In "Of Holy Signs" Dupré sets the stage for the book by distinguishing between "signs" and "symbols," showing why all religious symbols must ultimately be rooted in language and illustrating this insight with the centrality of symbolic rites in the Christian faith. "The Symbolism of Words" probes deeper into the linguistic basis of symbols, locating the symbolic power of language especially of religious lan- guage in its capacity to express both literal and metaphorical meaning.

In "The Symbolism of Religious Art" Dupré laments our lost awareness of the link between art and religion. Where once art and the experience of the sacred were inseparable, in our secular age the primeval relation to the transcendent can be established again only by the word. "The Myth and Its Survival" explores the dialectical rylationship between religious symbol and myth as well as the difficult problem of myth in our contemporary scientific worldview. Dupré argues that while we cannot go on believing in old myths once we have recognized them as myth, they still remain a vital means for religious reflection. The volume con- cludes with a powerful reflection on the innate capacity of human minds to grasp the transcendent.

Elegantly expressed, conversant with a wide range of thinkers, and marked by a lifetime of reflection on the subject, Symbols of the Sacred offers profound insights into the religious dimension of human life.