Symbolon: The Catholic Faith Explained

If you want to delve deeper into learning more about the Catholic Church and the different facets of the Catholic Church’s teachings like on the Sacraments, the Bible, Mary, the Saints, then this faith formation series is a great place to start. 

But what does the word ‘Symbolon’ mean?

In the early Church, Christians described their Creed, their summary statement of faith, as the symbolon, the “seal” or “symbol of the faith.” In the ancient world, the Greek word symbolon typically described an object like a piece of parchment, a seal, or a coin that was cut in half and given to two parties. It served as a means of recognition and confirmed a relationship between the two. When the halves of the Symbolon were reassembled, the owner’s identity was verified and the relationship confirmed. 

In like manner, the Creed served as a means of Christian recognition. Someone who confessed the Creed could be identified as a true Christian. Moreover, they were assured that what they professed in the Creed brought them in unity with the faith the Apostles originally proclaimed. 

This faith formation series is called Symbolon because it intends to help bring people deeper into that communion of apostolic faith that has existed for 2,000 years in the Church that Christ founded. 

-Dr. Edward Sri

There are 20 episodes divided into two parts, Part 1: Knowing the Faith and Part 2: Living the Faith. These lead you systematically through the "big picture" of the Catholic Faith following the Creed as the guide and brings together some of the most trusted Catholic theologians and teachers to guide you through the depth and richness of our Catholic Faith. Symbolon can be used in RCIA, for Catechist training, in Men's & Women's Groups, Bible Study Groups and more. 

Our Parish presents 10 episodes of Symbolon across 10 weeks in the Parish Hall following a simple model – FED. Food, Episode and Discussion. A Symbolon evening begins with refreshments being served as guests arrive, then a screening of one episode, followed by small group discussion on the topic of the evening.