On dog-faced St. Christopher

(Orthodox Arts Journal) - The icon of St-Christopher is one of the most astounding images found in the Orthodox Tradition. Showing a dog-headed warrior saint, it conjures fantastical stories of werewolves or of monstrous races from Pliny’s edge of the world. Because of all the difficulties it presents, the icon was proscribed in the 18th century by Moscow.

In the Roman Catholic Church, the feast of St-Christopher was suppressed entirely with Vatican II modernisation, though he continues to be one of the most popular saints in Catholicism — his image adorning the dashboard of cars all over the world. I believe understanding St-Christopher and his iconography is of prime importance today, and hopefully it will become clear why as we travel through the Bible, Tradition and iconography to see if we can decipher this saint who is such an affront to modern sensibilities...

Complete article here.