Educational theory makes it clear that people have different
ways of learning – some are cognitive, some are experiential, some are emotive
and some are visual learners. God, in
creating humankind in His image, has given us a mind, a heart and all our
senses with which to discover and engage our world and frame our worship. It is very fitting, therefore, that Juliet
Benner calls Christians from a western, rational mindset to reclaim an approach
to God that is stimulated by reflection on great paintings based on biblical
texts.
She reminds her readers that “in the Middle Ages great works
of art were central to the way churches proclaimed the Word (in paintings,
stone, mosaics and stained glass). These
pictures of scripture stories were for the illiterate what writing is for those
who read” (Juliet Benner, "Contemplative Vision," IVP, 2011, p. 13). And yet, she notes “in
the Reformation Protestants removed visual images from places of worship,
focusing only on the Word and a rational comprehension of God.” She contends that “this has deprived people
of encountering God through the senses and the imagination…Yet the imagination
as well as the mind…serves as a channel through which God may touch our heart.
Great Christian art helps this happen.
It allows us to go beyond our own limited imagination. We are invited to participate with the artist
to see and experience God in new and fresh ways.” (pp. 16-18). Benner notes with dismay: “I have come to
think of us all as much more visually challenged than we realize. I am
astounded by how poorly we actually see what is around and in front of us. I am also deeply impressed by the fact that
our spiritual seeing is conditioned by our physical seeing. Our physical seeing
can be a doorway to spiritual seeing” (p. 12).
Her concept of “contemplative vision,” therefore, is based on teaching
people how “to see” religious works of art that lead one to meditate on a
passage of scripture. She says: “In
attending in this contemplative way to God, we will be practicing prayer” (p. 13).
It was particularly helpful to read this book at the
Christmas season. The Nativity story has
inspired artists from East and West to depict the mystery and power of Christ’s
incarnation. These artists provide a
doorway to new appreciation of God and the wonder of His revelation- just as
Benner advocates. In fact, in our church
last week I put several beautiful artistic renditions of the Nativity on PowerPoint
and invited the congregation to reflect deeply on the meaning of the Christmas
story through the eyes of the artists.
This approach reaches across generations, since the younger generations
have grown up in a highly visual media age.
We used: Adoration of the
Shepherds by 16th c. artist Gerard van Honthorst, 2 contemporary
paintings of the manger scene, He Qi’s Nativity, Adoration of the Magi and Nativity Messiah and Rembrandt’s Simeon.
We had Asian Indian and Chinese Christians as well as Caucasians in our
group and the meditations on He Qi’s work, particularly, deepened everyone’s
understanding of the implications of the cross and the resurrection in the
birth of Christ. It was a powerful
approach to the Nativity story.
This highlights the main limitation of Benner’s approach:
she has only included one Eastern artist in her selection. There is much to
learn from Eastern as well as Western artists. Benner bases her meditations on The Parable of the Blind and Census at Bethlehem by Bruegel the
elder, Christ in the Wilderness by
Moretto da Brescia, The Angelus by
Jean Francois Millet, The Adoration of
the Shepherds by Nicolas Poussin, Christ
in the Storm on the Lake by Rembrandt van Rijn, The Incredulity of St. Thomas, The Supper At Emmaus, and The Calling of St Matthew by
Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, Procession
to Calvary by Ridolfo Ghirlandaio, The
Visitation by He Qi, The Good
Samaritan by Luca Giordano, and The
Descent from the Cross by Peter Paul Rubens. Each of those paintings is included in a
photographic insert in the book and the reader is invited to study the painting
as she provides a guided meditation on the artistic details of the work. Her skill in helping readers “see” what is
included in each painting go beyond an art appreciation approach to move the
reader into contemplation of God and resultant worship. Benner also includes helpful questions for
reflection and discussion at the end of each chapter. Hence, the book is valuable as a resource for
small groups with the availability of sacred art on the internet as well as in art
texts and art galleries. Her principles,
applied beyond the scope of her book, enable people to see Biblical texts in
new light and grow closer to God.
- Mary Lou
Codman-Wilson, Ph.D., Dec. 19, 2011