Terms can be an issue, I think. For when one sees a painting one made of the Heavenlies or of the Messiah that done unto God's glory or prayed over for ministry--and someone appreciates it--it's essentially the same thing as adoring it. Memorial plaques (without pictures), pics of past rabbis/leaders in the hallway at the entrance and other things are all honored in one way or another..and that in/of itself is veneration.
Whenever pictures are placed up of what the Torah looks like, as has occurred here frequently over the years, one is involved in choosing to adore something....and yet the argument has been how the pictures help in thinking about what the scriptures make clear. To venerate something is about appreciation/reverence of it--and as long as there is the practice of kissing Torah scrolls occurring within Messianic Jewish synagouges or treating objects with reverence, I wonder if what occurs is condeming one thing (as others may see it worthy of condemnation) while doing the same thing in differing language/expression.
No one worships an image, but to appreciate it/hold it in reverence or consecration is another. And on the issue of venneration, people often forget that veneration was about honor--and bowing down was something even the people of God did when honoring others (
Genesis 18:1-3, Genesis 23:6-13 Genesis 33:2-4 Genesis 48:11-13 , Exodus 18:6-8 , Ruth 2:9-11 , 1 Samuel 20:40-42 1 Samuel 24:7-9 1 Samuel 25:22-24 , 2 Samuel 9:5-7 2 Samuel 18:27-29 2 Samuel 24:19-21 1 Kings 1:15-17 1 Kings 1:30-32 , etc). For those bowing down in remembrance of others who went before us, just as people bow their heads at a funeral or when seeing a picture of a departed love one out of respect. That's the basis behind icons when it comes to depictions of the saints.
If something glorious is bowed to in order to worship it apart from the Lord, that's another issue. John in Revelation had that temptation with the angel teaching him and was warned against it ( Revelation 19:1-15 )
Some say that there's a difference between a Torah scroll being kissed and an icon in an Orthodox Church since they see a Torah Scroll as a symbol of revelation while they view an icon as an image of something on heaven or earth that is to be venerated. In their view, to venerate a Torah scroll is to venerate the self-disclosure of God through ancient prophetic writing while to venerate an icon is to venerate an image..but it seems silly since veneration is occurring REGARDLESS with both sets---and the image is a artisitc portrayal of what ancient prophetic writing described.
As said elsewhere, with the ICon issue, I really wonder at times what is so difficult to understand with the concept. Within OT Israel,
the objects used in tabernacle (and later Temple ) worship were prayed over/sanctified before the Lord and all of it spoke to the Work of the Lord. If studying how the objects within the tabernacle looked (which one can
go here or
here for more on that), it's really powerful. There was a reverence to things rather than acting as if it was common. Things like the Showbread or the Golden Candlestick, within the Holy Place which provided light, and many other instruments had a Divine Purpose (
Exodus 27,
Exodus 30:27-29,
Exodus 31:8-10 ,
Exodus 35:15-17 ,
Numbers 4 , etc ).
Leviticus 8:10-12
Moses said to the assembly, This is what the LORD has commanded to be done. Then Moses brought Aaron and his sons forward and washed them with water. He put the tunic on Aaron, tied the sash around him, clothed him with the robe and put the ephod on him. He also fastened the ephod with a decorative waistband, which he tied around him. He placed the breastpiece on him and put the Urim and Thummim in the breastpiece. Then he placed the turban on Aarons head and set the gold plate, the sacred emblem, on the front of it, as the LORD commanded Moses.
10 Then Moses took the anointing oil and anointed the tabernacle and everything in it, and
so consecrated them. He sprinkled some of the oil on the altar seven times, anointing the altar and all its utensils and the basin with its stand, to consecrate them. He poured some of the anointing oil on Aarons head and anointed him to consecrate him.
Numbers 7:1-3
[
Offerings at the Dedication of the Tabernacle ] When Moses
finished setting up the tabernacle, he anointed and consecrated it and all its
furnishings. He also anointed and consecrated the altar and all its
utensils.
2 Chronicles 29:18
Then they went in to King Hezekiah and reported: We have purified the entire temple of the LORD, the altar of burnt offering with all its
utensils, and the table for setting out the consecrated bread, with all its articles.
2 Chronicles 29:17-19
THis was the case with the imagery included in the tabernacle/temple as well...and the same concept is there with Icons. They prayed over pictures they make which are physical representations of what occurred within scripture...just as the images of the Cheribum and other aspects of the Heavenlies were prayed over and the physical element was able to bring others into the spiritual dynamic of seeing what God's throne in Heaven was truly like.
It has NEVER been an issue of bowing down in worship to anything apart from the Lord--for anyone truly wishing to listen (even if you disagree)--and for some good places to investigate, one can go here to the following:
Gxg (G²);59235012 said:
IMHO...
When it comes to the commands not to make any graven images/bow down in worhsip, I think the reality behind passages such as Exodus 20:4 and many others similar was one concerning how the mode or fashion of worship appropiate to the Lord forbid any attempt to represent or caricature Him by the use of anything made when out of bounds. It is a significant stretch, however, to say that total censure of artistic expression was what the issue was. When reading Exodus 20:4, it seems that what the command was about is the totally human tendency to
Create God according to the way WE want Him to be (regardless of what he "looks like" or has described his personality/character as), and for Him to be "motivated" as WE are, and to require the things of US that we require of OTHERS so that that they meet OUR (false god's) definition of what's "just"", and of course to think, evaluate, and JUDGE things as we do in our overactive religious human imaginations.
An image alone would not be a problem if that image accurately described a trait of the Lord that he described of Himself/his saints within the Word. One good place for study would be the following:
Some of what occurs with ICons is similar (IMHO to what's occurring today with others who do Prophetic Art, where the artwork they make is anointed and something where the Spirit of God can be felt/seen in. The artwork takes on aspects of the foretelling nature of prophecy (i.e. predicting future events to come) or forthtelling (i.e. preaching/declaring what the Word of God says and what the Lord's heart is revealed in scripture). For more, one can look into this:
If you've ever heard of the term
"New Renaissance, things may make more sense. For this term emerged several years ago as God began to reveal His desire to release a fresh outpouring of creativity upon His people that would be a catalyst for transformation in the culture of our world. The historical Renaissance was a surge of creativity and innovation that literally brought European society out of the Dark Ages, and transformed every facet of the culture of the time. Many of the greatest works of art unto the Lord were done, from Michangelo's David to his work "The
Creation of Adam", which is a section of Michelangelo's fresco
Sistine Chapel...and many others:
It was a time of reformation and a tremendously significant shift in cultural paradigm, and the vehicle for this movement of change was the Arts. In recent years, others have noted how the Lord has been speaking through various leaders and prophetic voices within the body of Christ, as well as leading influencers in secular society (such as
Patricia Martin of RenGen--as seen
here in her book), that we are on the verge of a second Renaissance. Ultimately, Gods desire once again is to pour out His Spirit upon His people through all realms of creative expression that His heart would be revealed to the world and culture would once again be transformed.....
This is not hard to consider, IMHO. For throughout history we can see that all transformations in culture are preceded by the arts. From the Renaissance to the Impressionists, as artists reached a new dimension in ability and style, civilization responded to the change the arts ushered. .