Icons to be examined

By KATE BLAIN- | Comments: 0 | Leave a comment

Many Catholics have prayed before statues in their parishes. But an upcoming workshop will discuss another aid to prayer: icons.

Icons -- representations of God, Mary or saints painted on wooden panels or walls -- have a rich history in the Eastern-rite and Orthodox Church. Workshop leader Barbara Hanstine, an Episcopal deacon from Christ Church in Deposit, believes icons are also making a resurgence in the churches of the West -- even local ones. For example, St. Paul's parish in Hancock has many icons.

"A lot of your [Roman Catholic] churches and ours are getting into icons more and more," she remarked.

Interest piqued

Deacon Hanstine learned about icons during her training before her 1989 ordination to the diaconate.

"We were given an `icon of the month,'" she said. "We had to compare it with our prayer book and hymnal, and write about it. I fell in love with them."

She also visited a group of Russian Orthodox nuns to learn more about icons.

Heaven's windows

During the workshop, Deacon Hanstine plans to discuss what an icon is and look at Eastertide icons, which depict the Resurrection or Ascension. She called icons "windows into heaven" and noted that "the window goes both ways."

Icons, she said, are also "two-dimensional art." Unlike Renaissance depictions of round-bodied figures, icons show figures with small facial features and elongated bodies.

Every aspect of an icon is symbolic, said Deacon Hanstine -- even the colors used to paint it. She explained that Christ may be shown wearing a white robe because Scripture says His robes became "whiter than fuller's white" during the Transfiguration, meaning that He was radiant with God's glory.

Samples

She plans to bring a stack of books on icons to give workshop participants the chance to see many different ones. She'll also hand out packets of icon images to the group.

To pray with icons, Deacon Hanstine suggests first designating a regular spot for prayer in one's home. Using an icon "puts you in the presence of God," she said. Rather than prayer in which a penitent speaks at length to God, "it's a quiet, centered type of prayer."

The workshop will encourage that silence, she added: "It's a quiet day."

("Praying with Eastertide Icons" will be held April 28, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., at Abba House of Prayer in Albany. Donation is $20; bring bag lunch. To register, call 438-8320.)

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