“The creatures of the sense world signify the invisible attributes of God, partly because God is the origin, exemplar and end of every creature, an every effect is the sign of its cause … For every creature is by its nature a kind of effigy and likeness of the eternal Wisdom, but especially one which in the book of Scripture has been elevated … as a symbol and which has the character not only of a sign in the general sense but also of a sacrament.” – St. Bonaventure, The Soul’s Journey Into God, chapter 2, section 12
Signs tell you information that you need to know. A stop sign tells you to stop. A sign in a store window tells you what hours the store is open. The job of a sign is to convey information. This is different from a symbol, which conveys a sense of meaning or purpose. A crown symbolizes the authority of monarchy. A gift symbolizes the importance of the relationship between the giver and the receiver of the gift. While signs give information, symbols tell meaning.
In the passage from Bonaventure I quoted above, he is saying that every bit of creation is a sign about the nature of God. That is, from looking at each plant, animal, rock, or anything else in the world you can get some information about who God is. There is at least some level of imprint of who God is on each created thing in nature. This imprint, however, only tells us so much. It is information: God is creative and vast, for instance. Through the bible, though, we can come to a fuller understanding of God’s nature. It is through the bible that we see that God is loving and compassionate towards those in need. Through knowing the bible we can then recognize certain things in the world that are symbols of God’s love. Symbols are not just about information but about meaning. These symbols go even further, giving us an experience of who God is. These symbols that create an experience of God are called “sacraments.”
In the Lutheran tradition we recognize two sacraments: baptism and Eucharist. In both, created objects (water, wine, bread) are elevated by scripture to be sacramental allowing us to experience the nature of God. When that happens in our rituals, we don’t just get information about who God is and who Jesus is; we experience God’s grace and love. When that happens, Christ is truly present with us. Thus these symbols are not just symbols but truly things through which we have an experience of God with us. There may be other experiences beyond these that are sacramental – experiences of God truly with us in this world – but the bible has promised us that in these rituals we can expect to be met by Christ. That is wonderful news!