Praying with Icons

It is now a month or so into the new liturgical year and a new calendar year as well!  So now what spiritually? How did your Advent and Christmas season go?  For most people, these two seasons evaporated.  Again, I ask now what?  And the answer: Ordinary Time.

But how can one fill this “ordinary” time?  Perhaps looking back in time might be helpful.  Looking back, not just a few years or even generations but back to a time when the world was both Catholic and new.  The dates for this newness:  think the 600’s.

One of the traditional spiritual treasures of that Church has been the icon.  These treasures could be venerated on a grand scale when one was taken into battle or helped worshipers pray when they were incorporated into churches or chapels. Some were so beloved they were made into jewelry and worn. Several years ago, an icon necklace was gifted to a friend of mine who not only cherished it but also wore with great devotion. 

For those who know little or nothing about icons, these images are more than mere portraits.  They are considered “windows into heaven” and the Gospels were written with the sacred colors of creation.  Icons are also on a par with the Gospels, that is they are the Scriptures that can help train the eye of the heart to see into the mystery of Holy. They speak their own language in design, symbol, color and the pictorial space is compressed. Thus, they hint rather than blare out their secrets.

Before writing an icon, the iconographer must prepare him or herself spiritually.  The chosen subject will be studied, sometimes for weeks or months.  During that time, the artist will fast, go to confession and receive the Eucharist.  As the artist writes the icon, the activity becomes prayer itself.  The noted children’s author Madeleine L’Engle once wrote, “Whatever is an open door to God, for me, is an icon.” Unlike Western art, very few icons are signed for the artist has disappeared and only the finished icon remains.

For some 1500 years, icons have befriended untold numbers on their spiritual journey.  Perhaps you could consider joining these fellow travels by rediscovering something extraordinary during ordinary time.

Resources:
Meditating with icons: a healing ancient prayer form by John Stangle and Jean Kavanaugh. © 2017.
Praying with Icons by Linette Martin. © 2011.
The Circle of Love: Praying with Rublev’s Icon of the Trinity by Ann Persson. © 2010.