Acrylic painting--St Issa (Jesus)preaching in Persia " The Firebrand"

Painting and Sketches/Acrylic painting--St Issa (Jesus)preaching in Persia

Acrylic painting--St Issa (Jesus)preaching in Persia
" The Firebrand"
(click for larger image)
"1 The words of Issa spread among the pagans in the midst of the countries he traversed,
and the inhabitants forsook their idols...
12 Seeing the powerlessness of their priests, the pagans had still greater faith in the sayings of Issa and, fearing the anger of the Divinity, broke their idols to pieces."
Text excerpt from The Unknown Life of Jesus Christ

St Issa traveled rapidly back through India on his way back to Israel. While passing into western adjacent countries he preached to the various peoples and tribes there. Wherever he went he caused a stir, his words a revival of faith and ultimately inciting the destruction of their stone, wood, and metallic idol statues.

At the time, Zoroastrianism was the dominant religion west of India, and monotheistic. Adherents made it a point to pray before cauldrons of fire or some form of light. It was used as symbol and point of focus, similar to the crucifix in Christianity. However, The Zoroastrianism that St Issa apparently dealt with crossed this line when their priests taught others to "worship the sun, the spirit of good and of evil."

This is the acrylic painting to depict this part of Issa’s journey. While the priests rage on impotently, Issa’s words resound in the peoples hearts burning and judging; pricked so the populace turns against its pagan ways and their once worshiped idols come crashing down. In some ways this was a very difficult painting, somewhat reminiscent of the Taliban destroying the great Buddhist statues in Afghanistan. However the difference here is those statues eventually passed from idol
to art and were that countries unique cultural heritage.

The situation at the time of Jesus is those things that were broken up, existed as living deities in the minds of their worshippers. Their removal symbolized rejection of the old gods and acceptance of the unseen One God. Their fall aided their shift in focus from the idol and what they meant so they could concentrate on their new faith.
It is not known how long these new adherents persisted in their faith as time and
other religions seemed to have dissipated them.