THE ICON AND SCRIPTURE Many things have been written about Orthodox Christian ikons. They have been called windows to heaven, mystic realities, and many other exotic things. All these words are true, and the explanations given for them are reasonable and sound. Nevertheless, I want to explore with you what I believe to be the most fundamental meaning of the ikon. Critics of ikonography often condemn it as pagan, idolatrous, and worse. They do so from ignorance, yet in North America many Orthodox people fall for these criticisms and end up rejecting the Apostolic Faith. One reason for this is that the explanations of ikons all begin at far too esoteric a level and neglect to relate ikonography more fully to the Holy Scripture. Thou shalt make two cherubim of hammered gold, at the two ends of the mercy seat. Moreover, thou shalt form the tabernacle with ten curtains of finely woven linen, blue and purple and scarlet: thou shalt weave them with cherubim of fine craftsmanship (Ex.25:18; 26:1) When God caused Moses to build the tabernacle in the wilderness, He commanded that the walls of the temple be covered with inwoven ikons of cherubim, and that hammered metal ikons of the cherubim be placed on either end of the ark of the covenant, overshadowing the mercy seat on the ark. Why was this done? Precisely to reveal to the Hebrews that, in the tabernacle, heaven had truly come down to earth, that God Himself would commune and fellowship with His people in the tabernacle (Ex.25:22). The ikons of the heavenly beings proclaimed that heaven was, in a manner, revealed by the tabernacle, and that the rule and reign of God was manifested in the holy place. It is for just this reason that the walls of Orthodox Christian churches are covered with ikons of those who have been fully glorified and become partakers of the rule and reign of God (the kingdom of heaven). When we enter an Orthodox church and see the ikons of the saints and angels on the walls, we receive exactly the same message the priests received when they entered the tabernacle in the wilderness: here, God has manifested Himself. Here, heaven has truly come down to earth, for God, Who is always with us, Who is everywhere present, has uniquely manifested Himself in His Church. In the church, in the Divine Liturgy, the reign and rule of God are manifested, and He especially communes and fellowships with us in the mutual worship and Mystery of Holy Communion. It is important for us to have this understanding of the ikons which God commanded for His tabernacle when He gave the law of His Old Testament, and which the Holy Spirit has revealed to His New Testament Church, if we are to fully understand the Divine Liturgy and the typikon. Ikonography is a form of the Holy Scripture. It is nothing else but the Bible, and the correct interpretation of the Bible, transferred to paint and mosaic. When sectarians speak of a Bible only religion, and express the idea that one must read and study the Bible personally in order to find salvation, they condemn generations of deeply believing Christians and holy martyrs. In past centuries, the Bible did not even exist as a single book. It was almost impossible for the average person to ever own a copy of the various Scriptures. They had to be hand copied on vellum, and they were expensive beyond the hope of an ordinary person. Moreover, until fairly recently, the literacy rate in most countries was not high enough for the broad masses to even read the Scripture. The Orthodox Church met this problem very early by adapting ikonography, already developed in the first century, to a teaching use. Almost the entire Bible would be painted in a manner which was strictly regulated so that it correctly portrayed the Scripture. After all, no one would be allowed to replace the Holy Scripture with their own Bible, so no one would be permitted to paint their own Bible and replace the Scripture with it. Ikonographic art was purposely regulated and structured so that it would honestly and accurately present the Holy Scripture and a sound interpretation of it. In time, a large portion of the Scripture would be set to paint on the walls of churches and in many cases, there would be no bare spots left on a church wall. Every nook and cranny would be filled with sound portrayals of the Scripture. Ikonography became another language into which the Scripture was accurately translated, and in which it was accurately interpreted. In the following illustrations and text, we will see excellent examples of the Bible translated into the language of ikons. These paintings are Orthodox ikons because they are scripturally and doctrinally correct and the Scripture is properly interpreted in them. In the first illustration, we see the interior of the church of High Dechani in Serbia. Here, both the Scripture and the living history of the Church are composed together. We have a chronicle of Gods Church in all ages, binding the viewer together with the life of Christ, the witness of the holy martyrs and the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Church from the creation to the Second Coming. In plate 2, we see the Bible and the life of Christs Church painted ikonographically on the exterior walls of the church of Suchevitsa Monastery in Romania. It is in this context of the ikon as Scripture that we now wish to explore the meaning of ikonography. ***************************************************************** In the images below, we see the iconography that God directly commanded to be placed in His temple (here, the Tabernacle built by Moses). The third picture is of Hebrew iconography from the Great Synagogue of Dura, and finally, the canonical iconography -- the Scripture translated into liturgical art-- at Holy Trinity Monastery, Jordanville, N.Y.
Posted on: Tue, 22 Apr 2014 23:45:54 +0000
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