Icons in Time, Persons in Eternity

'The ambition of this book is enormous and for the most part [it] comes off brilliantly. It ought to spark some completely fresh discussions of aesthetics and ontology ... Formidable as the book is, it should be required reading for anyone seeking to grasp the aesthetics of the icon and their rootedness in a consistent and challenging Christian ontology - and anyone looking for a creative theological interaction with the art of the 20th Century.' Rowan Williams, Art and Christianity 'In this learned and profound work, Tsakiridou returns again to the challenge of modernism to religious art and, drawing on the concept of enargeia, vividness, and the Byzantine theology of the divine light, develops an understanding of the icon as drawing the beholder into the experience of deification. Bold and original.' Andrew Louth, Durham University, UK 'Tsakiridou directly approaches what theophany actually looks and feels like in art, and her approach is inspiring.' Modernism-Modernity 'This book is as deep as it is ground-breaking.' Heythrop

Autorentext
Cornelia A. Tsakiridou is Professor, Philosophy, and Director, Diplomat-in-Residence Program, at La Salle University, Philadelphia, USA.

Klappentext

Icons in Time, Persons in Eternity presents a critical, interdisciplinary examination of contemporary theological and philosophical studies of the Christian image and redefines this within the Orthodox tradition by exploring the ontological and aesthetic implications of Byzantine Orthodox ascetic and mystical theology.

Inhalt
Contents: Preface; Part I Preliminaries: The need to redefine the Christian image; The exemplary work of art; Enargeia and key concepts. Part II Theology and Art: The Orthodox icon and modernism; The new iconoclasm; Theological fallacies; Jacques Maritain's dialogue with modernism. Part III Orthodox Iconology: Asceticism and iconoclasm; The mystical lives of beings in St Maximus the Confessor; The image in St John Damascene; The living image in Byzantine experience. Part IV Theophany and Art: Human and divine luminaries; The theophanic icon; Theophany and modernism; Enargeia and transcendence in Zen art; Epilogue; Bibliography; Index.