Písmo Svaté a Tradice v Řečech na obranu obrazů Jana Damašského

The aim of this article is to briefly present a defence of Christian art, more precisely icons, in the first half of the eighth century. This movement reached its peak with John of Damascus. Although some ancient writers had already commented on the subject of Christian art before the public appearance of John of Damascus, the Syriac Theologian became an especially ardent defender of holy images and tried to vindicate their presence in Christian churches on the basis of the Holy Scriptures and the Tradition of the Church. This article outlines how the monk of Mar Saba uses the Holy Scriptures and Tradition in the Three Discourses against those who decry holy images. He quotes the Scriptures quite frequently, both the Old and New Testaments. So, of course, do his opponents. Therefore, the Syriac monk had to find another pillar to support his point of view. Tradition, represented almost exclusively by the Eastern Fathers, became his sure foundation. John’s approach reveals his inner conviction that he is called to present the uncorrupted truths of the faith, which in their fullness every Christian can find precisely in the Holy Scriptures and the teaching of the Church Fathers.