Icon comes from the Greek eikon, meaning "image". This same word is used in the Greek version of the Book of Genesis to describe humans as being created in the image of God. St. Paul uses this word to describe Jesus as the image of the Father. Icons are stylized representation on wood. The subject matter is Christ, the Mother of God, angels, or saints. They are not created to be beautifull; they are created - "written" - to express Truth. Icons are meant as windows into another world, images of a greater reality than what we now experience in this world. They depict the image of the deified human person, one who remains living in the light of God. The icon is the manifestation of the human person becoming one with the Divine. They are an attempt to render the divine through art; its purpose is to assist Christians in their pursuit of holiness in this present earthly life. Icons are doorways into stillness, into closeness with God. If you sit with them long enough, you too can enter into that stillness, into that communion. And if you listen to them closely enough with your heart, you will hear the voice of God.