ICONS

Icons are painted pictures which depict an event from the life of Christ or the portrait of a person who reached sainthood. They represent some of the major events of the history of salvation. They are also called "windows to heaven."

During services, the Priest first censes the icons and then the congregation. All of which is a reminder that each parish is together with the angels and saints.

During the course of the history of the church, some icons became miraculous because of the miracles they performed through the command of God. The veneration of the icons has been in practice from the first day of Christianity.

The Orthodox Church uses icons to express the incarnation and are venerated, not worshipped.