12 East – The Fish
Ord Dougherty and R. J. Keller – Donors
The word “IXOYC” is an acronym comprised of the first letter of five Greek words: Iesous Xristos Theou Yios Sotare which means Jesus, Christ, Son of, God, Savior.
- Iesous (Iasoos) is Jesus. The first letter is ‘iota’, Ιησους.
- Xristos (Christos) is Christ. The first letter is ‘chi’, Χριστóς.
- Theou (Theou) is God. The first letter is ‘theta’, Θεοῦ.
- Yios (Huios) is Son. The first letter is ‘upsilon’, Υἱός.
- Sotare (Sotare) is Savior. The first letter is sigma’, Σωτήρ.
The word is also the Greek word for “fish,” ichthus, ἰχθύς which when spelled in capital letters in Greek is ΙΧΘΥΣ. Jesus called the fishermen to be fishers of men. Jesus used the metaphor to represent evangelism in the proclamation of the gospel by which people are saved from their sins. Christians began using the fish as a symbol of Christianity in the first century.
See also: 16 West – Fish in Circle.
As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishers. And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of people.” Immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee, and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him. —Matthew 4:18-22