Theology and Spirituality of Icons

This course studies icons in the Eastern Christian tradition from the perspectives of history, theology, liturgy and spirituality. The course focuses notably the origins of Christian art, the development of features particular to icons, the iconoclastic controversy of the 7th-8th centuries, and the major schools and styles of icons in the Orthodox world, especially the Byzantine-Greek and Russian styles. The theology of the icon will be studied primarily through the iconoclastic conflict and modern theology of icons, with emphasis on primary texts from the iconoclasts and the Orthodox position, especially St. Theodore Studite, St. John of Damascus, and the pronouncements of the Seventh Ecumenical Council (Nicea, 787) and the Triumph of Orthodoxy (843). The course analyses the spirituality and interpretation of iconographic symbolism, with a focus on the main types of icons of Christ, the Mother of God, Holy Week, the twelve major liturgical feasts, and important saints. Primary sources include Biblical, patristic, liturgical, and hagiographic material.