Iconic Seeing: How Sacred Art Draws Us Into Mystery

A look at how two different images invite us to contemplate the mystery of Christ

The Church has a wealth of rich and beautiful images, but how do we avoid seeing them as just beautiful images among others we are inundated with on a daily basis? Is it actually possible to have an encounter with Christ in a piece of art?

It is possible, but we must change our way of seeing. To truly encounter a piece of art, we have to be willing to slow down and give time to contemplation. We must take the time to learn to see and enter into the space the image is inviting us to enter. We must learn to ask questions and ponder prayerfully why the image depicts what it does the way it does. In short, we have to treat these images not a simple images, but as icons.

Why icons? Especially in eastern orthodox traditions, the icon is not a religious painting, but more akin to a sacramental presence, a window into Heaven. Icons, of course are not adored like one adores the Eucharist, but rather venerated as a privileged mode by which the one depicted is present to the viewer, they gaze upon each other through the medium of paint and physical surface. It's like a soldier carrying a photograph of his sweetheart to the front with him. Whenever he looks at her picture, he is reminded of her presence until they meet again. He gazes into her eyes and its like he is looking at her in reality.

To look at art in an iconic way is then to truly "encounter" a piece, to look for the beloved there and let the beloved gaze upon you in return. We have to expect to see Christ in sacred art, to gaze upon Him lovingly and allow Him to gaze upon us and speak to us.

To begin to learn this iconic way of seeing, let's look at two well- known pieces of art: Fra Angelico's Noli Me Tangere and the Ghent Altarpiece.

Noli Me Tangere

Before we begin to look at a piece, we must understand a little of the context we find it in. Noli Me Tangere is a fresco painted by Bl. Fra Angelico, a Dominican brother in Florence, Italy on the wall of a cell in his Dominican cloister. Sit with this image for a few minutes. What do you see? What strikes you as strange? What is going on in the image? Who are the people depicted? Is this image telling a story or not?

Go ahead. I'll wait.

First, what are we seeing? This image depicts the moment after the resurrection when St. Mary Magdalene recognizes Jesus and tries to hold Him, but He tells her not to hold on to Him because He has not yet ascended to the Father. So we know the image is telling a story and calling to mind this passage from Scripture. One interesting thing to note is the tomb. There is no stone, but a doorway. Remember that this fresco is on the wall of a Dominican brother's cell. This doorway is rather like the doorway into the cell. A religious in their cell enters into a space that is just for them and God. The cell is a place of prayer, a place of encounter with God, which is exactly what Mary Magdalene is doing in this image.

Furthering the cloister imagery, the garden is surrounded by a fence. In a convent or monastery, there are places off-limits to the public that only the brothers/monks/nuns/sisters are allowed to go. This is called the cloister. The cloister is again, a private place of encounter with God for the religious. Another image the fence calls to mind the "enclosed garden" of the Song of Songs. This again, is another image of a place of privileged encounter for the soul and God, just like the cloister.

Another strange thing to notice is the lack of detail on the flowers that dot the ground. Fra Angelico is certainly capable of detail, just look at the faces of Jesus and Mary Magdalene or the trees in the background. He certainly didn't simply give up. But look at Christ's wounds. Then look at the flowers. Do you see the similarity? What we see here is Fra Angelico reminding us that it is in the wounds of Christ that all of creation begins to be renewed. Everything now conforms to and is defined by the wounds of Christ. He makes all things new by His death and resurrection. He is the first born of the new creation.

In this image, we, with Mary Magdalene, encounter the resurrected Christ intimately in prayer and are invited to behold Him and contemplate the implications of the resurrection.

Now, let's look at another piece with a slightly different context, the Ghent altarpiece.

The Ghent Altarpiece

The Ghent altarpiece is a folding panel meant to be hung above or positioned on an altar for people to contemplate during Mass. This particular altarpiece was made for a cathedral in Ghent, Belgium. Again, take a few minutes to look at this image. What do you see? Who do you think all the people are? Why are they positioned as they are? What are they doing?

Pause and behold. (I know you just tried to scroll by.)

When I was listening to a lecture on this piece, I was struck by the positions of the figures in the top center panel. In the Roman Canon (or Eucharistic Prayer I) We invoke the saints twice, once before the words of institution and once after. Before the institution, the list begins with Mary and after it begins with St. John the Baptist. Notice now the two people on either side of Christ in the altarpiece. Mary on the left and St. John the Baptist on the right. If you were to put the Roman Canon on a timeline, it would look something like this:

list of saints beginning with Mary---Jesus is present in the Eucharist---list of saints beginning with St. John the Baptist.

What we pray is here nodded to visually in a piece meant to be placed upon an altar, where the prayer itself is prayed. (Mind. blown.) There is much to see and contemplate here, but I want to draw our attention now to the lower panels.

Here we see the most famous image associated with the Ghent altarpiece, the one it's named for, The Adoration of the Lamb. Here's a larger image for you to gaze upon.

We can see from our contemplation of the upper panels that when we look at this altarpiece, we are meant to call the liturgy to mind. We see that again here. The Lamb is standing on an altar, its blood filling a chalice. The altar is set up in front of a fountain and is surrounded by angels and saints. This is yet another image of liturgy where the two dimensions of the liturgy are brought to glorious clarity.

We see the sacrifice, the Lamb giving its very blood upon an altar, the perennial symbol of sacrifice. But we also see the element of gathering. Groups of saints flock toward the altar each group representing a different type of saint; lay people in the bottom left, bishops and abbots in the top left, virgins and martyrs (you can tell by the palm branches and crowns) in the top right, and monks, priests, doctors of the Church, and popes/bishops in the bottom right. The plants all around the altar are plants from all parts of the world. The city in the background is the city of Ghent.

This is revealing to us what happens in the liturgy. All people are gathered together to adore the Lamb of God. All come to adore the Lamb and the liturgy is for all people. All people are called to bear witness to the truth of Christ and His sacrifice. Through the fountain, the waters of Baptism, we come to receive the Body of Christ in the Eucharist and are incorporated into His Mystical Body, the Church.

We can see now that through this iconic way of seeing there is so much more art reveals to us. We must slow down and truly encounter a piece, contemplate it, and allow Christ to speak to us through it.