Basic Catholic Symbols:
What is a Symbol?
 Symbols are observable, physical
realities that represent invisible
qualities or elements.
 The word symbol come from
the Greek word “symballein”,
which means “to throw
together” – to think symbolically means to take something
physical and throw it together with a meaning that has no
physical form.
 e.g. fire can be a symbol of romance or passion
How does a symbol create meaningful pictures?
 Symbols help us to see past the surface of things, to
search for the deeper significance and levels of
meaning in things, to take that “second look”.
 In a sense, symbols are “meaning pictures” that
serve as doorways to the sacred.
What makes a symbol a symbol?
 Symbols have more than one meaning
 Simple signs (e.g. a stop sign) have a single meaning. Symbols
are much richer than this, and have layers of meaning
 What symbols stand for is connected to what they are.
 By their very nature, symbols have certain meanings associated
with them.
 e.g. a rock, because of what it is, has symbolic meanings
very different from those we associate with, say, a cat
 We do not “impose” meanings on symbols; rather, we
discover meaning in symbols.
 What we discover is a connection between the
visible object and the invisible reality that it
represents
 e.g a wedding ring
 Symbols evoke more than one kind of response from us.
 Symbols speak to us in more powerful and personal ways than
do other, simpler signs. A sign evokes only one response from
us, but symbols get us more totally involved and spark a deep
response; they touch our heart as well as our head.