Wrong for Roman Catholic to Have Icons?

  • Thread starter Thread starter gatewood1988
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
G

gatewood1988

Guest
I was wondering if it is wrong for a Roman Catholic to have icons in their home. I feel very drawn to the portrayal of the saints and of Jesus in iconography, but I didn’t want to offend if it wasn’t ok.
 
No, it is in no way wrong.

Many Roman Catholic artists have painted icons. They are not exclusively utilized by the Eastern Churches (Catholic or Orthodox).

We have three of them in my home, all done by a woman artist that had taken many classes in iconography. She also taught classes in that form of art. Over the years, she sold hundreds of Icons to Latin Rite, Eastern Rite and Orthodox Churches.

Icons can be wonderful expression of religious art.
 
There are even icons in some Roman Catholic Churches, and I’ve seen iconic style artwork, typically above the altar a number of times.
 
Are you familiar with Monastery Icons? They offer many favorite Western devotions in an Eastern icon style. They serve both individuals and parishes with a gamut of sizes and offerings. My mother and I have ordered from them and had good experience with their service and quality of goods. It is a bit like the “best of both worlds!”
 
I am very interested in the responses to this question. I have had Icons in my home for many years. They help me to “focus” when I am praying.

One Icon that depicts Christ being taken from the Cross had been especially used by God in my meditations during Lent one year. I thought I had learned every lesson God had to teach me from that Icon.

Then I had visitors in my home. Their 12 year old son picked up the Icon, looked at it, and said, “Oh, they are laying Jesus on the altar.”

I looked at it after the family had gone. Sure enough, I had missed that very important lesson. But a young boy saw it immediately. Through the years, God has taught me other lessons from that Icon.
 
Elizium23 said:
Are you familiar with Monastery Icons? They offer many favorite Western devotions in an Eastern icon style. They serve both individuals and parishes with a gamut of sizes and offerings. My mother and I have ordered from them and had good experience with their service and quality of goods. It is a bit like the “best of both worlds!”
Click to expand...
Please do not patronize Monastery Icons…
 
NO there’s nothing wrong with having a blessed ICON in your home any more different than having a Blessed Crucifix, Statue, Holy Water or otherwise.

Ask yourself what does a blessed crucifix, statue, icon, or Holy Water symbolically represent to you?

If they supernaturally and symbolically inspire you to prayer or increase your faith in Jesus Christ our Savior than it should be good.

Crucifixes, Statues, Icons, and Holy Water are all Sacramental’s.

Think of them as an outward sign of an invisible inward good.

newadvent.org/cathen/13292d.htm

Peace
Chris
 
=gatewood1988;7620054]I was wondering if it is wrong for a Roman Catholic to have icons in their home. I feel very drawn to the portrayal of the saints and of Jesus in iconography, but I didn’t want to offend if it wasn’t ok.
Click to expand...
Here’s what God Himself [Yahweh], Old Testament has to say about it:

**Exodus: 5.17- 18, and 24"Yahweh telling Moses How he Wants the Ark of the Covenant to b built: ** Then you shall make a mercy seat of pure gold; two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth. And you shall make two cherubim [Angels] of gold; of hammered work shall you make them, on the two ends of the mercy seat. You shall overlay it with pure gold, and make a molding of gold around it.

NO, not only is it not wrong: Icons are a reminder to us visualy, of God, Mary and the Saints and have an important role in reminding us to “be holy, as God himself is holy.”

God Bless,
Pat
 
I am very sorry for posting the link. I apologize for promoting this company without knowing their roots. I would ask the mods to redact my post but I have already been told they won’t do that. So consider this a complete retraction.
 
I had no idea about that company either. That’s a bummer, I really liked their John Bosco icon too 😦 I probably will not be able to find one like that for my husband again. But I will not support them if they really are that bad and since it has been spoken against that much, then it must be true. So what would be some reputable websites to get icons from?
 
gatewood1988 said:
I was wondering if it is wrong for a Roman Catholic to have icons in their home. I feel very drawn to the portrayal of the saints and of Jesus in iconography, but I didn’t want to offend if it wasn’t ok.
Click to expand...
can you think of a reason why it would be wrong? has anyone suggested such a thing to you? I cannot think of anyone who might be offended, which is why I ask.
 
My home parish has Icons, and I have seen Icons in many other Roman Catholic parishes.
 
gatewood1988 said:
I saw here adoremus.org/0901IconsCatholic.html and I guessed that I might be looked down upon for having some in my home. (I get paranoid about offending others)
Click to expand...
With all due respect, did you read the entire page? This article is in the format of a letter by an Orthodox layperson and a response by a Catholic Monsignor. The layman has objections from an Orthodox perspective, to what he sees as Latin Catholics appropriating forms of Orthodox liturgical patrimony “in a vacuum.” This Orthodox perspective ignores the existence of Eastern Catholic Churches and presumes ignorance on the part of Latin Catholics too. The Monsignor responds, in part,
In response, history itself testifies that Byzantine iconography could never be the exclusive property of the Orthodox Church since it was born into the Catholic Church long before the most unfortunate schism of 1054. Byzantine iconography has thus been legitimately maintained within the Catholic Church as an art form to illustrate her teachings.
Click to expand...
So you see that this article itself has something positive to say about icons from a Catholic perspective. Don’t worry, our Catholic practice has much to offend atheists already, let alone a lone Orthodox person.
 
I noticed that. 🙂 I guess I was being paranoid again 😃 But thank you so much.
 
One of the largest devotions in the Philippines, which is predominantly Roman Catholic and there are no other kinds of Catholics there except Roman Catholics, is the Our Lady of Perpetual Help. Our Lady or Perpetual Help is represented only in a Byzantine Icon. In fact, from what I know since I was a child, it was forbidden to make a statue representation of the Lady of Perpetual Help. My parent’s home has more religious statues than most parishes today, but my mom also has a number of Our Lady of Perpetual Help icons.

So definitely its not forbidden for Roman Catholics to have Eastern Icons.
 
gatewood1988 said:
I saw here adoremus.org/0901IconsCatholic.html and I guessed that I might be looked down upon for having some in my home. (I get paranoid about offending others)
Click to expand...
thank you for the link
the person who wrote that letter was Orthodox, not Eastern Catholic, and was objecting specifically to what he interpreted as the use of a specifically Orthodox image to promote Catholic views. The rebuttal by the editor should remove any doubt you might have had on Catholics using icons for devotional purposes.
 
BVM_1221 said:
Nope. Lots of homes AND churches use icons. Here is a nice source…🙂

trinitystores.com/

And I have a large copy of THIS icon…😃

puffin.creighton.edu/jesuit/andre/silence.html

And there are other stores on the internet. Just Google.👍
Click to expand...
Those are nice, but one question, why on trinity store does Br. Lentz have Harvy Milk pictured as a saint? and pictures of cernunnos the celtic god (lord) of the dance? if you go under his pictures that challenge category. It also looks like he has a lot of reference to the the pagan goddess under the Christ sophia icon.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top