Day 30

Over the next few reflections, we will be looking at the Icon of the Nativity and what it teaches us about this Feast. Iconography is a unique tradition within the Orthodox Church. It is another vehicle through which we are taught about Scripture. Just as we have seen in our present book that the Church uses the hymnography of the services to explain and interpret Scripture, so too does the Church use Icons to do the same thing.

It is commonly accepted that the first Icon to exist was the “Icon not made by Hands” of Jesus Christ:

During the time of the earthly ministry of the Savior, Abgar, ruler in the Syrian city of Edessa, was afflicted with leprosy. Reports of the great miracles performed by the Lord extended throughout Syria (Matt. 4:24) and as far as Arabia at this time. Although not having seen the Lord, Abgar believed in him and wrote a letter requesting Christ to come and heal him. Abgar sent his court painter, Ananias, with this letter to Palestine telling him to paint an image of the Divine Teacher. Ananias was not able go to near Christ because of the great many people listening to his preaching. He attempted to produce an image of the Lord Jesus Christ from afar, but could not. The Lord called Ananias and promised to send his disciple in order to heal Abgar from the leprosy and instruct him in salvation. Then the Lord called for water and a towel. He wiped His face with the towel, and on it was His Divine Image. The Savior sent the towel and a letter to Edessa back with Ananias. With thanksgiving Abgar received the sacred objects and started healing. He continued healing until the arrival of the disciple Thaddeus, Apostle of the 70. The Apostle preached the Gospel and baptized the Abgar and all living in Edessa. The story is recorded by the 4th century Church historian, Eusebius of Cesarea.

It is also held that the Apostle Luke painted images of the Virgin Mary, three of them to be exact, as well as images of Sts. Peter and Paul. Because of these things, Icons are considered an essential part of an Orthodox Church and vital to our understanding of scripture and our faith.

The Icon of the Nativity of Christ is a powerful example of this in the imagery it offers to us. We will look at this Icon in detail over the next few reflections and learn what it teaches us.

In Christ

Fr. David