Does Greek Orthodox use icons?

The Orthodox Church uses icons to assist in worship. Icons are a ‘window to heaven’ and they help us to focus on the divine things.

Why do Greek Orthodox have icons?

Icons are created to represent Biblical events, the people of the Bible, and the saints and if they were too realistic, the concern is that they would be confused with idols, which is defined as an “object of worship” according to Webster’s Dictionary. Icons aren’t to be worshipped, they simply serve as reminders.

Who is Saint Amari?

According to Catholic tradition, Saint Amaro or Amarus the Pilgrim (Spanish: San Amaro, Portuguese: Santo Amaro, Galician: Santo Amaro) was an abbot and sailor who it was claimed sailed across the Atlantic Ocean to an earthly paradise.

What is an icon in the Greek Orthodox Church?

An icon (from Ancient Greek εἰκών (eikṓn) ‘image, resemblance’) is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, the Roman Catholic, and certain Eastern Catholic churches.

How do I choose an Orthodox icon?

Choosing an Icon There is no right or wrong answer to this, as long as they are official Orthodox icons. Once you buy it, you may take it to your priest to be blessed. In general, choosing one of Jesus is a good bet. You can also find some where Mother Mary is holding Jesus as a small boy.

Where is Saint Amaro from?

Saint Amaro is a late-medieval pilgrim saint associated with the city of Burgos in northern Spain, on the pilgrimage route to the shrine of Saint James at Compostela in Galicia. The saint’s presumed remains lie in the thirteenth-century Hospital del Rey in Burgos (Novena 1966).

Do we pray to icons?

So icons invite us to meet their subjects in the present presence of the living God. Of course, we do not pray to icons, but we may pray through them, as it were. The icon functions as a tool for recollecting the mind and heart and settling in to the nearness of God (whether felt or unfelt).

What does it mean to venerate an icon?

Icons are more than merely religious pictures and when Orthodox believers venerate icons, they demonstrate respect and honour for them, since they understand that they are simply expressing deep feelings for the people and events that are depicted.