In today's Gospel (January 13, 2025), Mark 1:14-20, Jesus calls the first apostles to be "fishers of men".
It is said that the choice of fish as a Christian symbol came from the Greek Christian communities. Due to the persecution of Christians, they used secret symbols, among them the fish, because the Greek word for fish is ichthyus. Thus, the acronym "Iesus Christus Theou Yicus Soter" (ICTYS) was created, which means "Jesus Christ God the Son, Savior", with a pronunciation similar to ichthyus, that is, fish.
There are other explanations, but among all of them, without excluding the acronym, the one that seems most plausible to me is that referring to the call Jesus made to the first apostles, saying He would make them "fishers of men", for conversion to the Kingdom of God (Mark 1:14-20; Matthew 4:18-22; Luke 5:10). The first Christians, then, must have assumed this representation for themselves, being symbolized by the fish caught.
The interpretation of what Christ says is that the apostles would attract men to conversion, that is, they would remove them from the way they lived, just as fish are removed from their aquatic environment. Fish dies when this happens, men would also die to that old life, so to speak, to convert to the Kingdom of God, which is of another nature, and pass on to a new life in Christ (see related link, at the end, on Father Paulo Ricardo's website - in Portuguese).
The fish, as a symbol of Christians, brings back to me fond memories of the Parish of Santa Helena, in Belo Horizonte. Inside, the church is lined with pebbles, with drawings of colorful fish. I am very honored to have been a parishioner of Santa Helena, where I was baptized and where I participated in many coronations of Our Lady. Even more, I am honored to be a "fish" caught to Live.
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Related links:
Why fish symbol became associated with Jesus
Pescadores de homens - Padre Paulo Ricardo
Igreja de Santa Helena - Instagram
Coroações na Paróquia de Santa Helena
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