Icons of the church

I want to talk about the icons of the church. For the longest time I have heard about but not really known much about Byzantine art and icons, but when Dr. B taught the class on the subject it really helped me understand them better. Last semester i was able to go to the Greek orthodox church in downtown Mobile. It is beautiful in that it is so colorful and full of stained glass windows and icons everywhere. Growing up my entire life I have never been inside a building or even a church like that one. With a better understanding of the purpose of icons in the church I know realize why there was so many icons at every inch of the building, each having a meaning of its own to bring one's attention to God. However, i would like to talk about my response to the icons of the church. I think it is great to have images which brings one's attention back to God but not to the point of having so many that one would forget God and just focus on the icons themselves. A way one could relate this to present day is the worship of angels or even the Bible itself. The reason we have the Bible is to get to know God by the way he revealed himself to us through His Word. The Bible points us to God and who he is. It should be respected and shown reverence but not to the point of totally focusing on the Bible and worshiping the book because it is from God. We are not to worship the Bible but the one who inspires it and who is the Author and Creator of all things. In the same way, icons are helpful in pointing us to God and should do only that.