ (_Christos_); the X (Chi) being equivalent to our Ch, and the P (Rho) the same as our R.

Sometimes the monogram is contracted and its lines economized, the X becoming a true cross, and its vertical shaft--the curved part of the letter being added--becoming P.

This monogram, with the Latin N, standing for the word _noster_ (our), added to it, means _Christos noster_ (our Christ).

Another monogram for our Lord's title, Christ, is composed of the first two and the last capital {73} letters of the Greek word _CHRISTOS_. The horizontal mark over the top is the sign that some letters have been omitted.

The more familiar monogram IHS (_IHS_) is the abbreviated form of the Greek word for our Saviour's human name, Jesus, _IESOUS_. The first two and the last letters are those used. Sometimes this is written "IHC." The two forms are synonymous, the C being simply another form of the Greek S. Sometimes the letters are intertwined, the I being lengthened and formed into a cross by a bar at the top.

These three letters are often read as signifying the Latin words, _Jesus hominum Salvator_, that is, "Jesus the Saviour of men"; but appropriate and beautiful as this reading is, it is not the original meaning, but an afterthought, and is said to have been first suggested about the year 1380.

Another monogram contains the initial letters, IX, of our Lord's full name, Jesus Christ, in Greek. The X (Chi) is combined with the I (Iota). Sometimes a horizontal bar is placed through the middle {74} of the figure, thus giving the initials of our Lord's full name, united with the cross.

Another form of monogram for our Lord's full name, Jesus Christ, is made by taking the first and the last letters of each of the Greek words. The lines above are the signs of contraction.

_I. N. R. I._ These letters stand for the Latin form of the title placed on our Saviour's cross, _Jesus Nazarenus Rex Judaeorum_, JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.

_Symbols of the Holy Ghost._--The seven-branched _Candlestick_ of the tabernacle, and the _Seven Burning Lamps_ which St. John saw before {75} the throne of God, and which he declares to be the seven Spirits of God, that is, the Holy Spirit in His sevenfold manifestations of grace, are often used as symbols of the Holy Spirit, the source of all true illumination for men.

The most familiar emblem, however, is the _Dove_, which from the early centuries to the present day has constantly symbolized the third Person of the Holy Trinity. Its warrant and justification are based on the account in the Gospel of our Lord's baptism and the descent upon Him of the Spirit "in bodily shape like a dove."

The picture of the holy dove in the decorations of the church tells of the coming of the same Spirit as the fruit of the intercession of our ascended Lord and according to His most true promise, "I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may {76} abide with you forever; even the Spirit of truth." It reminds of that abiding presence of the Holy Ghost in the Church, making it the "habitation of God through the Spirit," and giving living power to its sacraments as channels of saving and sanctifying grace.

Other symbols in frequent use are the following:

The _Crown of Thorns_ and the _Nails_ of crucifixion are symbols of our Saviour's passion.

The three _Interlaced fishes_ and the _Escallop Shell_, the badge of a pilgrim, are both emblems of Holy Baptism: the one, as Baptism is in the Name {77} of the Holy Trinity; the other, as we therein confess that we are pilgrims and strangers on earth, who seek "a better country, that is, an heavenly."

The phoenix is the symbol of immortality and the resurrection. The phoenix was a fabulous bird of the ancients. It was believed that, "after living a thousand years or so, it committed itself to the flames that burst, at the fanning of its wings, from the funeral pyre of costly spices which it had itself constructed, and that from its ashes a new phoenix arose to life."

The _Anchor_ is the symbol of steadfastness and hope. "A strong consolation,... which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast."

The _Crown_ is the symbol of victory and sovereignty.

The _Wreath_, commonly of laurel, is another symbol of victory. As an expression of triumph won, it is one of the commonest of symbols in the catacombs--the underground and secret burying-places of the early Christians in times of persecution.

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In this connection we may note the symbolism attached to certain plants and flowers. In the ornamentation of God's house we reproduce, as far as the art of man can, the forms and colors with which the love of God has arrayed the earth with so much beauty. We also use the natural plant and flower to beautify the church on the great Christian days of gladness and rejoicing. They mark such days as festival days. In a special way they tell at Easter, by their fresh, pure life out of the death of winter, the story of the resurrection.

But, besides this, an emblematic meaning is also attached to particular flowers and plants. The use by the early Christians of plants and flowers in an emblematic way was simply a matter of reverent memory and the carrying over of past associations. Their remembrance of the words of the Lord Jesus would make the _Vine_, His own similitude of Himself in relation to them,--"I am the vine, ye are the branches,"--a symbol of frequent use to represent the Saviour.

The _Wheat_ and the _Grapes_ would not only be {79} the emblems of abundance and rejoicing, but would be enriched with suggestions of the Holy Eucharist.

The _Olive-branch_, borne by the dove, recalling the story of the flood, would stand for the thought of security and peace.

The _Almond_, with name derived from a word meaning haste, in allusion to its hasty growth and early maturity, was the symbol of hopefulness even in the days of Jeremiah. "The word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond-tree. Then said the Lord unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten My word to perform it."

The _Palm_ is the emblem of victory. This symbolism attached to it not only from the familiar associations of its pagan use as such, but from a very early period, as seen on ancient mosaics, a reference to the palm was recognized in St. John's description of the Tree of Life, "which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month." "Thus the palm-branch of Christian martyrs was not only the emblem of victory adopted from the well-known heathen use of it, but typified still more {80} strikingly their connection with the tree of divine life, 'whose leaves were for the healing of the nations.'"

The palm, however, was not the only instance of such adoption into Christian symbolism from pagan use. The influence of Christianity was felt in many like cases. Trees and plants held sacred to heathen gods became associated with holier names and ideas.

Thus the _Laurel_, "the meed of mighty conquerors and poets sage," became for the humble Christian who had "fought a good fight, and finished his course," the emblem of triumph and glory.

The _Pomegranate_, with mystic association from remote antiquity with the idea of life, became the symbol of a hopeful future, the emblem of immortality.

The _Oak_ is the representative of supernatural strength and power. In pagan antiquity it was especially dedicated in the West to Thor, the thunder-god. The familiar story of St. Boniface, the apostle of Germany, relates how he found in the country of the Hessians an enormous tree, called the Oak of Thor, greatly revered by the people and held inviolably sacred. St. Boniface cut it down in token of the triumph of Christ. When it fell with a mighty crash, and Thor gave no sign, the {81} heathen folk, who stood about in awe, accepted the token and were converted. The stroke of St. Boniface's ax overthrew Thor, but could not altogether destroy the associations of the ancient belief. The reverence for the oak long survived; and the veneration for it, Christianized in meaning, led to its reproduction, with symbolic reference to the power of the God of gods, in many beautiful forms of leaf and spray and clustered acorn, in church decoration.

In like manner, we find flowers held sacred to heathen goddesses lifted out of that association and invested with higher and purer emblematic meaning.

The _Lily_, the flower of Juno, became the flower of the holy Virgin, and its snowy whiteness the symbol of Christian purity. It is often seen in the conventional form of the fleur-de-lis.

The _Rose_ before the coming of Christianity was a mystic flower among Northern races. Among the Greeks and Romans it was the flower of Venus and the symbol of earthly love. Its symbolism felt also the redeeming touch of Christian sentiment. The love of which it is the emblem became not an earthly, but a heavenly love. As the lily tells of her purity, so the rose tells of the love that was in the heart of the Blessed Virgin. But this was but the reflection {82} of a higher and a divine love, of which the rose was also the symbol.

How that thought of the love of heaven coming down to earth was expressed emblematically by the rose, we may see in the story of its origin which the Christian fancy of the middle ages invented. It was said that a holy maiden of Bethlehem, "blamed with wrong and slandered, was doomed to the death; and as the fire began to burn about her she made her prayers to our Lord that, as she was not guilty of that sin, He would help her and make it to be known to all men, of His merciful grace. And when she had thus said, anon was the fire quenched and out, and the brands that were burning became red roseries, and the brands that were not kindled became white roseries, full of roses. And these were the first roseries and roses, both white and red, that ever any man saw."

So the rose became the flower of martyrs, the presage of the beauty and joy of Paradise. With the same thought, the early Christians decorated with roses the graves of martyrs and confessors on the anniversary of their death. It has been conjectured that it is from this connection of the rose with Paradise, and with the thought of the love which accomplished our salvation, that the rite of {83} the "golden rose" has been derived--the rite in which the Pope, on the Fourth Sunday in Lent, blesses a golden rose adorned with jewels, which he afterward bestows upon some person he desires especially to honor. In the prayers which are used in this rite, our Lord is alluded to as the "eternal Rose that has gladdened the heart of the world."

The interesting plant known as the _Passion-flower_, although of comparatively modern origin, is now freely used to symbolize the passion of our Lord. The ten faithful apostles,--omitting St. Peter who denied and Judas who betrayed our Lord,--the hammer and the nails, the cross, the five sacred wounds, the crown of thorns, the cords which bound Him, are all, by an exaggerated symbolism and straining after analogy, supposed to be represented by its various parts. It was discovered by early Spanish settlers in America, and was welcomed by them as useful in teaching Christianity to the Indians. It is the one contribution of the new continent to the ecclesiastical symbolism of flowers.

_Symbols of the Evangelists and Apostles._--The Evangelists are often represented by four scrolls, four open books, or four streams of water issuing from Christ the Rock; but most commonly the Evangelistic symbols are the _Man_, the _Lion_, the {84} _Ox_, and the _Eagle_. These figures refer to the mysterious creatures described by the prophet Ezekiel, and afterward by St. John, as adoring ceaselessly before the throne of God. "They rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come." The man is assigned to St. Matthew and his Gospel, because of the manner in which the manhood of our Lord is set forth, the lion to St. Mark, because he shows {85} His royal dignity and power; the ox to St. Luke, because his is the sacrificial Gospel and dwells on the Atonement; and the eagle to St. John, because his Gospel rises to the contemplation of the sublimest mysteries of the Christian faith.

All these symbols are winged, as showing that the message of the Gospels is to go to all the earth as the concern of all men everywhere.

All four symbols are sometimes combined into one, called a Tetramorph.

Each Apostle has also his own appropriate symbol.

St. James the Greater has the escallop shell and staff of the pilgrim. His shrine in Spain was one of the great centers to which pilgrims came from all lands.

St. John, as an Apostle, has a cup with a winged serpent rising from it, in reference to the tradition {86} that St. John once drank with impunity from a poisoned chalice after having made the sign of the Cross over it.

St. Thomas bears the spear with which he was slain, or the carpenter's rule, from a legend that he was sent to the king of the Indies to build him a palace. St. Thomas gave to the poor the money intrusted to him by the king. He was cast into prison, but the king had a vision of a marvelous palace in Paradise built for him by the money given in charity. St. Thomas was released, and the king became a Christian.

St. Peter has the keys, in reference to our Lord's words to him, and to his opening of the door of the Church to Jews and to Gentiles.

St. Matthew, as an Apostle, has sometimes a purse, in allusion to his having been a publican, or tax-gatherer, and sometimes the hatchet with which he was killed.

The other Apostles have, for symbols, the traditional instruments of their martyrdom: St. Andrew bears the cross peculiar to him; St. Bartholomew the knife with which he was flayed alive; St. James the Less has the fuller's club with which he was beaten to death; St. Philip has the cross on which he was crucified, St. Matthias bears a battle-ax: {87} St. Jade a halberd, or a knotted club, sometimes fashioned like a cross, with which he was slain; St. Simon the saw with which he was cut asunder.

The symbol of St. Paul is the sword with which he was beheaded, and a closed book, in reference to his Epistles. St. Stephen, the first martyr, bears the stones with which he was killed while he prayed for those who hurled them.

_Of Angelic figures._--It is not surprising, in view of the references of Holy Scripture, that representations of angels should have place in the decoration of Christian churches. "The religion of heaven is Christianity." "I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne, and the beasts, and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and {88} thousands of thousands; saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing."

Angels are included in the Communion of Saints. "Ye are come ... unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the first-born, which are written in heaven."

It is the constant tradition of the Church that the holy angels attend at Christian worship. It is one of the highest privileges of that worship that we have such communion with them as to be able to say, "Therefore with Angels and Archangels, and with all the company of heaven, we laud and magnify Thy glorious Name; evermore praising Thee, and saying, Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of hosts, Heaven and earth are full of Thy glory: Glory be to Thee, O Lord Most High. Amen."

_The Symbolism of Colors._--In the ornamentation of vestments and of the hangings of the Altar, as also in the general decoration of churches, all colors are employed as good taste may dictate. They are thus properly used "for the glory of God, who created the many hues of nature and gave to man the power of deriving pleasure from them." {89} Certain colors, however, are known as "liturgical" or "ecclesiastical" colors, and are, in accordance with ancient practice, employed for symbolical purposes about the Altar and chancel of our churches, or the dress of Ministers, during the different seasons of the Church Year. They serve to impress upon our minds, through the outward senses, certain great truths of the Gospel, and give honor and dignity to the celebration of its sacred mysteries.

The colors most commonly used are white, red, violet, black, and green.

White, signifying purity and joy, is used on the Feasts of the great mysteries of our Faith and at all seasons relating to our Lord, on days relating to the Blessed Virgin and to those saints who were not also martyrs, and on festival occasions, such as Confirmations, Ordinations, Dedications, Weddings, etc.

Red, the emblem of blood and fire, is used on the Feasts of martyrs, typifying the blood which was shed for Christ, and at Whitsuntide, when it tells of the tongues of fire which came upon the Apostles.

Violet, the emblem of penitence, is used in Advent, in the season from Septuagesima to Lent, in Lent, and also on Ember and Rogation days.

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Black signifies mourning, and is used on Good Friday and at Burials.

Green, the ordinary color of nature, is used on all days which are not Feasts or Fasts and when no special truth or doctrine is to be emphasized.

_The Symbolism of Lights._--The symbolic use of lights in divine worship seems to have been handed on from the Jewish Temple to the Christian Church. The candles upon the Altar, as in use in many churches, whether the two Eucharistic lights or the vesper lights, not only give beauty and festival character to the service, but are an expressive sign of spiritual gladness and joy, and a symbol, suggested by His own words, of Christ as the true "light of the world." They remind us of the gladness and spiritual illumination which the Gospel brings.

_The Symbolism of Incense._--Where incense is employed as an adjunct of worship, its symbolism is the same as that which it had in the worship of the Temple. It is the symbol of prayer, of the intercession of our great High Priest, and of the prayers of the saints. So the Psalmist prays, "Let my prayer be set forth in Thy sight as the incense"; and so again, St. John, describing the ceremonial of the worship of heaven as seen in his vision, says, {91} "Another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer, and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand."

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_How to Use the Prayer-Book_[1]

_Before the Service._--If possible be in your place a few moments before the appointed hour, that you may collect your thoughts and prepare for the service. On entering, go at once quietly to your seat, kneel down, and say a short prayer for yourself and your fellow-worshipers. The Collect for the Nineteenth or the Twenty-third Sunday after Trinity, or the Collect, "Almighty God, unto whom all hearts are open," at the beginning of the Communion Office, you may find appropriate. When you have said your prayer, find the places for the service for the day, and after this occupy the {93} time till the service begins with reading some portion from the Prayer-Book.

_At Morning Prayer._--The following points should have attention:

(1) The several ways in which, after the opening Sentence, the Minister may proceed with the service. See the rubrics at the beginning of MORNING PRAYER.

(2) In the LORD'S PRAYER (as is also the case with other prayers printed in like manner) the capital letters beginning the several short clauses are intended to indicate the portions into which the prayer is to be broken for common recitation. There should be a slight pause after each clause, that all may join in saying the prayer.

(3) On the nineteenth day of the month the _Venite_ is not used before the PSALTER, as it occurs in the portion for that day. It is omitted on Easter Day and Thanksgiving Day, as other anthems are appointed for these days (pages 6, 125, 319).

(4) After the _Venite_ follows (page 6) the PSALTER (page 329) for the day of the month, or one of the SELECTIONS, or the PROPER PSALMS for the day. See HOW THE PSALTER IS APPOINTED TO BE READ (page vii). Note what is to be done, in using the PSALTER, when a month has thirty-one days. {94} Observe also the tables of SELECTIONS and PROPER PSALMS (pages vii, viii, 328).