Number DOI: http://doi.org/10.33209/2519-4348-2707-9627-2025-13-177

Volynskyi Blahovisnyk. № 13. 2025. P. 197-211.

Summary

The article explores the philosophical and theological foundations of Protestant iconoclasm during the Renaissance, based on an analysis of the ideas of the spiritual leaders of the Reformation. It is argued that the immediate theoretical basis of Protestant iconoclasm lay in the rationalist revision of the Holy Scripture and in nominalist philosophy, particularly in those of its principles that provided grounds for denying the legitimacy of artistic representation of the Divine in art. Seeking a decisive break with Catholicism, opposing the splendor of Catholic worship with a Puritan-ascetic cult, the demand for a “cheap” church, and the principle of direct communion with God, Protestants adopted an extremely negative attitude toward Renaissance art, whose refined sensual beauty was unacceptable to them. In analyzing the iconoclastic discourse of Protestant theologians, special attention is given to two extreme positions: the Lutheran and the Calvinist. Martin Luther’s stance is defined as moderate, since he opposed the violent destruction of religious images, recognizing their illustrative, informative, and educational functions. At the same time, in his understanding, the role of these images was only auxiliary and instrumental – as a means of clear visualization and propagation of the Word of God. The influence of nominalism and the Platonic tradition of criticizing the mimetic nature of art is most fully manifested in the arguments of John Calvin, a militant opponent of religious art, who radically denied its capacity to represent religious truths.  He reduced the entire diversity of artistic functions to two – remembrance and pleasure, approving only the former. The study of the influence of Protestant theology of the Reformation era on the further development of European art remains a promising direction for scholarly research.

Key words: iconoclasm, Protestantism, Reformation, Renaissance, theology, philosophy, religious imagery.

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