THE CREST & FLAG OF 'DAHAM SEVANA' PROPAEDEUTIC SEMINARY OF THE MOST SACRED HEART OF JESUS
THE BACKGROUND STORY OF THE CREST &FLAG
In 1998 Fr Cecil Joy Perera and Fr Cyril Joseph were appointed by His Grace Archbishop Nicholas Marcus Fernando, as the Rector and the Spiritual Director respectively.
Fr Cecil Joy could not find any crest for the seminary on the hitherto available letter-heads and he requested his brother Jude P. Perera to design one for the seminary, furnishing him with all the concepts and themes. the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Cross and the Holy Spirit. Originally the outer frame was not done and the letter-heads were printed in blue colour.
THE SYMBOLS OF THE CREST
Accordingly, three symbols were combined;
The Sacred Heartsymbolizes that the Seminary is consecrated to the Sacred heart of Jesus,
The Cross symbolizes the way we ought to choose if we are to become true servants of God and His people
The Holy Spirit symbolizes the continuing guidance we receive and depend upon in the program of formation and discernment.
Fr Cecil Joy was re-appointed to the Seminary as the Rector in 2015. This time he requested his brother, Jude Perera to complete the crest with the outer framework, to introduce colour red or a closer colour and to introduce the new Motto he has suggested as the Motto of the Seminary, Cessate et Cognoscite (Be still and Know). This time the crest was completed in rosy-red colour because of the conventional thinking about the colour red connected to the Sacred Heart, and the Motto was attached beneath.
This crest was carved in rigifoam by Fr Asitha Neranjan who was by that time serving on the staff of the Holy Cross College, Kaluthara, and it is now displayed in the Auditorium of the Seminary.
The Seminary had no flag of its own, and in 2016 the new Seminary flag was prepared with the new crest and the motto in it.
