St. Joseph Logo Meaning

St. Joseph Catholic Church, East Bristol has a rich history that dates back to the 1840s. The current building dates back to 1890. The stained glass windows are original and carry special meaning. There are eight windows on each side of the church. There are eight windows that have persons depicted in them. The other eight windows have a specific medallion placed at the peak of the window.

The image is one of those medallions from the original stained glass. The miter and keys in the medallion signify the papal authority of the church given by Christ to Peter, the church’s first pope. In the Gospel of Matthew Jesus tells the disciples, “Amen, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” This binding and loosening are depicted throughout the history of the church as keys. This medallion is representative of St. Joseph being not only the community of faith in the area of East Bristol, but as part of the greater Catholic Church in Rome.