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THE SACRIFICE, AS SOLUTION TO SOLVE THE CULTURAL CONFLICTS FROM BULGARIA. AN ANALYSE OF THE ICON "THE JUDGEMENT OF THE PONTIUS PILATE 1829"
Abstract
The icon is defined in the orthodox tradition as the Bible of the low literate, reason for which, in just a few colors it is synthesized important attitudes and events. The look of the believer is inevitably attracted by the face of Jesus and/or of the saints, for finding out and memorize easier the message of the Evangel. The icon "The Judgement of the Pontius Pilate 1829", kept in the Alexander Nevsky Crypt Museum, is an atypical one: Jesus is hard to find between the negative characters, dressed atypical and keeping legible writings on big papyrus. "The low literate" will not find out, only by asking, what is it with this icon. In this study, we are proposing to identify the cultural conflicts, which were the base of this iconographic representation and which was the impact expected by the painter over the Bulgarian of the XIX century. Our analysis is beginning with analyzing the existent cultural conflicts in the case of Jesus condemnation of the Sanhedrin members: the common people and the prosecutor Pontius Pilate. We are observing the interest of the painter for finding out all the accusations said against Jesus in the summary of the Evangels and their associations with possible or imaginary characters. All these characters with their background of accusers related to Jesus were gathered in the most unusual place (Praetorium of Pilate), so Jesus could endure once all the bad that was made to Him over the time. Secondly, we are interested to recognize the cultural conflicts from the first half of the XIX century. The officials of the Ottomans Empire, their leaders and dignitaries, were taking the place of Jesus`s judges, taking all the possible means to force Pilate to pronounce the unfair death condemnation. The main characters are Jesus and Pilate, the last one being dressed exactly as the ecumenical patriarch from Constantinople to which the Bulgarian Church has been recently subjected by the Turkish. If the one that is looking to the icon is a low literate, either will understand that Jesus will be resurrected, so His sacrifice should be identified with the sacrifice of the Bulgarian people, either will ask what the icon means and will receive the information oraly that should be a fight against foreign oppressors.
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