The traditions and teaching of
the Christian Church often appear to change and evolve over time. It does
not mean that the teaching itself changes, but that each generation brings new ways
to express their faith, which is itself eternal and unchanging. The
icon of the Mother of God “Unburnt Bush” is a
great example of this. Indeed, the Icon in its current form weaves together
numerous ancient teachings of the Church – on the Mother of God, the
Incarnation, Old Testament Prophecies and Angelology – into a single composition. Peeling the
layers of this Icon are both rewarding and illuminating…
The name of the Icon “Burning bush” (sometimes “Unburnt bush”) derives from the
miracle, witnessed by Moses on the Mount Horeb. In the
Book of Exodus it is stated: whilst Moses was tending the flock, he witnessed a bush
burning with fire, but unharmed at the same time. God called out to Moses from
the flame, ordering him to remove his sandals “for the
place where you stand is holy ground” (Exodus, 3:1-6). Moses was then called by
God to lead the Israelites out of Egypt.
The Church established by Christ
has always looked back on this event and seen the “Unburnt Bush” on the
Mount Horeb as a type – a prefiguration – of the Holy Theotokos, who gave birth
to Christ while still remaining a virgin (burning with fire yet unconsumed).
Symbolism in the Unburnt Bush
Icon
The icon of the Mother of God
“the Unburnt
Bush” has developed so that most
examples of the Icon have a rich and intricate symbolism.
The burning bush itself is
represented by the two diamonds – one flame-red, one leaf-green – arranged as
an eight pointed star in the midst of which the Mother of God and Christ are
sitting. The number of eight is well established in the Bible as a number
symbolizing eternity. In between the eight points there are eight “petals”
within which stand eight archangels – the highest ranking of the Heavenly
Powers. The green diamond is decorated with more angels – seraphim and
cherubim – and is often colored slightly darker, almost blue, and is arrayed with
stars to suggest the heavens.
Green or blue can both
symbolize “creation” as opposed to the divine, so the twin use of the blue to
represent the bush and the Heavens is appropriate. The “divine” flame red diamond is almost
always decorated with the angelic tetramorph representing the four
Evangelists (and in the above icon the names of the four Gospel writers appear).
Around the border of the Icon
more prefigurations and prophecies of the Incarnation of the Son of God are
arranged. Different icons will contain different numbers of scenes, but the
four most common scenes, shown clockwise from the top-right of the above icon,
are:
A seraphim feeding a hot coal
to the Prophet Isaiah. Though burning with fire, the hot coal
cleansed the lips of the prophet just as Christ inside of the Virgin cleansed
her.
Jacob’s dream of the ladder in which
angels were seen dancing up and down a ladder which stretched from the earth up
to Heaven. The ladder is associated with the Mother of God, through whom the
glory of God descended from Heaven to earth and was incarnate as Jesus Christ.
Ezekiel’s vision of the temple gate through which the
Lord passed and was ever-after sealed. This has always been
recognized by Christians as a clear reference to Mary’s ever-virginity.
Finally in the top-left corner is Moses removing his
sandals before the burning bush, the revelatory incident upon which the whole
icon is based.
Not present on all Icons, but
seen in the bottom centre of the icon above is a form of the “Tree of Jesse”.
At the center of all this, surrounded by
the angelic powers, are the Mother of God and her Son, Jesus
Christ. Besides Christ, our Lady may also hold “Jacob’s Ladder”, or any
other symbol of the Gates of the Heavenly Kingdom. All of these Old Testament
symbols point us towards the Mother of God, covered with a garment of Divine
Fire, who in turn points us towards the birth or her Son, Our Savior.
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