Fishers of Men
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"Come, follow me," Jesus said,
"and I will make you fishers of men."
Mark 1:17

The Sign of the Fish

The earliest followers of Jesus were persecuted and forced to worship in secret locations. They adopted a secret symbol, the fish. Often these persecuted Christians scratched the fish symbol on the ground before them to help identify fellow believers.
The letters in Greek for fish (IXOYE) stand for:
I = Jesus
X = Christ
O = Gods
Y = Son
E = Saviour


Upon meeting another person that you suspected of being a follower of The Way,
you would draw half an ellipse on the ground
(probably in the dirt or sand with a stick).
Then, you could tell if the other person was indeed a Christian,
if they finished the fish by drawing the other half ellipse.