Images of the Holy Trinity. Old Testament Trinity

There are icons of the Holy Trinity, where God the Father, depicted as an Elder, has the Savior-Emmanuel sitting on his lap, that is, the Savior depicted in infancy or adolescence. Above them, as on the icon of the “New Testament Trinity,” is the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove. This image is called “Fatherland”.

These images of the Holy Trinity are, strictly speaking, non-canonical, although they are often found.

The Moscow Council of 1667 condemned any images of God the Father. The basis for the decree was the Holy Scripture and Holy Tradition. “No one has ever seen God,” says the Evangelist John, “the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has revealed.”

The Seventh Ecumenical Council considered it possible to permit the depiction of the Son of God precisely because He, “having taken the form of a servant, became in the likeness of men and in appearance became like a man” and, thanks to this, became accessible to sensory contemplation. As for the essence of God, outside of its revelation in the Person of the God-Man, it remains hidden and inaccessible not only to sight, but also to reason, for God is the One Who “dwells in the inaccessible light, Whom no man has seen and cannot be seen.” Maybe".

The Lord, out of His boundless love for fallen people, met the eternal thirst to see Him or, at least, to sensually perceive Him. He “gave His only begotten Son, so that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life,” and “the great mystery of piety was accomplished: God was revealed in the flesh.” Thus, the inaccessible God, in the Person of the Son and Word of God, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, became a Man accessible to sight, hearing, touch and, as the Church approved at its 7th Council, also accessible to image.

Likewise, the symbolic image of the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove has a biblical basis, for at the baptism of the Savior He descended on Him in the form of a dove. This image of the Holy Spirit is canonical, as is the image of Him in the form of tongues of fire descending on the apostles.

Although the Moscow Council did not allow the depiction of the Lord of Hosts, this prohibition was consigned to oblivion and He began to be depicted as the “Ancient of Days” (i.e., the Elder) and on the icons of the “New Testament Trinity.”

The dogma of the trinity of God is one of the main ones in Christianity, regardless of denomination, therefore the icon of the Trinity has its own symbolic meaning, interesting story. In this article we will talk about the history, significance and meaning of the Holy Trinity icon, and how it can help Christians.

Basics of Faith

According to Christian doctrine, there cannot be an exact image of God the Trinity. He is incomprehensible and too great, besides, no one has seen God (according to the biblical statement). Only Christ descended to earth in his own form, and it is impossible to directly depict the Trinity.

However, symbolic images are possible:

in angelic form (three Old Testament guests of Abraham);
festive icon of the Epiphany;
the descent of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost;
Transfiguration.

All these images are considered icons of the Holy Trinity, because each case is marked by the appearance of different hypostases. As an exception, it is allowed to depict God the Father as an old man on icons of the Last Judgment.

Famous icon of Rublev

Another name is “The Hospitality of Abraham”, since it depicts a specific Old Testament story. The 18th chapter of Genesis tells how the righteous man received God Himself, under the guise of three travelers. They symbolize the different personalities of the Trinity.

The complex dogmatic teaching about the Christian God was best revealed by Rublev the artist; his Icon of the Trinity differs from other options. He refuses Sarah, Abraham, uses minimal utensils for meals. The main characters do not eat food; they appear engaged in silent communication. These thoughts are far from mundane, which becomes clear even to the uninitiated viewer.

The Trinity Icon of Andrei Rublev is the most famous image painted by the hand of a Russian master. Although very few works by monk Andrei have survived, the authorship of this one is considered proven.

Appearance of Rublev’s “Trinity”

The image is written on a board, the composition is vertical. Behind the table are three figures, behind you can see the house where the Old Testament righteous man lived, the Mamre oak tree (it still survives and is located in Palestine), and a mountain.

A fair question would be: who is depicted on the icon of the Holy Trinity? Behind appearance The angel hides the personalities of God:

Father (the figure in the center blessing the cup);
Son (the right angel, in a green cape. He bowed his head, thereby agreeing to his role in the plan of salvation; travelers talk about him);
God the Holy Spirit (to the left of the viewer, raises his hand to bless the Son for the feat of self-sacrifice).

All the figures, although they express something through poses and gestures, are in deep thought, there is no action. Gazes are directed to eternity. The icon also has a second name - “Eternal Council”. This is the communication of the Holy Trinity about the plan of salvation of the human race.

Composition is important for describing the Trinity icon. Its main element is the circle, which clearly expresses the unity and equality of the three hypostases. The bowl is the center of the icon; it is on it that the viewer’s gaze stops. This is nothing more than a prototype of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. The cup also reminds us of the sacrament of the Eucharist, the main thing in Orthodoxy.

The colors of clothing (azure) are reminiscent of the divine essence of the characters in the plot. Each angel also holds a symbol of power - a scepter. The tree here is intended to recall the tree of paradise, because of which the first people sinned. The house is a symbol of the Spirit's presence in the Church. The mountain anticipates the image of Golgotha, a symbol of atonement for the sins of all mankind.

History of the image of the Holy Trinity

The details of the life of the great master are little known. He is hardly mentioned in the chronicles; he did not sign his works (a common practice for that time). Also, the history of writing the masterpiece still has many blank spots. It is believed that the Monk Andrew carried out obedience in the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, for which his most famous icon was painted. Exist different opinions about the time of creation of the Trinity icon. Part dates it to 1412, other scholars call it 1422.

Realities of life in the 15th century. were far from peaceful, the Moscow principality was on the verge of a bloody war. The theological content of the icon, the unity of the hypostases of the depicted Persons is a prototype of universal love. It was precisely to agreement and fraternal unity that the icon painter called upon his contemporaries. The Old Testament Trinity for Sergius of Radonezh was a symbol of unity, which is why he named the monastery in its honor.

The abbot of the Lavra really wanted to complete the decoration of the Trinity Cathedral, for which he gathered the best. Frescoes were planned on the walls - traditional for that period. Also, the iconostasis needed filling. “Trinity” is a temple icon (the most important), which is located in the bottom row near the Royal Doors (the clergy exits through them during services).

Return of color

In the history of the Trinity icon important stage was a new discovery of long-familiar material. Several decades ago, restorers learned to remove varnish from old images. V. Guryanov, under a small fragment of the “Trinity,” discovered a surprisingly vibrant shade of blue (the color of the robes). A whole wave of visitors followed.

But the monastery was not happy about this; the icon was hidden under a massive frame. Work has stopped. Apparently, they were afraid that there would be people who wanted to spoil the shrine (this happened with other famous images).

The work was completed after the revolution, when the Lavra itself was closed. The restorers were amazed by the bright colors that were hidden under a dark coating: cherry, gold, azure. One of the angels is wearing a green cape, in places you can see pale pink. These are heavenly colors that indicate one of the meanings of the Trinity icon. It seems to call the praying person back to where unity with God is possible, this is a real window into another world.

The meaning and meaning of the icon of the Holy Trinity

The icon of the Life-Giving Trinity has several layers of meaning. Approaching it, a person becomes, as it were, a participant in the action. After all, there are four seats at the table, but only three sit at it. Yes, this is the place where Abraham should sit. But everyone is invited to participate. Any person, as a child of God, must strive into the arms of the heavenly Father, into the lost paradise.

The icon of the Holy Trinity is not only a famous image, but also a great work of world art. This is a wonderful example of reverse perspective: the lines of the table (or more precisely, the throne) inside the composition go to infinity. If you extend them in the opposite direction, they will point to the place where the observer is standing, as if inscribing him into the composition.

The search for God, on which many spend their entire lives, seems to have a meaning for Andrei Rublev. logical conclusion in this work. We can say that the icon of the Holy Trinity became a catechism written in colors, expounded by the great ascetic of the faith. Fullness of knowledge, peace and confidence in God's love fill everyone who looks at the image with an open heart.

Rublev is a mysterious person

The authorship of the great image, one of a kind, was established a century later. Contemporaries quickly forgot who painted the Trinity icon; they were not particularly concerned with the task of collecting information about the great master and preserving his work. For five hundred years he was not mentioned in the calendar. The saint was officially canonized only at the end of the 20th century.

Popular memory almost immediately made the icon painter a saint. It is known that he was a student of Saint Sergius of Radonezh himself. He probably perfectly learned the spiritual lessons of the great old man. And although St. Sergius did not leave theological works, his position is clearly read in the icon created by his disciple. And the people's memory has preserved his monastic exploits.

Back in the 17th century. Rublev was mentioned in the legend about the great icon painters. He was even depicted on icons, among other ascetics from the Lavra.

Non-canonical images

Many believers have seen an icon called “Trinity of the New Testament.” It depicts a gray-haired old man, Christ and a soaring dove. However, such stories are strictly prohibited in Orthodoxy. They violate the canonical prohibition according to which God the Father cannot be depicted.

In accordance with the Holy Scriptures, only symbolic images of the Lord are permissible, for example, in the guise of an angel or Christ. Anything else is heresy and should be removed from the homes of godly Christians.

The dogma of the Trinity, which is very difficult to understand, looks very accessible in such non-canonical icons. The desire is understandable ordinary people make something complex simple and clear. However, these images can only be purchased at own risk- the cathedral decree prohibits them, even consecrating them is prohibited.

An old image in a new incarnation

In the 17th century In Moscow, icon painter Simon Ushakov enjoyed well-deserved fame. Many images came from his pen, including the Trinity icon. Ushakov took Rublev’s painting as a basis. The composition and elements are the same, but executed in a completely different manner. The influence of the Italian school is noticeable, the details are more real.

For example, a tree has a spreading crown, its trunk has darkened with time. The angel wings are also made realistically, reminiscent of real ones. Their faces have no reflections of internal experiences, they are calm, their features are drawn in detail and volume.

The meaning of the Trinity icon in this case does not change - a person is also invited to become a participant in his own salvation, for which God, for his part, has already prepared everything. It's just that the writing style isn't as elevated anymore. Ushakov managed to combine ancient canons with new European trends in painting. These artistic techniques make the Trinity more earthly and accessible.

How does the icon of the Holy Trinity help?

Since the Trinity is a kind of catechism (only these are not words, but an image), it will be useful for every believer to have it at home. The image is present in every Orthodox church.

The “Trinity” icon helps to better understand the relationship between God and man; in front of it, you can turn to all the divine Persons at once, or to one of Them. It is good to say prayers of repentance, read the Psalms, ask for help when faith is weakening, and also for the guidance of those who have fallen into error and followed the wrong path.

Trinity Day is a moving holiday, celebrated after Easter (50 days later). In Rus', on this day, churches are decorated with green branches, the floor is covered with grass, and priests wear green vestments. The first Christians at this time began to harvest crops and brought them for consecration.

Choosing an icon Holy Trinity, caution should be exercised, because non-canonical images are sometimes found even in church shops. It is better to take the image as it was written by Rublev or his followers. You can pray about everything, because the Lord is merciful and will help in any matter if a person’s heart is pure.

Prayers to the icon of the Holy Trinity

Prayer 1

Glory to the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.
Most Holy Trinity, have mercy on us; Lord, cleanse our sins; Master, forgive our iniquities; Holy One, visit and heal our infirmities, for Thy name's sake.

Prayer 2

To the Most Holy Trinity, the Consubstantial Power, all the good Wines that we will reward You for everything that You have rewarded us sinners and unworthy before, before you came into the world, for everything that You have rewarded us every day, and that You have prepared for all of us in the world to come !
It is fitting, then, for so much good deeds and generosity, to thank Thee not just in words, but more than in deeds, for keeping and fulfilling Thy commandments: but we, being aware of our passions and evil customs, have cast ourselves into countless sins and iniquities from our youth. For this reason, as unclean and defiled, do not just appear before Your Trisholy face without coldness, but below Your Most Holy Name, speak to us, even if You Yourself had deigned, for our joy, to proclaim that the pure and righteous are loving, and sinners who repent are merciful and kindly accept. Look down, O Divine Trinity, from the height of Your Holy Glory upon us, many sinners, and accept our good will, instead of good deeds; and give us the spirit of true repentance, so that, having hated every sin, in purity and truth, we may live until the end of our days, doing Your most holy will and glorifying pure thoughts and by good deeds the sweetest and most magnificent your name. Amen.

Icon of the Holy Trinity - what is depicted on it? We will talk about this by examining the issue using the example of the ten most famous icons depicting the Holy Trinity.

The Holy Trinity

One of the founding fathers ancient philosophy, and with it all European civilization The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle said: “Philosophy begins with wonder.” The same can be said about Christian dogma - it cannot but cause surprise. The worlds of Tolkien, Ende and Lewis with all their fabulous mysteries do not even touch the shadow of the mysterious and paradoxical world of Christian theology.

Christianity begins with great secret The Most Holy Trinity - Mysteries God's Love, revealed in this one incomprehensible unity. V. Lossky wrote that in the Trinity we see the unity in which the Church abides. Just as the Persons of the Trinity remain unmerged, but constitute One, we are all gathered into the single Body of Christ - and this is not a metaphor, not a symbol, but the same reality as the reality of the Body and Blood of Christ in the Eucharist.

How to depict a mystery? Only through another secret. The joyful mystery of the Incarnation made it possible to depict the Indescribable. An icon is a symbolic text about God and holiness, revealed in time and space and abiding in eternity, just as fairy forest from The Neverending Story by Michael Ende, created in the imagination of the protagonist, begins to exist without end and beginning.

We can comprehend this eternity thanks to one more mystery, far from the last in the world of Christian theology: God Himself enlightens every Christian, following the Apostles, by bestowing Himself - the Holy Spirit. We receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit in the Sacrament of Confirmation, and He permeates the whole world, thanks to which this world exists.

So, the Holy Spirit reveals to us the mystery of the Trinity. And that is why we call the day of Pentecost - the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles - “The Day of the Holy Trinity”.

Trinity and “Hospitality of Abraham” - the plot of the icon of the Life-Giving Trinity

The indescribable can be depicted only to the extent that it has been revealed to us. On this basis, the Church does not allow the depiction of God the Father. And the most correct image of the Trinity is the iconographic canon “Hospitality of Abraham,” which sends the viewer to distant Old Testament times:

And the Lord appeared to him at the oak grove of Mamre, when he was sitting at the entrance to [his] tent, during the heat of the day.

He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men stood against him. When he saw it, he ran towards them from the entrance to [his] tent and bowed to the ground and said: Master! If I have found favor in Your sight, do not pass by Your servant; and they will bring some water and wash your feet; and rest under this tree, and I will bring bread, and you will strengthen your hearts; then go [on your way]; as you pass by your servant. They said: do as you say.

And Abraham hurried to Sarah’s tent and said to [her], “quickly knead three sati of fine flour and make unleavened bread.”

And Abraham ran to the herd, and took a tender and good calf, and gave it to the lad, and he hastened to prepare it.

And he took the butter and the milk and the calf that had been prepared, and set it before them, and he stood beside them under the tree. And they ate.

The story of a hospitable old man who recognized God in three men is in itself touching and instructive for any believer: if you serve your neighbor, you serve the Lord. We meet the image of this event very early.

Mosaic on triumphal arch Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome created in the 5th century. The image is visually divided into two parts. At the top, Abraham runs out to meet three men (one of them is surrounded by radiance, symbolizing the glory of the Divine). In the lower part, the guests are already sitting at the set table, and Abraham is serving them. Sarah stands behind Abraham. The artist conveys the movement by depicting the old man twice: here he is giving instructions to his wife, and here he turns around to bring a new dish to the table.

By the 14th century, the canon “Hospitality of Abraham” was already fully formed. Icon "Trinity of Zyryansk", which, according to legend, belonged to the brush of St. Stefan of Perm is a slightly modified version of it. Three angels are seated at a table, a calf lies under it, and Abraham and Sarah stand at the bottom left. In the background there is a building with a turret (the house of Abraham) and a tree (the Oak of Mamre).

The images may change, but the set of symbols and characters remains the same: three angels, a couple serving them, below - a calf (sometimes with a youth slaughtering it), an oak tree, the chambers of Abraham. 1580, icon " Holy Trinity in existence”, surrounded by stamps depicting events associated with the apparitions of the Trinity. An interesting detail: Abraham and Sarah here not only serve at the table, but also sit at it. The icon is located in the Solvychegodsk Historical and Art Museum:

More typical, for example, is the 16th century icon from the Trinity-Gerasimov Church in Vologda. Angels are in the center of the composition, followed by Abraham and Sarah.

The icon is considered the pinnacle of Russian icon painting Trinity, written by Rev. Andrei Rublev. Minimum symbols: three angels (Trinity), a cup (Atoning sacrifice), a table (the Lord's Table, the Eucharist), a reverse perspective - “expanding” from the viewer (the space of the icon, describing the heavenly world, is immeasurable more peace dolny). Among the recognizable realities - an oak tree (Mamre), a mountain (here is the sacrifice of Isaac, and Golgotha) and a building (Abraham's house? Church?..).

This image will become a classic image for the Russian icon, although some discrepancies in details are possible. For example, sometimes the middle angel has a cross on his halo - this is how Christ is depicted on icons.

Icon of the Holy Trinity, 17th century

Another example: Simon Ushakov depicts the meal in more detail.

The canon “Hospitality of Abraham” is optimal for depicting the Holy Trinity: it emphasizes the unity of essence (three angels) and the difference of hypostases (angels are present in the space of the icon “autonomously” from each other).

Therefore, a similar canon is used when depicting the appearance of the Trinity to saints. One of the most famous images is Appearance of the Holy Trinity to Saint Alexander of Svirsky:

Non-canonical images

However, there have been attempts to portray God in the Trinity in other ways.

It is extremely rare in Western European and Russian temple painting to come across an image used in the iconography of the Renaissance, where three faces are combined in one body. It did not take root in church painting because of its obvious heresy (mixing of Hypostases), and in secular painting because it was unaesthetic.

The image is by Hieronymus Cocido, Spain, Navarre

But the image " Trinity New Testament"occurs often, although it contains the other extreme - the division of the Essence of the Divine.

The most famous icon of this canon is “ Fatherland» Novgorod school (XIV century). The Father sits on the throne in the form of a gray-haired old man, on his knees is the Youth Jesus, holding a circle with the image of the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove. Around the throne are seraphim and cherubim, closer to the frame are saints.

No less common is the image of the New Testament Trinity in the form of the Elder Father, according to right hand- Christ the King (or Christ holding the Cross), and in the middle - the Holy Spirit, also in the form of a dove.

XVII century, Museum ancient Russian art them. Andrey Rublev

How did the canon of the “New Testament Trinity” appear if the image of God the Father, Whom no one has seen, is prohibited by the council? The answer is simple: by mistake. The book of the prophet Daniel mentions the Old Denmi - God:

The Ancient of Days sat down; His robe was white as snow, and the hair of His head was like pure wave. (Dan.7:9).

It was believed that Daniel saw the Father. In fact, the Apostle John saw Christ in exactly the same way:

I turned to see whose voice was speaking to me; and turning, he saw seven golden lampstands and, in the midst of the seven lampstands, one like the Son of Man, clothed in a robe and girded around the chest with a golden belt: His head and hair were as white as white wool, like snow...

(Rev.1:12-14).

The image of the “Old Day” exists on its own, but is an image of the Savior, not the Trinity. For example, on the fresco of Dionysius in the Ferapontov Monastery, a halo with a Cross, with which the Savior is always depicted, is clearly visible.

Two more interesting images of the “New Testament Trinity” came from the Catholic Church. They are rarely used, but also deserve attention.

"Adoration of the Holy Trinity" by Albrecht Durer(the picture is stored in Vienna Museum art history): at the top of the composition is the Father, below Him is Christ on the Cross, and above them is the Spirit as a dove. The Trinity is worshiped by the Heavenly Church (angels and all saints with the Mother of God) and the Earthly Church - the bearers of secular (emperor) and ecclesiastical (pope) power, priests and laity.

Image " Coronation Mother of God » connected with the Mother of God dogmas Catholic Church, but due to the deep veneration of the Most Pure Virgin by all Christians, it also became widespread in Orthodoxy.

The Virgin Mary on images of the Trinity, Prado, Madrid

In the center of the composition is the Virgin Mary, the Father and the Son holding a crown over Her head, and a dove depicting the Holy Spirit hovers above them.

Date of publication or update 07/26/2017

To the table of contents: Magazine “Moscow Diocesan Gazette”

To the contents of the section: Review of the Orthodox press

In the year of celebrating the 700th anniversary of St. Sergius of Radonezh, it seems appropriate to remember not only his invaluable personal contribution to spiritual formation Holy Rus', about the works and exploits of his associates and disciples, but also about how amazingly St. Sergius influenced ancient Russian art: famous icon Holy Trinity, written at the beginning of the 15th century. Rev. Andrei Rublev, became a picturesque embodiment of the theological ideas of the Radozhnezh abbot.

We do not have reliable information about the direct communication of St. Sergius with this wonderful artist, but there is reason to assert that all of Andrei Rublev’s work is literally imbued with the spirit of the saint.

In 1422, a stone Holy Trinity Cathedral was erected over the tomb of St. Sergius of Radonezh - on the site of the previous wooden cathedral, which stood for about twenty years. In 1425-1427 it was painted by icon painters Andrei Rublev and Daniil Cherny with their assistants. It was not by chance that the successor of St. Sergius, Abbot Nikon, turned to them; the choice fell on them not only because they had artistic talent and extensive experience, but also experienced the undoubted spiritual influence of the monk. Pachomius Logothetes in “The Tale of the Translation of the Relics of St. Sergius” - an integral part of the Life of the Saint - writes: The saint’s close disciple, Nikon, in praise of his father erected a red church and decorated it with wonderful signatures and all sorts of kindnesses... The virtuous elders begged for miracles from him and painters Danil and Andrey. I decorated this church with the signing of the end of my blessed life, and thus went to the Lord in sight with each other in spiritual union... The painting of the Trinity Cathedral became not only the crown of creativity, but also the completion earthly path icon painters. Painted in memory and praise of St. Sergius, the icon of the Holy Trinity was already perceived by the first generation of spiritual heirs of the great Hegumen of the Russian Land as his blessing, helping to overcome “the fear of the hateful discord of this world.”

According to Father Pavel Florensky, the monastery of St. Sergius, “The House of the Life-Giving Trinity is recognized by the heart of Russia, and the builder of this House, St. Sergius of Radonezh, is recognized as the Guardian Angel of Russia.”

Whether St. Andrei Rublev’s goal was to present through picturesque means the dogma of the Holy, Consubstantial, Life-Giving and Indivisible Trinity, we do not know, but (let us again turn to the words of Father Pavel Florensky) “he truly conveyed to us the revelation he had seen. Amid the turbulent circumstances of the time, amid strife, internecine strife, general savagery and Tatar raids, amid this deep peacelessness that corrupted Rus', an endless, imperturbable, indestructible world, the supernal peace of the heavenly world, opened up to the spiritual gaze.

The enmity and hatred reigning in the valley was opposed mutual love flowing in eternal harmony, in eternal silent conversation, in the eternal unity of the heavenly spheres. It is this inexplicable world, flowing in a wide stream directly into the soul of the contemplator from the Trinity of Rublev, this azure, unequal to anything in the world - more heavenly than the earthly sky itself... we consider the creative content of the Trinity.”

The historian of ancient Russian art V.N. Shchepkin, in his article “The Soul of the Russian People in Its Art,” written shortly before his death (1920), wrote about the icon of St. Andrei Rublev:

“This is the Old Testament Trinity, that is, the image of three angels in the tent of Abraham. This is a prototype of the Christian Trinity. In the painting of temples, this biblical episode takes its place among other biblical events and is lost in the great pictorial epic of the general painting. Rublev created in praise of St. Sergius is the main local icon of the Sergius monastery, that is, not a biblical event or a prototype, but a direct embodiment of the main dogma of Christianity. This was, therefore, the highest task that a religious artist could set himself. Rublev partly eliminated, partly reduced to small sizes the entire earthly setting of the event and focused the viewer’s attention on three calmly beautiful winged creatures, bringing them together by space, type and three crowns, which are thought of as a single crown of the deity; the line drawn by the eye along their tops is delicate, simple, but completely unusual; Architecture does not provide such an arch. The same impression of the delicately simple and unusual follows us wherever we turn: such are all the lines, all the details, all the colors; Among them, the blue is very deep, it shines like a translucent gem.

Simply delicate and unusual postures, tilts of heads, proximity and yet differences in age, family resemblance and personality traits, beautiful hands and young wings, moved by measured breathing. The tilts of the heads and the expressions of the faces inexpressibly simply explain the relationship of the three persons of the Trinity. It is almost impossible to talk about this in words; they immediately remove the mystery from the sphere of direct contemplation. Poetic thought about dogma is everywhere in the icon. The viewer does not experience any of the lures of Western painting: neither strength, nor sharpness, nor sweetness, nor rapture, nor ecstasy, nor grace, nor insinuating aroma, in a word - none of those emotions that the old Western masters possess separately. In front of Rublev’s icon, we soon feel that everything beautiful that we have experienced in life is rushing back to us like some kind of solid breath.”

There are an innumerable number of icons of the Holy Trinity painted after Rublev’s. But even the lists closest to it, which practically repeat the outline of the original, are not perceived with such a “solid breath” as it is.

We understand that the literary basis for the creation of the famous Rublev icon of the Holy Trinity is the story of the hospitality of righteous Abraham, set out in the book of Genesis, when the Lord appeared to him at the oak grove of Mamre, when he was sitting at the entrance to the tent, during the heat of the day. He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men stood against him. When he saw it, he ran towards them from the entrance to the tent and bowed to the ground and said:

Lord! If I have found favor in Your sight, do not pass by Your servant; and they will bring some water and wash your feet; and rest under this tree, and I will bring bread, and you will strengthen your hearts; then go; as you pass by your servant... And he took the butter and the milk and the calf that had been prepared, and set it before them, and he himself stood beside them under the tree. And they ate (Gen. 18:1-8). This plot became the well-known iconography of “Abramic Hospitality,” known several centuries before Andrei Rublev; The earliest of the images that symbolically reveal the secret of the trinity of the Divine, the scene of the visit of righteous Abraham by three travelers - angels, are found already in the Roman catacombs of the 2nd-4th centuries. In these images, we were not talking about depicting the Persons of the Holy Trinity - these are three angels, symbolically showing the Trinity. The patristic interpretations of John Chrysostom, Eusebius of Caesarea, and John of Damascus say that the guest of righteous Abraham was the Savior and the Angels accompanying Him.

The biblical text could be illustrated with greater or lesser detail in pre-Rubble images of “Abramic Hospitality”; Angels were also depicted in different ways: the central one could have a larger size and a cross-shaped halo (this is typical for early images). The desire to emphasize the presence of the Second Person of the Holy Trinity in the depicted plot led to the fact that the middle angel, in addition to the cross-shaped halo, could appear in the hands of a scroll or a hand blessing a nominal blessing.

It should be noted that the icons painted after Rublev’s could contain a significant amount of details, interesting for their picturesqueness, but not always justified from the point of view of dogma. The value - more precisely, the teaching value - of the Rublevsky icon of the Holy Trinity was seen by the heirs of St. Sergius not only and not so much in the artistic skill of the icon painter, but in the dogmatic impeccability of his creation. The ancient examples of the icon of the Holy Trinity, written by Greek icon painters, mentioned in the well-known decrees of the Stoglavy Cathedral, seem more like a tribute to politeness than concrete example how to write. Stoglav needed to mention Greek examples in order to bring him to the main thing: the Holy Trinity should be written the way Andrei Rublev wrote.

But the brilliant work of the Monk Andrew remained an unsurpassed example, not because it was not in Ancient Rus' talented icon painters. There were many of them, and many of the icons of the Holy Trinity that have come down to us are, from an artistic point of view, real masterpieces of ancient Russian art.

Here are a few examples of Old Testament Trinity icons created in the 15th-17th centuries. from central and provincial museums. All of them are compositionally built according to the prevailing Byzantine art and the canon adopted by Russian icon painters: the appearance of righteous Abraham is depicted with all the details: a dwelling and an oak tree against the backdrop of a rock, a set table. If not only angels are shown, but also other participants in the event, then these are the righteous Abraham and his wife Sarah, sometimes servants, taking care of the worthy reception of heavenly messengers; There is even a scene of the slaughter of a calf here.

Reverend Andrei Rublev did not need these details: details would only interfere with depicting the absolute harmony that is revealed to us in Rublev’s work. It is no longer a table for a meal, but an altar with a sacrificial cup that we see on the icon of St. Andrew; It was not the conversation of travelers with a hospitable host, but the Eternal Council of the Trinity Divinity about the coming incarnation of the Only Begotten Son, who agrees to become an Atoning Sacrifice for the sake of saving the human race, the Monk Andrew was able to portray.

Academician B.V. Rauschenbach, discussing the theological interpretation of the Rublev icon, notes that many researchers are trying to determine which of the angels depicted on it corresponds to which Person of the Holy Trinity. Most often, the middle angel is identified with either the Father or the Son, determining differently which of the other two persons of the Holy Trinity corresponds to the side angels. Despite all the persuasiveness of the arguments presented, one cannot assume that they are indisputable. And did Rublev himself want to show this correspondence? It’s unlikely, because he didn’t take advantage of the opportunity to show “who’s who.”

The three angels on the Rublev icon are, first of all, a symbolic image of the Triune Divinity, the Trinity Consubstantial and Indivisible. Rauschenbach provides an analysis of how and by what means St. Andrew embodies the dogma of the Holy Trinity in his icon. The artist emphasizes the trinity of the Divine and consubstantiality by depicting the angels as completely identical: there are no visible differences between them. Rublev's angels, in the words of Father Pavel Florensky, are distinguishable, but not different. The inseparability of the Divine is emphasized by the Eucharistic cup standing on the throne: it is one, and all three angels point to it with gestures of their hands.

Building his work on the basis of the Old Testament story about Abraham’s meeting with God, the Monk Andrew managed to omit all those details that could distract the person praying in front of the icon from prayer Life-Giving Trinity. Rublev, Rauschenbach emphasizes, managed to make the viewer of the icon see the complete Trinity dogma.

The creation of St. Andrew was immediately appreciated by his contemporaries: very soon many more or less exact copies ruble icon. But, as usually happens, none of even very close copies reaches the heights of the sample. It happened that, repeating Rublev's Trinity in form, the copies did not convey the essence of the famous icon. The plot from a symbol of the heavenly world turned into an illustration of an extraordinary, but still everyday scene from the eighteenth chapter of the book of Genesis.

But this, of course, does not mean at all that after St. Andrew one cannot paint the image of the Old Testament Trinity.

Without rising to the heights of theology, artists often created wonderful examples of “Abramic hospitality,” which clearly and clearly told the viewer about the first appearance, albeit transformative, of the Trinity Divinity to the righteous father of all believers.

The desire to reproduce as accurately as possible in colors what the Holy Scripture speaks about in detail certainly deserves all respect.

What details do icon painters pay attention to in the plot of “Abraham’s Hospitality”? According to B.V. Rauschenbach, these are, first of all, elements of “table setting” - some mugs, bowls, jugs and similar items. Indeed, numerous “cutlery” lowers Rublev’s high symbolism to the level of everyday life, but the Book of Books – the Bible – does not shy away from this everyday life. For about thirty-five centuries people have been reading lines about how Abraham hurried to Sarah’s tent and said: quickly knead three sats of the best flour and make unleavened bread. And Abraham ran to the herd, and took a tender and good calf, and gave it to the lad, and he hastened to prepare it. And he took the butter and the milk and the calf that had been prepared, and set it before them, and he stood beside them under the tree. And they ate (Gen. 18:5-8). Therefore, the icon painter’s desire to convey this description of the historical meeting to the viewer in his own way is completely justified.

But how varied are the picturesque paraphrases of the meeting of righteous Abraham with Him whom he calls Master (Gen. 18:3), Who promises him descendants - a great and strong nation, in which all the nations of the earth will be blessed (Gen. 18:18)! Here are some examples.

The icon of the master Paisius, painted half a century after Rublev’s, undoubtedly experienced the influence of the great image: all the details are repeated here, the prophecy is almost exactly reproduced. Paisiy, apparently, strove to follow the Rublevsky pictorial canon as accurately as possible. But, like any artist, he brought something of his own to the image: this is the mentioned “table setting”, and the complex architectural structure with columns and arches on the left side of the icon (compare with the tent mentioned in the book of Genesis - Gen. 18:1,6). Instead of the graceful tree of the Rublev icon, Paisius has a spreading oak rustling with leaves above the head of the middle angel, and the hill above the head of the right angel has turned into a powerful rock with a crevice. The icon dates back to the mid-eighties of the 15th century. and is located in Central Museum ancient Russian art named after. Andrey Rublev.

Another icon from the collection of the museum named after. Rublev, painted in the middle of the 16th century, partially repeating the outline of Rublev’s Trinity, is compositionally completely different: the artist moved the table at which the angels are sitting to the lower part of the icon, and it no longer becomes a uniting mysterious meal with the Eucharistic cup, but only an ordinary, completely earthly, a treat for tired travelers. Yes, they look tired.

The sixteenth century provides a number of interesting examples of the Old Testament Trinity both in composition, in color, and in the expressiveness of minor details. Some of these icons have a diagonal composition. Although such iconography usually surpasses the traditional one in terms of the abundance of minor details, the composition itself seems somehow unstable: the table seems to be sliding down inclined platforms, and the youth sent by Abraham to prepare a tender and good calf is literally balancing on the edge of a cliff, fulfilling his master’s instructions. This is the icon of the early 17th century. from the Solvychegodsk Historical and Art Museum. Another interesting icon from the same museum, “The Holy Trinity in Being,” painted in the 1580s, has the same features.

The icon from the Armory Chamber of the Moscow Kremlin (Peter Biligdin, 1688), like the Solvychegodsk one, includes numerous episodes of the meeting of righteous Abraham with angels, but here they are organically included in the main composition. The overload of the composition with additional scenes is compensated by the skill of the artist; there is no need to talk about the influence of Rublev’s Trinity here...

The famous Rublev prototype, however, was not forgotten in the 17th century: the influence of the famous Trinity of St. Andrew is noticeable in the composition of another icon from the Moscow Kremlin museums - the Trinity of the Old Testament by Nazarius Istomin (1627)

The Old Testament Trinity Icon, painted by Simon Ushakov in 1671 (ERM), can undoubtedly be called a masterpiece of 17th-century icon painting. The artist here does not forget about his great predecessor: the influence of St. Andrew in the composition is obvious. But the seventeenth century is far from high dogmatic reasoning; influence is noticeable in the icon Western art with his realistic tendencies. Simon Ushakov is a brilliant painter; paying tribute to the time in the careful elaboration of details, equally mastering various genres painting (here he represents architecture, landscape, still life, and, of course, portrait), he does not forget about the main task that the icon painter is called upon to solve: through the image, to open the contemplator to the possibility of communication with the prototype.

Old Testament Trinity Icons from the 16th and 17th centuries. from the State Tretyakov Gallery and the Russian Museum show that the creative search of icon painters, striving to depict the appearance of God to the righteous Abraham described in the book of Genesis, again and again returned them to that masterpiece that was created under the undoubted spiritual influence of the great Abbot of the Russian land - St. Sergius.

Bishop Nikolai of Balashikha

Moscow Diocesan Gazette, No. 5-6, 2014

One of the founding fathers of ancient philosophy, and with it the entire European civilization, the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle said: “Philosophy begins with wonder.” The same can be said about Christian dogma - it cannot but cause surprise. The worlds of Tolkien, Ende and Lewis with all their fabulous mysteries do not even touch the shadow of the mysterious and paradoxical world of Christian theology.

Christianity begins with the great mystery of the Most Holy Trinity - the mystery of God's Love, revealed in this one incomprehensible unity. V. Lossky wrote that in the Trinity we see the unity in which the Church abides. Just as the Persons of the Trinity remain unmerged, but constitute One, we are all gathered into the single Body of Christ - and this is not a metaphor, not a symbol, but the same reality as the reality of the Body and Blood of Christ in the Eucharist.

How to depict a mystery? Only through another secret. The joyful mystery of the Incarnation made it possible to depict the Indescribable. The icon is a symbolic text about God and holiness, revealed in time and space and abiding in eternity, just as the fairy-tale forest from Michael Ende’s “The NeverEnding Story”, created in the imagination of the protagonist, begins to exist without end and beginning.

So, the Holy Spirit reveals to us the mystery of the Trinity. And that is why we call the day of Pentecost - the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles - “The Day of the Holy Trinity”.

“The Hospitality of Abraham” - the plot of the icon of the Life-Giving Trinity

And the Lord appeared to him at the oak grove of Mamre, when he was sitting at the entrance to [his] tent, during the heat of the day.

And Abraham hurried to Sarah’s tent and said to [her], “quickly knead three sati of fine flour and make unleavened bread.”

And Abraham ran to the herd, and took a tender and good calf, and gave it to the lad, and he hastened to prepare it.

And he took the butter and the milk and the calf that had been prepared, and set it before them, and he stood beside them under the tree. And they ate.

Mosaic on the triumphal arch of the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome created in the 5th century. The image is visually divided into two parts. At the top, Abraham runs out to meet three men (one of them is surrounded by radiance, symbolizing the glory of the Divine). In the lower part, the guests are already sitting at the set table, and Abraham is serving them. Sarah stands behind Abraham. The artist conveys the movement by depicting the old man twice: here he is giving instructions to his wife, and here he turns around to bring a new dish to the table.

More typical, for example, is the 16th century icon from the Trinity-Gerasimov Church in Vologda. Angels are in the center of the composition, followed by Abraham and Sarah.

The icon is considered the pinnacle of Russian icon painting Trinity, written by Rev. Andrei Rublev. Minimum symbols: three angels (Trinity), a cup (Atoning sacrifice), a table (the Lord's table, the Eucharist), a reverse perspective - “expanding” from the viewer (the space of the icon, describing the heavenly world, is immeasurably larger than the world below). Among the recognizable realities - an oak tree (Mamre), a mountain (here is the sacrifice of Isaac, and Golgotha) and a building (Abraham's house? Church?..).

Another example: Simon Ushakov depicts the meal in more detail.

Therefore, a similar canon is used when depicting the appearance of the Trinity to saints. One of the most famous images is Appearance of the Holy Trinity to Saint Alexander of Svirsky:

Non-canonical images

However, there have been attempts to portray God in the Trinity in other ways.

But the image " Trinity New Testament"occurs often, although it contains the other extreme - the division of the Essence of the Divine.

No less common is the image of the New Testament Trinity in the form of the Elder-Father, on the right hand - Christ the King (or Christ holding the Cross), and in the middle - the Holy Spirit, also in the form of a dove.

The Ancient of Days sat down; His robe was white as snow, and the hair of His head was like pure wool. (Dan.7:9).

It was believed that Daniel saw the Father. In fact, the Apostle John saw Christ in exactly the same way:

(Rev.1:12-14).

The Virgin Mary in images of the Trinity

Two more interesting images of the “New Testament Trinity” came from the Catholic Church. They are rarely used, but also deserve attention.

"Adoration of the Holy Trinity" by Albrecht Durer(the painting is kept in the Vienna Museum of Art History): at the top of the composition is the Father, below Him is Christ on the Cross, and above them is the Spirit as a dove. The Trinity is worshiped by the Heavenly Church (angels and all saints with the Mother of God) and the Earthly Church - the bearers of secular (emperor) and ecclesiastical (pope) power, priests and laity.

Image " Coronation of the Mother of God“is associated with the Mother of God dogmas of the Catholic Church, but due to the deep veneration of the Most Pure Virgin by all Christians, it also became widespread in Orthodoxy.

In the center of the composition is the Virgin Mary, the Father and the Son holding a crown over Her head, and a dove depicting the Holy Spirit hovers above them.