Welcome back for another Windows Wednesday! Today, we are featuring the center section of Window 3—The Leader of Men. This section focuses on Jesus recruiting His disciples. We see a well-known image of Jesus calling Simon and Andrew away from their work as fishermen and to a life dedicated to spreading the gospel. The symbol of the fish has deep roots in Christian history.

On the window, you can see a symbol of fish flanking a basket. This is a very ancient usage of the fish imagery. The fish has several symbolic meanings for Christians, which made it appealing to early Christians who were just beginning to decorate their grave sites and places of worship. The Greek word for fish ‘ichthys’ can create an acrostic, standing for the Greek words Iēsous Christos Theou Yios Sōtēr, which translates as “Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Savior.” In addition, the fish brings to mind several powerful images from the Bible: “fishers of men” (Mark 1:17); the feeding of the 5,000 (John 6:5–6:15); and a story prefiguring the Resurrection in the Old Testament, Jonah and the whale (Jonah 1:17) among them. Below, next to the image of the window, you can see an image from the Church of the Multiplication on the Sea of Galilee. This church, built around A.D. 380, celebrates the feeding of the 5,000. The mosaic pictured dates from about 100 years later and bears a strong resemblance to the fish imagery in the bottom left of our window. Click or scroll over the image of the window below to see the artist’s design.

Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.” As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, “Follow me and I will make you fish for people.” And immediately they left their nets and followed him. Mark 1:14–18

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“Brotvermehrungskirche BW 3-2” by Berthold Werner – Own work. Licensed under Public Domain via Commons.

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About the Author

Adam Alderson is the business manager and director of Resurrection at the United Methodist Church of Kent. He has a B.A. in Classics with a minor in Art History from Kent State University, and enjoys reading, graphic and web design, and singing and acting locally. Adam lives in Stow with his wife, Patti, and son, Alexander.