ABSTRACT
A discussion of Christian iconography and Modernism is incomplete without an examination of the work of Jacques Maritain. Through his revival of Thomism, his significant influence on the Second Vatican Council, and his friendships with Modernist artists, Maritain emerged as the most authoritative Catholic voice to speak in defense of Modernist art.1 At the same time, Maritain, as we have shown elsewhere, was well aware of the problems this encounter entailed.2 He realized that not all Modernist works could be integrated in the spiritual life of the Church and he understood that the dialogue between the Church and contemporary art would not be easy. This is consistent with his overall approach to contemporary culture. When in 1965 he criticized the intrusion of rationalist and humanist ideas in conciliar theology, he earned the unusual distinction of being the philosopher (and aesthetician) of both progressive and conservative Catholicism.3 No other philosopher, Catholic or Orthodox, has engaged artistic and cultural Modernism in the way that Maritain did.
