Tag Archives: Iconography

Learning to See Satisfaction – A Sermon on John 14:6-14 for the Feast of St. Philip

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The collect and readings for the Feast of St. Philip may be found here. The following sermon is based on John 14:6-14.

Several weeks ago I had the opportunity to visit someone in his home. It was the first time I had been there so he gave me a tour. The hallways were filled with icons, beautiful and holy images. They covered the walls. “Who are they,” I asked. He lit up. “Really? You want to know?” “Yes, tell me,” I said. He pointed to each one and told me stories about his parents, grandparents, siblings, and the events of his life. His words and their images came together to tell a common story of the events and people that shaped and formed his life, people he loves and who love him.

The icons, images, that we carry in our purses and wallets, that hang on the walls of our homes, and sit on our desks are as sacred and important as the icon we will bless tonight, The Protection of Philip. Like our personal icons, the icons of the Church portray those who have gone before us, our spiritual ancestors, those who have shaped and formed our lives, passing on to us the faith that was given them. They guide and point us to Christ. They are the ones who love and pray for us. They are the ones we love and for whom we pray.

St. Philip is one of those. He is our great, great, great, great … great grandfather in the faith. We are his namesake and the beneficiaries of his life, faith, and prayers. His prayers fill this church. We join our voices with his and those of the angels, archangels, and all the company of heaven to proclaim the glory of God’s name.

The words of scripture we heard in tonight’s gospel, we see in the icon of Jesus and Philip standing together. Those words and those images come together to tell a common story. It is the story of humanity’s deepest longing and the one in and by whom that longing is satisfied. Our longing is manifested by our restlessness, by our sense of emptiness, by our search for meaning and significance.

Tonight scripture and icon, words and images, ears and eyes take us deep into our hearts where Philip’s words echo, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.” Philip expresses the universal desire of humanity: to stand in the presence of holiness, to behold God, and to be satisfied.

Philip reminds us, however, that true satisfaction is not found in our accomplishments, acquisitions, or what we do for ourselves. Satisfaction is not about filling a void. It is about stepping into a new life, God’s life. It is only in seeing the Father, that we are healed and made whole, our life is made complete, and we are perfected in the image and likeness of God. In that moment of seeing we are satisfied and we know ourselves to be enough. Nothing is lacking.

That moment of seeing, our satisfaction and “enoughness,” is right now. It is happening in this moment and every moment. It happens for us just as it happened for Philip. Jesus tells him, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father…. I am in the Father and the Father is in me.” Jesus is the icon, the portrait, the revealer, of the Father. To see the Father in and through Jesus is the fullness of life.

The most profound satisfaction of our lives is already standing before us in the person of Jesus Christ. His words, his image, and his presence call us into our own “enoughness” and to know ourselves to be satisfied.

The satisfaction of our lives cannot be earned. We awaken to it. We discover it. We step into it. It is the gift of God for the people of God. That’s what Philip discovered. The satisfaction he so wanted was already his because he is Christ’s. He only needed to learn to see.

The icons of our lives teach us to see. That’s what Jesus did for Philip. That’s what Philip and Jesus do for us. Philip is our constant companion on this journey of seeing. He knows the way. He has gone before us. He will not let us get lost. So “when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left, your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it’” (Isaiah 30:21). Turn around and you will see St. Philip pointing you to Jesus, the image of our Father. In that moment your deepest longing is not ended; it is satisfied. Always has been, always will be.

St. Thomas and St. Joseph, Faithful Doubters

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How interesting that today, December 21, just four days before Christmas, we celebrate the Feast of St. Thomas, the Apostle. Think of Thomas and most will think about “Doubting Thomas.” Before we can get to the Nativity of our Lord, the manifestation of the incarnation, we must first face Thomas and his “doubts” about the resurrection. James Dennis, writing at Domini Canes, says this “interruption in our Advent preparation … makes perfect sense.” It is, I believe, a necessary interruption.

This interruption reminds us that while every feast day has its own story, it is not an isolated story. No feast can be fully understood apart from every other feast. They all are in some way each telling the same story. Look, for example, at the similarities of the icons of the resurrection and the nativity. The various feasts are like chapters of one larger story.

Set the Feast of St. Thomas next to the Feast of the Nativity of our Lord. What do we see?

  • Two great dogmas of the Church: the incarnation and the resurrection;
  • Two men of faith: Thomas and Joseph; and
  • Two men wrestling with doubt and questions.

We know Thomas’s story. But Joseph? A doubter? Where does that come from?

Look at the iconography of the nativity. In the bottom left corner we find St. Joseph looking troubled. Next to him is an old man. That is Satan, the deceiver. It’s not too hard to imagine the conversation. “A virgin giving birth? God becoming human? Really?! Joseph, you know better than that. Wonder where Mary was all those times you were out of town? Who do you think she was with?”

It is not unusual for someone to say to me, “I shouldn’t have all these questions. If I just had more faith I wouldn’t doubt.” Truthfully, I am less concerned about those who have questions than I am those who are certain they have all the answers. I have learned that it is the faithful who have the most questions and are most worried about their doubt.

Too often it seems that faith and doubt are viewed as opposites, as mutually exclusive. That is the picture we often paint of St. Thomas. It was, however, Thomas’ doubts and questions that kept him in the struggle that would lead to his confession, “My Lord and my God.” Likewise, the nativity icon suggests that faith and the temptation to not believe stand side by side.

What can we learn from St. Thomas and St. Joseph? Maybe they teach us to be faithful doubters.

The Icon of Pentecost

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The Acts of the Apostles (Acts 2:1-13) describes the day of Pentecost as accompanied by “a sound like the rush of a violent wind.” “Divided tongues, as of fire,” appeared and rested on each of the disciples who began to speak in other languages. The crowd was bewildered, amazed, astonished, and perplexed. It sounds like a day of confusion and chaos. Some asked, “What does this mean?” Others sneered and said, “They are filled with new wine.”

The icon of Pentecost, however, shows just the opposite. The Apostles’ postures show calmness and peace. Their gestures are full of solemnity. The icon does not portray the external events of Pentecost but rather its inner reality. The icon presents a vision of the Church from the inside.

Features of the Pentecost Icon 

  • At the top of the icon is a semicircle with rays coming from it. The rays are pointing toward the Apostles, and the tongues of fire are seen descending upon each one of them signifying the descent of the Holy Spirit.
  • The building in the background of the icon represents the upper room where the disciples of Christ gathered after the Ascension.
  • The Apostles are shown seated in a semicircle which shows oneness, the unity, of the Church.
  • Included in the group of the Apostles at the top right is St. Paul, who, though not present with the others on the day of Pentecost, became an Apostle of the Church. St. Peter is opposite St. Paul.
  • The place at the center between St. Peter and St. Paul is reserved for Christ, the invisible but nonetheless ever-present Head of the Church.
  • In the center of the icon below the Apostles, a royal figure is seen against a dark background. This is a symbolic figure, Cosmos, representing the people of the world living in darkness and sin. He is made old by the sin of Adam. His crown symbolizes that sin is king of the world. The  blackness surrounding him is the darkness and shadow of death (Lk. 1:79). The white cloth in his hands contains twelve scrolls which represent the Apostles who brought light to the world by their teaching.

O Heavenly King, the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth; who art in all places, and fillest all things; Treasury of good things and giver of life: come and abide in us, and cleanse us from every impurity, and save our souls, O Good One. Amen.