On a field of silver and blue are four charges, each having a dual representation.

The arms to the left are those of the Church of Altoona-Johnstown. The solid band in the middle charged with three discs is taken from the arms of William Penn, founder of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, one of the original thirteen colonies.  

The large cross at the bottom left is one of the quarterings of the arms of Prince Gallitzin, an heir of Russian nobility. Bishop Carroll, America's first Shepherd, assigned Father Gallitzin to Loretto, Pennsylvania, as pastor in March of 1799. The Russian prince spent forty-one years developing the area spiritually and industrially, thus gaining the title of "The Apostle of the Alleghenies."  

The top left of the shield represents our Cathedral and Co-Cathedral. The ciborium between two circular wafers represents the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament in Altoona. The abbot's mitre represents the Co-Cathedral of Saint John Gualbert in Johnstown. 

The arms to the right are those of the Most Reverend Joseph V. Adamec. The four charges have dual representations. The three mountains represent the three mountain ranges within Slovakia. From which Bishop Adamec's parents emigrated. Likewise, the triple peaks represent the Allegheny Mountains of the Church of Altoona-Johnstown. 

The pentecostal flame is taken from the seal of the Church of Saginaw, of which Bishop Adamec is a native, and symbolizes the Sauk Indians who once inhabited that area. The flame also represents the working of the Holy Spirit among and within God's People. 

The double-armed cross is symbolic of Saints Cyril and Methodius, Apostles to the Slavs, to whom Bishop Adamec traces his legacy of Christian faith. The cross also testifies to the fact that the Bishop was ordained for the Diocese of Nitra, founded by Saint Methodius in 863. 

The four streamers flowing down the hill from the cross are symbolic of the life-giving waters of Baptism and the refreshment which the Word of God gives. They also represent the four rivers with which Bishop Adamec has been associated: the Maple River in his home town of Bannister, the Tiber in Rome, the Tittabawassee in Midland and Saginaw, and the Saginaw River in Bay City and Saginaw. 

The motto "HOUSEHOLD OF GOD" is taken from Saint Paul's Letter to the Ephesians (2:19). In that verse and the three following, Saint Paul reminds Christians that they are no longer strangers or foreigners, but members of God's family; and that, in union with Jesus, they are being built up together with all the others into a place where God lives through his Spirit.