Iconoclastic controversy
The Iconoclastic Controversy
In either the year 726 or 730, Emperor Leo III banned all images of Christ that showed him in human form. This was due to a belief that veneration of images amounted to idolatry. Beyond this lay the problem of whether God is representable. The Iconoclasts argued that any image depicting God in human form either omits His divine nature or confuses it with His human nature.
The Seventh Ecumenical Council (787) defended image veneration and in so doing clarified the principles behind it. To venerate an image is to venerate not its substance but the shared likeness. An icon of Christ affirms the reality of the human and the divine and enables contemplation on the person who is the model for theosis.
In the year 843 the iconoclastic controversy was finally laid to rest, and icons and their veneration were restored on the first Sunday in Lent. Ever since, this Sunday has been commemorated as the "Triumph of Orthodoxy" and is refered to as the "Sunday of Orthodoxy."
The Sunday of Orthodoxy
The Sunday of Orthodoxy is commemorated with the Divine Liturgy of Saint Basil the Great, which is preceded by the Matins service. A Great Vespers is conducted on Saturday evening.
Orthodox (members of the Eastern Orthodox Church) faithful carry icons in a procession, while the clergy offer petitions for the people, civil authorities, and those who have reposed in the faith.
