Sacred Symbols

Chapel dome by S. Karen Streveler

I've been reading some material lately about the symbolism of our chapel dome, reaching up toward heaven from the flat land of central Minnesota and about how the opening of the great doors to the Gathering Place and Sacred Heart Chapel symbolizes an invitation and welcome to people seeking God in our sacred spaces.

It set me to thinking about the importance symbols have in our life, especially in the life of faith. Faith is about mystery, not a belief in an object or knowledge of a fact. Faith leads us into darkness where the only light is the mystery of God. Symbols are what make the infinite, unknowable and incomprehensible approachable for us. We can understand what light and darkness are; we understand the contrast and that makes it possible for us to catch a glimpse of Who God is - the light shining in our darkness.

Karen Rose, OSB