What Are Icons? A Practical Guide [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]

CUF.org ^ | not given | Mike Sullivan

[Salvation]

St. John of Damascus [Saint John Damascene] is the Doctor of Icons/Images so I thought it was appropriate to post this article about icons on his feast day.

[Salvation]

Post your favorite holy icon if you wish.

Icon Ping

[xzins]

My favorite are nativity woodcarvings. This is from Oberammergau, home of some of the world's finest woodcarvers.

Modern day iconoclasts (atheists) want to forbid these from being displayed in the public square.

What are they afraid of?

[redhead]

For instance:

[Salvation]

The Assumption of Holy Virgin
tempera, wooden board
50 x 40 cm

[Salvation]

Christ Savior and Life Giver

[Salvation]

Iconography in the Eastern Church

Iconography in the Eastern Church

Icon, A Sacred Image

An icon is a sacred image, an image by which holiness is not only portrayed through

wood and paints, but also is experienced by the actual presence of God. The icon is a

manifestation of God to us, in a sense it is a "window to heaven," a real presence of

God, a real presence of the Holy in our midst.

As a mere word icon means image. The Greek "eikon" means more than just a picture

or a portrayal, more than a portrait. It is best translated "image" which has a deeper

meaning than just "religious painting." Image connotes the "likeness" of a person or

thing - a representation of the person as it is. It connotes the form or semblance of

the person. Image can mean embodiment and even "carbon copy." It can mean the

appearance of the person. It is beautifully expressed as a "reflection," a mirror

reflection of what is.

Thus, an icon is an appearance of God, it is God using human means to express himself.   The icon is a reflection of God and all that he is; it is holy because God is holy, sacred because God is sacred.

The theology of the icon is based upon the Incarnation as formally pronounced by the 7th Ecumenical Council held in Nicea in 787 AD. "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us..." (John 1:14); God takes on human flesh in the person of his Son, Jesus.  And so, Jesus truly God, becomes truly man and is truly the "icon of the invisible God." (Colossians 1:15; I Corinthians 11:7; II Corinthians 4:4). Jesus said: "He who sees me sees the Father," he. is the image or reflection of the Father. Because Christ was truly flesh, icons are spiritually necessary to unite man and God. In a sense they bridge the gap between what we know by sense and what we believe through faith.

 

Strangeness of Icons

To the average eye icons are strange; they are not photographs of actual people or events. They are stylized, unique, void of dimension, above and beyond the plane of reality. To understand the why of icon strangeness, it is necessary to accept the fact that icons are pictorial expressions of the teaching of the church. They represent concrete events and persons of sacred history and indicate their inner meaning. The image attempts to portray the "deified" or transfigured saint - the glorious person who shares fully the life of God. In an attempt to do this, the icon painter forgets three dimension, real physical appearance, details and background. He uses blazing colors, backgrounds of gold, elaborate stylized clothing, elongated features and a gaze beyond time. All this is used in an attempt to take us beyond our present human state, good in itself hut only completed by our transfiguration, our change to a glorious "life in God."

Nature Transfigured

Since Jesus Christ took on human flesh, he gave greater importance to humanity - all nature is renewed because of his being like unto us. The image of God is perfectly seen in the image of man, more so it deifies man. No lines, colors nor words represent God adequately but icons attempt to use nature, a gift of God and make his presence felt and seen. Thus, the language of icons uses symbols and figures to attempt to portray what cannot be truly portrayed - the unique God.

All aspects of God's creation go into making an icon. All these natural elements try to give us a vision of God. Chalk and alabaster are used in a ground on which the paint is applied; these are representations of the mineral world. Plant life is manifested by the wood on which the icon is painted. Next is the animal kingdom - the eggs mixed with the paint. The human world offers the painter, the one through whose hands God acts. Nature is further represented by the natural pigments used for color and precious gems used for adornment. All put together, the icon elements emphasize that holiness dwells in creation.

Even the icon painter must be a special person, dedicated to a holy life, a God-filled life. Before picking up a brush to begin painting, prayer and fasting are necessary as proper bodily preparations. The icon painter should know and love the Scriptures; the icon painter should be a worshipper of great devotion and depth - knowing and living his life in God, so that he may properly portray what life in God is all about.

 

The Icon and Prayer

Judging from all that has been said, the icon takes us beyond the "good-looking" picture placed on a wall to decorate a room. The icon is an object of prayer. Because it communicates God to us, we stand before it in awe and love. God turns his face toward us and we now face him and address him in prayer. Our churches are filled with icons so as to re-create heaven on earth. In worship and liturgy, the icon has its proper place as a manifestation of God. Even icons of saints, because of their God-filled lives, lead us to the perfect icon, Jesus the Christ-God. The visible presence of these holy men and women remind us of the invisible presence of the heavenly courts. All the icons in the church, properly arranged, form one great icon of the Kingdom of God.

In our homes icons should have a similar importance. Since the family is the nucleus or core of Christian life, the home should show the transfigured actions of its inhabitants. A special corner, usually the Eastern corner of the family room or sitting room is reserved as the "icon corner." It is here that are placed the icons of Christ, his holy Mother, the saints after whom the family members are named, the holy cross of the Lord and the Bible or at least the Gospel. Each icon corner has a vigil candle constantly burning to indicate the perpetual presence of God within the home. This lamp may be a hanging type or a vigil candle lamp. An incense burner, holy water, holy oil and other religious objects rest in this special place also.

It is at the icon corner that the family gathers in group prayer; it is here that an individual places his praise to God and prayers of petition. Standing with arms outstretched and palms opened in a gesture of humble begging, we pray before the presence of God in the icon.

When we approach an icon, we bow and sign ourselves with the cross; we kiss the icon with our lips as we would kiss anyone we love. We bow again as a sign of our being touched by holiness. Our actions speak and show that the presence of God is real in humanity.

Matter is "spirit bearing." God is transmitted and manifested through matter, his life is seen and lived. Because of this ineffable presence the entire universe, humanity at its best, becomes a living icon and reality of God. God meets man in nature and shares his presence with us. The icon is one special way of portraying this great truth.

 

[Salvation]

What Are Icons? A Practical Guide [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
Being Catholic: Sacred Things, Sacred Images: Statues and Other Icons

[GOP Poet]

Informative and interesting post Salvation. Thank you so much for posting.

“You shall not make for yourself a graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth” (Deut. 4:8)

This has often confused me as an artist. Often artist in one way or the other try to create a likeness of the world or of God whether it be in words or in a recreated image. Also my husband and I have many crosses, amazing icons, pictures of Jesus and Mary . . . we love them and they are often reminders of Jesus and Mary's commitment and in the case of the icons that I have a reminder of the beauty of Mary and Jesus and their light by an artists portrayal and love for their subjects. Thoughts?

[GOP Poet]

The icon is an object of prayer.

Yes. Exactly this is how I see it and how my soul has always seen them as you mention overall in your post. Great overall information. I will think of this and refer back to it often.

[Aliska]

It's hard to choose; in my own collection I have a lot of different ones I like.

I found a nicer, larger version of the first one but just could not get it to embed no matter what I tried.

[annalex]

Nativity of the Lord

[Kolokotronis]

The Synodikon of the Holy Fathers of the 7th Ecumenical Council which Orthodox Christians recite in unison on the Sunday of Orthodoxy:

“As the prophets beheld, as the Apostles have taught, as the Church has received, as the teachers have dogmatized, as the Universe has agreed, as Grace has shown forth, as Truth has revealed, as falsehood has been dissolved, as Wisdom has presented, as Christ awarded, thus we declare, thus we assert, thus we preach Christ our true God, and honor His Saints in words, in writings, in thoughts, in sacrifices, in churches, in Holy Icons; on the one hand worshiping and reverencing Christ as God and Lord; and on the other hand honoring as true servants of the same Lord of all and accordingly offering them veneration.

This is the Faith of the Apostles,
This is the Faith of the Fathers,
This is the Faith of the Orthodox,
This is the Faith which has established the Universe.”

Every Orthodox child (and adult) knows this synodikon and every Orthodox child knows and loves his/her icons. We live with them; they are a part of our lives and in many ways define who we are.

[annalex]

The entire explanation of the Nativity icon is worth reading. These are the several important elements:

This icon is quite faithful to the traditional iconography established for the Nativity of Christ. Important features of this composition include:

Mary (usually disproportionately large) as the central figure, resting on a bier

Joseph, usually tempted by the devil (an old man with a cane), but sometimes facing a shepherd

1. Baby Jesus swaddled in his cradle, shown in a cave
2. Two servant women preparing to wash or washing the baby
3. Angels, the messengers of God
4. The Magi bearing gifts
5. The shepherds, announcing the good news
6. A few farm animals.

Alexander Boguslawski

I would add that the Ox and the Donkey are traditionally shown based on "The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib: but Israel hath not known me, and my people hath not understood" (Isaiah 1:3). Jesus's crib, or the manger, is often, and also in this icon, shown to suggest a coffin, since Christ baby was born to die. The naturalistic detail of women washing baby Jesus is there to instruct us of the fully human nature of Christ coexisting with His divine nature, signaled by the realistic circumstances of His birth. Incidentally, it is not uncommon to see the same person, in this case, Jesus, portrayed several times in the icon, as here, once asleep in the manger and the other time being washed.

[annalex]

This is the oldest icon of theNativity I know, it is probably Coptic. Note that most of the canonical elements are present here as well, and the composition is very similar. I don't see the Satan temping St. Joseph, although his posture indicates doubt (iconographers are generally reluctant to show Satan anyway). An element not in the previous Russian icon is the ray of divine power descending from heavens and touching the baby; the Christmas Star is incorporated in the design.

[annalex]

And here comes the real Santa Claus.

St. Nicholas the Miracleworker (12th-13th c.)

The third icon among our examples, St. Nicholas the Miracleworker, with Scenes from His Life, also comes from Sinai, but it is a later work, from the end of the twelfth or the first half of the thirteenth century. The saint is an amalgamation of two St. Nicholases, a bishop of the fourth century and a pious monk of the sixth. By the twelfth century St. Nicholas has become one of the most beloved and popular saints, not only in the Byzantine Empire but in Russia and the West. He was considered the patron of sailors, seamen, and fishermen, scholars, students and teachers, merchants, traders, marriageable maidens, bankers, and even robbers and thieves. Hagiographical icons of the saint presented in the middle his bust (in Russia, also his standing figure) and a selection of episodes from his life and from his posthumous miracles framing the central image. The icon shown here includes 16 episodes, from the saint's birth to his death. The monumental character of the central panel is softened by an addition of interesting decorative details. The hair and the beard of the saint are fancifully outlined by flowing white curls and the crosses on the saint's omophorion show intricate design. Next to Nicholas' head are two small figures: on the left Christ with a Gospel book, and on the right the Virgin with an omophorion. These two figures allude to the story of the saint's presence at the First Ecumenical Synod in Nicaea in 325. According to the story, Nicholas, angered by the blasphemous words of the heretic Arius against the Holy Trinity, slapped him on the face. For this, he was put in prison and his bishop's attributes, the Gospel Book and the omophorion, were taken from him. However, at night, Christ and the Virgin appeared in his prison cell and returned the Gospel book and the omophorion to him, forcing Emperor Constantine to free the saint and reinstate him as a bishop. In Russia, St. Nicholas became the most popular saint of all, depicted in literally thousands of icons, ranging from simple busts to very elaborate hagiographical icons with more than forty border scenes.

Alexander Boguslawski

I encourage anyone interested in iconography to browse this source.

[D-fendr]

[TASMANIANRED]

Thanks for posting this.

[Salvation]

I had that problem too. That’s why I had to just link one.

[truemiester]

I recall touring St. Petersburg, a large Russian Orthodox. There is an Icon that is beleived to have saved the city during WW2. While surrounded by the Germans, the people would pray and the priest would carry th icon around the city.

Even after 80 years of brutal repression by the communists, it is faith in Jesus Christ that stands th test of time.