By Fr. Sean McDermott
To prepare for four new icons we are receiving at our church, the clergy at All Saints just completed a six-part lecture series on iconography. The first three lectures are a general introduction to iconography while the last three focus on the specific saints depicted in our new icons. You may listen to the lectures below, and the accompanying slides for all the lectures are in one Google Slides document.
The first lecture is an introduction to iconographic images used in the church in general. We explore the history of images in both the East and the West.
The second lecture continues the theology of icons, distinguishing between icons and idols. We live in a culture saturated with images, so it is important to realize how images work whether those be images in a church or on a billboard.
The third lecture dives deeper into the theology of icons, specifically looking at how to view icons for devotion and how the Anglican liturgy defends the use of icons.
The fourth lecture looks at the icons of Saints Peter and Paul and offers a couple of different meditations on each icon.
The fifth lecture on St. Michael the Archangel explores the Order of Angels and how they pertain to our lives in the church today.
The final lecture is an overview of the life of St. Elizabeth the New Martyr and why her icon is so important for us to have today.
If you are having trouble listening from this page, or want to listen from a mobile device, you can go here.
Fr. Sean McDermott is Curate at All Saints Anglican Church in Charlottesville, VA and Editor in Chief of Earth & Altar.