A bishop’s coat-of-arms consists of a shield, a scroll with motto, and the external ornamentation.

 The left side of the design is derived from the crest of the Diocese of Belleville. At the base, the green hill is Compton Hill, the name of Belleville until 1814, and Cahokia Mounds. The castle is a traditional symbol for a city. The cross above the castle, with fleur-de-lis finials, hearkens to the French missionaries who first spread the faith in Southern Illinois. The arched bar is found in the coat-of-arms of Pope Leo XIII who erected the diocese in 1887. The keys symbolize Saint Peter, the patron of our cathedral.

 The right side of the design employs yellow for the hope of the resurrection and red for the martyr’s blood of Saint Meinrad and Saint Peter. The cleft hill at the base continues from the hill of the diocesan crest. The bishop is a son of the diocese, but also a son of Saint Meinrad, which sits on a hill in Southern Indiana. The heart of the monastery, the Archabbey Church of Our Lady of Einsiedeln, sits prominently on the hill. 

Both Saint Benedict and Saint Meinrad had pet ravens. The olive branch comes from the Benedictine medal, which is crowned by the Latin word “pax” (peace) and that word is surrounded by an olive branch. It also depicts the bishop’s years of living in the city of Salem, which comes from the Hebrew “shalom,” meaning peace. The crescent moon stems from the Mullen family arms in Ireland and also represents the “woman clothed in the sun,” Our Blessed Mother.

  The cross atop the shield is modeled on the cross depicted in the Benedictine Jubilee medal.

  The motto of Bishop Godfrey comes from 2 Corinthians 9:7. The brief scripture reminds us of God’s unending love, that disciples of Jesus have reason for good cheer, and that stewardship of God’s gifts leads the gifted through gratitude to generosity. 

 The galero is a pontifical hat with six tassels in three rows on either side, which
represent the heraldic insignia of a prelate who is a bishop.