The Abrahamitic Religions and Emerging Photography: the Case of Orthodoxy
The Abrahamitic Religions and Emerging Photography: the Case of Orthodoxy

Summary/Abstract: The Second Commandment of the Old Testament interdicts the visual representation of God, human beings and animals. The Abrahamitic religions felt obliged to follow this advice. History indicates that Judaism and Islam have felt more bound by this biblical advice than Christianity. Through the invention of photography, the question of visual representation had to be discussed anew. Whereas the position of Islam and Judaism towards the innovation of photography was rather refusing in the 19th century and increasingly approving in the 20th century, the position of Eastern Orthodoxy seems to be more inconsistent. My paper addresses the reaction of the Orthodox Church to emerging photography – a technical innovation originated in the West. Firstly, I will sketch the official position of the Orthodox Church with regard to photography generally and to mechanically reproduced, so-called paper icons, specifically. Orthodox monks, belonging to the pioneers of photography, however, counteracted the Church’s resolute disapproval and condemnation. Therefore, I intend, secondly, to look at monastery economy and point at the fact that monasteries could already look back to a long tradition of creating mechanically reproducible pictures when the photo camera appeared on the horizon.My paper concludes that there were no theological reasons for the condemnation of photography and icon printing but primarily ideological ones. Orthodox Church viewed innovations from the Latin West with mistrust – not only photography but also the other printing techniques before. However, Orthodox Church condemned not only sacral but also profane photography. Also this aspect can only be explained by the Church’s playing out religious ideology but not theological arguments.

• Details
• Contents