Holy Wisdom
In every Orthodox Church service, the priest calls out, “Sophia, let us attend!” Sophia means “wisdom” in Greek, and the Old Testament Book of Proverbs personifies Wisdom as a woman, crying in the streets her warnings against foolishness and sin. She is, according to the Book of Wisdom, “a spirit intelligent, holy, unique...she penetrates and pervades all things by reason of her purity. She is the refulgence of eternal light, the spotless mirror of the power of God, the image of his goodness.” And, in the New Testament, we are told that “Christ is...the wisdom of God” (1 Corinthians 1:24).
In iconography, the image of Sophia is a regal, fire-like, “uncreated” angel. In this Prosopon icon, Sophia stands on an ark, representing the chalice, which is the dimension of the outpouring of God’s love. In her right hand, Sophia holds the seven-branched candlestick, linking this angel not only to Christ (who holds the seven churches in Revelation) but also to the altar table. In her left hand, she holds the communion cup, the chalice of life-giving mysteries.
On the ark we see four humans: Adam and Eve; Mary, the Theotokos; and Saint John the Baptist. These four represent the beginning and end of the Old Testament person prior to God becoming man in the person of Jesus Christ. During this era, Sophia called out to exercise virtue and repentance. Adam and Eve, who walked in Paradise, remind us of the fall, while Saint John the Baptist represents the greatest person of the Old Testament because of his call to repentance, and Mary, the Theotokos, represents the yearning of Old Testament wisdom patiently awaiting revelation. Through Christ, who is the wisdom of God, humanity is offered a new saving path, which we find in this era, in his Church.
Sophia is the energy of the Creator, helping form the Church on earth. She symbolizes Christ’s invisible presence among his people, the Church. And it is through discerning the angelic energy of Wisdom that the believer, already integrating Old Testament virtues, begins to incarnate the New Testament commandment of Life-Giving Love.