Iconoclasm

Iconoclasm

Iconoclasm was a later heresy that arose from prolonged disagreement. Many believed that the veneration of icons was heretical and ultimately another form of worship.

In this struggle, led the defense of icon veneration. He opposed iconoclasm and articulated the true meaning of icons within Orthodox theology. One of his most well-known explanations states:

I do not worship matter; I worship the God of matter, Who became matter for my sake; Who deigned to inhabit matter; Who worked out my salvation through matter. I will not cease from honoring that matter which works for my salvation. I venerate it, though not as God.

Here, Saint John makes a clear distinction between the worship given to God and the veneration shown to icons.

Icons show us the people who ran the race before us and give us a glimpse of our future if we properly run the race and endure until the end.