Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1912-01-01
EMBLEMS OF CHRISTIANITY.
Some OF the Eariy religious Symbols
We're Fish, Birds and Ships.

where IL is assumed to be an evidence
OF Christian faith, and what in addi-
ton is interesting and, instructive is
the coincidence that the symbol of the
fish is quite frequently associated both
III paganism and in Christianity With
the symbol Of the dove.
Just as Lucien speaks of the sacred
ness of these two creatures in one and
the same sentence, and as the fish
and the bird appear together on fun
crazy basins in China. SO we find
them, SAYS the Open Court Magazine,
often represented side by side on one
and the same tombstone of the early
Christians.
Christianity did not flash upon man
kind in a finished state. 1t grew and
adapted itself rapidly, but step by step,
in normal process of evolution. Its
sacred symbols, the cross, the lamb
and the fish, were not ready made,
and the type of the Christ ideal in
art remained undecided for many CEN
turtles.
1t seems quite probable that for a
while the pagan beliefs fingered with
the Christians, who chung to old Gus
toms as much as they cherished the
new Interpretation that had become
dear to them. The more clearly
Christian doctrines became defined the
fewer were the pagan elements retain
ed, and those symbols alone continued
in use which in one way or another
had adapted themselves to the new re-
ligion.
This is best seen in the fish. The
fft-l1 door n Nhf~te- haf
they knew why Christians We're COM
pared to the fish, and this is acciden-
tally done in the gospels. Many Of the
apostles We're fishermen, and Jesus
promises that they shall become fish
crs of men. In the same connection
Ire kingdom of heaven is compared
To a net Matt. xiii, Al. The Jonah
cory is remembered in its symbolical
meaning with reference to immortal
itY Matt. xii 40; Luke XII. 30; further
we read in the gospels of fish meals
taken in q mystical. almost sacramen-
tai way, with miraculous multiplied
ton Of food, as also after the resur-
rection of Christ in John xxi. Il pass
age where ii is told that fish are roast
ea on Goals and eaten.
The similarity between Christian
and pagan symbols can scarcely be
accidental, and we become more and
more assured of an historical connec-
zion by observing that among the
tambstenes containing the symbols of
the dove. and especially of the fish,
there are many which must be regard
Cd as doubtful. while some are I'M
cduivocally pagan and at least one is
h.
Meeting link between paganism and
Christianity and the popularity is
that in all cases the fish serves as a
symbol of Immortality and is there
fore especially used in connection with
funeral ceremonies.
We see in the monuments of an
ient Babylonians that the priests at
the sivk-bed engaged in keeping away
the goddess of death are dressed in
fish skins, presumably in commemora-
zion of Cannes or Odakon, which III
dieates that the dead have to become
fish like Cannes in order to pass to-
rether with the setting sun through
the ocean of death and thus survive
this dangerous state of transition.
4 crossing of the ocean becomes the
symbol of the conquest of death, and
thus the ship has in the same sense
as the fish become symbol of sal
Eation. We find the cmblems of the
ship in the most ancient tombs of the
Mediterranean races and the Teutons
in ancient times preferred to be buried
in tree boats. We have reason TO be-
lleve that some of these boats were
never used in the water, but had been
60, Ia Of ha1rial which
goes far to prove that the underlying
idea is of religious or a symbolic
character.
The church is commonly represented
as a ship, and in Buddhism the same
cvnbol has been used since the days
of it's founder. Since Buddhism spread
and took root among the large masses
the Buddhist church accented this in
rovation by claiming to be a large YES
sci or Mahayana, in contrast to the
TIinayara, the smallA vessel or little
boat of the older church. The Budd-
hist canon is full CT references to
what is called the ocean of life and
death, symbolizing Samsara, the
world of Mara, the evil one, the deity
of death.
Nirvana is the safe shore, or the is
land on the other side of the water
Buddha, passes over the ocean of life
and death and walks on it as one
would walk over fiagstones. while his
disciples who are firm in the faith will
be able to follow him over the stream
dry shod. The same story is told OF
Jesus and Peter in the Christian Cos
pels.
Again for the same reason birds oil
passage. especially cranes and wild
geese, have become symbols of trans
migration and of immortality. we
find them pictured in the frescoes oil
the Buddhist caves in India and they
are frequently alluded to in the folk
lore of Thibet, China and Japan, but
they are less used SIS religious en-
blens in the West.-Houston Post.