Seeing the Gospel: An Interpretive Guide to Orthodox Icons

Learning to read Orthodox icons is an opportunity to engage Holy Scripture with greater depth and understanding. It allows viewers to uncover fresh dimensions and encounter the Kingdom of God from within the created world. The meaning of icons, often referred to as ＂windows into heaven,＂ reaches beyond the limits of the natural world into the divine realm.

Eve Tibbs is an Orthodox insider and veteran teacher who has devoted her career to translating the faith for evangelicals. Her comprehensive yet accessible introduction to the history, theology, spirituality, and role of icons in Eastern Orthodoxy is followed by an immersive experience--a narrative journey through 18 pivotal events in the life of Jesus Christ as depicted in the New Testament Gospels. Each event is illuminated through the form and color of Orthodox icons accompanied by descriptions of the messages they convey. Here ＂interpretation＂ works in two ways: to guide the curious, artists, students and even the lifelong Orthodox in interpreting icons and to show how icons interpret the biblical text.

Seeing the Gospel presents a visual biblical language for a visual culture and even describes how icons can be used in other faith traditions. The book includes a foreword by Richard J. Mouw and features 90 full-color icons throughout.

Eve Tibbs (PhD, Fuller Theological Seminary) is affiliate professor of theology at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California. She has more than 20 years of experience teaching Western systematic theology and Eastern Orthodox theology in academic and ecclesial settings. Tibbs is a member of the Faith and Order Commission of the World Council of Churches, the ministry lead for Christian education for the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of San Francisco, and attends Saint Paul’s Greek Orthodox Church in Irvine, California. She is the author of A Basic Guide to Eastern Orthodox Theology: Introducing Beliefs and Practices.