IMAGES IN CATHOLICISM....IDOLATRY?
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- 114 pages
- Size: 5.5 x 8.5 inches
- Paperback
Discourse on the First Commandment with Biblical Citations
With sharp, orthodox Catholic insight, Images in Catholicism...Idolatry? is divided into four parts and further subdivided into twelve correlated chapters. It is a valuable additional to any Christian library, personal or academic.
Part One: Creativity: A Divine Heritage
Ch 1: By Divine Consent from Ages Past
Ch 2: Art from Acts of Christ
Part Two: the Truth concealed in "Yourself" and "Anything"
Ch 3: The Weight of Silence in Yourself
Ch 4: the Innocence of Micah's Idol
Ch 5: 'Anything' -- Appropriacy and Exemptions
Part Three: One Big Family: God in Christ, Christ in All
Ch 6: Invisible God in Visible Christ
Ch 7: God's Glorious Manifestations through Mankind -- No Limits!
Ch 8: Ageless Relevance of the Temple as a Place of Worship
Ch 9: Transcending Spirituality -- Communion of the Saints
Ch 10: Iconoclast Biblical Quotations
Part Four: Human Obsession: Who's Not Guilty?
Ch 11: Mundane Images -- Yes; Religious Images -- No?
Ch 12: Contemporary Idolatry: Greed and Concupiscence
Price: $11.99
Product code: HE-IC-BK
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PART ONE is made up of two chapters. By way of introduction, it explains that God Himself sanctioned the making of images as seen in the bronze serpent, the Ark of the Covenant and its Tent, and the splendid Temple of Solomon. It also emphasizes the need felt by the early Christian church to create a lasting legacy of the Good News and acts of the early Apostles--all in loving memory of Christ.
PART TWO, the heart of this book, consists of three chapters. It is presented in the form of rhetorical argument anchored by two words from the first commandment: 'Yourself' and 'Anything'. It suggests that in religious worship, God only forbids mankind from making images for themselves, not for Himself, i.e., mankind can actually make images for God by divine inspiration. It also opines that 'anything' as used in the First Commandment does not include God Himself, Jesus Christ, Glorious beings above, or even holy men and women as being created in the image of God.
All five chapters of PART THREE dwell on sensitive issues related to the use of images in the Catholic Church. It exalts the humanity of Jesus Christ as the exact image of the unseen God, thus lifting the ban on making of images in the likeness of God as instituted by Moses. The union Christians share within the Body of Christ, the Church, is viewed as an eternal spiritual connection and communication with death serving only as a medium of transformation into another level of spiritual life. There is no broken chain in the link between physical and spiritual existence, because for the Christian, life is a continuum. Christians are urged to take advantage of God's generosity in pouring out His spiritual gifts to mankind. The rationale for veneration of images, devotion and praying to the saints are also discussed in this part. If Part Two is the book's heart, Part Three is the book's soul. It emphasizes the relationship Christians should have with glorious beings and saints in Heaven. It uplifts the spirituality of the reader.
The concluding PART FOUR bemoans the subtle emotional attachment expressed towards ordinary mundane images sometimes as personal admiration or as civic obligation, yet without religious condemnation. Consequently, Christians should be concerned about a new form of idolatry -- Greed and Concupiscence -- not images.
Price: $11.99
Product code: HE-IC-BK
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Henry Eze was born in Northern Nigeria in 1982. Graduating as a Veterinary Doctor in 2006 from Univesity of Nigeria, Dr. Eze worked as a resident Veterinary Doctor at University of Benin Demonstration Farm from 2007-2008. He also worked as Veterinary consultant and Sales Executive for a veterinary pharmaceutical company in Nigeria from 2008-2009. In 2009 he traveled to Ecuador to advance his writing career. He is currently teaching at the Benedict International School of Lanagues in Quito.
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