Icon Myths! Some thoughts...
Icon Myths!!! A friend of mine made a long post on Facebook which begins: "Here is a quick summary of some of the most common icon myths." It is at times a hugely inaccurate piece, but at the same time it does highlight some of the important areas where a lot of people have got some pretty odd ideas about icons. So, I thought I might have a go at answering what he has posted, step by step. The post is in black, my comments in read. 1 .The first Christians painted and used icons. No. There is no evidence that the first Christians painted or used icons for veneration. Though there is archeological and literary evidence of Christian art around the beginning of the the 3rd century, there is no evidence for the painting and use of venerated icons as they later became known in Christianity. Well there is mention in one of the apocryphal parts of the New Testament, dating to the 2nd century, which describes how the Apostle John healed someone, and they wanted to make a devotional i