Orthodox Byzantine Icons of the Lord

Christ Pantocrator (17th c.)

ملف مرفق 1613
Date: 17th c. / L ocation: Cretan / Style: Pantocrator

Christ stands before us in this well-preserved 17th c. Cretan icon with a clear and perceptive gaze, and in His left hand He holds a closed ornate Gospel Book to remind us of the guidelines by which we all should live. His life is a revelation of the Mysteries of God and the Lord’s amazing condescension of Love, to come to earth and open fully the path to Heaven for all of us. Christ is the most interactive person Who has ever appeared, for He is intent on giving us “life, and that...[we] might have it more abundantly” (John 10:10) for “in Him was life; and the life was the light of men.” (John 1:4) As the Lord taught us in the Gospels, there is a great difference between just worldly life and Everlasting Life. May we be wise and choose the fullness of Life that He offers.

With His right hand He blesses with the priest's blessing, the fingers of His hand forming the Greek letters "IC XC", which is the abbreviation for "Jesus Christ". In Christ's halo are the Greek letters for "I AM", for this is the King of Kings as spoken of in Revelation (1:8), "I am Alpha and Omega...saith the Lord, Which Is, Which Was, and Which Is To Come, the Almighty

Christ Pantocrator

ملف مرفق 1614
Date: 20th c. (Late) / Style: Pantocrator / Heritage: Greek

Christ blesses us with His right hand as “Pantocrator” (the Greek word for “Ruler of All”), His fingers formed into the shape of the Greek letters "IC XC," the abbreviation in Greek for Jesus Christ, and He holds in His left arm a jewel-studded Book of the Gospels. From the prototype of the first icon of Christ, miraculously made by the Saviour Himself, He is traditionally shown with a short beard and having long dark brown hair with reddish highlights, parted in the middle. His expression is serious but merciful, to evoke from us a serious and loving response, for the Truth is both sober and yet hopeful for us.


Christ is shown with an outer blue robe, symbolizing the Humanity that He put on at His Incarnation, and with an inner red robe, representing His Divinity that remains for all eternity. In the cross in the nimbus or halo around His head are the Greek letters for "I AM" to remind us that although Incarnate in time, Jesus Christ is God before the ages, even before Abraham, and He is the same God Who spoke with Moses face to face. Christ blesses us at all times, but we must be open and receptive to fully receive it.

Pantocrator (Bulgarian) (18th c.) -

ملف مرفق 1615
Date: 18th c. (Early) / L ocation: Nativity Church, Arbanassi, Bulgaria / Style: Pantocrator / Heritage: Bulgarian

Christ is seen here as “Pantocrator” which is the Greek word for “Ruler of All”, in this bright and colorful 18th century icon from Arbanassi, Bulgaria located just 4 kilometers northeast of Veliko Turnovo, the capital of the Second Bulgarian Kingdom (a.d. 1187-1393). The icon is a part of the iconostasis or altar icon screen in the Rojdestvo Christovo church (Nativity of Christ) which was built between 1637 and 1649, and is dug into the ground without a belfry and with hidden cupolas because of the religious persecution under the Moslem rulers at that time. This persecution was often fierce and continued during the time of the Turkish Yoke for 482 years (1396-1878) until the Bulgarian war of independence in 1877-78 at the time of the Russo-Turkish War. The church is a repository of over 3,500 stunningly bright icon treasures.

Christ’s fingers of His right hand are formed into the shape of the Greek letters "IC XC," the abbreviation in Greek for Jesus Christ, and He holds in His left arm an open Book of the Gospels. The most important choice of our life is to recognize that truly Christ is the loving Ruler of All, and to act accordingly

Christ the Saviour

ملف مرفق 1616
Date: 20th c. (Late) / L ocation: Dormition Convent, Parnes, Greece / Heritage: Greek

Christ is both “Pantocrator” (which is the Greek word for “Ruler of All”) and our Saviour in name and deed if we will only cooperate with Him. We often fail to fully appreciate the meaning of the word “Jesus”, which was the name revealed by the angel to the aged Joseph to call the son of the Virgin Mary to whom he was betrothed. The angel said, “and thou shalt call His name JESUS: for He shall save His people from their sins.” (Mat 1:21)

Jesus is the Greek word for the Hebrew Jehoshua or Yehowshua (the same name as the Prophet Joshua) which means “Jehovah” or God “saves” which is derived from the Hebrew word Yeshuwa, or “he will save.” Christ comes from the Greek word Christos meaning the Anointed, and is a translation of the Hebrew word Messiah. So when the Lord said, “and this is life eternal, that they might know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, Whom Thou hast sent...” He is really saying that we must affirm that He is the Anointed One or Messiah sent to save the people of God, and this confession brings us toward Eternal Life. May we not just affirm this with our mouths, but with our very lives

Christ Pantocrator at a Young Age

ملف مرفق 1617
Date: 16th c. / L ocation: Koutloumousiou Monastery, Mt. Athos / Style: Fresco, Emmanuel / Heritage: Greek

Christ is the “Pantocrator” (from the Greek word for “Ruler of All”) and here appears as a young man on a 16th century fresco on the dome over the proskomede table at the Holy Monastery of Koutloumousiou on Mount Athos. The living Tradition in the Orthodox Church has preserved in both word and form the continuum of what has been passed down to us over all these generations since Christ revealed Himself to His Disciples and Apostles during His Life, and then afterwards. From the very first icon that He Himself made and sent to King Abgar of Edessa, we have a continuous history of what Christ really looked like, and we have kept this iconographic Tradition most carefully.

In the frescoes from Meteora in the same period, we see depicted Adam (in our F112 icon “Adam Naming the Animals”) who was also a son of God, with a very similar face. What the first Adam lacked in obedience and humility, the “second Adam” Christ brought to heal the wounds of man, and bring the fullness of Life to us by making us “partakers of the Divine nature” (2 Pet 1:4 ) so that by Divinization or Theosis, we too might become sons of God

Deisis with St Nicholas (Theophanes)

ملف مرفق 1618
Date: 16th c. (Mid) / L ocation: Stavronikita Monastery, Mt. Athos / Style: Deisis / Heritage: Cretan

Christ is the flanked by the Virgin Mary Theotokos or Birth-Giver of God and St. Nicholas of Myra in Lycia in this mid- 16th century Deisis icon. It is from east wall of the narthex of the main church or katholikon dedicated to St. Nicholas at Stavronikita Monastery on Mount Athos. Although normally in Deisis (from the Greek word for Supplicating) icons, St. John the Forerunner and Baptist stands to Christ’s left, because St. Nicholas in the patron of this church, he is included in this icon in St. John’s place.

The Deisis icons show forth the condition of prayer and supplication that the Holy Ones are in, asking Christ’s blessings and great intercession to cure our many spiritual, psychological, and physical ills. The Saints are a mystery of Grace for they have manifested the Light of the Transfiguration and the Resurrection by their conscious and willing obedience to Christ Who has remade them into His Image and Likeness so that they shine with His Glory reflected in them. Since we are all called to be holy, or sanctus (from the Latin), to become citizens of Heaven, these are truly our spirit-filled older brothers and sisters in Christ

Holy Napkin (Moscow, 16th c.)

ملف مرفق 1619
Date: 16th c. / L ocation: Moscow Ecclesiastical Academy / Style: Holy Napkin / Heritage: Russian

The Holy Napkin, or the icon “Not Made By Hands”, is the very first icon ever made, and it was made in a miraculous way by Christ. King Abgar of Edessa, from his kingdom neighboring Israel, had sent his court artist to invite Christ to come to Edessa when he heard that the Lord was being persecuted in Israel. The artist was also asked to bring back a portrait of Christ, because the king, who had leprosy, felt that if he could only see the likeness of this Man that he had heard so much of, that he would be made well. The artist tried many times to capture His Face, but was unable, so the Lord Who loves man, knowing all things, took a cloth and brought it to His Face, and a true likeness was impressed on the cloth, which was sent to King Abgar and healed him. Thus this first icon was not made by human hands.

Later the Apostle Jude Thaddeus was sent to preach to this kingdom, and they converted to become one of the first Christian states. The original Holy Napkin cloth was kept in Edessa until 944 when it was brought to Constantinople, and it is the pattern from which all subsequent icons of Christ are made

Pantocrator (Mosaic) (Monastery Hosios Loukas)

ملف مرفق 1620
Date: 11th c. (Early) / L ocation: Hosios Loukas Monastery, Greece / Style: Mosaic, Pantocrator / Heritage: Byzantine

The term “Pantocrator” is from the Greek and means the “Ruler of All”. It is used to describe many icons of Christ, for the Lord is truly He Who rules all of the universe completely by His Providence so that all who desire to do evil have their wills modified in deed allowing only that which has passed through God’s hands and been made an opportunity for ultimate good (although this may seem mysterious at the time and with our short-term vision and understanding).

In Heaven, God’s Will is completely manifest and brightly shines at all times. One earth, the Lord has asked us to pray that this might more fully come to pass, so that His ineffable and blessed goodness expressed in His Will, which only is truly good, not the pagan ideas of the mixture of good and evil, might always come to pass. This pagan mixture is expressed today often in the ideas of yin and yang in Chinese philosophy or in Jungian light and dark psychological imagery as a part of the “normal” psychology of man, and in the Hinduism pantheon of deities which includes Kali as the fearsome and blood-thirsty destroyer

Christ Pantocrator (Detail) (Vatopedi Monastery, 13-14th c.)

ملف مرفق 1621
Date: 13th -14th c. / L ocation: Vatopedi Monastery, Mt. Athos / Style: Pantocrator / Heritage: Byzantine

This icon is a detail of a beautiful 13th or 14th century egg-tempera rendition of Christ as the “Pantocrator” (from the Greek, meaning “Ruler of All”). His face shows the traditional form of the Lord from the very earliest times: long brown hair with reddish highlights that is parted in the middle, a long thin nose, a short beard, and very expressive and aware eyes that often look right into our hearts and minds, revealing the secrets of our thoughts and intentions, as He is always their silent witness.

This revelation is a part of the Light of the Resurrection, which illumines all things with the brilliance of truth, for He is the living Truth, and His Light makes all things apparent, “for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known.” (Mat 10:26) If we are living a life that goes towards this bright and revealing light, and are thankful to have the chance to amend every imperfection and sin that so easily besets us, then we will experience this light as great freedom and love of God for us. If we are not living a Godly life, we will experience this light and truth as pain and do everything that we can to avoid it

Christ the Redeemer Enthroned (Mosaic- Ravenna, 6th c.)

ملف مرفق 1622
Date: 6th c. / L ocation: Basilica of St. Apollinaris, Ravenna, Italy / Style: Mosaic, Enthroned / Heritage: Byzantine

This icon is a beautiful example of the fine mosaic work that was done throughout much of Ravenna, Italy, in the 6th century when classical elements of style in the Byzantine heritage were put in many of the churches that were built at that time. The unified Roman Empire was under the aegis of the Emperor Justinian, the great codifier of Roman law, which still affects all of us today.

In the Basilica of St. Apolinaris, this icon of Christ seated on a throne with His right hand blessing has a luminous gold background and shows Christ in a dark red/brown robe. His left hand holds the scepter of a king. The detail on the throne has a green back cushion with blue highlights surrounding it, and a red bottom cushion. The face of Christ is expressive with a look of both penetrating wonder and kind blessings. In Christ's halo is a jewel-studded cross. This is the King of Kings as spoken of in Revelations, "I am the Alpha and the Omega says the Lord, Which Is, Which Was, and Which Is To Come, the Almighty." He is the Redeemer of immortal souls at the end of the ages. If we let Christ open our hearts, we will hear Him call, “Come unto me...and find your rest