WHAT ORTHODOX ICON TO GIVE A CHILD

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People often doubt whether it is worth giving icons to children? Any priest will easily convince you that, of course, it is worth it. After all, the education of spirituality must begin from a very early age, and prayer in front of an icon is the best connection between a pure child’s soul and the spiritual world. The holy image must be given under certain conditions.

When presenting a personalized icon to a child, it is very important to teach the child how to handle it, to explain that it is not just a picture, it cannot be thrown, torn, or played with. You can’t throw it away if you suddenly “get tired” of it and want another one. It is imperative to explain who is depicted on the icon, tell what he did for people, the church, for what deeds they began to depict him and pray to him.

Before giving your child an Orthodox icon, explain what it is for, teach the child short prayers. Be sure to explain that we pray not to the icon, but to the saint who is depicted on it. Explanations should be simple, appropriate to the age and development of the child; there is no need to delve into theology.

Which saint icon should be given to a child?

First of all, of course, you can give the child icons of Christ and the Mother of God. Images should be simple and understandable; you should not choose iconographically complex images. Icons of the Savior, the Almighty Savior, and icons of the Mother of God of Kazan, Vladimir, Korsun and other images in which the Blessed Virgin holds the Child in her arms are suitable. For girls, the icon of the Mother of God is especially important, because the Queen of Heaven is an example of meekness, chastity, and love for others.

Be sure to buy your child an icon of his Guardian Angel and heavenly patron (the saint after whom the child is named at baptism). Tell us that the guardian angel is our closest helper, that he worries about us and protects us and loves very much when we remember him and pray to him. It is appropriate for a school-age child to give a Christian icon of saints who help in their studies - St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, St. Sergius of Radonezh, Holy Martyr Tatiana, Righteous John of Kronstadt, Blessed Matrona of Moscow. In addition, you can give a schoolchild a Russian Orthodox icon of the Mother of God, Addition of Mind, prayer in front of which, as many parents testify, really helps in studies.

Where to buy a beaded icon for a child?

You can buy icons for children, including those embroidered and painted by icon painters, simple or decorated with expensive frames and semi-precious stones, in the online store. Here you can also purchase icons that are worn on the chest. However, it will be much better if the mother herself embroiders an icon for the child with her own hands. Embroidery is an ancient craft that originated in Rus' long before the advent of Christianity. Then it had a protective meaning. The collars and sleeves of shirts were decorated with embroidery to prevent dark forces from penetrating the human soul. Today we consider this a superstition, but the belief that an embroidered icon has special power has survived to this day.

An Orthodox icon embroidered with beads for a child will be a memory of you for the rest of your life until your very old age; it will protect and protect him in difficult moments.

How not to place the faces of saints

To make a home iconostasis correctly, to remove inappropriate objects from the environment - this is what a true Christian should do. There are no canons prohibiting hanging an image of a saint in front of a mirror, but priests do not recommend doing this in order not to be distracted from prayer. To preserve the power of images, church ministers do not recommend:

Photos of deceased and living relatives should absolutely not be placed next to holy images.
Literature that is not related to the church should also not be nearby.
Televisions, computers, and the proximity of technology can weaken the power of the icon.
Do not place in direct sunlight, on a windowsill or in front of a window, so as not to damage the holy image.
Do not hang it on refrigerators and other household appliances, this will spoil the divine energy.
Bathrooms and toilets are considered sacrilege.

Church ministers have different opinions about whether it is possible to sleep with your feet facing an icon. But, in general, there is nothing wrong with this if it is not done for the sake of blasphemy. This will only give another reason, looking at the face of the saint, to pray.

How many images are in the house does not matter as much as the order in which they are placed. An icon prayed over for decades, passed down from generation to generation, is a real heirloom for the family. It must be protected and carefully cleaned from dust. Where icons should be located in the house is a very serious question, and it should be approached carefully. Peace of mind in the family largely depends on this. The holy image is not just a beautiful picture, it is the face of a man who once lived on earth and remained devoted to God. Every icon is designed to guide you on the right path, to attune your feelings to humility and prayer.

Rules of care

Any holy image requires careful and respectful treatment. The best way to keep an icon in satisfactory condition is to place it inside a glass case.

If this is not possible, then you need to adhere to the following recommendations:

Keep sacred images as far as possible from heating appliances.
Ventilate the room carefully, avoiding sudden temperature changes, as drafts and cold damage icons.
Regularly wipe dust from the iconostasis with a soft brush.
Check wooden images for the presence of wood borers that damage the wood.
Laminate paper images of holy faces.
During prayer reading, place a lit lamp or candle in such a way as to avoid getting soot and wax on the sacred face.

Rare, ancient icons painted in oil on wood should be handled with special delicacy. In case of severe contamination, handwritten images are given to experienced craftsmen for restoration.

When placing an icon in the bedroom, you should remember that the holy image is not a talisman that protects from all misfortunes. The Lord hears only sincere and fervent prayers. And the icon is needed so that one can pray to the Savior in the mornings and evenings.

This is how my research turned out. Now, with a clear conscience, I will order a quilt and start knitting openwork napkins. I hope this information was useful to you too.

Icons for placement in the bedroom in stock and to order

You can purchase an icon to place in your bedroom in our icon-painting workshop “Creating a Heritage”. We will be happy to make an Orthodox image for you to order or we will offer ready-made icons from stock. Each such icon (no matter whether it was painted individually for you or not) is a genuine work of art, one of a kind.

Our icon painters belong to the Vladimir school of Orthodox icon painting, which at all times, from Ancient Rus' to this day, was considered the largest, oldest and most revered in our country. The brushes of our artists own thousands of icons, which are now carefully preserved in churches and homes around the world.

You can purchase an icon in our workshop, which will become an invaluable gift for any Orthodox Christian, and placed in the bedroom, it will help you tune in to prayer immediately after waking up or before going to bed.

It’s easy to order an icon

Choose the image you need;
Contact us by phone, email or by submitting an online application:
We will call you back and agree on the desired plot and signature;
From 2 weeks to 3 months (depending on the complexity of the plot and execution technique), the icon painter will work on the image;
Upon completion of the work, the image will be consecrated in the temple (in the Vladimir region), and you will be able to take part in this bright event;
After this, you can pick up the finished icon in person, or we will deliver it to you by mail anywhere in Russia or the world.

Choose the icon you need on our website right now!

Well, now we’ll find out how to correctly position our home iconostasis in the bedroom

According to church canons, icons are placed on the wall located on the eastern side. The East is considered a symbol of emerging life; it is from this side that the sun rises. This is taken into account when building temples, where the altar must be located on the east side.

But in an apartment or house there is not always such an opportunity, since there may be a window or door in the east, and you cannot hang images of sacred faces above door or window openings. Therefore, it is allowed to place holy images in other places.

If possible, it is better to hang the iconostasis on the wall located to the right of the entrance. In a children's room it can be located in front of the baby's bed. So the child, falling asleep and waking up, will be able to see the holy image, reminding him to offer prayer and gratitude to the Lord.

In the bedroom of an adult, images with sacred faces are sometimes hung above the bed, positioned above the head. It is advisable not just to hang the holy faces on the wall, but to place them inside the icon case or on a separate shelf.

When organizing an iconostasis, you need to adhere to the hierarchical rules for placing icons:

Above all are the faces of Jesus Christ, the Trinity and the Mother of God;
on the left they hang the icon of the Mother of God, on the right - the Savior;
when the holy faces are arranged on one shelf, the center is occupied by the image of Christ, the left side is occupied by St. Nicholas the Wonderworker or another saint, and the image of the Mother of God is placed on the right.

Wherever the icons are located, there should be no foreign objects next to them: souvenirs, calendars, photographs of people, paintings.