From GOD to YOU
The Icon’s Journey to Your Heart John Kosmas Skinas
This book belongs to ________________________ _____________________________
Copyright Š 2014 by John Kosmas Skinas. All Rights Reserved. Published by Ancient Faith Publishing
From GOD to YOU
The Icon’s Journey to Your Heart John Kosmas Skinas
Ancient Faith Publishing • Chesterton, Indiana Sample pages only. Purchase the full book at http://store.ancientfaith.com/products.php?product=From-God-to-You%3A-The-Icon%27s-Journey-to-Your-Heart
From God to You: The Icon’s Journey to Your Heart Text © copyright 2014 by John Skinas All rights reserved. Published by
Ancient Faith Publishing (formerly known as Conciliar Press) A division of Ancient Faith Ministries, Inc. P.O. Box 748 Chesterton, IN 46304
Printed in Canada ISBN 10: 1-936270-76-5 ISBN 13: 978-1-936270-76-7
20 19 18 17 16 15 14
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
For Suzanne and our children: Maki, Sofiana, Zac, Gabriella, and Ephraim In memory of Thia Demetra and Papa Lou, Two living icons of love
Copyright © 2014 by John Kosmas Skinas. All Rights Reserved. Published by Ancient Faith Publishing
The icon is a place of meeting where you and God can gaze at each other from the two sides of eternity.
Sample pages only. Purchase the full book at http://store.ancientfaith.com/products.php?product=From-God-to-You%3A-The-Icon%27s-Journey-to-Your-Heart
From God . . . to You Here you are, before the sacred gates, about to enter into the mystery of the icons. God has given them to you so you can see that heaven is always just a prayer away. Burned, smashed, and buried, icons have endured a great deal as they’ve made their way from God to you. They’ve reached you because He wants them in your church, in your home, and in your hands. But most of all, God wants you to keep His image in your heart, where, if you listen closely, you can hear His message with every beat: “I am with you always, even until the end of time” (Matthew 28:20).
Copyright © 2014 by John Kosmas Skinas. All Rights Reserved. Published by Ancient Faith Publishing
Holy Virgin Cathedral—Joy of All Who Sorrow, San Francisco, California
Sample pages only. Purchase the full book at http://store.ancientfaith.com/products.php?product=From-God-to-You%3A-The-Icon%27s-Journey-to-Your-Heart
Sealed with His Image The story of how God sent the very first icon to us goes like this: Long ago, in the time of Jesus, lived a dying king. His name was Abgar, and leprosy was eating away his life. Desperate and scared, King Abgar sent a messenger to beg Jesus to come a long distance to save him. Instead, Jesus pressed His face into a cloth and gave it to the messenger, who hurried back to Abgar. The king unfolded the cloth and found an image of Christ looking back at him. This is how Jesus went to heal the scared king: through an icon. So when you’re feeling scared or helpless, turn to Jesus. Remember that when you were baptized, your very heart, like Abgar’s cloth, was sealed with Christ’s image, making you more royal than any earthly king could ever be. Copyright © 2014 by John Kosmas Skinas. All Rights Reserved. Published by Ancient Faith Publishing
NOTICE THIS →
We can learn much from just the face of Jesus. His eyes are firm yet loving. He has used His ears to hear His Father’s will so that He might obey. And His mouth is small, reminding us that we should only speak when our words will make God happy.
The Icon Not Made by Hands
Also called “The Holy Napkin” or “The Holy Face”
The Icon Not Made by Hands Also called “The Holy Napkin” and “The Holy Face”
Sample pages only. Purchase the full book at http://store.ancientfaith.com/products.php?product=From-God-to-You%3A-The-Icon%27s-Journey-to-Your-Heart
Colors and Their Meanings GOLD is the ultimate color of the icon. Shimmering and glowing, it represents the Living Light of God, without which nothing would exist. BLUE represents the everlasting Kingdom of Heaven, which, through Jesus, has come down to us, like the sky touching the earth. RED is our color, the color of humanity and the blood Christ shed for us. It is the color of life.
Names
Many of us have been named after a saint, a holy person in heaven especially chosen to look after us. We, in turn, look to our saints as examples of how we should live. Saints are “restored icons”: they have freely given themselves back to God, and He has worked with the raw materials of their lives to make beautiful images to inspire and guide us. It’s good to remember that you always have someone “on the other side of the icon” praying for you.
PURPLE, the royal color, is what you get when you mix blue and red, heaven and humanity. Ultimately, it is the color of Christ, our King. GREEN is the color of the plants that give nourishment and beauty to the world. It reminds us to be hopeful; winter always gives way to spring. Copyright © 2014 by John Kosmas Skinas. All Rights Reserved. Published by Ancient Faith Publishing
Here we have a young man named Zac standing with the icon of his heavenly intercessor: the Holy Prophet Zacharias, the father of St. John the Baptist. It was this icon that inspired Zac’s parents to give him his name.
About the Author: John Kosmas Skinas lives in San Francisco with his wife and children. They attend Holy Trinity Church, where John is the director of the Christopher Recreation Center. From God to You is his third children’s book. His previous book about icons, Pictures of God, is also available from Ancient Faith Publishing. About the icons used in the pages of this book: Holy Virgin Cathedral—photograph by David Yu. Icon Not Made by Hands—icon by Michael Kapeluck. See his work at www.archangelicons.com. Available at store. ancientfaith.com. Virgin of the Sign—icon by Robin Armstrong. Saint Luke Painting the First Icon—Copyright © Holy Transfiguration Monastery, Brookline, MA. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Flight into Egypt—icon by Fadi Mikhail. See his work at www.ukcopticicons.com. Royal Gates—photograph by Christine Tan. See her work at www.ChristineTanPhotography.com. Christ Pantocrator—icon from St. Katherine’s Monastery on Mount Sinai, Egypt. Available at store.ancientfaith.com. Angel with the Golden Hair—a 12th century icon from the Novgorod school. It is currently displayed in the State Russian Museum in St. Petersburg. Iveron Icon of the Theotokos—icon at Iveron Monastery, Mount Athos, Greece. Saint Theodora—icon by Philip Markopoulos. Used by permission. Transfiguration—icon by Tatiana Romanova-Grant See her work at spiritualpaintings.com. Resurrection—icon by Janet Jaime. Available at store.ancientfaith.com. Good Shepherd—icon by Michael Kapeluck. See his work at www.archangelicons.com. Available at store.ancientfaith.com. Saint Kassiani—icon by Ann Margitich. See her work at nwbstudios.com/iconography/ann-margitich.html. Saint Stephen the New-—icon by Father Patrick of Gregory of Sinai Monastery. See his work at www.gsinai.com/iconworkshop-home. Saint John of Damascus—-icon by Heather Sommer. See her work at heathersommericons.blogspot.com.
Sample pages only. Purchase the full book at http://store.ancientfaith.com/products.php?product=From-God-to-You%3A-The-Icon%27s-Journey-to-Your-Heart
From God to You by John Kosmas Skinas From God to You (a follow-up to the popular Pictures of God) follows the path of the icon through history and encourages children to mindfully consider icons and their stories as windows of inspiration and doorways to prayer. Burned, smashed, and buried, icons have endured a great deal as they’ve made their way from God to you. They’ve reached you because He wants them in your church, in your home, and in your hands. But most of all, God wants you to keep His image in your heart, where, if you listen closely, you can hear His message with every beat. . . .
JUVENILE NONFICTION / Religious / Christian / Orthodox Preschool and up
store.ancientfaith.com