I have inherited a lapel pin with the letters “IHS” on it. I’ve seen this on priests’ vestments and would like to know what it stands for.
In addition to “IHS”, there are a number of other symbols which we see commonly and which go back to the early Church. I will take advantage of your question to look here at several of them and then, in another column, I will explain the meaning of other early Christian symbols, some of which are still used today.
IHS is one of the more commonly used Christian monograms. It comes from the first three letters of the name Jesus in Greek: ΙΗΣ. The full name, as written in capitals, is ΙΗΣΟΥΣ.
Since the Greek letter Eta, which corresponds to the English “E” when written as a capital is our English “H”, some may think this is an “H” where in fact it is the Greek “E”.
The symbol appears rarely in the Roman catacombs, although it is found in the catacomb of Priscilla in a square chamber known as the Cappella Greca, or Greek Chapel.
This catacomb, on the Via Salaria, was used for Christian burials from the late 2nd century through the 4th century.
The IHS was popularised in the 15th century by the Franciscan St Bernardine of Siena (d 1444) as a symbol of peace.
In 1541, St Ignatius of Loyola adopted it with three nails below and surrounded by the sun as the seal of the newly founded Jesuit order.
Contrary to popular opinion, the monogram originally stood neither for “Jesus Saviour of Men” (Iesus Hominum Salvator) nor for the English “In His Service”.
Another explanation, which at least has a degree of credibility for its antiquity, is that the letters are an acronym for In Hoc Signo from the vision of the Emperor Constantine where he saw the Chi-Rho sign in the heavens with the words In hoc signo vinces (In this sign you will conquer).
But the most likely explanation is clearly that it stands for “Jesus”, and for this reason St Ignatius used it as the seal for the Society of Jesus.
Another early Christian symbol is the Chi-Rho, written as a “P”, the Greek letter Rho, with an “X”, the Greek letter Chi, superimposed on it. Chi and Rho are the first two letters in the name of Christ in Greek: ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ (Christos).
The monogram was used often by the early Christians and it appears frequently in the catacombs. Then, in the year 312 AD, the emperor Constantine, not yet a Christian, was about to lead his army in a decisive battle against his rival Maxentius at the Milvian Bridge outside Rome.
The winner would command the whole Roman empire. Constantine prayed to the “supreme God” for help and, according to the story, at midday he saw a cross of light superimposed on the sun, with the Greek words Τούτω Νίκα, “Conquer by this” (sign).
It was later rendered in Latin as In hoc signo vinces (In this sign you will conquer). Not only Constantine but the whole army saw the spectacle.
That night, Christ appeared to Constantine in a dream and told him to make a replica of the sign he had seen, which would be a sure defence in the battle that was to be fought the following day.
The emperor ordered the sign to be emblazoned on the shields of his soldiers and they won the battle.
Eusebius of Caesarea (d 339), the great Christian bishop and historian, writes of the labarum, or military standard later used by Constantine: “Now it was made in the following manner. A long spear, overlaid with gold, formed the figure of the cross by means of a transverse bar laid over it. On the top of the whole was fixed a wreath of gold and precious stones; and within this, the symbol of the Saviour’s name, two letters indicating the name of Christ by means of its initial characters, the letter P being intersected by X in its centre…” (Life of Constantine, 1.31).
From the earliest times, the Chi-Rho was often represented with the Greek letters Alpha and Omega (Λ and lower case ω or upper case Ω) depicted on the left and right within the crossbars of the Chi.
They are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. They too represent Christ, who says in the book of Revelation, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end” (Rev 22:13).
These two letters are often used today in various ways on priestly vestments, altars, chalices, stained glass windows, etc.
So we see how some of the Christian symbols we use today go back to the very first centuries.