![]() ![]() The second angel, in the middle, wears clothing typically associated with Jesus in traditional iconography: the red symbolizes the humanity of Christ and the blue that reminds us of his divinity. The one on the left is wearing a blue outfit, the color of divinity, and a golden robe represents the kingship of God. But, as you can see, each angel is wearing a different color garment. The icon represents a scene of the three nearly identical angels sitting around a table, symbolizing the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, from left to right. The painting depicts the Holy Trinity's visit to Abraham when they promise him that he will have a son. The Trinity is considered to be his greatest achievement, painted to celebrate the canonization of the founder of the Trinity Monastery. He then moved to Moscow, to the Andronikov Monastery of the Savior, where he died on January 29, 1430. Sergius, 70 kilometers from Moscow, where he lived for many years between the late 1300s and the early 1400s. All that we know for sure is that he was a monk at the Trinity Monastery of St. We have very little information about Andrei Rublev - even when and where he was born remains a mystery. Through the Incarnation of Christ we become active participants in God’s saving and redeeming work, we are just called to grow closer, we are called to fall in love, we are called to claim our seat that has been prepared for us at the Table.The Trinity is a painting by Andrei Rublev, considered to be one of the greatest Russian painters of Orthodox icons and frescoes, so much so that in 1551 a council of the Russian Orthodox Church established that his art was to be held as a model for ecclesiastical painting. In the Gospel readings for this Sunday we see the ways in which God has interacted with humanity throughout Salvation History, the giving of the law through Moses on Mount Sinai, In the Fellowship of the Holy Spirit, and The Incarnation of Jesus we see the Trinity acting throughout the whole of human history seeking to bring us closer, always seeking a relationship, a Divine Romance, it is through the incarnation of Jesus that we become invited to the table of Divinity. It is something we become intimately involved in. What we are shown by this is that the central mystery of Christianity is not one that is meant to be pondered over and mystified over but one that seeks to include us into its very fabric, giving us a seat at the table, the mystery of salvation is no longer a spectator sport. As we grow in closer union with God we are brought closer to God’s Divinity and God shares that Divinity with us. What is important about this? Why is there such a feature in an icon of the central mystery of Christianity? The answer can be found in the Eastern Churches concept of Theosis (Literally meaning to make divine) by this concept through the sanctifying gift of the Holy spirit, we are brought into a union with God where God shares divinity with us, a mystical marriage in which The Divine in infinite love and generosity shares it’s life with humanity growing in holiness. It is believed that when people would contemplate and pray with the icon, they would have no choice but to see their own reflection staring back at them, including them at the table with the Eternal Godhead. Many art historians agree that at one time a mirror occupied the place where the square now sits empty. There’s a curious feature in the Rublev icon if you look at the base of the icon there is a small square that seems almost out of place, this small square has been a mystery to many for years. We see God the Father arrayed in Gold sitting to the Left of the Table overseeing the world (symbolized by the dish in the center of the table), we see God the sun arrayed in humanity (red) and divinity (blue) his hand resting at the table, symbolizing his incarnation and direct interaction with the human world, and finally we see God the Holy Ghost dressed in verdant green, hands gently hovering above the table representing that he is the life force that renews and reanimates the world. ![]() Many people are familiar with Rublev's famous icon of the Trinity, depicting the Holy Trinity as the three angels that appeared to Abraham in Genesis 18: 1-8. ![]()
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