Léonide Ouspensky

This article by Leonid Ouspensky examines the question of Orthodox sacred art as it was placed on the agenda of the Pan-Orthodox Pre-Council following the Rhodes Conference of 1961. Proceeding through rigorous theological and historical analysis, the author contests the legitimacy of the coexistence, accepted in contemporary ecclesial practice, of two artistic currents: the traditional canonical icon and the so-called "artistic-realist" style, of Western inspiration, introduced from the eighteenth century onward. The article demonstrates that this coexistence results from a spiritual and theological decadence linked to Latin influences, and not from an organic development of Tradition. Drawing on the acts of the Seventh Ecumenical Council and on patristic sources, Ouspensky establishes that the question of the icon is above all of a dogmatic order: only the canonical icon adequately expresses the Orthodox doctrine of the Incarnation and deification.

This article by Leonid Ouspensky examines the question of the iconostasis in the Orthodox Church, in response to contemporary critics who see it as an obstacle to the participation of the faithful in the Eucharistic liturgy. The study traces the history of the altar barrier from the early Christian centuries to the classical Russian iconostasis of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, showing that its development is not accidental but proceeds from a coherent theological logic. The main argument is that the iconostasis does not separate the clergy from the faithful, but visually manifests the interpenetration of the temporal and the eternal, revealing the meaning of the liturgy through an iconographic program structured around the image of Christ. The contribution of the article is to demonstrate that the removal of the iconostasis rests on a misunderstanding of its function, and that its iconographic fullness constitutes a condition for authentic liturgical participation, complementary to the recitation aloud of the Eucharistic prayers.