[Vision2020] Icons

[Ralph Nielsen]

> On 2/25/07, Ralph Nielsen <nielsen at uidaho.edu> wrote:
>> Seeing the icons on Gary Greenfield's blog site prompts me to pass
>> this on.
>>
>> After the takeover of the Christian church by Constantine, Jesus and
>> other important figures in the church were represented in the same
>> royal garb as was worn in the court of the emperor in Constantinople
>> (present day Istanbul). The large churches became known as royal
>> palaces or basilicas. On the ceiling was usually a large mosaic of
>> the Emperor Jesus glowering down on his humble subjects. The clergy
>> were dressed in expensive robes that put to shame the lilies of the
>> field. The Christian liturgy was very similar to the court ceremonial
>> of the day.
>>
>> However, statues were not used in the Eastern Church because carved
>> images were forbidden to the ancient Hebrews in one of Yahweh's Words
>> (Commandments). But the Western Church continued the use of statues
>> for religious purposes, as had been done for many centuries by the
>> pagan Egyptians, Greeks and Romans.
>>
>> Several centuries later many Protestants went even further in
>> ecclesiastical iconoclasm and forbade both statues and pictures. To
>> this day in many old Dutch Calvinist churches the original Catholic
>> stained glass windows have been replaced by plain Protestant glass.
>> So instead of worshipping an icon or a statue many Protestants now
>> worship the Bible. Idolatry has been replaced by Bibliolatry.
>>
>> Ralph

> On Feb 25, 2007, at 11:20 PM, Andreas Schou wrote:

> Ralph --
>
> I don't quite understand. As you advocate the worship of nothing at
> all, why is any particular practice preferable to idolatry?
>
> -- ACS

Andreas,

I don't think I said that, did I? I simply presented some historical  
facts. Make of them what you will.

Ralph