What’s the symbolism of our logo?

First, the circular shape: Two almost-semicircles that flow toward each other, celebrating the wholeness and cyclical nature of God’s creation. 

“As long as the earth endures,

seedtime and harvest,

cold and heat,

summer and winter,

day and night

will never cease.”

(Gen 8:22)

Part of the wonder of exploring and studying God’s creation is in learning about – and experiencing – the cycles (“circles”) which are found in every aspect of his world. Summer flows into winter and back again. Plants sprout from apparently dead ground, grow up, produce flowers and seeds, and die back into the same soil, only to start over again the next year. Even we humans are born, grow up, live, grow old, and die – to be followed by our children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren.

But notice that we don’t have a closed circle. The two shapes don’t quite meet. Instead, one points upward, the other downward. Here we have a symbol of creation reaching “up” in praise to God…

Praise the Lord from the earth,

you great sea creatures and all ocean depths,

lightning and hail, snow and clouds,

stormy winds that do his bidding,

you mountains and all hills,

fruit trees and all cedars,

wild animals and all cattle,

small creatures and flying birds,

kings of the earth and all nations,

you princes and all rulers on earth,

young men and women,

old men and children.

Let them praise the name of the Lord,

for his name alone is exalted;

his splendor is above the earth and the heavens.

Ps. 148:7-13

and God, through the Holy Spirit, reaching “down” as he watches over and cares for his creation, including, of course, us:

Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?

Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care.

And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.

So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

Mt. 10:29-31

Keep in mind, of course, that direction here (“up” and “down”) is also symbolic – God isn’t really up and we’re not down, even though this is how we often think of things.

The colors we have chosen have an obvious symbolism in the world of creation: While green is the go-to color for anything environmental, and clearly represents the world of plants which surrounds us on land, the prevailing color in the world is actually blue. Blue skies, blue seas – one of the reasons those who have had the opportunity to look at earth from the outside see earth as a beautiful blue ball.

And, finally, it doesn’t hurt that the our two circular graphic elements reflect the initials in our name: Care of Creation.  There you have it. A new logo, a new look, reflecting an ancient and yet timely mission as we call the community of God’s people to care for his creation.  Let us know what you think, and come on over to our newly redesigned website to see what we’ve done there as well.