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| Christ the Light-Giver from orthodoxinfo.com |
The Orthodox tradition continues to preserve and maintain the ancient spiritual practice of painting icons. From the earliest centuries of the church other branches of Christianity have discouraged or misunderstood the purpose of worshipping with these images. Icons present a physical likeness of the man Jesus who was also God. While no one has seen the Father, the Son walked and lived among us. These paintings use physical materials like paint and canvas to remind us that Christ was a tangible, physical incarnation of the second person of the Trinity. The Christian worshipper who prays in the presence of an icon is instructed not to pray to the image. Rather, the icon is a reminder of the God that the image represents.
Icons have been controversial almost since the beginning of the church. Some have said that the Old Testament laws against making images were warnings against idolatry; any image of a deity is therefore prohibited. The influence of Islam in Europe since the 8th century played no small part in the debate, since Muslims traditionally reject the creation of human images. The word 'iconoclast' -- one who rejects the use of icons -- is a word that remains in our vocabulary today, referring to someone who rebels against the practices and beliefs of others.
In order to counter these accusations of idolatry, icon painters make their images according to certain guidelines. These rules -- or 'conventions' -- are meant to remind us that icons are not mere physical representations of whomever is portrayed. At a retreat at Duke Divinity School, Father Edward Rommen of the Holy Transfiguration Orthodox Church taught that these limitations on artististic expression actually provide freedom for the worshipper. For instance, you may notice that the icon's images appear "flat." That is, there is little sense of depth or dimension in the paintings. This goes against the standard conventions of Western art found in the kinds of paintings that you typically see in a museum. That's because since the time of the Renaissance artists have developed a sense of "perspective" -- often through sets of disappearing planes that create an unseen vanishing point somewhere in the painting. (You may have had lessons on drawing in perspective in your elementary school Art classes.) The viewer of one of these "normal" paintings can get the idea that she is the center of the viewing experience.
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| The Nativity of Christ from morningcupofsalvation.wordpress.com |
By contrast, icons use a convention known as "reversed perspective." This turns around the typical artistic notions about who or what is in focus. Icons flatten things out by taking the away the classical sense of a perspective. When you pray in front of an icon, it reminds you that you are not the center of the universe. The God represented in the icon does not need your sense of perspective in order to exist. God is the center, not you. Praying with icons is intended to be an exercise in humility.
Worship also provides freedom through limitations. Whether we are singing in church, listening to the scriptures being read, or praying in a small group, real encounters with God remind us of Who is the center. Idols are things that reverse this order and place something else as the focal point of creation, and idolatry leads to bondage. In this sense, icons are the opposite of idols. They challenge us to do battle against the idolatries of the age that try to convince us that the world revolves around something (or someone) else. True worship frees us from living in a way that makes self a god.
Use the images in this post to reflect on the God of the universe. Pray that God would reveal the habitual sins and ways of thinking that have reversed proper perspective in your own life. Experience the freedom that comes from worshipping God as God and removing yourself from the center of life. While looking at the images, you can pray this simple yet ancient prayer, known as the Jesus prayer:
O Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.
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