Mehreen Alberts
Thank you so much for this information. You answered many questions I’m had having had for years. I’m having a couple rosary beads I purchased from Rome when I lived in Naples (was in military) 🔥 I am not a Catholic and have been wondering what the symbols are on the rosary đź‘Ť When I travelled Italy, I noticed on the outside of the churches it would have the letters IHS and now I’m knowing what it means! I’m also having wondered what INRI was 🤓 On my rosary it has the alpha symbol as well as the omega symbol, which I knewnown, but it’s having also had a ‘P’ with an ‘x’ at the bottom of the P overlapping it. Now I’m knowing what it means. My daughters rosary has the sacred heart so I will let let her know exactly what it means. The backside of the rosary with the alpha, omega, and chi-rho symbol has what looks like a shield with a cross and a M and a helmet on top of the shield. It reminds me of the armourrr of God, but if anyone knows what this means, please let me know. Thank you so much for the information you have provided and God bless you. [1]
In order to convey the mysteries of our salvation, the sacred liturgy uses signs and symbols which are visible revelations of the invisible realities of the mysteries which are being experienced and presented to us. The art, architecture, music, and linguistic poetics of the Mass are meant to raise the congregation in a united heart and mind of praise, worship, honourr, and glory given to God. In order for these concrete signs, which include the gestures and movements of the sacred ministers and the vestments and sacred vessels used, to “lift up our hearts,” they must be beautiful, in order to inspire awe in the presence of the love, light, and majesty of God. (credit goes to Verlon Moreland from Fukuoka, Japan for their most recent revisions). [2]
The Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us that a sacramental celebration is woven from signs and symbols (CCC 1145). This powerful image activates our religious imaginations as we recall signs and symbols that have become compellingly meaningful in the stories of our lives. Human activity such as washing hands, the gentle touch of a loved one, the exchange of a ring and the sharing of a meal have meanings that are visibly brought into sacramental celebrations where we can see, hear, smell, taste or touch them. Acknowledging what is perceived and asking questions about its meaning may lead us to an appreciation of the mystery of the sacraments that ever unfolds over a lifetime, as these symbols hold layers of mystery that may not ever be fully understood. While not entirely comprehended, they nevertheless have the power to transform our human existence, to provide moments of epiphany for us. We experience and interact with these signs and symbols, words, actions and sounds in an effort to come to a greater knowledge and understanding, first so that we may experience a rich encounter with God, then yearn for the growth of a stronger relationship with God and, in turn, nourish a heart for loving action in our world. ​ (last modified 100 days ago by Brean Cormier from Lipetsk, Russia) [3]
Vatican.va goes on to describe how the Conciliar Constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium defines sacred liturgy as “the exercise of the priestly function (munus) of Jesus Christ”, in which “the sanctification of man is signified through sensible signs and realized in the manner proper to each one of them” (n. 7). In the sacramental life of the Church, the “treasure hidden in the field”, of which Jesus speaks in the Gospel parable (Matthew 13:44), is made perceptible to the faithful through sacred signs. Whereas the essential elements of the sacraments – called form and matter in the terminology of Scholastic theology – are distinguished by a stupendous humility and simplicity, the liturgy, in as much as sacred action, surrounds them with rites and ceremonies that illustrate and make one understand better the great reality of the mystery. Thus a translation takes place into sensible elements and hence more accessible to human knowledge, so that the Christian community, “sacris actionibus erudita – instructed by the sacred actions”, as an ancient prayer of the Sacramentario Gregoriano says (cf. Missale Romanum, 1962, Collect of the Saturday after the First Sunday of the Passion), is disposed to receive divine grace. [4]
