This is my experience—and abbreviated at that. But little can compare to the effect of immediate holiness found in praying with icons, whether at home or at church. In a world of hustle-and-bustle, the silence of an icon corner casts out fear and doubt; it’s something of the “inner room” with the closed door of Gospel teaching. The stillness of receptivity to grace awaits.
And, if one can feel God’s presence in an icon, is it, perhaps, then easier to see His image in the face of every human being, in the visages of the beaten and broken poor, in the mugs of the self-assured prideful?
So, give it a try. Many (even Roman) churches have at least one. And I assure you the local Orthodox church (or perhaps better Byzantine Catholic—cackle, cackle) won’t bite. And, in the meantime, there are some recommendations here, and a really small (and therefore convenient and easy-to-follow) book that helped me available here.
There’s, of course, the real question left to answer: am I a Byzantine propagandist?
Well, wouldn’t you like to know?
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