ICHTHUS


 * The History of ICHTHUS **
 * By Gregory B. Dill **

**Just what does the Ichthus mean?**


 * Ichthus (ikh-thoos) or ichthys is the Greek word simply meaning "fish".**
 * The Greek spelling for ichthus is [[image:http://www.plymouth-church.com/images/ixoye.jpg width="100" height="23"]] -- Iota, Chi, Theta, Upsilon, and Sigma. The English translation is IXOYE. The five Greek letters stand for the words meaning, "Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior." The Greek rendering is, "Iesous Christos, Theou Uios, Soter."**


 * This symbol was used primarily amongst Christians of the early church years (1st and 2nd century A.D.) The symbol was introduced from Alexandria, Egypt; which at the time, was a very heavily populated seaport. It was the port in which many goods were brought over from the European continent. Because of this, it was first used by the peoples of the sea as a symbol of a familiar deity, in this case, Jesus Christ.**


 * The symbol was later used as a means of identifying or acknowledging a fellow believer in Christ without the need for any verbal communication being exchanged. Why was this necessary?**


 * During the reign of Emperor Nero (54 A.D.- 68 A.D.), and throughout the reign of subsequent evil emperors of the Roman Empire, Christians were commonly persecuted, tortured, and put to death because of their faith in Christ Jesus. Emperor Nero himself personally despised Christians. He blamed them for the great fire of A.D. 64 which burned nearly half of Rome. It was during Nero's persecutions that both Peter and Paul are thought to have perished.**

But how is it used today?

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 * [[image:jesus_ichthus.jpg width="270" height="203" align="center"]] ||

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 * [[image:evolve.jpg width="201" height="201" align="center"]] || [[image:science.jpg width="201" height="201" align="center"]] || [[image:Bite_Fish.jpg align="center"]] ||

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 * [[image:E-DevilFish.gif align="center"]] || [[image:E-HookedFish.gif align="center"]] || [[image:E-YodaSilver.gif align="center"]] ||