Wrong for Roman Catholic to Have Icons?

[sidbrown]

I don’t understand your complaint. This is a Catholic forum for Catholics. Why would it be in any way wrong for a Catholic to obtain a Catholic icon from the Catholic Monastery Icon site?
Just because the Orthodox condemn Catholics for a whole lot of reasons doesn’t mean that Catholics have to go along with what they say?
And by the way, the western rite Orthodox have a whole lot of things that they borrow from Roman Catholics. I have seen myself some of the Roman Catholic pamphlets and Roman Catholic statues that one (western rite) group at least has used. Does anyone condemn them from putting these Roman Catholic objects in an Orthodox setting?
What i saw was that they used the Old Catholic Mass, but in English and they made certain changes to accord with the Orthodox teachings, such as an extra epiclesis, no filioque, and other small changes to the Roman Mass.

 

[RyanBlack]

I don’t understand your complaint. This is a Catholic forum for Catholics. Why would it be in any way wrong for a Catholic to obtain a Catholic icon from the Catholic Monastery Icon site?
Just because the Orthodox condemn Catholics for a whole lot of reasons doesn’t mean that Catholics have to go along with what they say?
And by the way, the western rite Orthodox have a whole lot of things that they borrow from Roman Catholics. I have seen myself some of the Roman Catholic pamphlets and Roman Catholic statues that one (western rite) group at least has used. Does anyone condemn them from putting these Roman Catholic objects in an Orthodox setting?
What i saw was that they used the Old Catholic Mass, but in English and they made certain changes to accord with the Orthodox teachings, such as an extra epiclesis, no filioque, and other small changes to the Roman Mass.

Orthodox opposition to icons made by Monastery Icons (which is not Catholic), has nothing to do with anti-Catholic bias by the Orthodox. Rather, it has to do with Monastery Icons’ alleged association with Hinduism. I say alleged not because I don’t believe the claim, but because I personally cannot verify it.

 

[achmafooma]

You can definitely have icons. My home Parish has a beautiful icon of St. Peter, and I’ve seen plenty in other Parishes (and Cathedrals).

Have it blessed like any other Sacramental, and use it to center your prayer and devotion just like any other Sacramental.

God bless you!

 

[josephdaniel29]

Orthodox opposition to icons made by Monastery Icons (which is not Catholic), has nothing to do with anti-Catholic bias by the Orthodox. Rather, it has to do with Monastery Icons’ alleged association with Hinduism. I say alleged not because I don’t believe the claim, but because I personally cannot verify it.

Here are two previous threads here on CAF dealing with Monastery Icons. Decide for yourself.

Link

Link

 

[josephdaniel29]

I don’t understand your complaint. This is a Catholic forum for Catholics. Why would it be in any way wrong for a Catholic to obtain a Catholic icon from the Catholic Monastery Icon site.

So which Catholic monastery is Monastery Icons associated with?

 

[Aramis]

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.

If it were, a significant number of Poles would have been in deep trouble…

Many of the Slavic-Language Roman Catholic areas use a mixture of iconography and statuary.

 

[ClamDigger]

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.

Our Mother of Perpetual Help is an icon that is venerated in the Roman Catholic church of St. Alphonsus Ligouri in Rome.

 

[MarcusAndreas]

I hope it’s not wrong to have them.

But no, nothing wrong with it.

 

[lampstand]

One of the artists who paints the icons for Monastery Icons had a book published, a few years ago, of his life’s work. It was a collection of his many paintings. In it, there was also a painting of Gandhi. That’s apparently where they’re getting this “Hinduism” thing. Blowing something out of proportion, anyone?

I used to get the MI catalog. They have no Hindu products. The picture of Gandhi is not included for sale or even shown in the catalog. It was just in that collection book of the painter.

It’s just another case of someone fomenting hot air on the Internet.

 

[Hesychios]

One of the artists who paints the icons for Monastery Icons had a book published, a few years ago, of his life’s work. It was a collection of his many paintings. In it, there was also a painting of Gandhi. That’s apparently where they’re getting this “Hinduism” thing. Blowing something out of proportion, anyone?

I used to get the MI catalog. They have no Hindu products. The picture of Gandhi is not included for sale or even shown in the catalog. It was just in that collection book of the painter.

It’s just another case of someone fomenting hot air on the Internet.

Intersting that you know so much just by reading a book most of us never heard of…

Intrerior locution?

 

[sidbrown]

If the Orthodox do not like the Monastery Icons and say that they are not legitimate, then they don’t have to buy them. BTW, is it legitimate to tamper with the Tridentine Mass the way some of the Western rite Orthodox do? No one has to buy an icon of Ghandi. And is it true that there are some Orthodox who do not agree with having Czar Nicholas portrayed on an icon? . But if the icon you buy is beautiful and helps you in your spiritual progress, why should a Catholic care what a Muslim or a Protestant or an Orthodox thinks about your icon? After all, there are some Orthodox who say that the Holy Father, the Pope of Rome is a layman and that the Sacraments of the Catholic Church (even including Baptism) are null and void and graceless. Should Catholics worry about this also?

 

[RyanBlack]

If the Orthodox do not like the Monastery Icons and say that they are not legitimate, then they don’t have to buy them. BTW, is it legitimate to tamper with the Tridentine Mass the way some of the Western rite Orthodox do? No one has to buy an icon of Ghandi. And is it true that there are some Orthodox who do not agree with having Czar Nicholas portrayed on an icon? . But if the icon you buy is beautiful and helps you in your spiritual progress, why should a Catholic care what a Muslim or a Protestant or an Orthodox thinks about your icon? After all, there are some Orthodox who say that the Holy Father, the Pope of Rome is a layman and that the Sacraments of the Catholic Church (even including Baptism) are null and void and graceless. Should Catholics worry about this also?

There is no lack of Eastern Catholics who agree with these Orthodox criticisms of Monastery Icons-both with respect to suspicions about their religious affiliation and with respect to claims of poor quality of the icons. I think that given the fact that Christian icons are much more a part of the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic traditions than they are Roman Catholic tradition, criticisms of Monastery Icons coming from Eastern Christians (both Orthodox and Catholic) ought to be taken more seriously than you seem to be willing to do.

 

[kitkatty]

Ryan, I couldn`t agree more and I just want to add my opinion along with that of the other Eastern Catholics regarding Monastary Icons, just stay away from them.

 

[Formosus]

I would also like to express my distaste for monastery icons. There is no shortage of good Icons available out there. There really is no need to go to such a place that has a questionable reputation and oftentimes deviates from canonical iconography.

 

[Aramis]

Monastery Icons has been shown on several occasions to either be co-located with or to actually be an ashram of a sect of hinduism. Their business records filed with the tax agencies show that.

It is a fair certainty that their claims to be an orthodox monastery have been refuted by every orthodox hierarch in SCOBA, and by all the Catholic jurisdictions. They are not in communion with any major branch of Eastern Christianity, and even many of the vagante Byzantines warn against them

A house of iconographers who are not what they claim to be is a bad form.

Some of their images are passable; some are execrable. They are seldom inspiring.

 

[ClamDigger]

Monastery Icons has been shown on several occasions to either be co-located with or to actually be an ashram of a sect of hinduism. Their business records filed with the tax agencies show that.

I find it very hard to believe that a company that makes solely Christian icons (excluding, perhaps, one icon of Mahatma Gandhi) are a Hindu sect or an ashram. If that were the case, why wouldn’t they make icons of Krishna and Shiva as well?
Not saying their icons are great, but I really see no basis for the above accusation.

 

[ClamDigger]

Orthodox opposition to icons made by Monastery Icons (which is not Catholic), has nothing to do with anti-Catholic bias by the Orthodox. Rather, it has to do with Monastery Icons’ alleged association with Hinduism. I say alleged not because I don’t believe the claim, but because I personally cannot verify it.

I have also heard it alleged that the Pope has a super-computer with the names, dates of birth, and locations of every person in the entire world. Unverifiable claims are generally best viewed as urban legends until they can be verified.

 

[Hesychios]

It seems that what we are seeing here is a mixture of ignorance of traditional eastern Catholic spirituality and an anti-Orthodox bias.

Icons are a thing of prayer, from their inception. The iconographer prays over them constantly. This is something I first learned from my own former Byzantine Catholic pastor, an accomplished iconographer himself.

To an eastern Christian, they are not just pretty pictures, in fact they are anything but.

One thing I think all Catholics and Orthodox should be able to agree on is that salvation is through Christ alone. Synchretism is not possible in our faith, it is why so many martyrs died rather than worship the emperors. Christ is the only Way.

Now when a Hindo-Christian heretical cult masquerades as a mainline Chistian group for ‘business’ purposes I would think most Cathoolics would agree that they should not be supported on principal. But when they are making holy objects of worship with their pagan prayers they are contaminating the spirituality of our ancient faith and undermining the support many true Chirstian monks and nuns need to survive. This is a gross perversion.

It’s a bad thing all around. But this is a free society, and you people can go about your ways as you wish, and think what ever you like because in your minds it’s only “the Orthodox” who don’t like it, and who cares what they think, anyway?

 

[Alexander_Roman]

In the first millennium and longer, icons were the norm in terms of religious art in both East and West.

However, there always have been, in some cases, religious statuary even in the Orthodox East and I ran across one such Marian statue which continues to be honoured by the Orthodox in pilgrimages etc. There were Western sacred statues that were around when the Church was still united e.g. Our Lady of Chartres and Our Lady of Einsiedeln.

But holy icons do have a wonderful way of transporting one to heaven as a true celestial “gateway.”

This coming Sunday is the Sunday of Orthodoxy, first Sunday of the Great Fast/Lent. I’m bringing my icons to Church for a blessing following the Divine Liturgy and am really looking forward to that.

Alex

 

[ciero]

I find it very hard to believe that a company that makes solely Christian icons (excluding, perhaps, one icon of Mahatma Gandhi) are a Hindu sect or an ashram. If that were the case, why wouldn’t they make icons of Krishna and Shiva as well?
Not saying their icons are great, but I really see no basis for the above accusation.

Maybe a bit of education would help you out a bit…try reading the link supplied earlier…it has been proven time and time again that these people are hardly Christian in any way shape or form…and should not be supported… I guess there just isnt enough business selling Krishna and Shiva! “Abbot George” has said himself when I met him years ago that they were associated with a ashram and were trying to be both Christian and Hindu together…whatever that means.