St. John Damascene icon

St. John Damascene icon
© Cecilia Lawrence
November 30th 2017
4.5 x 6 inches
Ink, watercolor, gold leaf

“The whole earth is a living icon of the face of God.”
- St. John Damascene

“In former times, God, who is without form or body, could never be depicted. But now when God is seen in the flesh conversing with men, I make an image of the God whom I see. I do not worship matter; I worship the Creator of matter who became matter for my sake and deigned to inhabit matter, who worked out my salvation through matter.”
- St. John Damascene

“Devotion to you, O Blessed Virgin, is a means of salvation which God gives to those whom He wishes to save.”
- St. John Damascene

“Listen to me, people of all nations, men, women, and children, all of you who bear the Christian name: If any one preach to you something contrary to what the Holy Catholic Church has received from the Holy Apostles and Fathers and Councils, and has kept down to the present day, do not heed him. Do not receive the serpent’s counsel, as Eve did, to whom it was death. If an angel or an emperor teaches you anything contrary to what you have received, shut your ears.”
- St. John Damascene

I have here depicted St. John Damascene in the garb of a monk, holding a quill pen in one hand (symbolizing his great writings) and in the other hand holding an icon of the Panagia Tricherousa (the “Three-handed” Theotokos). The story behind this icon is that St. John Damascene was once falsely accused of treason against the caliph of Damascus and, as punishment for supposedly writing treasonous letters, his right hand was cut off. After asking that he be allowed to take the severed hand with him, St. John Damascene went to a nearby church and prayed in front of an icon of the Virgin Mary and begged her to restore his hand. Eventually, worn out, he fell asleep. While he slept, he dreamed that the Virgin Mary came to him and promised to heal him quickly. When he awoke, he found that his hand had been perfectly healed and restored. In thanksgiving for this miracle, he had a small silver hand fashioned and placed on the icon as a votive offering.



:+: A BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF THE SAINT :+:

Saint John Damascene (c. 675– December 4th 749 A.D.), also called St. John of Damascus or Chrysorrhoas (“streaming with gold”) was born in Damascus to a Christian family surnamed “Mansoūr” after John’s grandfather Mansour ibn Sarjun, who had collected taxes in Syria under the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius. When Damascus was conquered by Khalid ibn al-Walid in 635, the Muslim rulers retained the Christian civil service that had been in place before the conquest of Syria. John’s father Sarjun (or Sergius) served the Umayyad caliph as a secretary, and was therefore in a prominent and influential position as a Christian in a Muslim administration. Sarjun sought to secure a good education for his son John and had him learn Arabic and Greek as well as introduced him to a classical Hellenic education. In his youth, John may even have associated with his contemporary Al-Akhtal al-Taghlibi, a great Arab Christian poet.

One day while walking through the slave markets of Damascus, Serjun came across a Sicilian Christian monk named Cosmas who had been kidnapped in a raid on the island. Upon learning more about him, he discovered that Cosmas was a very learned scholar and Serjun did his utmost to obtain the man’s liberty. Serjun then employed Cosmas as a tutor to his son John and his adopted son Cosmas (who later became St. Cosmas of Maiuma). Under the tutelage of this great teacher, the boys advanced significantly in their knowledge of music, poetry, theology, philosophy, astronomy, arithmetic and geometry.

According to one tradition, after his father’s death, John succeeded his father’s hereditary position as a chief councilor of Damascus. In 726, during John’s tenure in office, the Byzantine Emperor Leo the Isaurian issued a public decree banning the public veneration of sacred images and their public exhibition, thus beginning the great iconoclast controversy. John Damascene quickly took up his pen and entered the fray, writing his three Apologetic Treatises against those Decrying the Holy Images which defended the veneration of icons and sacred images. This established his reputation as a great writer and apologist, but also made him many enemies as his writings caused a rebellious ferment amongst many Christians against the decree. According to one account, the Emperor Leo sought revenge against John for this affront, and unable to attack him directly, he had a letter forged and sent to the Caliph of Damascus purportedly written by John offering to betray the city of Damascus into Emperor Leo’s hands. When the Caliph received this letter, he was greatly incensed. When accused, John stoutly maintained his own innocence, but the Caliph had John dismissed from office and his right hand cut off in punishment. The hand was hung up as a public exhibition for a few day, but when John asked the Caliph to give him back the hand, the Caliph consented. John took the severed hand and went to a church where he prayed fervently to the Virgin Mary to restore his hand. He fell asleep and saw the Virgin Mary promise to heal him quickly. When he awoke, his hand was restored and perfectly healed. In praise for this miracle, he is said to have composed the hymn All Creation Rejoices in Thee, O Full of Grace:

All of Creation rejoices in thee, O full of grace:
the angels in heaven and the race of men,
O sanctified temple and spiritual paradise,
the glory of virgins, of whom God was incarnate
and became a child, our God before the ages.
He made thy body into a throne,
and thy womb more spacious than the heavens.
All of creation rejoices in thee, O full of grace:
Glory be to thee.

After this incident, the caliph realized that John was innocent and wanted to reinstate him in his former office, but John declined, and decided to leave Damascus. With his adopted brother Cosmas, he became a monk at the monastery of St. Sabbas the Sanctified (also known as the monastery of Mar Saba) a few miles southeast of Jerusalem. He was ordained a priest by John V, patriarch of Jerusalem. While living as a monk, he produced many writings and poems and even a hymnbook. He became renowned for his beautiful poetry and hymns. Some of his more famous works are The Fountain of Wisdom, On Right Thinking and On the Orthodox Faith.

One story has it that John once disobeyed his superior at Mar Saba when he lived there as a monk. The brother of one of his fellow monks had just died and the monk was inconsolable. He begged John to write a funeral hymn for him, but because the superior had left for a few days and had given John strict instructions not to do anything without his permission, John at first refused. But when the monk began to weep piteously, John broke down, and out of compassion for the man he consented. He wrote a beautiful funeral hymn and gave it to the grieved monk who was immensely consoled by it. When his superior came back and found out what had happened, he was angry at John’s disobedience and kicked him out of the monastery. John and the other monks begged him for forgiveness, and finally the superior relented, but gave him the worst menial chore of cleaning out the latrines with his bare hands as penance. He was also forbidden to write any more hymns. The superior later had a dream in which he saw the Mother of God appear and say, “Why have you sealed the spring of fresh water for which the whole world is thirsty? Let it pour freely and comfort those in need. Let John praise God through his songs.” The superior realized how grievously he had sinned in his harshness, and asked John to forgive him. The funeral hymn that John wrote is still in use today, and begins thus:

“Where is the pleasure in life which is unmixed with sorrow?
Where the glory which on earth has stood firm and unchanged?
All things are weaker than shadow,
all more illusive than dreams;
comes one fell stroke, and Death in turn, prevails over all these vanities.
Wherefore in the Light, O Christ, of Your countenance, the sweetness of Your beauty,
to him whom You have chosen grant repose,
for You are the Friend of Mankind.”

John Damascene, after spending his life in the ascetic way and using his talents as a writer to defend the faith, finally died in 749 around the age of seventy-four. He is considered to be the last of the Church Fathers, as well as one of her most eminent theological poets. In 1890, Pope Leo XIII declared him a Doctor of the Church.

O Lord, you led me from my father’s loins and formed me in my mother’s womb. You brought me, a naked babe, into the light of day, for nature’s laws always obey your commands.

By the blessing of the Holy Spirit, you prepared my creation and my existence, not because man willed it or flesh desired it, but by your ineffable grace. The birth you prepared for me was such that it surpassed the laws of our nature. You sent me forth into the light by adopting me as your son and you enrolled me among the children of your holy and spotless Church.

You nursed me with the spiritual milk of your divine utterances. You kept me alive with the solid food of the body of Jesus Christ, your only-begotten Son for our redemption. And he undertook the task willingly and did not shrink from it. Indeed, he applied himself to it as though destined for sacrifice, like an innocent lamb. Although he was God, he became man, and in his human will, became obedient to you, God his Father, unto death, even death on a cross.

In this way you have humbled yourself, Christ my God, so that you might carry me, your stray sheep, on your shoulders. You let me graze in green pastures, refreshing me with the waters of orthodox teaching at the hands of your shepherds. You pastured these shepherds, and now they in turn tend your chosen and special flock. Now you have called me, Lord, by the hand of your bishop to minister to your people. I do not know why you have done so, for you alone know that. Lord, lighten the heavy burden of the sins through which I have seriously transgressed. Purify my mind and heart. Like a shining lamp, lead me along the straight path. When I open my mouth, tell me what I should say. By the fiery tongue of your Spirit make my own tongue ready. Stay with me always and keep me in your sight.

Lead me to pastures, Lord, and graze there with me. Do not let my heart lean either to the right or to the left, but let your good Spirit guide me along the straight path. Whatever I do, let it be in accordance with your will, now until the end.

And you, O Church, are a most excellent assembly, the noble summit of perfect purity, whose assistance comes from God. You in whom God lives, receive from us an exposition of the faith that is free from error, to strengthen the Church, just as our Fathers handed it down to us.
- from The Statement of Faith by St. John Damascene

The Feast of St. John Damascene is celebrated on December 4th.

St. John Damascene is the patron saint of theology students, icon painters, hymnographers, and poets.

Grant, we pray, O Lord,
that we may be helped by the prayers
of the Priest Saint John Damascene,
so that the true faith,
which he excelled in teaching,
may always be our light and our strength.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.