纪录片《大英博物馆世界简史》 067正信凯旋圣像（3）（在线收听）

'Icon' is simply the Greek word for picture, and this picture is about a foot (30 cm) high, in fact it is almost exactly the same shape as a laptop computer. It's painted on a wooden panel, the figures in black and red, the background shining gold. In the centre, at the top, we see two angels holding up a picture for veneration. The picture they're holding is the most famous of all Orthodox icons, and one particularly connected to Constantinople. Known as the Hodegetria, it shows the Virgin Mary with the Christ Child in her arms. The Hodegetria is being venerated by a host of saints, by the head of the Orthodox Church - the Patriarch - and by the Imperial family. Between them, they represent all Constantinople, temporal and spiritual. So this icon is a picture about the use of a picture, and it's a celebration of the central role that icons play in the Orthodox Church. This is how Diarmaid MacCulloch, Professor of the History of the Church at Oxford University, describes the function of an icon:

"The icon is like a pair of spectacles which you put on to see heaven. You're drawn through this picture into heaven, because Orthodox Christianity believes very strongly that you and I can meet the godhead, that we can almost become like gods. It's that extraordinary frightening statement that western Christianity is very shy of."

这幅画高约四十厘米，绘制于一块木板之上，形状与笔记本电脑的键盘酷似，其中人物用黑红两色勾勒，背景是闪亮的金色。画面中上部有两位天使举着供大家膜拜的画像，它是东正教最著名的圣像，也与君士坦丁堡密切相关，被称为赫得戈利亚—一圣母马利亚怀抱着婴儿耶稣。一群圣徒、东正教的首脑—一牧首以及王室，正在敬拜它。他们代表了包括俗世与教会在内的整个君士坦丁堡。这幅圣像本身便在体现一幅圣像的作用，是对圣像在东正教中的核心地位的赞颂。

牛津大学教会史教授戴尔梅德·马克库罗奇如此描述圣像的功能：

圣像是一架能让你看到天堂的望远镜。你能通过图像到达天堂，因为东正教坚信人能够接近神，甚至成为神。这一大胆放肆、简直惊世骇俗的声明是西方基督教不敢直言的。