Christ
Christ
is considered the human manifestation of God and Holy Spirit and they are,
in essence, one and the same. Born to the Virgin
Mary in Nazareth, his life, death and ressurection is celebrated all over
the Christian world and he is recognised as a holy man by the Quran as well.
Here, we will not go into the details of the life of Christ, but rather show some of the main icons that you might encounter in Orthodox churches. All Greek churches have a large icon of Christ to the right of the Beautiful Gate in the Iconostasis and along the top, several smaller ones depict various scenes from his life. To the left of the Beautiful gate, we also encounter him as a child in the arms of his mother.
On Skiathos, people lived on the north coast for 500 years until the liberation in 1829. The main church in the old town, Kastro, is called Christos sto Kastro, Christ at Kastro, and is mentioned in several of Alexandros Papadiamantis' stories. It is still active but not as often as when this was the only town in the island.
The
story of Christ begins with the Annunciation of the Virgin
Mary, when the Archangel Gabriel told
her she was going to be the mother of God.
For icons of the Annunciation and Mary with Christ, please click here.
A popular motif in icons is the Nativity Scene where Mary rests in the cave/stable
with Joseph and Christ by her side. Here, the visit of the Three Magi is often
depicted as well.
Another
popular motif is the Baptism, where Christ is seen standing in the river Jordan
with John the Baptist by his side.
This is the scene that is celebrated on January 6th in Greece, the so-called Theofania, where Greeks all over the country jump into the cold water to retrieve a cross the priest has just thrown in.
In icons we see Christ in a variety of situations and sometimes he is depicted
as a preacher and sometimes as a high priest or king in full regalia. His
face is always quite serious and he is depicted with a small mouth to emphasize
that he only spoke when it mattered. His right hand gives benediction and
the fingers form the four letters ICXC: IeSous XriStos (the letter C is pronounced
as an S).
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In
Orthodox churches Christ is often painted in the dome, looking down on us
as the Pantokrator, the All Ruler. He is surrounded by the four eveangelists.
The Last Supper is one of the center pieces in most Christian churches and it is full of symbolism. In this version we see Christ and the Apostles gathered for their last meal and Judas is reaching for the morsel. According to one of the Gospels Christ told his companions that the traitor was "he to whom I shall give this morsel".
The Crucifixion is also depicted in several ways but the main theme always remains the same: Christ on the cross with a skull at its feet (Golgotha means Place of the Skull). By Christ's side we see the lamenting Virgin Mary and Mary Magdalen and angels are approaching in the sky.
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