Melkite Church, Israel.

British Association of IconographersVoluntary project for the Melkite Church of the Sermon on the Mount‚ Ibillin, Israel.

In 2004/5 a dozen people from the British Association of Iconographers under the direction of Sister Bernadette Crook worked on an Iconostasis for a newly built Church in Ibillin, Israel.  The Iconostasis contains over 40 icons of various sizes. The BAI was approached by Elias Chacour a Palestinian Melkite Priest who has lived and worked in Ibillin for many years and is now the ArchBishop of Galilee.

Elias is the author of Blood Brothers - an account of his life.  From an early age Elias had a strong call to serve the Church and after years of study was ordained becoming the first Palestinian to earn a degree from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

Today Elias ministry is one of reconciliation and peace between Christians, Muslims, Druze and Jews.  The newly built Church in Ibillin is a Chapel of Peace with the Iconostasis reflecting the positive relationships between people of different faiths and cultures.

For example the icon of Elijah (written by Sister Bernadette) which traditionally shows a raven sent by God bringing sustenance to Elijah in the desert instead shows Bedouin bringing food. This is based on a translation of scripture which suggests the word raven has been mis-translated and should read Arab.

I worked mainly on the icon of Saint Andrew and Saint Peter and was privileged to be in attendance for the dedication of the Church and Iconostasis in 2005.

www.pilgrimsofibillin.org 

All Saints Day 2010

 All Saints Day was celebrated at St Saviours Church Pimlico in style!  Students from my icon class displayed their work in front of the altar. The icons were blessed alongside the baptism of Hadrian Trafford-Roberts the grandson of Ros who presided over the service. I preached.  The icon class has now been running for over 4 years.  It began at St John on Bethnal Green and when I left there I moved it to St Saviours.  As you can see from the photos the students have become quite accomplished!

Mary Magdalene

The story behind this icon is an interesting one. Mary Magdalene goes early in the morning to the tomb of Jesus. She arrives to discover the tomb empty and in shock drops a basket of eggs.  Jesus appears to her and tells her to go back to the disciples to tell them he has risen from the dead.  Mary gathers up her basket of eggs and runs to tell everyone the good news, but she is met with confusion and doubt.  She recounts the story of finding the tomb empty and then meeting with Jesus who at first she didn't recognise. The Lord has risen it is a miracle. Mary holds up the eggs for the disciples to see.......they have all turned blood red!

This icon was exhibited at Wallspace Gallery in 2007 for the Epiphany exhibition a collection of contemporary icons. An orthodox nun who had beautiful icons also exhibited was rather sniffy about mine.  She said it showed the absence of God because I had used black. This made me laugh as I hadn't used black but indigo for the background. (I wouldn't have a problem with using black either). Still even with this¬†criticism my icon was the first to sell!

For me writing icons is an act of prayer and encouragement.

3 Mothers - Icon of Hospitality

This triptych commissioned by the Bishop of London, depicts three smiling women from the congregation of St John on Bethnal Green Church, seated around a table.

The women  reflect the diverse nature of the congregation at St John's as well as the local East End community.

Each woman is a wife, mother, and grandmother, a person of faith and a committed hard working member of their church, something I wanted to celebrate. The three women also symbolise in part the important role of women – particularly older women – in the Church of England.

The opened hand of Mother Pearl is held out to greet the viewer to the table, a place of fellowship and hospitality while Mother Becky and Mother Miriam look on. What offering do you the viewer bring to the table?  The stars on the table cloth symbolise the many descendants of Abraham.  The colours the three women wear represent the Christian liturgical seasons and the gold leaf a belief in the 'sainthood of all believers.'

Prints of the 3 Mothers are available here

Saint George and the Dragon

This icon was a challenge to write. Saint George's Bloomsbury a church designed by Nicholas Hawksmoor was reopened to the public in 2006 following a 5 year restoration. As part of the celebrations of reopening the Vicar and Church Council wanted to commission an icon which reflected the ministry of Saint George's in the heart of the West End. I visited the church on a number of occasions and met with church members to gain an understanding of life at Saint George's. Eventually a design was agreed.

In the icon there are a number of interesting components. Dressed rather casually rather than as a knight or soldier Saint George is riding his horse down Bloomsbury Way. At the bus stop outside the church Saint George encounters a dragon in the gutter. However he doesn't set out to kill this dragon but rather offers up a garland of flowers. The dragon in Christian art is a symbol of the enemy and something that needs to be destroyed but here Saint George seeks to meet  with this strange creature and to learn from it. The stranger the other‚ the foreigner‚ the person of difference are boogeymen in the minds of many. In this icon hospitality and pastoral care are shown as an important part of Saint George's ministry. Whether it is shown to people living on the fringe of society, the homeless or the drinkers that meet on the steps of the church, hence the empty beer cans on the pavement, or to the Churches many visitors and tourists passing by, the Church wanted an icon that reflected an inclusive ministry. Even the news agents next door the finest purveyors of the latest VIZ comics‚ is included to show that Saint George Bloomsbury is found in the midst of one of the most cosmopolitan and diverse city's in the world. The dragon is not to be feared here but rather the powerful scary looking horse upon which Saint George rides. A symbol of faith upon which Christians are carried, when the reigns are loosened faith will take a believer to unknown places to experience new challenges and learn new lessons. Faith requires the faithful to be courageous and step outside his or her comfort zones. A frightening challenge indeed!