ABSTRACT
Tillich declared that
that which is the true ultimate transcends the realm of finite reality infinitely. Therefore, no finite reality can express it directly and properly. 1
However, a symbol, qua finite reality, may point beyond itself to something symbolized. If the symbol is effective, it participates in the reality of that toward which it points. Tillich maintained that an effective symbol “opens up levels of reality which are otherwise closed for us” and “unlocks dimensions and elements of our soul which correspond to the dimensions and elements of reality.” 2