Aniconism in Christianity
Encyclopedia
Christianity
has not generally practised aniconism
, or the avoidance or prohibition of types of images, but has had an active tradition of making and venerating images
of God
and other religious figures. However there are periods of aniconism in Christian history
, notably in the Early Christian church, in the Byzantine iconoclasm of the 8th century, and following the Protestant Reformation
of the 16th century, when Calvinism
in particular rejected all images in churches. Puritanism also rejected all images and some of these practices continue today in Fundamentalist Christianity
.
Christian aniconism has only very rarely covered general secular images, unlike aniconism in Islam
; Anabaptist
groups such as the Amish
are rare exceptions.
spoke against the creation of religious images. This was firstly because of the Jewish background of most of the first Christians, and also because images were associated with the idolatry
of the pagan Ancient Roman religion and other cults and religions around them. In the 1st century
the issues are discussed in the Letters of St. Paul and a prohibition of idolatry is included in the Apostolic Decree. There are mentions of images of Jesus
from the 2nd century
onwards. The Catacombs of Rome
contain the earliest images, mostly painted, but also including relief
s carved on sarcophagi. Jesus is often represented by pictogram
symbols, though he is also portrayed.
in the 4th century, when a style of art emerged suitable to use in the grand churches then being built. However figurative monumental sculpture
was still avoided in the West
until the time of Charlemagne
around 800; the Franks
had no association of sculpture with cult images and a life-size crucifix
(with "corpus") known to have been in the Palatine Chapel, Aachen was probably a pivotal work, opening the way to the free general use of large sculpture. This was contemporary with the Byzantine
iconoclasm
(see below). Religious sculpture, especially if large and free-standing, has always been extremely rare in Eastern Christianity
. The Western church was anxious to distinguish its use of images from idolatry, and set out its theological position in the Carolingian Libri Carolini
, in similar but slightly different terms to those set out by the Eastern church after the episode of Iconoclasm.
long remained unacceptable; he was typically only shown with the features of Jesus, which had become fairly standardized by the 6th century, in scenes such as the Garden of Eden
. The rationale for this was the doctrine of the pre-existing Christ or Logos, which holds that Christ has existed from the beginning of time. Very simply put, as a member of the Holy Trinity of three persons in one God, representations of God could be achieved by depicting Jesus as Logos, except in the few cases where both Jesus and God the Father needed to be shown separately, as in scenes of the Baptism of Jesus
. Alternatively God the Father was represented only by the Hand of God
, which probably reached Christian art
from Hellenistic Judaism
, as it is prominent in the wall paintings of the 3rd century Dura-Europos synagogue
in Syria
. Depictions of God the Father, essentially as the Old Testament
Ancient of Days
, only became common in the West from about 1200 onwards, and remain controversial in Eastern Orthodoxy, still being prohibited by the Russian Orthodox Church
for example (where images of the Ancient of Days, also banned, are held to represent Christ). Free-standing monumental sculpture is also avoided by the Orthodox churches, and reliefs are much rarer, especially large ones. On the other hand icon
s have a slightly different theological position in Orthodoxy and play a more significant part in religious life than in Roman Catholicism, let alone the Protestant churches.
. However his attack concentrated on what he saw as frivolous non-religious elements in the Romanesque
religious art of his day, which he said distracted monks from their religious life.
, in the mid eighth and early ninth centuries. The arguments of the Iconoclasts remain rather obscure, as almost all their writings were destroyed after the "Triumph of Orthodoxy". The simple belief that images were idolatrous appears to have been their main motive; reference was made to the prohibitions on the worship of graven images in the Mosaic Law
, and aniconic statements by the Church Fathers
, some of which may now be lost. One theological issue revolved around the two natures of Jesus
. Iconoclasts believed that icons could not represent both the divine and the human natures of the Messiah at the same time, but separately. Because an icon which depicted Jesus as purely physical would be Nestorianism
, and one which showed Him as both human and divine would not be able to do so without confusing the two natures into one mixed nature, which was Monophysitism
, all icons were thus heretical.
The political aspects of the conflicts are complex, involving with the relationship between the Byzantine Emperors, the Orthodox Church
councils, and the Pope. There has been much scholarly discussion over the possible influence on the Iconoclasts of the aniconism in Islam
, the century-old religion which had inflicted devastating defeats on Byzantium in the decades preceding. Most scholars reject direct religious influence, though many feel the feeling of crisis produced by defeats at the hands of Islam contributed to the Iconoclast movement. Both the cross and secular two-dimensional images continued to be acceptable, indeed were used to replace religious imagery in the two best-known examples. The defeat of Byzantine Iconoclasm was so emphatic that the issue has never arisen again in Orthodoxy.
, when Protestants preached in violent terms the rejection of what they perceived as idolatrous Catholic practices such as religious pictures, statues, or relics of saints. Andreas Karlstadt
was the earliest extreme iconoclast, to be followed by John Calvin
and Huldrych Zwingli
. The Reformed (Calvinist) churches and certain sects (most notably the Puritans and some of the Baptist churches) completely prohibited the display of religious images, even the cross. Apart from official destruction of art, there were outbreaks of violent iconoclasm
such as the Beeldenstorm
in the Low Countries
in 1566. Lutheranism
and Anglicanism
also removed most images and symbols from churches and discouraged their private use. However while portraits of saints were destroyed, portraits of contemporary individuals, including church leaders, were not considered problemmatic, and exist in large numbers, with some "Lutheran altarpieces"
even showing leading reformers as the Apostles at the Last Supper
. Nearly all Protestant churches are now considerably more relaxed over the use of religious art and symbols than they were in the Reformation period, though many denominations avoid images in churches.
Faced with the Protestant challenge to imagery, then far more virulent than it usually is today, the Catholic Counter-Reformation
reacted by quietly removing some types of medieval imagery that could not be justified theologically, but otherwise by strengthening its commitment to the use of art and images to promote the Christian message, though tightening up on the detailed content of imagery, which was brought under stricter control by the church.
The virtual end of the production of religious painting in Protestant parts of Europe had the effect of diverting artistic production into secular subjects, especially in Dutch Golden Age painting
of the 17th century. While Catholic Europe was still producing Baroque
altarpieces in large numbers, the Netherlands produced genres scenes, very often of ungodly behaviour, still-lifes, portraits and landscapes. Moralistic messages were often attached to these, though the subject matter often fights somewhat with them. Protestant religious art, mainly in the form of illustrations of biblical events, continued in printmaking
and book illustrations, for example in the etching
s of Rembrandt, who also painted biblical subjects.
, a standard bearer for militant traditional Calvinist values, has a major collection of Baroque
old master
Catholic altarpiece
s proclaiming the Counter-Reformation message, though these are kept in a gallery, not a church setting.
Catholic churches, after a large clear-out of 19th century images following the Second Vatican Council
in the 1960s, are now generally keen to preserve their existing artistic heritage, but new churches typically contain far fewer images than at any point in the last 1500 years.
The Amish
and some other Mennonite
groups continue to avoid photographs or any depictions of people; their children's dolls usually have blank faces. The Brethren in Christ, another branch of Anabaptism, rejected all use of photography
until the mid-20th century.
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
has not generally practised aniconism
Aniconism
Aniconism is the practice or belief in avoiding or shunning images of divine beings, prophets or other respected religious figures, or in different manifestations, any human beings or living creatures. The term aniconic may be used to describe the absence of graphic representations in a particular...
, or the avoidance or prohibition of types of images, but has had an active tradition of making and venerating images
Christian art
Christian art is sacred art produced in an attempt to illustrate, supplement and portray in tangible form the principles of Christianity, though other definitions are possible. Most Christian groups use or have used art to some extent, although some have had strong objections to some forms of...
of God
God in Christianity
In Christianity, God is the eternal being that created and preserves the universe. God is believed by most Christians to be immanent , while others believe the plan of redemption show he will be immanent later...
and other religious figures. However there are periods of aniconism in Christian history
History of Christianity
The history of Christianity concerns the Christian religion, its followers and the Church with its various denominations, from the first century to the present. Christianity was founded in the 1st century by the followers of Jesus of Nazareth who they believed to be the Christ or chosen one of God...
, notably in the Early Christian church, in the Byzantine iconoclasm of the 8th century, and following the Protestant Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
of the 16th century, when Calvinism
Calvinism
Calvinism is a Protestant theological system and an approach to the Christian life...
in particular rejected all images in churches. Puritanism also rejected all images and some of these practices continue today in Fundamentalist Christianity
Fundamentalist Christianity
Christian fundamentalism, also known as Fundamentalist Christianity, or Fundamentalism, arose out of British and American Protestantism in the late 19th century and early 20th century among evangelical Christians...
.
Christian aniconism has only very rarely covered general secular images, unlike aniconism in Islam
Aniconism in Islam
Aniconism in Islam is a proscription in Islam against the creation of images of sentient living beings. The most absolute proscription is of images of Allah, followed by depictions of Muhammad, and then Islamic prophets and the relatives of the Prophet, but the depiction of all humans and animals...
; Anabaptist
Anabaptist
Anabaptists are Protestant Christians of the Radical Reformation of 16th-century Europe, and their direct descendants, particularly the Amish, Brethren, Hutterites, and Mennonites....
groups such as the Amish
Amish
The Amish , sometimes referred to as Amish Mennonites, are a group of Christian church fellowships that form a subgroup of the Mennonite churches...
are rare exceptions.
Early Christianity
Many voices in Early ChristianityEarly Christianity
Early Christianity is generally considered as Christianity before 325. The New Testament's Book of Acts and Epistle to the Galatians records that the first Christian community was centered in Jerusalem and its leaders included James, Peter and John....
spoke against the creation of religious images. This was firstly because of the Jewish background of most of the first Christians, and also because images were associated with the idolatry
Idolatry
Idolatry is a pejorative term for the worship of an idol, a physical object such as a cult image, as a god, or practices believed to verge on worship, such as giving undue honour and regard to created forms other than God. In all the Abrahamic religions idolatry is strongly forbidden, although...
of the pagan Ancient Roman religion and other cults and religions around them. In the 1st century
Christianity in the 1st century
The earliest followers of Jesus composed an apocalyptic, Jewish sect, which historians refer to as Jewish Christianity. The Apostles and others following the Great Commission's decree to spread the teachings of Jesus to "all nations," had great success spreading the religion to gentiles. Peter,...
the issues are discussed in the Letters of St. Paul and a prohibition of idolatry is included in the Apostolic Decree. There are mentions of images of Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
from the 2nd century
Christianity in the 2nd century
The 2nd century of Christianity was largely the time of the Apostolic Fathers who were the students of the apostles of Jesus, though there is some overlap as John the Apostle may have survived into the 2nd century and the early Apostolic Father Clement of Rome is said to have died at the end of the...
onwards. The Catacombs of Rome
Catacombs of Rome
The Catacombs of Rome are ancient catacombs, underground burial places under or near Rome, Italy, of which there are at least forty, some discovered only in recent decades. Though most famous for Christian burials, either in separate catacombs or mixed together, they began in the 2nd century, much...
contain the earliest images, mostly painted, but also including relief
Relief
Relief is a sculptural technique. The term relief is from the Latin verb levo, to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is thus to give the impression that the sculpted material has been raised above the background plane...
s carved on sarcophagi. Jesus is often represented by pictogram
Pictogram
A pictograph, also called pictogram or pictogramme is an ideogram that conveys its meaning through its pictorial resemblance to a physical object. Pictographs are often used in writing and graphic systems in which the characters are to considerable extent pictorial in appearance.Pictography is a...
symbols, though he is also portrayed.
After Constantine
A major change came with the conversion to Christianity of the Roman EmpireState church of the Roman Empire
The state church of the Roman Empire was a Christian institution organized within the Roman Empire during the 4th century that came to represent the Empire's sole authorized religion. Both the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox churches claim to be the historical continuation of this...
in the 4th century, when a style of art emerged suitable to use in the grand churches then being built. However figurative monumental sculpture
Monumental sculpture
The term monumental sculpture is often used in art history and criticism, but not always consistently. It combines two concepts, one of function, and one of size, and may include an element of a third more subjective concept. It is often used for all sculptures that are large...
was still avoided in the West
Western Christianity
Western Christianity is a term used to include the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church and groups historically derivative thereof, including the churches of the Anglican and Protestant traditions, which share common attributes that can be traced back to their medieval heritage...
until the time of Charlemagne
Charlemagne
Charlemagne was King of the Franks from 768 and Emperor of the Romans from 800 to his death in 814. He expanded the Frankish kingdom into an empire that incorporated much of Western and Central Europe. During his reign, he conquered Italy and was crowned by Pope Leo III on 25 December 800...
around 800; the Franks
Franks
The Franks were a confederation of Germanic tribes first attested in the third century AD as living north and east of the Lower Rhine River. From the third to fifth centuries some Franks raided Roman territory while other Franks joined the Roman troops in Gaul. Only the Salian Franks formed a...
had no association of sculpture with cult images and a life-size crucifix
Crucifix
A crucifix is an independent image of Jesus on the cross with a representation of Jesus' body, referred to in English as the corpus , as distinct from a cross with no body....
(with "corpus") known to have been in the Palatine Chapel, Aachen was probably a pivotal work, opening the way to the free general use of large sculpture. This was contemporary with the Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
iconoclasm
Iconoclasm
Iconoclasm is the deliberate destruction of religious icons and other symbols or monuments, usually with religious or political motives. It is a frequent component of major political or religious changes...
(see below). Religious sculpture, especially if large and free-standing, has always been extremely rare in Eastern Christianity
Eastern Christianity
Eastern Christianity comprises the Christian traditions and churches that developed in the Balkans, Eastern Europe, Asia Minor, the Middle East, Northeastern Africa, India and parts of the Far East over several centuries of religious antiquity. The term is generally used in Western Christianity to...
. The Western church was anxious to distinguish its use of images from idolatry, and set out its theological position in the Carolingian Libri Carolini
Libri Carolini
The Libri Carolini , Opus Caroli regis contra synodum , also called Charlemagne's Books or simply the Carolines, are the work in four books composed on the command of Charlemagne, around 790, to refute the supposed conclusions of the Byzantine Second Council of Nicaea , particularly as...
, in similar but slightly different terms to those set out by the Eastern church after the episode of Iconoclasm.
God the Father
The depiction of God the Father in artGod the Father in Western art
For about a thousand years, in obedience to interpretations of specific Bible passages, pictorial representations of God the Father in Western art had been avoided by Christian painters. At first only the Hand of God, often emerging from a cloud, was portrayed...
long remained unacceptable; he was typically only shown with the features of Jesus, which had become fairly standardized by the 6th century, in scenes such as the Garden of Eden
Garden of Eden
The Garden of Eden is in the Bible's Book of Genesis as being the place where the first man, Adam, and his wife, Eve, lived after they were created by God. Literally, the Bible speaks about a garden in Eden...
. The rationale for this was the doctrine of the pre-existing Christ or Logos, which holds that Christ has existed from the beginning of time. Very simply put, as a member of the Holy Trinity of three persons in one God, representations of God could be achieved by depicting Jesus as Logos, except in the few cases where both Jesus and God the Father needed to be shown separately, as in scenes of the Baptism of Jesus
Baptism of Jesus
The baptism of Jesus marks the beginning of Jesus Christ's public ministry. This event is recorded in the Canonical Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. In John 1:29-33 rather than a direct narrative, the Baptist bears witness to the episode...
. Alternatively God the Father was represented only by the Hand of God
Hand of God (art)
The Hand of God, or Manus Dei in Latin, also known as Dextera domini/dei, the "right hand of the Lord/God", is a motif in Jewish and Christian art, especially of the Late Antique and Early Medieval periods, when depiction of Jehovah or God the Father as a full human figure was considered...
, which probably reached Christian art
Christian art
Christian art is sacred art produced in an attempt to illustrate, supplement and portray in tangible form the principles of Christianity, though other definitions are possible. Most Christian groups use or have used art to some extent, although some have had strong objections to some forms of...
from Hellenistic Judaism
Hellenistic Judaism
Hellenistic Judaism was a movement which existed in the Jewish diaspora that sought to establish a Hebraic-Jewish religious tradition within the culture and language of Hellenism...
, as it is prominent in the wall paintings of the 3rd century Dura-Europos synagogue
Dura-Europos synagogue
The Dura-Europos synagogue is an ancient synagogue uncovered at Dura-Europos, Syria, in 1932. The last phase of construction was dated by an Aramaic inscription to 244 CE, making it one of the oldest synagogues in the world...
in Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
. Depictions of God the Father, essentially as the Old Testament
Old Testament
The Old Testament, of which Christians hold different views, is a Christian term for the religious writings of ancient Israel held sacred and inspired by Christians which overlaps with the 24-book canon of the Masoretic Text of Judaism...
Ancient of Days
Ancient of Days
Ancient of Days is a name for God in Aramaic: Atik Yomin; in the Greek Septuagint: Palaios Hemeron; and in the Vulgate: Antiquus Dierum....
, only became common in the West from about 1200 onwards, and remain controversial in Eastern Orthodoxy, still being prohibited by the Russian Orthodox Church
Russian Orthodox Church
The Russian Orthodox Church or, alternatively, the Moscow Patriarchate The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world; including all the autocephalous churches under its umbrella, its adherents number over 150 million worldwide—about half of the 300 million...
for example (where images of the Ancient of Days, also banned, are held to represent Christ). Free-standing monumental sculpture is also avoided by the Orthodox churches, and reliefs are much rarer, especially large ones. On the other hand icon
Icon
An icon is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, from Eastern Christianity and in certain Eastern Catholic churches...
s have a slightly different theological position in Orthodoxy and play a more significant part in religious life than in Roman Catholicism, let alone the Protestant churches.
Bernard of Clairvaux
Bernard of Clairvaux (1090 – 1153) was an influential Cistercian monk who famously wrote against the excessive use of imagery in a monastic context, and was largely responsible for the unornamented style of Cistercian architectureCistercian architecture
Cistercian architecture is a style of architecture associated with the churches, monasteries and abbeys of the Roman Catholic Cistercian Order. It was headed by Abbot Bernard of Clairvaux , who believed that churches should avoid superfluous ornamentation so as not to distract from the religious life...
. However his attack concentrated on what he saw as frivolous non-religious elements in the Romanesque
Romanesque art
Romanesque art refers to the art of Western Europe from approximately 1000 AD to the rise of the Gothic style in the 13th century, or later, depending on region. The preceding period is increasingly known as the Pre-Romanesque...
religious art of his day, which he said distracted monks from their religious life.
Byzantine iconoclasm
There were two periods of iconoclasm, or icon-destruction, in the Byzantine EmpireByzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
, in the mid eighth and early ninth centuries. The arguments of the Iconoclasts remain rather obscure, as almost all their writings were destroyed after the "Triumph of Orthodoxy". The simple belief that images were idolatrous appears to have been their main motive; reference was made to the prohibitions on the worship of graven images in the Mosaic Law
Ten Commandments
The Ten Commandments, also known as the Decalogue , are a set of biblical principles relating to ethics and worship, which play a fundamental role in Judaism and most forms of Christianity. They include instructions to worship only God and to keep the Sabbath, and prohibitions against idolatry,...
, and aniconic statements by the Church Fathers
Church Fathers
The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, Christian Fathers, or Fathers of the Church were early and influential theologians, eminent Christian teachers and great bishops. Their scholarly works were used as a precedent for centuries to come...
, some of which may now be lost. One theological issue revolved around the two natures of Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
. Iconoclasts believed that icons could not represent both the divine and the human natures of the Messiah at the same time, but separately. Because an icon which depicted Jesus as purely physical would be Nestorianism
Nestorianism
Nestorianism is a Christological doctrine advanced by Nestorius, Patriarch of Constantinople from 428–431. The doctrine, which was informed by Nestorius's studies under Theodore of Mopsuestia at the School of Antioch, emphasizes the disunion between the human and divine natures of Jesus...
, and one which showed Him as both human and divine would not be able to do so without confusing the two natures into one mixed nature, which was Monophysitism
Monophysitism
Monophysitism , or Monophysiticism, is the Christological position that Jesus Christ has only one nature, his humanity being absorbed by his Deity...
, all icons were thus heretical.
The political aspects of the conflicts are complex, involving with the relationship between the Byzantine Emperors, the Orthodox Church
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
councils, and the Pope. There has been much scholarly discussion over the possible influence on the Iconoclasts of the aniconism in Islam
Aniconism in Islam
Aniconism in Islam is a proscription in Islam against the creation of images of sentient living beings. The most absolute proscription is of images of Allah, followed by depictions of Muhammad, and then Islamic prophets and the relatives of the Prophet, but the depiction of all humans and animals...
, the century-old religion which had inflicted devastating defeats on Byzantium in the decades preceding. Most scholars reject direct religious influence, though many feel the feeling of crisis produced by defeats at the hands of Islam contributed to the Iconoclast movement. Both the cross and secular two-dimensional images continued to be acceptable, indeed were used to replace religious imagery in the two best-known examples. The defeat of Byzantine Iconoclasm was so emphatic that the issue has never arisen again in Orthodoxy.
Reformation and Counter-Reformation
Opposition to religious imagery was a feature of proto-Protestant movements such as the Lollards in England, and then became a key feature of the Protestant ReformationProtestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
, when Protestants preached in violent terms the rejection of what they perceived as idolatrous Catholic practices such as religious pictures, statues, or relics of saints. Andreas Karlstadt
Andreas Karlstadt
Andreas Rudolph Bodenstein von Karlstadt , better known as Andreas Karlstadt or Andreas Carlstadt or Karolostadt, was a German Christian theologian during the Protestant Reformation. He was born in Karlstadt, Franconia.-Education:Karlstadt received his doctorate of theology in 1510 from the...
was the earliest extreme iconoclast, to be followed by John Calvin
John Calvin
John Calvin was an influential French theologian and pastor during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system of Christian theology later called Calvinism. Originally trained as a humanist lawyer, he broke from the Roman Catholic Church around 1530...
and Huldrych Zwingli
Huldrych Zwingli
Ulrich Zwingli was a leader of the Reformation in Switzerland. Born during a time of emerging Swiss patriotism and increasing criticism of the Swiss mercenary system, he attended the University of Vienna and the University of Basel, a scholarly centre of humanism...
. The Reformed (Calvinist) churches and certain sects (most notably the Puritans and some of the Baptist churches) completely prohibited the display of religious images, even the cross. Apart from official destruction of art, there were outbreaks of violent iconoclasm
Iconoclasm
Iconoclasm is the deliberate destruction of religious icons and other symbols or monuments, usually with religious or political motives. It is a frequent component of major political or religious changes...
such as the Beeldenstorm
Beeldenstorm
Beeldenstorm in Dutch, roughly translatable to "statue storm", or Bildersturm in German , also the Iconoclastic Fury, is a term used for outbreaks of destruction of religious images that occurred in Europe in the 16th century...
in the Low Countries
Low Countries
The Low Countries are the historical lands around the low-lying delta of the Rhine, Scheldt, and Meuse rivers, including the modern countries of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and parts of northern France and western Germany....
in 1566. Lutheranism
Lutheranism
Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the theology of Martin Luther, a German reformer. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...
and Anglicanism
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
also removed most images and symbols from churches and discouraged their private use. However while portraits of saints were destroyed, portraits of contemporary individuals, including church leaders, were not considered problemmatic, and exist in large numbers, with some "Lutheran altarpieces"
Last Supper (Cranach)
After Luther's objections to large public religious images had started to fade, Lucas Cranach the Elder, along with his son and workshop began to work on a number of altarpieces of the Last Supper, among other subjects....
even showing leading reformers as the Apostles at the Last Supper
Last Supper
The Last Supper is the final meal that, according to Christian belief, Jesus shared with his Twelve Apostles in Jerusalem before his crucifixion. The Last Supper provides the scriptural basis for the Eucharist, also known as "communion" or "the Lord's Supper".The First Epistle to the Corinthians is...
. Nearly all Protestant churches are now considerably more relaxed over the use of religious art and symbols than they were in the Reformation period, though many denominations avoid images in churches.
Faced with the Protestant challenge to imagery, then far more virulent than it usually is today, the Catholic Counter-Reformation
Counter-Reformation
The Counter-Reformation was the period of Catholic revival beginning with the Council of Trent and ending at the close of the Thirty Years' War, 1648 as a response to the Protestant Reformation.The Counter-Reformation was a comprehensive effort, composed of four major elements:#Ecclesiastical or...
reacted by quietly removing some types of medieval imagery that could not be justified theologically, but otherwise by strengthening its commitment to the use of art and images to promote the Christian message, though tightening up on the detailed content of imagery, which was brought under stricter control by the church.
The virtual end of the production of religious painting in Protestant parts of Europe had the effect of diverting artistic production into secular subjects, especially in Dutch Golden Age painting
Dutch Golden Age painting
Dutch Golden Age painting is the painting of the Dutch Golden Age, a period in Dutch history generally spanning the 17th century, during and after the later part of the Eighty Years War for Dutch independence. The new Dutch Republic was the most prosperous nation in Europe, and led European trade,...
of the 17th century. While Catholic Europe was still producing Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
altarpieces in large numbers, the Netherlands produced genres scenes, very often of ungodly behaviour, still-lifes, portraits and landscapes. Moralistic messages were often attached to these, though the subject matter often fights somewhat with them. Protestant religious art, mainly in the form of illustrations of biblical events, continued in printmaking
Printmaking
Printmaking is the process of making artworks by printing, normally on paper. Printmaking normally covers only the process of creating prints with an element of originality, rather than just being a photographic reproduction of a painting. Except in the case of monotyping, the process is capable...
and book illustrations, for example in the etching
Etching
Etching is the process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio in the metal...
s of Rembrandt, who also painted biblical subjects.
Among Christians today
Calvinist aniconism, especially in printed material, and stained glass, can generally be said to have weakened in force, although the range and context of images used are much more restricted than in Catholicism or parts of Anglicanism, where the Anglo-Catholic movement since the 19th century has seen a major revival in the use of religious images. The Pentacostal and other Evangelical churches ultimately springing from the Moravian rather than Calvinist tradition are readier to use large crosses and other images, though not with the profusion of traditional Catholicism. Hence works like the colossal King of Kings statue in Ohio, destroyed by lightning in 2010. Somewhat strangely, Bob Jones UniversityBob Jones University
Bob Jones University is a private, for-profit, non-denominational Protestant university in Greenville, South Carolina.The university was founded in 1927 by Bob Jones, Sr. , an evangelist and contemporary of Billy Sunday...
, a standard bearer for militant traditional Calvinist values, has a major collection of Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
old master
Old Master
"Old Master" is a term for a European painter of skill who worked before about 1800, or a painting by such an artist. An "old master print" is an original print made by an artist in the same period...
Catholic altarpiece
Altarpiece
An altarpiece is a picture or relief representing a religious subject and suspended in a frame behind the altar of a church. The altarpiece is often made up of two or more separate panels created using a technique known as panel painting. It is then called a diptych, triptych or polyptych for two,...
s proclaiming the Counter-Reformation message, though these are kept in a gallery, not a church setting.
Catholic churches, after a large clear-out of 19th century images following the Second Vatican Council
Second Vatican Council
The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...
in the 1960s, are now generally keen to preserve their existing artistic heritage, but new churches typically contain far fewer images than at any point in the last 1500 years.
The Amish
Amish
The Amish , sometimes referred to as Amish Mennonites, are a group of Christian church fellowships that form a subgroup of the Mennonite churches...
and some other Mennonite
Mennonite
The Mennonites are a group of Christian Anabaptist denominations named after the Frisian Menno Simons , who, through his writings, articulated and thereby formalized the teachings of earlier Swiss founders...
groups continue to avoid photographs or any depictions of people; their children's dolls usually have blank faces. The Brethren in Christ, another branch of Anabaptism, rejected all use of photography
Photography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
until the mid-20th century.
General
- Jack Goody, Representations and Contradictions: Ambivalence Towards Images, Theatre, Fiction, Relics and Sexuality, London, Blackwell Publishers, 1997. ISBN 0-631-20526-8.