• The Use and Misuse of Religious Pictures
    The Watchtower—1993 | April 15

    • The Use and Misuse of Religious Pictures

      THE scene is in St. Petersburg, Russia. The date is August 2, 1914. Excited people waving icons have gathered at the czar’s palace. An altar has been erected in the center of a large hall. A painting of a woman with a child in her arms stands upon the altar. This icon is called the “Vladimir Mother of God.” The crowds view it as the most holy treasure in Russia.

      In fact, the icon is believed to work miracles. In 1812, when Russian armies marched against Napoléon, General Kutuzov prayed before it. Now, after committing his country to war, Czar Nicholas II stands before it. With his right hand raised, he makes an oath: “I solemnly swear that I will never make peace so long as a single enemy remains on Russian soil.”

      Two weeks later the czar makes a pilgrimage to Moscow to seek God’s blessing upon his troops. In the Cathedral of the Assumption, he kneels and prays in front of the large jeweled iconostasis​—a screen bearing paintings of Jesus, Mary, angels, and “saints.”

      These religious acts failed to avert disaster. In less than four years, Russian armies suffered more than six million casualties and lost much territory. Moreover, the czar, his empress, and their five children were brutally murdered. In place of the centuries-old monarchy, the country began to be ruled by a revolutionary government opposed to religion. Czar Nicholas’ trust in icons proved to be in vain.

      Yet, to this day in Russia and other lands, millions continue to venerate icons.