God bless everyone brother. Everyone else needs it more then we do. We have Jesus, we’re blessed already.,

And have mercy on those who are in cults who think their "Christians".

Only OrthoDox CathOlIcs are Christians

Yes, the real ones, by faith.

@@ChristianHada Exactly.

I was born again 2 years ago, and in these two years I’ve been upset with how the Protestant church has become married to the world. The Orthodox Church has interested me, but two BIG things convict me. One, the icons are alarming; and two, Mark. 7:7-8. Is the Orthodox Church Holy and set apart? Or secular like the Catholics… I guess I outta visit one and find out

I go to a baptist church too. What ever church takes His word seriously, I’m with. No making up human interpretations like you see In churches all over

@@ashtonlambert7673 you should become a monk then

@@ashtonlambert7673 I have the same dilemma. I feel as though “modern” denominations of Christianity are becoming worldly, but the older ones look pagan and secular to me. I mean, kissing and bowing to icons? Yeah, no thanks… I also go to a baptist church which is okay I guess, not pagan and not too worldly either, but I don’t feel like there’s a real connection with God. It feels “bland”, for the lack of a better word. Orthodox and Catholic Churches look bright and lively, but the icons and candles make them look like pagan worship places, which is unsettling to me.

@@Agua678 I think you should know more about iconography and how it was important to the early church and the other symbols and icons that was used by the early. I can understand the secular part ,but the pagan part is insulting.

kzfaq.info/get/bejne/f9F9aqidyNSnh4E.html

You do worship icons not only you but the Orthodox church to by bowing for an icon rather than bowing for the unseen God

@@newday7469 The problem with your statement is that God has been seen! God became material to save and sanctify the material! The Jews, some foreigners and the Apostles saw God in the flesh: Jesus the Christ! The unbelievers like the Pharisees only saw a man. Yet Christ does everything God does! Are we made in God's image? Does not God say to love the poor, the sick, the imprisoned is to love Him? Does not God say to love one another? Are we not told by God to love images then...living walking images...like you? If Christ healed the blind with just His spit, how much more His image (of the true living God) can do? Even the pagan Romans had a signet ring with the Emperor's symbol on it. What ever was imprinted with it was considered highly by the citizens. How much more meaningful is the likeness of Christ and His subjects then are to the children of God's Kingdom?

For orthodox churches statues and images are not good. Like an idol.

@@gamerjj777 only statues. Icons are not just images. There are strict rules how to paint icon, including spiritual. It's not just whatever artist wants to do. That's why we don't accept Roman Catholic sculptures and paintings.

@@dimazanya2568 Was it creepy for the Jews to kiss the Scriptures? Is it creepy when people kiss photos of their loved ones?

@@dimazanya2568 I am not superstitious and I love to bow and kiss the image of my beloved Jesus and Holy Mary!What is creepy?It is like kissing a photo if your child or your parents!

@@katerinakaterinaki9143 but you do not know how Jesus look like?

@@someguy9571 Jews made mistake just as orthodox Christians are doing now. People believe that icons have supernatural powers, it is not about kissing per se (although it is still creepy since we do not know what Jesus looks like and there are many different icons ), it is about bowing before these images and ascribing to them what should be ascribed to one God who made heavens and earth. Now I do not know if church holds this view, but it certainly does not correct these uneducated people that are doing this.

@@katerinakaterinaki9143 I am not orthodox , but l understand what you are saying .Just love and great respect you show and l love the Orthodox Church and wish to be part of it !

good luck brother

Well she is lost , and so are icon venerating or statues

@@albusai Icons are drawn gospel

They also have paintings on their walls 🤷🏻‍♂️

@@juancarlosjuarez3365 that they do

He is wrong. He is misleading you by taking Bible verses out of context and comparing them to his own traditions that are not equal. Both the Tabernacle and the Ark of the Covenant were specifically commanded by God Himself to be made. Icons of Mary and the saints were not commanded by God to be made at all. They are graven images.

@@eiontactics9056 Christ also did not outright command icons to be made of himself, does that somehow make it wrong?

The English words "graven image" or "idol" in translations of the Bible may represent any of several Hebrew words. The word is pesel, translated in modern Hebrew as “sculpture” indicating something carved or hewn. ​@@eiontactics9056

​@@collectiveconsciousness5314In subsequent passages, pesel was applied to images of metal and wood, as well as those of stone.

Why? They do not know Christ. They are false teachings and following them will lead you away from Christ.

@@eiontactics9056 bruh, what you said is just SOOO ignorant. Educate yourself on those churches

@@eiontactics9056 go marry some homosexuals you protestant

Most people may not know this but OrthoDoxes and CathOlIcs have always been, are still, and will always be 1 Church as Creeds allow no belief in any "splits" in the Church. Most people may however know both the Romanists of the West and the Byzantinists and the Uniatists of the East strayed from OrthoDox CathOlIc Dogma in different ways.

@@samiverson2496 very charitable of you

You should approach this with less enthusiasm and a colder head to avoid being misguided. Read the bible, there's nothing about worshipping Mary, the saints, the patriarchs, the rituals, etc. Is all idolatry, but because it appeals to the flesh so much, people fall for the spectacular rituals and images and forget how wrong everything is. The EO church is just little Rome, they will put a hundred obstacles between you and God so you never just believe by faith unto salvation, the real gospel.

@@JesusProtects That is bible speaking. Amen.

@@JesusProtects Just believing isn't enough. Jesus said it Himself. He also said we have to eat His Flesh and drink His Blood. John 6. Zwingli started that "in memory" focus. I personally want a Church that actually does the things Jesus taught instead of talking about the things. If you ever kissed your wife or mother, then you've done the same as we do when we kiss an icon. We're just surrounded by the great cloud of witnesses. It says no where in the Bible that those on the other side can't see what's happening here on earth. When Jesus said, "If you're faithful over a few things, I'll make you ruler over many," what do you think we will rule over on heaven? I believe Saints are given the responsibility to help those on earth and pray for us. If you dig into the visions of the Temple in heaven in the Bible you'll see the incense rising up which is the prayer of the Saints! The martyrs are under the alter, just as their relics are in Orthodox and Catholic churches. Also explain how protestantism accepts the filoque when that was added by Rome and caused the Great Schism? It's so sad how many of the Roman additions got into protestantism. Every mystery gets analyzed to death instead of just believing. That's why the world is in the state it's in now. If you read the homilies of John Chrysostom and maybe some St. John Cassian, you'd see what those of us converting see in it.

The worship in Orthodoxy is glorious! God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit deserves beautiful Temples and worship! kzfaq.info/get/bejne/mqeKqJyI0t7Oo2g.html

☦KYRIE ELEISON☦

We ask for your prayers dear friend!

So why my friend my mom was called out of jacobite church My mom being pious jacobite, used to read bibke a lot and later on she found how the church was different from the Bible itself Thays when she started to pray to jesus to reveal the truth, wether she is in the truth or not and he spoke to her and He said she is in the wrong path, she is not truly following Him So she asked how can she truly follow him and live for Him and said i want to follow you if u are the truth So late on she was filled with the holy spirit even before she was baptized not the common infant baptism And later on she moved to Bible believing church i.e, Pentecostal My father was a catholic catholic, he too was called out when he with 2 of his friends sat in last row of a convention to listen to the music, the preacher in the middle stood on the stage and pointing at 3 men in the last row, " jesus is calling you for his ministry, to preach the gospel are u ready to give your life to jesus " They are from kerala, they came here to karnataka after baptizing to preach Gospel with just 2 suitcases, one full of clothes and the other with some books Brother, i guess u need to study the bible again and ask jesus to reveal wether u truly believe in him, and wether your journey wil take to him in the end, and u must comfirm by his words rather than what the church teaches you or what u might think is true May God Bless you By the way, i am also a malayallee , ma parents from adimali and iddukki

"And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven." (Matt 23:9) Jesus was literally talking about religious titles. By calling him "Father", you are directly disobeying Jesus. He is your brother, not your father.

@@eiontactics9056 1 Corinthians 4:15 15 Even if you had ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel.

@@Ajjajajss Paul is not talking about a Title to be called. Like "Holy Father" or "Father Paul". He was merely describing a relationship, not a religions title (which Jesus rebuked).

Muslims practice idolatry by worshipping their false prophet and his demon god, Alipoop.

It might be the Holt Spirit convicting. I did too and left the Orthdox church and I kid u not after I left the Church I have a real relationship with God. If the Bible don’t tell us to venerate Mary just don’t. til now I read to pray to the father in the name of the son by the power of the Holy Spirit. Stick to the Bible alone not human interpretations when u can see it doesn’t line up.

@@edenkid4627 thank you for your comment. Appreciate it. I think you're right.

@@slavi7191 u welcome ❤️

@@edenkid4627 sometimes it’s worries too I have ocd so I’m constantly worrying if this is conviction

@@slavi7191 I am going to assume that you are Serbian, like me? Not that it matters. So we Christians, or in this case orthodox Christians, do not pray to the icons or to the Virgin Mary. The reason why we kiss the Icons of the church is out of respect. Every icon is an image of a holy man or women who devoted their life to the eternal son of God, Jesus Christ. Think of it like this, if you would to have a picture of your son in your wallet and you would look after it and even kiss it sometimes, when things get hard, you are not kissing a piece of paper but rather what it represent - your son. So we show our respect to the Lord by respecting (in this case kissing) icons in the church of people who devoted their life to Jesus Christ. If you are a Serb like i suspect, then you know for example who Knez Lazar is and why we have icons of him in our churches and why we love him so much. With that being said, we pray to only one God and that is Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. I am orthodox and do not pray to Mary, even if to me she is the greatest women to have ever lived. I only pray to my God and Savior Jesus Christ.

Only GOD can be called a Father.Matt.23:8

@@asyamikula5757 Really?? What do u call your male parent....by his first name? Even St. Paul says to his spiritual children they have many fathers, but he is their father in Christ because he spiritually begot them (1Corinthians 4:15-17)! Christ said what He said to emphasize humility to the Jewish religious leaders, not to ban the word! Luke 1:73 Abraham is called "father"! The biblical word "Patriarch" comes from the Latin root word for 'father' (Patri)! Read with the mind of the Church to properly understand and be nourished with the Scriptures!

@@frankignatius2507 It’s referring towards a “higher power” form of “Father” likewise, we are to only call God Father, not another man.

@@thomas7571 That's an erroneous view. Christ criticizes the Pharisees for being shallow self-centered religious leaders (Matthew 23:9). Proper context prevents erroneous context. The Bible shows many instances of use of the term: 1) "Honor your father and mother (Matthew 19:19). 2) Jesus calls Abraham "Father" (Matthew 3:9). 3) St. Stephen calls Jewish leaders "fathers" (Acts 7:2). 4) St. Paul calls Jerusalem Jews "fathers" (Acts 21:40, 22:21). 5) Abraham is called "the fathers of us all" (Romans 4:16-17). 6) St. Paul calls himself someone's spiritual "father"(1 Cor. 4:14-15, 1 Timothy 1:2,Titus 1:4). This is why we called priests "Father". 7) St. Paul calls our dads "earthly fathers" (Hebrews 12:7-9). These are just a some examples. Please notice the contexts in these and most were said AFTER Christ's statement of Matthew 23:9! There are more Scripture verses in the NT and OT showing this.

@@frankignatius2507 You are mistaken. Jesus was strictly talking about religious titles within His Church. Which, btw, is the way you are using father. You are disobeying Jesus. Call him brother instead of father. He is your brother. You only have one Father, which is in heaven. Also, when you ignorantly listed other times people called others "fathers" you are out of context. The term fathers meant almost like "ancestors". Depicting a lineage. NOT a title. Also, Paul calls himself father of Timothy. It never says that Timothy called him "Father" or that Paul was declaring a title for himself. He was merely describing the close relationship he had with Timothy. Again. Ignorantly out of Context.

Thank you, Mark, for your comment. And there is not much to disagree on with what it is that you are saying - especially concerning the fact that in your references the people make the mistake of turning their prayers to those carved images rather than to God Almighty. And so we agree, any sort of worship directed to anything but God is idolatry. However, you make an important statement "The presence of the invisible God filled the empty spot in between the two cherubim" - and this was the case until the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ. Now we have God in the flesh, manifested visibly for all the world to behold. This changes things! We are no longer making statues of serpents, or birds or cattle like the Israelites did in the wilderness, we are honouring Him who became like us in every aspect of humanity except for sin alone. John of Damascus says it best: "In former times, God, who is without form or body, could never be depicted. But now when God is seen in the flesh conversing with men, I make an image of the God whom I see."

As for the comment concerning the people of Israel not depicting their forefathers in imagery, we actually have evidence that they did! Please look up Dura-Europos synagogue, it gives some insighton the subject. God bless

@@CopticOrthodoxAnswers will do, always interested in learning more about history. Thankyou for your answers. Although i still disagree.

+ mark Anderson i understand what the priest is saying but you can't get around what God says in the Bible, to the Priest , maybe God had made the tabernacle the way he wanted to his liking at that time for it's purpose and that was the only one to be made like it. also if God wanted us to make churches with icons or statues in it he would have told us to . nobody can keep the law and we thank God for Jesus Christ. it's just my opinion it feels that building this it tries to take away from God

@@cvetkojovcevski645 You are certainly misled by the doctrine of Sola Scriptura. The Bible does NOT include everything what Christians shall do. You can refer to two other video of the author. kzfaq.info/get/bejne/auBpaNCGyc_RnaM.html kzfaq.info/get/bejne/obd3a9heqKjLqKc.html

I am sure all these ikons could just disappear and christians would be in the same position as the church of the first century :)

Ethiopiss

Of course we can, that's a funny question honestly 😅😅

Do you not realize that all Christian denominations do proclaim that they worship God in spirit and truth? Or do you think this verse is only found in your Bible?

@@CopticOrthodoxAnswers If the church proclaim that they worship the father in spirit and in truth does that mean that they do, the holy father is a spirit and we need to close the door and pray to our father who is unseen and Jesus taught us this in Matthew unless you don't believe the Bible and Jesus clearly tells us that we worship only the father through him and in spirit, you can't make something that resemble God the father, in the old testament YAHWEH said all idols and graven images are nothing I will not give glory to another and I know that if Jesus came today he would have destroyed every idol inside your churches and told you to repent and that's what I'm trying to tell you brother, repent and believe in God the father and the lord Jesus and you need to do the 2 most important commandments and are : 1-love the lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 2-love your neighbor as yourself. That's it the church can't change the word of christ but christ can change the church.

Please forgive me. I don’t mean to be rude. But I would ask you, if you deem it wise, that you would start looking into different interpretations from what you are being fed. After reading your answer, iconography is the least of my worries. May God be with you in your research. You can reach out anytime if you have an honest question. God bless

@@CopticOrthodoxAnswers all you need to see is what the orthodox church did in Russia. Most so called christians don’t know or believe anything. But they do trust that the ikons if various saints they bought in a church shop have magic powers. Witches also like to use ikons in their practices. Superstition reigns instead of faith. Christ is completely obscured by Mary and the saints. All this pageantry is completely misleading from Christ the Savior.

Following that logic, if someone is gazing at the picture of their passed away parent or friend that is also verging on worship… hmm…

@@CopticOrthodoxAnswers Gazing at photos of your dead relative is not a very good comparison. You don’t ask them to do “favors” for you and people do not do pilgrimage to these picture. Also, what about the “accidental” icons which end up attracting worshipers for miracles? One such apparition turned out to be a urine stain :(

God bless you

Agreed! Very well drawn out arguments! God bless

Ikons are not essential for salvation and shouldn’t be viewed as supernatural objects of worship and adoration as is the case in the Russian Orthodox Church.

@@synthesaurus Literally nobody says they are "essential for salvation". Stop making stuff up. And yes they are worthy of adoration, not worship. You know there is a difference.

You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God. (Ex 20:4,5) The church can talk around this all they want, but the scripture couldn't be more clear. If icons were a valid part of Christendom, then why are there no examples of it anywhere in the scriptures accept as sin?

@@rl4u144 protestant spotted. What came first, scripture or the church? Exactly... Scripture is fully compatible with the church, just not with protestant heresy

Marian devotion, is way worse than simply devotion. If you put before them a rock and say this is Mary, they will bow down to that piece of rock. The same goes for statues of Jesuses and crosses, Catholics will gladly bow down to all kinds of statues. Scriptures are very clear, from the moment that someone bows down to a piece of wood or metal, he or she commits idolatry. As Isaiah pointed out, a piece of wood would make some good when burned instead of being bowed down to ( Isaiah ch. 44).

Your probably more confused now. This idolatry cannot be justified.

“And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.” Matthew‬ ‭23‬:‭9‬ ‭KJV‬‬

@@brooke9446 What do you call your dad then?

I have never been an Orthodox church. Im here also if someone explains. Thanks

In my culture and many cultures that have been followed for decades I saw, as a sign of respect, and love we bow and kiss our parents hands or people who are higher than us ,and those saints are our fathers that died and suffered for the sake of God and they are the one who teached us how to worship God right, we kiss and bow to them because they are higher than us in action,and love to God they have, we are nothing close to them so we respect them , and that how we show respect nothing more , we worship only ONE God. There is probably more to that answer , hopefully Abuja answers it but I answered it behalf of my knowledge. God bless🙏🏽☦️

@@secrethuman581 thank you

@@secrethuman581 its exactly that. Bowing and kissing is a eastern practice to show respect and venerate someone. As we can see in 1 Chronicles 29:20. There the people bow down to god AND the king. The western world is unfamiliar with that practice and for them this looks like worship which isnt. Even muslims kiss the hand of their fathers out of respect. So do they worship their fathers as pagan gods too?

God bless you dear friend, and of course, if you really want to be a priest or a monk then you should go to an orthodox church near you and the fathers in their will explain everything to you.

@@nathaniel2101 Thank you brother I really appreciate it. Unfortunately their is no orthodox church in the Gambia,West Africa.

He’s a Copt not an Arab

@@ecgmissionoutreachs843 You are the church brother. God created you where ever you and other Christians are is as good as any church. I genuinely pray that you get a church in Gambia soon.

@አደዳይ ኣባይthank you sister... whereare you from?

Hello dear one, Perhaps something like this video may be able to get you deeper into the icon and to see a little of what is happening in Orthodox Iconography, kzfaq.info/get/bejne/mNmSldGQ07G5e4U.html

@@CopticOrthodoxAnswers thank you I will watch it and God bless

This may seem like that to you, but is it like that to the Church that for 2,000 years read about the golden calf and how it was destroyed? Instead of seeing paganism in an icon of the Holy Mother and Christ Child, how about seeing 3,000 years of anticipation (promise of the Messiah) and hopes fulfilled (the Incarnation) in holy art?

@@frankignatius2507 could you please direct to a link so I may thank you

@@L.vegmadekid.V What do you mean?

Protestantism has too many churches to be true and have many differences between them!Ask God!He holds the answer for you!

@@katerinakaterinaki9143 I agree, ask God. But that seems like a weak principle to base your truth off of - the number of churches. Furthermore, isn't it against Orthodoxy to ask God and find your own truth about Him? Should I not just ask the church? Thank you for your kind response

@@daltonsteede6482 If you pray to God sincerely he will lead you to the truth. Like Cornelius in the book of acts God listened to his prayers and led him Peter. After God leads you to hus true Church then you listen to them.

In regards to this, Calvinism is like Christian Islam.

The problem is that there are no examples in the New Testament where the early church uses or makes icons. The book of Acts and the Epistles lay out in great detail, how the church should conduct itself, proper doctrine and worship and never mentions images of deceased Saints. In fact, the only times in the bible where this type of imagery IS mentioned in scripture, it's mentioned as something sinful. This video doesn't make a good case for icons, because it's only based in tradition and not the word of God.

Thank you for your comment Mary. That verse actually makes the point perfectly: the Divine Nature of God is not like gold or silver - it is not created! We worship a God that is Creator - the great 'I AM'. St Paul here in this passage that you quote is dealing with a Hellenic Community that worshiped statues and images of man-made gods where they believed that the gods actually dwelt in them and in their temples... And so St Paul calls them to repent. In Orthodoxy however, icons are never seen as objects that are worshiped - as if they are in and of themselves divine. Rather they are tools that are utilized within the Orthodox expression of worship of the One True God.

@@CopticOrthodoxAnswers But why does God actually say to Moses: “You shall not make for yourself a carved image-any likeness of anything that is in heaven above. YOU SHALL NOT MAKE...YOU SHALL NOT MAKE...YOU SHALL NOT MAKE...? Why is the Lord God Almighty telling Moses not to make them in the first place? He is not saying, "You may make, but you shall not worship nor bow down..." He is saying, YOU SHALL NOT MAKE. Surely this lets us use other parts of God's law according to the culture and society we live in. For example, a man may leave his father and mother and marry another man, because they both love each other. And God says not to judge. And God is love. Do you see how perverted the Word of God can become if we pick and choose what we will obey, and use it to suit what we think is right?

@@marymeawad9532 Galatians chapter 3 might provide some understanding. Living by The Law is not something the Church is required to do. The Law was given to the Hebrews to guide and try them. The New Testament was written by The Church that The Christ founded and The Apostles spread, so they are certain to be the best at interpreting their own writings, which were written by Apostles who grew up with the Hebrew scriptures and Law. The Church doesn't have to pick and choose anything from The Law to live by, only point to for understanding and correction of how to live by faith instead of condemning themselves by taking on possible curses for failing to live by the Law. I hope this response is helpful in lifting up, never harmful.

@@marymeawad9532 Why Protestantism has so msny churches with so many diffetences between them?On the other hand Orthodox Churches based in ine and only truth and have the same liturgues for 2000 years in every country that are!Ask God ,He is the only one to tell you the truth!Don't listen to Heresies!Luther King,Calvin, Mohammad and others were just humans to believe them !We also don't believe in the unmistakable if the catholic popes because Jesus was only unmistakable and that is how the schism between Orthodox and Catholic Church happened!

To venerate in hebrew לְהַעֲרִיץ means to worship, honor, praise, idolize. Think there is great denial with the orthodox in all this

Hello, Thank you for the question! You are totally right that St. John of Damascus is a post-chalcedonian figure and was not therefore a part of the discourse of the Oriental Orthodox. However, in terms of the exposition of icons, he is a figure to be greatly revered. Because iconoclasm did not affect the Oriental Orthodox in the same capacity, there was not a reason to elaborate the belief in the veneration of icons as there was in the Chalcedonian communion. Just being in a different epoch or region does not somehow invalidate the rich and deeply striking writings of St. John of Damascus, however. For this reason he is an important figure to know and to discuss when it comes to the veneration of icons and the greater question of our relationship to the material world and the Orthodox insistence against manichean dualism. God bless you!

Coptic Orthodox Answers Thank you, God bless you too Father, please pray for us the Vietnamese Catholics. We have been persecuted by the communist regime since 1975 (Fall of South Viet Nam).

@@trubangTrang God bless you! May your witness to His sufferings be a sign for us all and may He continue to strengthen you in conforming yourself to the image of His Son.

Coptic Orthodox Answers Thank you

Good job my dear brother you have a nice zeal about your religion

This is something I also like to know.

There are many scriptures that explain the teaching of miaphysite and related issues.... Pope Shenouda III have a book called "The Nature of Christ" which fully focused on when does this term "miaphsite" is coined, who were the inventor of heretic about the nature of Christ and what is exactly the teaching of oriental orthodox on Nature of Christ. You can find it www.stminahamilton.ca/groups/servants/pope-shenouda-iii-books

@Markos pantopolos thank you so much for the invaluable information brother.

@Markos pantopolos Thank you. I'm new to this and I allowed their rudeness to really push me out of character. This Clown Jay Dyer and his Facebook group Traditional Metaphysics kicked ne out for defense of the Coptics. I was baptized last November by a Coptic Orthodox church in New Jersey. I have no regrets. Yes I would like that. I'm still learning.

Thank you!! Markos pantopolos

I agree that historically it is clear that icons were used in the early Church

No one is dead bro. Even in Jewish thought the soul is immortal, everyone lives on. Have you read what Jesus said about Lazaruz and Abraham? Abrahams bosom are all the saints of the old testament. Abraham could give out supplications and prayers, and people could hear him and Abraham heard people because of the grace of God.

I doubt there an image of God in the world simply because there no person ever rendered his likeness in stone or on paper. Surprising really when so many have apparently seen Him. But then perhaps it was more the eyes of imagination that saw His face rather than fact.

Once you come to rely on all these images what are you going to do when they are gone? If you in jail or exile? You going to draw one with chalk?

Those images of our Lord Jesus Christ are drawn by the saints that saw him, long hair and on, what differences are u talking bout?

​@secrethuman581 He means that there are variations between the images, some have longer beards, and some longer hair. But I myself don't see the issue.

If you have not yet, read [ Three Treatises on The Divine Images: Apologia Against Those Who Decry Holy Images ].....By St. John of Damascus. This should explain more on this subject.

The word "worship" them is not correct. Orthodox are not worshipping the icon, but what they represent (and only in the case of Jesuschrist's icons) Westerns see bow down and kiss as a sign of worship, but in the Middle East (where Christianism cames from, not Rome, France, Britain, etc.) kissing and bowing down is a sign of respect. Orthodoxs worship God, venerate/respect/honor the Saints and Holy Theotokos. If you see a person kissing and bowing down to an icon, you might think they are worshipping it, as one can't known the intentionts on men, only God knows what are in our hearts. Sorry if cant explain myself better, english its not my first language.

@@pabloalvarez7510 so kissing a picture of my mother is like kissing my mother? No... besides it's written in the commandments that we should not bow down to images.

@@alexanderstauber As i said, bowing and kissing an icon its a sign of respect to the person it represents, not the wood and paint of the object. You love your mother and kiss her picture, you are not loving the picture itself, just the memory of her. Its simple, Im sorry if im nof clear enough. Blessings.

@@pabloalvarez7510 well people also didn't pray to the Greek god statues but to the Greek Gods still they used those statues as representations of those Gods. You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God It's clear

@@alexanderstauber Yes, but those gods are pagan, even if Greeks didnt pray to statues, its still paganism and there is no comparison there. I was answering your first question regarding bowing down to icons, and I answered its a custom in the east to pray respects as it, its not worshipping. As for your statement about the Second Commandement, i think its pretty clear in the video, as you also say you understand what Father Mourad explained, so i dont get your question.

It is a no-no. “Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,” ‭‭Colossians‬ ‭2‬:‭18‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Answer: no: no: we are not: you lying Western prots

@@miguelpasamano4995 Im not a protestant, I just understand whats goig on.. Take care

Because he is not dyslexic?

Orential Orthodox Christians cross them selves from left to right. Greek Orthodox do it backwards for some reason, it is not the same Church.

I guess it depends on where the church is located and its traditions. In ex soviet countries, orthodox people are literally bowing down to statues and pictures. That is idolatry, not just a mere ' reading' of a ' writing '.

Theotokos (Mary) is not dead because she is in heaven.

32 ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead but of the living.” - Matthew 22:32 The St Mary is not dead, she is in heaven.

Buddhist don't worship statues, or anything else. They would not be considered pagans.

We often forget that it is not the action that counts but the meaning behind the action. Often people automatically associate bowing down with worship. It is the intention when it comes to God, but it isn’t when it comes to icon. Would you judge a human being bowing to another as a sign of worship or respect? Would you characterize the human being who is bowing down as respectful or heretic because he broke the second commandment. If you choose the former, you are right. If you choose the latter, remember that the spirit gives life and the letter kills.

@@CopticOrthodoxAnswers But God literally told them not to bow down before images. Acts 10 "As Peter entered the house, Cornelius met him and fell at his feet in reverence. But Peter made him get up. “Stand up,” he said, “I am only a man myself.”

the calf was a symbol of virility and strength associated with the Canaanite god El. It was never about the one true god, and that is why god shunned its worship. I'm still on the fence about icons myself though.

@@saltMagic Wasn't El the name of the biblical God also?

​@@christophersnedeker2065No, Allah's name can be found in the Bible, Look at Exodus 6:3 and Psalm 68:4.

God will correct every fault in every church.Im a Seventh-day Adventist and they teach about this bowing before images.Although I have my disbelief in some of the teachings in the Seventh-day Adventist church.Im looking for a good church to attend but I find it hard to find a church that follows the bible.I was also looking in the direction of orthodox christain but I find it hard bowing before a icon.But I definitely don't want to attend a Seventh-day Adventist anymore.

@@jenelleg9848 I've heard Calvary chapels are really good, although right now I'm not attending church because of COVID. You may have a Calvary Chapel in your area.

Hello Dear Bryan, It is because God has entered into matter, we can encounter Him through matter. We can use the matter to elevate our minds and our thoughts to God. It is also an affirmation of our being both material body and soul that means that we must make our way to God both by contemplation but also through the material means which elevate us to Him. St. John of Damascus says beautifully, "Of old, God the incorporeal and uncircumscribed was never depicted. Now, however, when God is seen clothed in flesh, and conversing with men, I make an image of the God whom I see. I do not worship matter, I worship the God of matter, who became matter for my sake, and deigned to inhabit matter, who worked out my salvation through matter. I will not cease from honouring that matter which works my salvation. I venerate it, though not as God. How could God be born out of lifeless things? And if God's body is God by union, it is immutable. The nature of God remains the same as before, the flesh created in time is quickened by, a logical and reasoning soul. I honour all matter besides, and venerate it. Through it, filled, as it were, with a divine power and grace, my salvation has come to me. Was not the thrice happy and thrice blessed wood of the Cross matter? Was not the sacred and holy mountain of Calvary matter? What of the life-giving rock, the Holy Sepulchre, the source of our resurrection: was it not matter? Is not the most holy book of the Gospels matter? Is not the blessed table matter which gives us the Bread of Life? Are not the gold and silver matter, out of which crosses and altar-plate and chalices are made? And before all these things, is not the body and blood of our Lord matter? Either do away with the veneration and worship due to all these things, or submit to the tradition of the Church in the worship of images, honouring God and His friends, and following in this the grace of the Holy Spirit. Do not despise matter, for it is not despicable Nothing is [despicable] which God has made. That is the Manichean heresy." St. John of Damascus, On the Holy Images. For more modern sources about this topic, we highly recommend the materials of Fr. Stephen Freeman whose academic work was on Icons. Here are some great pieces; - blogs.ancientfaith.com/glory2godforallthings/2019/03/20/when-icons-became-windows/ - blogs.ancientfaith.com/glory2godforallthings/2019/11/18/venerating-icons-its-so-much-other-than-you-think/ God bless your search for Him and your desire for Truth.

Even catholics and other orthodix light candles to the idols whoch is imdeed an act if worship to the idol But i understand that when u pray to those idols u think of jesus or mary etc But still i don't know The truth is even the apostles never practiced these things Until Constantine made christianity look like any other religion looked like With tradition, festivals, idols, icons etc Because when he commanded every people to accept christianity they complained of not having look like true religion because they had Rituals and traditions, celebrations and idols and icons etc

ccreativ Ghost there isn’t prayers to the icons. it’s reminders. a picture of a loved one reminds u of them so a paint reminds and focus us on christ

@@santigikargbo3415 can i ask a question Jesus said im with u always, i live in you Why should u need a mans image portrayed or played as jesus for Him to be with you When he is already inside u, u dont need to look at a photo and pray to it, u can pray to then God who is living inside you Will u make image of a dead one to remember them or pray to them, dead ones don't need prayers though U just remember them, u just bring back all those memories and that lives inside u that how u remember a dead person Say u loved ur grandmother a lot and meant lot But u dont have any photo of her Will u just remember all those memories with her and just wish she was woth u Or u will get another woman of the same age and try to see ur grandmother in that image No one can't do such a thing What catholics nd other sects doing is When jesus said im with u, i live inside you But u are making graven images of another man who are artists or actors and pray to them beliving they are jesus How many photos and images do one has in churches different kinds of jesus Blonde etc But the truth is, jesus was never a blonde So how can u justify this ???

ccreativ Ghost personally i can say yes Jesus is inside of us. but i never said the image means he’s legit with us. i use it to refocus if anytime i get off track. but yea that’s it for me considering im young child 🥱

They kissing stone. We kiss a picture of loved one. You don't look at picture of someone you missed and kissed this picture or maybe hugged it.

Muslims don't worship the stone. They worship a false notion of God but they don't worship a stone.

@@HabashyAngyI’ve never kissed or hugged a photograph. Weirdo

Maybe it is a cultural thing.

@@HabashyAngy Maybe you worship pictures aka idolatry

well said

Graven means to put something on a surface. See dictionary. So your putting the pictures on the wood.

It may not be worship but very often the attention to them becomes obsessive and unduly reverent

@@synthesaurus it is clearly worship. They bow down to them, kiss them and pray to them thinking they have some special powers. They literally place those graven images and what they represent inbetween them and Christ. It is idolatry.

engrave (an inscription or image) on a surface.

Thank you dear for your comment... it is essentially the same as kissing a relative or a friend... that's all...

Well said Anthony

@@maryh2237 don't get me wrong. There Is alot to admire about orthodox Christianity. But the origins of Christianity and its many mistakes are still present.

So Joshua when he bowed before the ark of the covenant was worshipping it? So when there were statues built in the tabernacle the builders were idolaters? What was the early Christian Church going to do when most of its believers were illiterate and couldn't read. Images were placed to produce an image. Would you not kiss and salute a solider? But you glorify the country instead through the solider. The same way you do to a Saint, for Christ is glorified in his saints 1 Thessalonians 2:5. Repent.

So then do you don't trust God? Christ was alright with it in John 3:14-15. You salute a flag? You listen to a stop sign? Would you stomp on a Cross?

@@frankignatius2507 We were given specific orders in Exodus 20:4. Flags and signs are not graven images.

@@wanrazul The concept is still there: we respect a piece of cloth or the meaning behind the flag? Are we respecting a piece of metal on the roads or respect the traffic laws? The signet ring of Caesar and its wearer were greatly respected. How much more honorable are the imprints of the Cross, or of Christ and His subjects to a citizen of the Kingdom of God? The ancient Hebrews left a polytheistic country called Egypt. The golden calf was a representation of the false Egyptian god Serapis! It wasn't a bull that liberated the Hebrews! It was the true God of Abraham, Isaac and Moses Who did! Context protects you from a false pretext.

You seem like a evangelical cultist who twist the scriptures and other peoples words..Where did he say to discard the 10 commandments..?? don't twist other people's words to suit your perverted agenda..Why did God told to make the Cherubim on the ark of the covenant? Wasn't that a icon ?

@@alangervasis 1. I’m not a cultist! It’s funny how people like you assume because someone follows biblical scripture and not traditions is in some sought of cult, it’s laughable. 2. I didn’t twist anything! He said the law was only given to the Jews which by his own interpretation wasn’t given to the gentiles of today, that’s false. Because like I said the scripture says Jesus came to fulfil the law not abolish the law. What’s the law the Ten Commandments! 3. The cherubim are not icons they are the cherubim that sit on either side of god and worship him day and night in heaven as the scriptures say. So he told Moses to build the ark of the covenant according to the exact representation in heaven. So no the ark of the covenant is not an idol it’s the exact representation of god given to Moses. Please educate yourself with scripture before you try to ridicule a fellow Christian. May God bless you!

Being raised in Church doesn't mean u understand the Ortodohxy right lol, if u didn't follow it wz ur heart just bc ur body was in the church doesn't mean u understood the whole meaning of Ortodohxy , because ur soul was somewhere else, if u got questions and u want it to be Clearfield , u should ask in respectfully way ,or else who are u to tell abuna to open his eyes lol? Y'all ppl who leave Ortodohxy forgetting how to humble urself acting like y'all know the whole Bible. And also we ortodohx don't twist nun , God words aren't simple words to understand them literally , God talks in example,mathphor and on . And again if u have questions as them RESPECTFULLY and don't assume your right immediately. God bless and may YOUR eyes will be open and realize Ortodohxy is the original and real Christianity.🙏🏽☦️

The ark of the covenant?

Have you not read about the temple of God in the old testament?

I don't know much about Orthodox church I am from a non denomination church I know the Bible well as I have read it every day for over 10 years and still learning. In my tradition it is known that we pray to God alown it dose say in Hebrews I believe that Jesus is interceding for us everyday he lives to intercede for us. I don't find anywhere in the Bible that talks about praying to others other than the trinitarian god can you help me by telling me where that idea come from I've heard it comes from the Apocrypha books is there a specific book in the Apocrypha that talks about praying to Saints? I do not believe that that is what God wants us to do which is why so many Traditions do not do that but I am interested in knowing why you do seem to think it is okay to pray to Saints ask for weather God approves of using pictures to help us worship God or and or pray to Saints I also still don't find that in the scriptures the Ark of the Covenant Yaz a picture of symbolism for sure and the temple for sure has symbolism like the cherubim also the bronze snake that Moses held up in the. I think the main concern to me is the praying to Saints I am don't see there to be good evidence from God's word to us promoting that idea anywhere in the scriptures

@@joshuahardman396 You do what you gotta do my friend, we don't elevate saints to the same level as God, we know where God belong in the hierarchy, its just nice to know that people in heaven, closer to God, can be there for us, with us, in all of our troubled life. God bless,

@@willolol3353 gotcha

How do you know that your 16th century reading is not the one that is wrong? It amazes me how people comment without any kind of research assuming their position is right. Instead of quoting me bible verses that we all know and heard over and over again, I would suggest looking a bit at church history. Not only regarding this subject but many others. You may be surprised. Remember Protestantism started in the 16th century.

@@CopticOrthodoxAnswers brother I'm not a protestant, but I'm gonna tell you that I am a Jesus's witness who is a Christian, I'm not obligated to be a protestant if I'm an evangelist, I can be an evangelist without being a protestant but the problem I'm telling you is that Mary is the mother of Jesus and that's it and Jesus said with his own words I'm the way the truth and the life(no one) comes to the father but by me, either you are telling me that Jesus is a liar because you teach in your catholic and orthodox churches that we can pray in the name of Mary, or you are doing against what our lord said and you are teaching people to do what you think is right and you do not stand on the word of God and secondly which means that you are corrupt , I personaly don't believe your doctrine of the Trinity, I believe that we have only one God YAHWEH and one mediator between God and men (the man) christ Jesus which is in the bible I'm not creating doctrines and teaching people to obey me, I'm reading the Bible in it's context and trying to find the real truth, and the final point I wanna make is that the first christians were not (orthodox) 😂😂, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Paul, Peter, James, Jude, they were (evangelistic) and you can see it in the bible so I think you need a lesson in history my brother but you can read the bible hand to heart and then ask yourself is the church telling the truth or are they creating what they think is the truth.

Please forgive me. I don’t mean to be rude. But I would ask you, if you deem it wise, that you would start looking into different interpretations from what you are being fed. After reading your answer, iconography is the least of my worries. May God be with you in your research. You can reach out anytime if you have an honest question. God bless

@@CopticOrthodoxAnswers you too brother God bless you.

@Srbin Srbinovic Absolutely! There are a number of rich and beautiful sources. 1. One excellent series is the texts of Jaroslav Pelikan called "The Christian Tradition" which cover the full breadth of Christian history in 5 volumes and they are great reads. 2. A fantastic one stop shop with regards to early history is the welcome book by Fr. John Anthony Mcguckin, "The Path of Christianity: The First Thousand Years". This text is organized chronologically and then by themes. Fr. John is a foremost scholar and also includes primary source texts of the fathers in very easy to read translations so you can sick your teeth into the time itself. 3. The best source from an Oriental Orthodox would be Aziz Atiya's History of Eastern Christianity. May God bless you in your search for Him

Then why did God ask his people to make images in the Old Testament?

@@CopticOrthodoxAnswers where does it say that