From the early Christian art to icon

Church determine their own painting language accepted forms ancient Greek world, but put a new content. Christian image of the predecessor is not polytheistic idols, as many people think. There is no specific image immediately before the Incarnation. Source image is a symbol of the Christian Old Testament. As the predecessor of the church is not polytheistic world, but choose to accept God's own revelation, like ancient Israel.

Christianity has a different view of the world and the principle of the new life of the Greek world, which also determines the new style of Christian art. She first expressed church doctrine and teachings, consistent with the biblical text, rather than naturalistic art, not reflecting the state of people's daily lives. Christian art and naturalistic different harmony of her performance is not realistic at this time, not the nature and the universe, not the body's symmetry and graceful, but point to another world. Painter wants to express not only their naked eye can see, and what is invisible to the naked eye, that is, the performance of the spiritual content of Christianity. Painter tasks eyes, posture and gestures are full of the world to pray for God and yearning

However, due to the establishment of Christianity itself, after a long and tortuous process, the icon does not quickly accepted. Many of the early Christian apologists actively oppose ancient Greek art. Such as Tertullian believed that the risk of any art has idolatry. So apologists for Christianity portrait negative attitude, in order to make the church a threat to prevent idolatry, because idolatry can invade the church through art.

Clement of Alexandria confirmed according to transcendence of God, "lawmakers want to raise our minds to intuitive insight, rather than stay in the physical realm. That if God does not come with the usual artistic expression, the body of greatness will be a significant loss, this view is not correct, on the contrary, only the spirit of spiritual vision to see invisible things, if the form of emotional draw it to be worshiped, only it a means to belittle him.

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