I'm afraid to ask this but it is a genuine and serious question: Isn't it wrong to speak of "it's miracles?" Aren't icons windows to heaven or like "portals?" God does them, not the icons.
(Just in case anyone is unsure, I am not attacking or questioning icons themselves but I am fairly certain I have read what I said in some Patristic text or another and just want to be certain)
It is genuine. Do not be afraid before men, but before God...
We know that the Saints and the Theotokos pray for us and that God is the One who ultimately glorifies them and works miracles through them. So yes, it is wrong and a typo to say "
Its miracles", that would be as if the very Icon was a God itself which can answer prayers and work miracles. But if we should train our minds not to see the creation but the Creator, then this wouldn't be a problem.
That's the biggest problem ever, according to the Bible. Ever read Romans 1? The world has gone to hell because people look at the creation and 'Divinize' the creation, they do not recognize the Creator who hast made them all (in wisdom).
Thomas Hopko has a great new series, and i've heard him state this over and over again, not just in this series:
http://ancientfaith.com/podcasts/spiritandtruth/created_to_worship
