What is the importance of consecrating churches and icons?

According to the Coptic rite, the veneration of icons — in the form of kissing them or offering incense in front of them — may only be given to consecrated church icons that were anointed with the same Holy Chrism (Myron oil) used to anoint believers after their baptism, and only then do they receive the Holy Spirit and become sacred temples for Him. They become God’s possession, sacred, and with the Holy Spirit they bear the power of attracting hearts to heaven, so that church icons have an effective spiritual power in the life of the Church. This is revealed in the wording of the consecration rite. After reciting the prayer of thanksgiving and the offering of incense, the priest prays:

“O Master Lord God … who from the beginning through His servant Moses, gave us the law to place in the Tabernacle of the Testimony the prototype of the cherubim who cover the altar with their wings. You also granted Solomon wisdom to build your house in Jerusalem, and manifested Yourself to your chosen apostles through the incarnation of Your onlybegotten Son our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ, to build churches and monasteries named after your saints and martyrs. Therefore, we ask you and entreat You, O Lover of Mankind to send Your Holy Spirit on these icons of the saints and martyrs (name of saints), that they may become an anchored harbor of salvation and steadfastness …”¹²¹⁷

St. Yousab El Abah talked about the veneration of consecrated icons and its impact on the life of the Church saying, “You probably say: How can we worship colors? And how can we convince ourselves with such concepts? … It is necessary to consecrate the sacred vessels, altars, and icons, and it has to be conducted not by a priest but by a High Priest, who anoints them with the Myron, and the Myron represents the Holy Spirit. Although the Church canons permit the deacon to touch the chalice and give communion to the believers, they forbid him from touching or even drawing near the Myron, for he does not have the authority of giving the Holy Spirit to others …

“Behold the rites of the Church, that were ordered with great wisdom and by the guidance of the Holy Spirit for it is not allowed to bow down before or even kiss the altar, the vessels, or the icons before they are anointed by the High Priest with the Myron …

1217 Prayer for the Consecration of the Pictures and Icons , Consecration Prayers, text from the Coptic Reader app.

Church canons order the icon to be placed on the altar during the liturgy and to be prayed on … then to be anointed with the Myron oil and after communion (the bishop) to breathe over every icon three times saying, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.’

Perhaps you protest and say: How can the Holy Spirit dwell in an image? I can assure you that if you do not believe that the Holy Spirit is received by Myron and the Bishop’s breath then all our faith is in vain. In this case then the Spirit cannot dwell in the altar, the offering, or the church, and our worship before the sanctuary becomes futile, God forbid! Hear what the Holy Gospel says: ‘Therefore, he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by all the things on it. He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it’ (Matt. 23:20–21). Tell me, who dwells in it but the Spirit of God? Perhaps you would further inquire: To whom do I direct my worship? Is it to the Spirit of God residing in the icon or to the saint or martyr whom the image represents? I say, worship is due to God’s Spirit alone, but we owe the relevant saints every reverence and honor, asking for their prayers and intercessions before God.”¹²¹⁸