Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church - Sioux City, Iowa

Fish: the fish, or Ichthys, was one of the most important symbols of Christ to the early Christians. In Greek, the phrase, Jesus Christ, Son of God Savior, is Iesous Christos Theou Yios Soter. The first letters of each of these Greek words, when put together, spell ichthys, the Greek word for fish. This symbol can be seen in the Sacraments Chapel of the Catacombs of St. Callistus. Because of the story of the miracle of the loaves and fishes, the fish symbolized, too, the Eucharist. The earliest literary reference to the fish as Christian symbol was made by Clement of Alexandria, who advised Christians to use a dove or fish as their seal. Tertullian wrote of we, little fishes, after the image of our Ichthys, Jesus Christ, are born in the water . Also used as a Christian symbol was the dolphin, most often as a symbol of the Christian himself rather than Christ, though the dolphin was also used as a representation of Christ -- most often in combination with the anchor symbol ( Christ on the Cross ).
Welcome to the New Year. May 2012 bring you a year of happiness and peace. As a parish family let us continue to pray for each other and remember in a special way those who are homebound or sick. We also remember those who may be out of work and in a special way those who are serving our country in the military.

This will be an important year when it come to the elections later this fall. Continue to keep yourself informed and pray for our country.

If you are new to the parish, give us a call or come to the office to get registered and receive a new parish directory.

God Bless you.

Fr. Merlin Schrad