Christ the Shepherd

The Living Christ campaign has adopted the image of Christ the Shepherd as the central appropriate thematic image guiding every step of the campaign. This image is uniquely our own, commissioned and installed by Most Reverend Joseph Schrembs, the first Bishop of the Diocese of Toledo. Its placement in the Episcopal Residence is a reminder that to fulfill our diocesan mission to foster Holy Disciples, Holy Families, and Holy Vocations, we must live out Christ’s call to become those things. We become those things through Christ alone. He is who invites us, guides us, and enables us to be His followers.

In the icon, we visually gaze upon Christ’s Most Sacred Heart and his calling as the Good Shepherd with lamb upon his shoulders. Symbolically, it was assumed that his shepherd’s staff was to His left, however, detail shows it is a fisherman’s pike, drawing connectivity between the True Fisher of men and our diocese, spread across the shores of many lakes, including Lake Erie.

You will notice in the iconography that not only is Jesus Alive as our Shepherd, but the vibrant colors are those of Red, White, and Blue, symbolizing the spirit of the Diocese of Toledo in America.

The scripture is taken from John’s Gospel, 10:14: “I am the good shepherd and I know mine and mine know me.”