From beautiful blog Them Thangs
" Systems of symbols and pictures That are constituted in and ordered a Certain Determined relationship to the form, content, presentation and intention of are Believed to be Among the Most Important Means of Knowing and expressing religious facts. Such systems Also Contribute to the maintenance and Strengthening of Relationships Between the man and the realm of the sacred or holy (the transcendent, spiritual dimension). The symbol is, in effect, the mediator, presence, and real (or intelligible) representation of the holy in Certain Conventional and standardized forms. "
