On our way from one location to another yesterday during staff training here at the Double H Ranch, a few of us were discussing our tattoos. One girl had a fish tattoo on her hand that had been done some time ago. Little did she know at the time that she had gotten the 'Jesus Fish' (as one of her friends had called it). Being a non-Christian, she didn't know that at the time and had little idea of what the symbol actually meant. Since the symbol is very important to me, I decided to chime in as best I could.
The 'Jesus Fish' or ichthys (Greek) was a symbol adopted by early Christianity in days where complacent living were not so much in abundance. Persecution was high, and being a Christian could land you in hot water, literally! If a Christian met someone on the road (or wherever) they would draw one arc of the fish with their foot (or hand, whatever) and if the other person was a Christian as well they would draw the other arc, completing the fish, and letting the first know that they too were a Christian and it would be safe to tell of such things openly.
The word Ichthys (ΙΧΘΥΣ in Greek) literally means 'fish' and it is believed that it was adopted as a symbol for Christianity because of instances like when Jesus broke the fishes and loaves to perform a miracle, or when He said that He would make the disciples fishers of men. An acrostic also developed for ichthys: 'Jesus Christ God's Son Savior':
We live in an age of increasing complacency and selfishness. It's all around us. We take for granted the religious freedom that we have here in North America. That freedom could be taken away from us at any time. It may not be too far away at all. In that time the ichthys could once again become a statement of our faith in a way that is very foreign to how it is being used today.
The 'Jesus Fish' or ichthys (Greek) was a symbol adopted by early Christianity in days where complacent living were not so much in abundance. Persecution was high, and being a Christian could land you in hot water, literally! If a Christian met someone on the road (or wherever) they would draw one arc of the fish with their foot (or hand, whatever) and if the other person was a Christian as well they would draw the other arc, completing the fish, and letting the first know that they too were a Christian and it would be safe to tell of such things openly.
The word Ichthys (ΙΧΘΥΣ in Greek) literally means 'fish' and it is believed that it was adopted as a symbol for Christianity because of instances like when Jesus broke the fishes and loaves to perform a miracle, or when He said that He would make the disciples fishers of men. An acrostic also developed for ichthys: 'Jesus Christ God's Son Savior':
- Iota (i) is the first letter of Iesous (Ἰησοῦς), Greek for "Jesus".
- Chi (ch) is the first letter of Christos (Χριστός), Greek for "anointed".
- Theta (th) is the first letter of Theou (Θεοῦ), Greek for "God's", the genitive case of Θεóς, Theos, Greek for "God".
- Upsilon (u) is the first letter of huios (Υἱός), Greek for "Son".
- Sigma (s) is the first letter of sōtēr (Σωτήρ), Greek for "Savior". (source:wikipedia)
We live in an age of increasing complacency and selfishness. It's all around us. We take for granted the religious freedom that we have here in North America. That freedom could be taken away from us at any time. It may not be too far away at all. In that time the ichthys could once again become a statement of our faith in a way that is very foreign to how it is being used today.
