Religious images in Christian theology
Religious images in Christian theology have a role within the liturgical and devotional life of adherents of certain Christian denominations. The use of religious images has often been a contentious issue in Christian history. Concern over idolatry is the driving force behind the various traditions of aniconism in Christianity.
In the
Certain periods of Christian history have seen supporters of aniconism in Christianity, first with the movement of
The church father
A
Jewish origins
Idolatry is prohibited by many verses in the Old Testament, but there is no one section that clearly defines idolatry. Rather there are a number of commandments on this subject spread through the books of the Hebrew Bible, some of which were written in different historical eras, in response to different issues. Idolatry in the Hebrew Bible is defined as the worship of idols (or images); the worship of polytheistic gods by use of idols (or images) and even the use of idols in the worship of Yahweh (God).[citation needed]
The Israelites used various images in connection with their worship, including carved
New Testament
The
The New Testament also uses the term "idolatry" to refer to worship like passion for things such as wealth, as in Colossians 3:5, "Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed which is idolatry." Some Christian theologians see the absolutization of an idea as idolatrous.[19] Therefore, undue focus on particular features of Christianity to the exclusion of others would constitute idolatry.
The New Testament does contain the rudiments of an argument which provides a basis for religious images or icons. Jesus was visible, and orthodox Christian doctrine maintains that Jesus is
The use of icons and symbols in Christian worship
The image of "
After the end of persecution, and the adoption of Christianity by
Paintings of Old Testament scenes are found in Jewish
Christian use of relics also dates to the catacombs, when Christians found themselves praying in the presence of the bodies of martyrs, sometimes using their tombs as altars for sharing the
Significant periods of
This decision was based on the arguments including that the biblical commandment forbidding images of God was because no-one had seen God. But, by the Incarnation of Jesus, who is God incarnate in visible matter, humankind has now seen God. It was therefore argued that they were not depicting the invisible God, but God as He appeared in the flesh.[9]
The Libri Carolini are a response prepared in the court of Charlemagne, when under the mistaken impression that the Nicea Council had approved the worship as opposed to the veneration of images.
Different understandings of the use of images
Catholicism
Catholics use images, such as the crucifix, the cross, in religious life and pray using depictions of saints. They also venerate images and liturgical objects by kissing, bowing, and making the sign of the cross. They point to the Old Testament patterns of worship followed by the Hebrew people as examples of how certain places and things used in worship may be treated with reverence or venerated, without worshiping them. The Ark of the Covenant was treated with great reverence and included images of cherubim on top of it (Exodus 25:18–22), and certain miracles were associated with it, yet this was not condemned as it was commissioned by the God of Israel Himself for the manifestation of His presence as well as physical manifestations of His Judgement and Glory.
Catholicism interprets the commandment not to make "any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above" to mean to not "bow down and worship" the image in and of itself nor a false god through the image. Catholic theology offers the following explanations of liturgical practice that features images, icons, statues, and the like:
- Gregory the Great wrote, "...it is one thing to adore an image, it is quite another thing to learn from the appearance of a picture what we must adore. What books are to those who can read, that is a picture to the ignorant who look at it; in a picture even the unlearned may see what example they should follow; in a picture they who know no letters may vet read. Hence, for barbarians especially a picture takes the place of a book."[24]
- Blessed Virgin Mary receives hyperdulia. The worship of whatever type, latria, hyperdulia, or dulia, can be considered to go through the icon, image, or statue: "The honor given to an image reaches to the prototype" (St. John Damascene in Summa ³). Adrian Fortescue sums up Church teaching: "We should give to relics, crucifixes and holy pictures a relative honour, as they relate to Christ and his saints and are memorials of them. We do not pray to relics or images, for they can neither see nor hear nor help us."[24]
- Both the literal worship of an inanimate object and latria, or sacrificial worship to something or someone that is not God, are forbidden; yet such are not the basis for Catholic worship. The Catholic knows "that in images there is no divinity or virtue on account of which they are to be worshipped, that no petitions can be addressed to them, and that no trust is to be placed in them. . . that the honour which is given to them is referred to the objects (prototypa) which they represent, so that through the images which we kiss, and before which we uncover our heads and kneel, we adore Christ and venerate the Saints whose likenesses they are" (Council of Trent, Sess. XXV, de invocatione Sanctorum).
The Catholic Church states that
Lutheran and Orthodox
A recent joint Lutheran-Orthodox statement made in the 7th Plenary of the Lutheran-Orthodox Joint Commission,[28] in July 1993 in Helsinki, reaffirmed the Ecumenical Council decisions on the nature of Christ and the veneration of images:
7. As Lutherans and Orthodox we affirm that the teachings of the ecumenical councils are authoritative for our churches. The ecumenical councils maintain the integrity of the teaching of the undivided Church concerning the saving, illuminating/justifying and glorifying acts of God and reject heresies which subvert the saving work of God in Christ. Orthodox and Lutherans, however, have different histories. Lutherans have received the Nicaeno?Constantinopolitan Creed with the addition of the filioque. The Seventh Ecumenical Council, the Second Council of Nicaea in 787, which rejected iconoclasm and restored the veneration of icons in the churches, was not part of the tradition received by the Reformation. Lutherans, however, rejected the iconoclasm of the 16th century, and affirmed the distinction between adoration due to the Triune God alone and all other forms of veneration (CA 21). Through historical research this council has become better known. Nevertheless it does not have the same significance for Lutherans as it does for the Orthodox. Yet, Lutherans and Orthodox are in agreement that the Second Council of Nicaea confirms the christological teaching of the earlier councils and in setting forth the role of images (icons) in the lives of the faithful reaffirms the reality of the incarnation of the eternal Word of God, when it states: "The more frequently, Christ, Mary, the mother of God, and the saints are seen, the more are those who see them drawn to remember and long for those who serve as models, and to pay these icons the tribute of salutation and respectful veneration. Certainly this is not the full adoration in accordance with our faith, which is properly paid only to the divine nature, but it resembles that given to the figure of the honored and life?giving cross, and also to the holy books of the gospels and to other sacred objects" (Definition of the Second Council of Nicaea).
Methodism
Writing for the United Methodist Church, Tricia Brown discusses the importance of sacred art:[33]
Throughout the ages, art has been a part of the church. God designed the temple, employing artisans to create its beautiful and ornate workmanship. Churches of old included stained-glass windows created to illustrate God’s word, and even the most simple country churches often include beautiful wooden crosses and podiums. Writers, speakers and musicians have always taken part in worship services. Art is and always has been part of the church. It is simply another way in which people wonder at and express God’s creativity, love and majesty.[33]
The Methodist Modern Art Collection is housed by the Methodist Church of Great Britain, and the Secretary of the Methodist Conference, the Revd Canon Gareth J Powell, writes that it features "vibrant expressions of God's love, and a whole range of conversations that are both missional and pastoral".[34]
Calvinism
The earliest
Non-use by Amish
The
See also
- Bibliolatry
- Christianity and Paganism
- Heterodoxy
- Idolatry in Islam
- Jean-Luc Marion
References
- ISBN 9780567577368.
...early Christians, and remains a Christian symbol to this day. In early Christian art, fish represented the souls of believers, while fishermen imaged the apostles as founders of the Church and thus fishers of souls.35 But, paradoxically, the 'saved' fish are the ones caught in the net of the fisherman. As Jerome puts it: 'The apostles have fished for us and have drawn us out of the sea of this world that, from dead, we might become alive.'
- ISBN 9780810136014.
The Synod of Elvira (306-312) prohibited the exhibition of images in churches on the same terms as the participation of Christians in pagan games--obviously understanding both phenomena as kindred.
- ISBN 9781597529020.
Third century visual and verbal evidence is not in disagreement; both reveal an early and generally accepted use of images in the settings of christian worship.
- ^ Browne, Laurence E. (1933). The Eclipse of Christianity in Asia: From the Time of Muhammad Till the Fourteenth Century. Cambridge University Press. p. 79.
In modern times the Nestorians alone of all the Eastern Churches have abandoned he use of images, only using the cross to which they pay the greatest reverence. The use of a plain cross without the figure of Christ on it goes back at least as far as the middle of the thirteenth century, for William of Rubruck, in his journey across Asia from Southern Russia as far as the town of Karakorum, mentions several times that the Armenians and Nestorians whom he meet used the cross but not the crucifix. In response to Rubruck's questions they could only reply that it was their custom. Whatever the cause may have been it was apparently not due to any dislike of images or pictures in general. When the Roman Catholic missionaries went to Malabar they found that the Nestorian Christians there did not use images and said, "We are Christians. We do not worship idols".
- . Retrieved 23 July 2018.
- ISBN 9781598849967.
- ISBN 9781588365002.
The Beeldenstorm, or Iconoclastic Fury, involved roving bands of radical Calvinists who were utterly opposed to all religious images and decorations in churches and who acted on their beliefs by storming into Catholic churches and destroying all artwork and finery.
- ISBN 9780968987391.
Devoutly Catholic but opposed to Inquisition tactics, they backed William of Orange in subduing the Calvinist uprising of the Dutch beeldenstorm on behalf of regent Margaret of Parma, and had come willingly to the council at her invitation.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-119-67155-8.
- ISBN 9780802828880.
However, in Anglican churches statues and images are far less prevalent than in Lutheran or Roman Catholic places of worship.
- ISBN 9780567262325.
In Greek and Russian Orthodox churches icons play a very significant part in the piety of ordinary believers who often pray before their icons.
- ISBN 9781498224246.
It is not uncommon to see icons of saints in Lutheran households and churches. Many Lutherans also adopt a historic church calendar wherein certain feast days are held in remembrance of great saints. This includes both biblical saints as well as venerable figures in church history. ... Lutherans use images, icons, and statues as tools to instruct and remind people of central elements of their faith. The crucifix is a constant reminder of the gospel. It is often placed in the sanctuary to remind both the pastor and the congregation that Christ and his cross are the center of the church's worship life. Churches use images of saints to remind the congregation of the great faith of those who have come before them, and to remind them of the unity of the church in heaven and on earth. It is a valuable picture of the communion of saints as expressed in the creed.
- ISBN 9781442244320.
Protestants also displayed devotional art as images and objects. Beginning in the 1830s, lithographers produced and sold cheap images for display in parlors. These included scenes of families reading the Bible, children praying, and Jesus preaching. Protestants also adorned their homes with handmade wall crosses and embroidered Bible quotes. Whether bought in the marketplace or handmade, Protestant art connected homes and families to God and Jesus. Catholics also displayed devotional art in homes. In the 1870s, Irish immigrants adapted protestant domestic religion. This home art often emulated church art.
- ISBN 9780806652948.
Some Lutherans designate a special place in the home where they can focus during personal devotions. This space could include a Bible, candles, and small colored paraments or hangings that change according to the seasons of the church calendar.
- ISBN 9780898705669.
One thing some families do is make a family altar with pictures of Jesus, candles, a crucifix, and other religious articles. This family altar reminds the family of the importance of prayer.
- ISBN 9780814646847.
Without a doubt, then, liturgy and shared devotion are integrated in Eastern Christianity; icons are present in both private and public spaces. In the home, most Eastern Christians have an icon corner where members of the family and guests alike may "greet" the saints in prayer.
- ^ Geoffrey W. Bromiley International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (Grand Rapids: William B Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1982), vol. 2 p 794.
- ^ "1 Corinthians 10:14-22 KJV - Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from". Bible Gateway. Retrieved 2013-09-20.
- ^ John MacQuarrie, Principles of Christian Theology (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1977), 145.
- ^ "John 14:7-9 NKJV - The Father Revealed - "If you had". Bible Gateway. Retrieved 2013-09-20.
- ^ "Colossians 1 NKJV - Greeting - Paul, an apostle of Jesus". Bible Gateway. Retrieved 2013-09-20.
- ^ Péter Bokody, "Idolatry or Power: St. Francis in Front of the Sultan," In Promoting the Saints: Cults and Their Contexts from Late Antiquity until the Early Modern Period, ed. Ottó Gecser and others (Budapest: CEU Press, 2010), 69-81. https://www.academia.edu/1787059/Idolatry_or_Power_St._Francis_in_Front_of_the_Sultan
- ^ "The Icon FAQ". Orthodoxinfo.com. Retrieved 2013-09-20.
- ^ a b Fortescue, Adrian. "Veneration of Images" The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 15 July 2019 This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ Summa Theologica text
- ^ Catechism of The Catholic Church, passage 2113, pp.460, Geoffrey Chapman, 1999
- ^ General Audience. June 15, 2011
- ^ "lutheran orthodox". Helsinki.fi. Retrieved 2013-09-20.
- ^ "Luther and the Iconoclasts". Lutheran Reformation. 2016-06-09. Retrieved 2023-06-26.
- ISBN 9780820486857.
Although some reformers, such as John Calvin and Ulrich Zwingli, rejected all images, Martin Luther defended the importance of images as tools for instruction and aids to devotion.
- ^ ISBN 9780761843375.
- ISSN 0950-4125.
- ^ a b Brown, Tricia (2018). "Bring the beauty of the arts to your church | United Methodist Communications". United Methodist Church. Retrieved 30 April 2018.
- ^ Powell, Gareth J. "Introduction". Methodist Church in Britain. Retrieved 30 April 2018.
- ISBN 9780810872240.
While Germany and the Scandinavian countries adopted the Lutheran model of church and state, France, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Hungary, what is now the Czech Republic, and Scotland created Reformed Churches based, in varying ways, on the model Calvin set up in Geneva. Although England pursued the Reformation ideal in its own way, leading to the formation of the Anglican Communion, the theology of the Thirty-Nine Articles of the Church of England were heavily influenced by Calvinism.
- ISBN 9781424069224.
In an episode known as the Great Iconoclasm, bands of Calvinists visited Catholic churches in the Netherlands in 1566, shattering stained-glass windows, smashing statues, and destroying paintings and other artworks they perceived as idolatrous.
- ISBN 9781442271593.
Lutherans continued to worship in pre-Reformation churches, generally with few alterations to the interior. It has even been suggested that in Germany to this day one finds more ancient Marian altarpieces in Lutheran than in Catholic churches. Thus in Germany and in Scandinavia many pieces of medieval art and architecture survived. Joseph Leo Koerner has noted that Lutherans, seeing themselves in the tradition of the ancient, apostolic church, sought to defend as well as reform the use of images. "An empty, white-washed church proclaimed a wholly spiritualized cult, at odds with Luther's doctrine of Christ's real presence in the sacraments" (Koerner 2004, 58). In fact, in the 16th century some of the strongest opposition to destruction of images came not from Catholics but from Lutherans against Calvinists: "You black Calvinist, you give permission to smash our pictures and hack our crosses; we are going to smash you and your Calvinist priests in return" (Koerner 2004, 58). Works of art continued to be displayed in Lutheran churches, often including an imposing large crucifix in the sanctuary, a clear reference to Luther's theologia crucis. ... In contrast, Reformed (Calvinist) churches are strikingly different. Usually unadorned and somewhat lacking in aesthetic appeal, pictures, sculptures, and ornate altar-pieces are largely absent; there are few or no candles; and crucifixes or crosses are also mostly absent.
- ISBN 9780191578885.
Iconoclastic incidents during the Calvinist 'Second Reformation' in Germany provoked reactive riots by Lutheran mobs, while Protestant image-breaking in the Baltic region deeply antagonized the neighbouring Eastern Orthodox, a group with whom reformers might have hoped to make common cause.
- ^ Knowing God, IVP, 1973, Page 42
- ^ Knowing God, IVP, 1973, Page 43