Catholics will remember and celebrate the life of the great Arab Church Father St. John of Damascus on Dec. 4.
Eastern Orthodox Christians and Eastern Catholics, whose tradition
has been particularly shaped by his insights, will celebrate the saint's
feast on the same day as the Roman Catholic Church.
Among Eastern Christians, St. John (676-749) is best known for his
defense of Christian sacred art, particularly in the form of icons.
While the churches of Rome and Constantinople were still united during
St. John's life, the Byzantine Emperor Leo III broke radically from the
ancient tradition of the church, charging that the veneration of
Christian icons was a form of idolatry.
John had grown up under Muslim rule in Damascus, as the child of
strongly Christian parents.
His excellent education – particularly in
theology – prepared him well to defend the tradition of sacred
iconography, against the heresy of the “iconoclasts,” so-called because
they would enter churches and destroy the images therein.
During the 720s, the upstart theologian began publicly opposing the
emperor's command against sacred images in a series of writings.
The
heart of his argument was twofold: first, that Christians did not
actually worship images, rather through them, they worshiped God, and
honored the memory of the saints.
Second, he asserted that by taking an
incarnate physical form, Christ had given warrant to the Church's
depiction of him in images.
By 730, the young public official's persistent defense of Christian
artwork had made him a permanent enemy of the emperor, who had a letter
forged in John's name offering to betray the Muslim government of
Damascus.
The ruling caliph of the city, taken in by the forgery, is said to
have cut off John's hand.
The saint's sole surviving biography states
that the Virgin Mary acted to restore it miraculously.
John eventually
managed to convince the Muslim ruler of his innocence, before making the
decision to become a monk and later a priest.
Although a number of imperially-convened synods condemned John's
advocacy of Christian iconography, the Roman church always regarded his
position as a defense of apostolic tradition.
Years after the priest and
monk died, the Seventh Ecumenical Council vindicated his orthodoxy, and
ensured the permanent place of holy images in both Eastern and Western
Christian piety.
St. John of Damascus' other notable achievements include the “Exact
Exposition of the Orthodox Faith,” a work in which he systematized the
earlier Greek Fathers' thinking about theological truths in light of
philosophy.
The work exerted a profound influence on St. Thomas Aquinas
and subsequent scholastic theologians. Centuries later, St. John's
sermons on the Virgin Mary's bodily assumption into heaven were cited in
Pope Pius XII's dogmatic definition on the subject.
The saint also contributed as an author and editor, to some of the
liturgical hymns and poetry that Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholics
still use in their celebrations of the liturgy.
SIC: CNA/INT'L