Icons

Recently in preparation for a sermon, I re-watched the Dove Evolutions ad. It hit me while viewing the section where the face of the model is stretched and shaped by Photoshop (a computer software program), that a case could be made for a connection between current beauty “icons” and the prayer inspired icons in Greek Orthodoxy.

A few years ago I attended the Greek Festival at the Orthodox Church here in Fresno. It is a weekend celebration with food, games, activities and cultural events for the Greek community. It’s sort of like the MCC sale for Mennonites.

One of the optional events was a guided tour of the church hosted by the priest. I had never been in a Greek Orthodox church before so I took the tour. I was amazed at the sheer volume of original artwork that covered every available space in the sanctuary. These paintings of Jesus and the Saints were similar to those I had seen in churches all over the world, and yet at the same time they were completely different.

As I listened, the priest shared the meaning behind the icons. He explained how in an icon, the features are specifically adjusted by the artist to emphasize certain characteristics in order to foster prayer. For iconographers, there is a very specific set of parameters to follow. For example, the eyes are larger than normal to point to closeness and concentrated attention; the lips are closed because true contemplation requires silence; the forehead is high expressing the power of the Spirit and wisdom. All these adjustments are there to point the person looking at the icon to a different reality, a transcendent One. In essence, for the Orthodox believer, the icon becomes a gateway pointing to an ideal disciple of Jesus.

Here’s the connection with the Photoshop work on the Dove Evolutions video. As I watched the expert Photoshop technician at work I realized that he (or she) is like an iconographer. The model’s face was being adjusted right before my eyes to emphasize characteristics that our culture values as “beauty”- large eyes, long thin neck, high cheekbones, etc. Like the iconographer, the Photoshop technician points us to a transcendent reality on the nature of beauty that is frankly, unattainable. The goal for the

“Photoshopographer” isn’t to create better disciples, but to set up an image of beauty which is false in order to create sales for a product.

For both artists, a larger mission is at stake. For the iconographer, it is to create a picture that helps people connect with God. For the Photoshop technician, it is to increase sales and promote an image of beauty that is impossible to attain without surgery (or Photoshop).

Like so many, I’ve had my eyes deceived by the Photoshopographer. At times I buy into the lie that for example, I need flat abs in order to be a success. However, I’m learning to fix my eyes on a different image. Hebrews 12:2 tells us to “fix our eyes on Jesus.” The reason? 2 Corinthians 3:18 states, “And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”

Rather than the picture Photoshopographer is selling me, this is the image I want to frame my life around.

Pastor Rick Bartlett