Originally preached at Saint Patrick’s Episcopal Church and Day School on Epiphany 4, 30 January 2011. Based upon the text of Matthew 5:1-12.
There is a proposal within the Episcopal church to increase the recognition of the number of Saints. The new book “Holy Women, Holy Men; Celebrating the Saints” includes 340 people. I have recently begun to read about each person on their specified day of recognition. This has become part of my personal daily spiritual practices and at least for a theological geek like me it makes for great reading.
Yesterday, Saturday the 29th was set aside to remember Andrei Rublev. That is not a name that most people know. However, Andrei Rublev is recognized as Russia’s greatest creator of icons. He lived during the 1300 and 1400s. He is not likely to show up as a “Jeopardy” answer, yet his impact spans centuries.
Icons, like those of Rublev, are created on wood with gold leaf and tempura paint. While an icon is a two dimensional image of a saint or a bible scene it is not a physical portrait. It is meant to provide immediate access to the spiritual and the divine within the image. Writing an icon is a spiritual exercise. It is created with prayer. Ultimately, an icon is a window through which we can pray. It allows us, as Fr Kurt mentioned last week, to connect and when God says “Can you hear me now?” you can answer, “Yes, thanks be to God.”
What I loved about the description in the book about Andrei Rublev is the statement: “As Jesus was the icon of God, so each one of us is also.”
I have come to realize that this book is full of icons of God. Not in the sense of the painted piece you can hold in your hands, but in examples of our brothers and sisters who have lived a life as an icon of God. There are 340 examples of icons of God on the pages of the book. Here are a few of those:
Florence Tim-Oi in 1944 became the first woman ordained a priest in the Anglican Communion. As she served in Hong Kong and China she modeled for us Jesus’ words “Blessed are the meek.” When controversy stirred around her role as priest she stepped back and did not serve as a priest until many years later when the Anglican Communion recognized her priesthood. For her meekness was not an attribute to display but an attitude of the heart.
William Lloyd Garrison and Maria Stewart show us how Jesus wants us to “hunger and thirst for righteousness.” In the early 1800s in Boston Garrison started an antislavery paper, The Liberator. He said “I do not wish to think, or speak, or write, with moderation. Tell a man whose house is on fire to give a moderate alarm.” He opened his paper to contributions from black and female writers. Maria Stewart, a free-born African American was one such writer. Their hunger and thirst for righteousness led to action.
Lillian Trasher, born in Georgia, was so moved in 1909 by the testimony of a missionary that she knew God was calling her. Opening her Bible the pages fell open to Acts and she read: “I have seen the affliction of my people which is in Egypt.” Lillian Trasher looked outward rather than inward. Blessed are those who mourn; she mourned for those in Egypt, in 1911 she began caring for one sick orphan child. Her orphanage grew and by her death 50 years later she had cared for 25,000 Egyptian children. Her orphanage continues operating today.
Nicholas Ferrar recognized that “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” His family was prominent in the Virginia Company, the sponsors of Jamestown. But Nicholas knew there was more; he created an Anglican religious community in England. The community devoutly observed the rites of the Book of Common Prayer, the fasting, the vigils, and meditations. He created an opportunity to heal the poor in spirit.
These individuals are examples of what Jesus is telling us in today’s Gospel. He is describing to us how to be an icon of God; these people were icons of God.
During this past month, I have had the opportunity to serve an internship along side of Saint Patrick’s school chaplain. During one of the 6th grade classes I stood in this very space explaining to the students about icons. I explained how they are created on wood with gold leaf, tempura paint, and with prayer. I talked about icons being a window through which you pray. I also discussed that icons were part of the divisiveness of the protestant reformation. That as a result of the reformation many beautiful icons were destroyed because they were considered idol worship. A bright young 6th grader said that she agreed - it was idol worship. When I started my internship I was reminded that in a school environment your faith is often probed and questioned - this was one such moment.
I too had once struggled to make sense of icons so I decided to tell this group of 6th graders how I came to appreciate them. I told them that Rublev created many icons that were windows to the spiritual and the divine, but the one that has always spoken to me was his depiction of the Trinity. On the surface this icon shows the three angels that visited Abraham. But it was through the writings of Henri Nouwen that I came to see more. As Nouwen describes, this icon shows us Father, Son, and Holy Spirit seated at a table. In the center of the table is a chalice, the heavenly feast. The icon shows how Father, Son and Holy Spirit are looking at each other with love and respect. They are modeling for us that though we are many, we are one.
This icon also has an empty seat at the table. That seat is open for you, and for me. I look at the empty place at the table and know that I am, and you are also, being invited to be a disciple of the Lord. We are being invited to be an icon of God.
This thoughtful young woman looked at me and her face and eyes conveyed what she said “that story is beautiful, I think I like icons now.”
It was these 6th graders who confirmed to me that we are to be icons of God. But even more than that we need to make the icon come to life.
When I preached in the school chapel last week I was reminded we are Christ’s body here on earth. We are his hands, his arms, his voice and his heart.
We are icons of God. We are Christ’s body here on earth.
In the words of Saint Teresa of Avila let us pray:
Christ has no body now but yours.
No hands, no feet on earth but yours.
Yours are the eyes through which He looks
Compassion on this world.
Yours are the feet with which He walks to do good.
Yours are the hands with which He blesses all the world
Yours are the hands
Yours are the feet
Yours are the eyes
You are His body
Christ has no body now on earth but yours.
Amen
