ICONOGRAPHY, RELIGIOUS PAINTINGS AND STATUARY
Many Western Christians assume that iconography is traditional in Eastern Christendom while religious paintings and statuary are traditional Western Christendom. However, that is a misconception.
Iconography is ancient, and was used in both Eastern and Western Christendom. Religious paintings and the use of statuary in churches is not ancient at all, dates back only to the Renaissance and especially to the Counter Reformation, and has never been used in the Orthodox Church East or West, in ancient or in modern times.
A 1,500-year-old church in the city of Rome which was buried under debris from an earthquake for more than a millennium has recently reopened to the public after a painstaking restoration of some of the world’s earliest Christian art.
The sixth-century church of Santa Maria Antiqua is located in the ancient Roman Forum, at the bottom of the Palatine Hill, where Roman Emperors lived for centuries. It was buried under rubble by an earthquake in AD 847.
“This church is the Sistine Chapel of the early Middle Ages," Maria Andaloro, an art historian involved in the project, told Reuters. Being buried by the earthquake saved the church from being altered in later centuries, particularly during the Counter-Reformation, said Professor Andaloro.
The main frescoes, decorating the walls of the central nave and sanctuary, were painted under Pope Martin I, who was Bishop of Rome from AD 649 to 655. Further frescoes were ordered to be painted by Pope John VII (705 to 707).
The photos of the interior of this ancient Roman church are a must see. There are none of the paintings and statuary that we see in Roman Catholic churches (both pre and post-Vatican II), because such artwork is not ancient at all, was never used in the undivided Church, and only dates back to the Renaissance and especially to the Counter Reformation.
The iconography that you see on the walls of a Western Rite Orthodox parish or monastery is not “Eastern,” but was used everywhere, both East and West in the ancient Church, and remains unchanged in the Orthodox Church to this very day. You will see the same kind of iconography in this important ancient Roman church — “the Sistine Chapel of the early Middle Ages.”
In the photos you will see a large icon of the Crucifixion over where the altar was and you will see icons of the Saints covering the walls. This is what all Orthodox Catholic churches looked like. There were no life-like paintings and statuary like we see in the West today. Instead, the churches were adorned with iconography. Iconography is not “Eastern.” It is Catholic, Universal. Iconography is not mere religious art. There is a big difference. Icons are “windows into heaven” through which we see the Saints as they are now, transfigured by the grace of God.
The sixth-century church of Santa Maria Antiqua located in the ancient Roman Forum in the city of Rome is an Orthodox church. Popes Martin I, and John VII, were Orthodox popes. The Patriarchate of Rome was an Orthodox Patriarchate until 1054, when it unilaterally changed the Nicene Creed and fell away into schism, setting the stage for the Protestant Revolution of the 16th century and what has been called “the French Revolution in the Church” in the wake of Vatican II. Being buried by the earthquake saved the church from being altered in later centuries, particularly during the Counter-Reformation, said Professor Andaloro.
Here is the link to this eye-opening article about the sixth-century church of Santa Maria Antiqua from the London Telegraph. The photos are amazing:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/03/23/sistine-chapel-of-the-early-middle-ages-buried-for-a-millenium-b/
What about in England? At the time of the Papal Schism in 1054, the Church in the British Isles (England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales) remained Orthodox. This led to the Norman Invasion and Conquest in 1066, which was launched to bring Orthodox England under papal authority.
The ancient churches in England looked like Santa Maria Antiqua in Rome. Lot’s of iconography, but no religious pictures or statuary.
St. Mary’s Chapel in the palace of Westminster is a Royal Peculiar and is the chapel for the members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. This chapel dates from the 13th century and, although it is post-Norman Conquest, it was built in the ancient style.
This 13th century undercroft chapel is, in a word, ornate. From the patterned tile floor to the stained glass windows, and from the elaborately painted, vaulted ceilings and roof bosses to the polished, hanging lanterns, it is a visual feast. The first thing that will gain your attention is the row of beautiful icons on the wall behind the altar. Icons, but no paintings or statues. Paintings and statuary are not ancient at all. They are Renaissance and Counter Reformation.
You can view the picture of St. Mary’s Chapel. Here is the link:
http://www.shipoffools.com/mystery/2010/1936.html
A Western Rite Orthodox church today will look like all ancient Western churches did. There will be iconography on the walls and behind the altar, but no Renaissance or Counter Reformation style religious paintings or statuary. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be.
By Fr. Victor Novak
Iconography is ancient, and was used in both Eastern and Western Christendom. Religious paintings and the use of statuary in churches is not ancient at all, dates back only to the Renaissance and especially to the Counter Reformation, and has never been used in the Orthodox Church East or West, in ancient or in modern times.
A 1,500-year-old church in the city of Rome which was buried under debris from an earthquake for more than a millennium has recently reopened to the public after a painstaking restoration of some of the world’s earliest Christian art.
The sixth-century church of Santa Maria Antiqua is located in the ancient Roman Forum, at the bottom of the Palatine Hill, where Roman Emperors lived for centuries. It was buried under rubble by an earthquake in AD 847.
“This church is the Sistine Chapel of the early Middle Ages," Maria Andaloro, an art historian involved in the project, told Reuters. Being buried by the earthquake saved the church from being altered in later centuries, particularly during the Counter-Reformation, said Professor Andaloro.
The main frescoes, decorating the walls of the central nave and sanctuary, were painted under Pope Martin I, who was Bishop of Rome from AD 649 to 655. Further frescoes were ordered to be painted by Pope John VII (705 to 707).
The photos of the interior of this ancient Roman church are a must see. There are none of the paintings and statuary that we see in Roman Catholic churches (both pre and post-Vatican II), because such artwork is not ancient at all, was never used in the undivided Church, and only dates back to the Renaissance and especially to the Counter Reformation.
The iconography that you see on the walls of a Western Rite Orthodox parish or monastery is not “Eastern,” but was used everywhere, both East and West in the ancient Church, and remains unchanged in the Orthodox Church to this very day. You will see the same kind of iconography in this important ancient Roman church — “the Sistine Chapel of the early Middle Ages.”
In the photos you will see a large icon of the Crucifixion over where the altar was and you will see icons of the Saints covering the walls. This is what all Orthodox Catholic churches looked like. There were no life-like paintings and statuary like we see in the West today. Instead, the churches were adorned with iconography. Iconography is not “Eastern.” It is Catholic, Universal. Iconography is not mere religious art. There is a big difference. Icons are “windows into heaven” through which we see the Saints as they are now, transfigured by the grace of God.
The sixth-century church of Santa Maria Antiqua located in the ancient Roman Forum in the city of Rome is an Orthodox church. Popes Martin I, and John VII, were Orthodox popes. The Patriarchate of Rome was an Orthodox Patriarchate until 1054, when it unilaterally changed the Nicene Creed and fell away into schism, setting the stage for the Protestant Revolution of the 16th century and what has been called “the French Revolution in the Church” in the wake of Vatican II. Being buried by the earthquake saved the church from being altered in later centuries, particularly during the Counter-Reformation, said Professor Andaloro.
Here is the link to this eye-opening article about the sixth-century church of Santa Maria Antiqua from the London Telegraph. The photos are amazing:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/03/23/sistine-chapel-of-the-early-middle-ages-buried-for-a-millenium-b/
What about in England? At the time of the Papal Schism in 1054, the Church in the British Isles (England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales) remained Orthodox. This led to the Norman Invasion and Conquest in 1066, which was launched to bring Orthodox England under papal authority.
The ancient churches in England looked like Santa Maria Antiqua in Rome. Lot’s of iconography, but no religious pictures or statuary.
St. Mary’s Chapel in the palace of Westminster is a Royal Peculiar and is the chapel for the members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. This chapel dates from the 13th century and, although it is post-Norman Conquest, it was built in the ancient style.
This 13th century undercroft chapel is, in a word, ornate. From the patterned tile floor to the stained glass windows, and from the elaborately painted, vaulted ceilings and roof bosses to the polished, hanging lanterns, it is a visual feast. The first thing that will gain your attention is the row of beautiful icons on the wall behind the altar. Icons, but no paintings or statues. Paintings and statuary are not ancient at all. They are Renaissance and Counter Reformation.
You can view the picture of St. Mary’s Chapel. Here is the link:
http://www.shipoffools.com/mystery/2010/1936.html
A Western Rite Orthodox church today will look like all ancient Western churches did. There will be iconography on the walls and behind the altar, but no Renaissance or Counter Reformation style religious paintings or statuary. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be.
By Fr. Victor Novak