The Ecumenical Work of the Icon

The Ecumenical Work of the Icon is an invitation to the students and faculties of Catholic seminaries to be a part of the tradition of the icon through the lens of ecumenis. With a view of ecumenism as lived in both the Roman Catholic and Orthodox traditions, the visual theological language of the icon may be engaged more fully and respectfully, thus enriching the theological education and future ministry of those who learn and teach in a Catholic setting. In the third portion of the book, readers are offered multiple practical pedagogical examples of how to integrate teaching and learning about the icon into seminary courses and beyond, including writing assignments, oral presentations, and hands-on activities.

""Hilda Kleiman's The Ecumenical Work of the Icon brings together a variety of insights of the author garnered from her own lived religious experience, her expertise in English language/literature, and her knowledge and skills in iconography. This insightful and creative synthesis will greatly enrich the spiritual horizons of all readers across the ecumenical spectrum.""
--Owen F. Cummings, Regents' Professor of Theology, Mount Angel Seminary

""Dr. Kleiman's work confirms the ecumenical history and presence of the icon within our time. Her engaging prose invites readers and icon viewers alike into the conversation about the icon: its ecumenism, tradition, theology, canon, and teaching. She also includes practical application methods for teaching the icon in seminaries and beyond. This book is an excellent resource for teaching, honoring, and understanding the icon both as visual and liturgical art.""
--Kathy Sievers, Iconographer, Instructor, Founding Member of the Iconographic Arts Institute

""It was in 1998, following an intensive month of study with the master iconographer and internationally recognized author on the icon Fr. Egon Sendler, S.J., that I waited on a bench with the good priest for a train that would take me from the French Alps to Geneva, and then on to the United States. It was there, waiting for the train, that I asked Le Pere a question, 'Why is the icon reemerging now in the twentieth century?' His reply has directed my own teaching, and, I hope, the teaching of my students. His response to me was that the icon, by its very nature, expresses the Divine Economy of God, and that its purpose is ecumenical. In her book, The Ecumenical Work of the Icon, Dr. Hilda Kleiman elegantly and purposefully situates the reemergent icon within these two poles. By firmly establishing the icon within the communion of the church, she establishes it in its rightful place within the communion of Christianity. In this, she gives voice to the prophetic words of Egon Sendler, S.J.""
--Mary Katsilometes, Master Iconographer


Hilda Kleiman is the pastoral associate and director of religious education at St. Paul Catholic Church in Silverton, Oregon. She served as a member of the faculty of Mount Angel Seminary for eight years and is training as an iconographer through the Iconographic Arts Institute.