Many people find it easier to pray with their eyes open. For centuries, Christians in the East and the West have prayed before icons, sacred images painted with care and prayer, as a way to quiet the mind and turn the heart toward God.
What an icon is (and isn’t)
An icon isn’t simply a decoration or a portrait. In the Orthodox tradition it is often called a “window”: an image that points beyond itself to Christ, the Mother of God, or the saints. The Church teaches that the honor given to an icon passes to the person it shows. We don’t pray to the paint and wood; we pray with the image, to the One it reveals.
A simple way to pray with an icon
- Choose one icon and place it where you’ll see it: a shelf, a small table, or a corner of a quiet room.
- Light a candle if you can. The small flame is a quiet sign of prayer rising.
- Look slowly. Notice the face, the eyes, the hands, the colors. There’s no need to analyze; simply be present.
- Pray simply. Speak to the Lord in your own words, or pray the Jesus Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.
- Rest in silence for a few minutes before you finish.
An icon corner at home
Many Orthodox and Eastern Catholic families keep an icon corner, a small place set aside for prayer, often with an icon of Christ, an icon of the Mother of God, a candle or oil lamp, and a cross. It doesn’t need to be elaborate. A single icon and a candle on a shelf is a beautiful beginning.
Passing your icon corner during the day can become a small reminder to pause and pray, even for a breath or two.
Icons are painted (traditionally, “written”) following old patterns, with prayer and fasting. In a future post we’ll look at how icons are made and what their colors and gestures mean. In the Art Blog, you’ll find sacred art of my own as it’s finished.
