Holy Trinity Icons and Images - Baptism Gifts

The story of Abraham's hospitality, received at the home of the Holy Wanderers, the visit of which was a visit to God, became a symbolic depiction of the Holy Trinity. Symbolic it is named because not all the Three Travelers who visited the Patriarch were the Lord, but only One of Them, who was the Second Hypostasis of the Holy Trinity, that is, God the Son. The other two were Archangels. On early Christian monuments the image of the Guests of Abraham under the guise of three Angels was signed by the monogram of HMG - that is, "Christ, Michael and Gabriel." Such a composition was later called "Trinity of the Old Testament". Despite the idea of a specific biblical story behind the depiction of the three Angels, in ancient Russian art, he gets additional value. Icon, written by St. prep. Andrei Rublev, devoid of all the narrative details, talking about the details of the reception of the Three Angels in the patriarch's house and about their evangelism to Abraham and Sarah about the birth of the first-born, became the standard for artistic allegory about the Holy Trinity. In the icon, this parable is conveyed through special symbols: on the left are depicted wards - this is the emblem of God the Father, indicating the plan for spiritual House-building, or otherwise the Divine Providence on the being and salvation of man and the world, the tree in the central part of the icon recalls the Cross Tree of God the Son, the high mountain , depicted on the right, is a symbol of the exalted high-lying being of the Holy Spirit, named in prayer to the "Comforter".

Three medallions with the image of the Holy Trinity differ in form and, in some cases, in iconography:

The largest image of the Holy Trinity is more monumental, since it does not include additional symbolic details. The images of the Angels are inscribed in a three-span arch, the central part of which dominates the composition. The latter feature gives more grounds for interpreting this image not only in the allegorical, but also in the historical aspect, that is, to perceive the icon as an image of Christ surrounded by archangels visiting the patriarch Abraham. Here it is important to emphasize that both historical and allegorical compositions can equally symbolize the Holy Trinity. On the reverse side, the glory of the day of St. Pentecost is awarded.

Two other medallions of the Holy Trinity are more miniature. Above each of the Angels is placed a corresponding symbol, indicating the Hypostasis of the Trinitarian Deity. The image of the central Angel is less prominent in them than in the first product, which is more in line with Rublev's iconography, which shows the equivalence of all Hypostases. St. In all cases the meal is likened to the throne in the church. This is indicated by the utensils that resemble the Eucharistic vessels, and the forms of the table itself with the niche-ark on the front side.
On the medallion with a keeled finish, you can read the Troparion of the feast: "Blessed art Thou, O Christ our God, Who are wise seekers of the wilderness, sending them the Holy Ghost, and taking the universe with them." In Tropare it is said that Christ, having sent down the Holy Spirit, made wise simple fishermen who "caught" the whole universe, as we know, by evangelistic preaching.

St. Pentecost, or the day of the Descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles, is usually called the birthday of the Church. The date of Pentecost is calculated from the Passover, therefore it has a transitional character.