Jesus is beginning his creative expression on this earth. He will author much beauty across his life. He is an artist, born of Divinity. It is confirmed in his baptism, “and behold, the heavens were opened and John the Baptist saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming upon Jesus.”
We are all of us authored by a Divine artist to be beauty and creativity incarnate. There is a power in this universe; a creative life-giving power that enthralls with beauty and we are One with the Artist. Always our artistry is unfolding with those around us. If we diminish ourselves, our communion with Divinity, we would not be the artist we were authored to be. We would be forsaking our creation, our creativity. We would be forsaking a Creator God. Without realizing it, we would start to cherish a lesser god instead. We find ourselves submitting to a ‘Lord’ who rules over us. We become mimics, repeating the commands or coercions of others. We acquiescence to being the opposite of creative – merely obedient. We fall in line with others who have also acquiesced to being merely obedient. We will obey our parents, our teachers, our coaches. We will obey expectations, rebellion from expectation, the cool kids, the boss, the police, the drill sergeant, and every other Lord who presents themselves to us as Lord. We could have, with each of these other children of God, co-created each other. But they mistakenly decided to rule us, and we mistakenly decided to obey them. We will likely obey a culture of Lords who will keep us attendant to them and their wants; and their wants will become our wants. And if they want the plunder of war, we will march off in troops. They will have us obey everything that is outside of us, and thus, we will diminish co-creating all that is within us. Yet Divinity dwells therein and from therein Divinity flows. Always Divinity prompts us to author all that is artistic, all that is beautiful – even if it starts in second grade with practicing on the recorder. Even if it means we develop a fondness for bagpipes or yodeling or puns. Whatever we do, we do because it is our artistry and brings forth life. We nurture the artist within for our own sake – for the sake that being an artist is who we are. We nurture the artist for each other’s sake – to be shared creativity and beauty flourishing in the world. We nurture the artist for our world’s sake – to be the creative authority we are and not any lesser being some Lord presumes to rule over and order about. As creative artists we witness to humanity a deep internal life of authority, the authority of beauty that flows within and between us and a Beautiful Spirit. Our artistry is our freedom from any Lord’s false authority over us. It is our freedom for the authority of creation, the authority of beauty.
“Who gave thee, O Beauty, The keys of this breast,— Too credulous lover Of blest and unblest?…When first my eyes saw thee, I found me thy thrall…The frailest leaf, the mossy bark, The acorn’s cup, the raindrop’s arc, The swinging spider’s silver line, The ruby of the drop of wine, The shining pebble of the pond, Thou inscribest with a bond…Ah, what avails it To hide or to shun Whom the Infinite One Hath granted his throne? The heaven high over Is the deep’s lover… Is it that my opulent soul Was mingled from the generous whole… Divine Ideas below, Which always find us young And always keep us so. Oft in streets or humblest places, I detect far-wandered graces…Thou eternal fugitive, Hovering over all that live… All that’s good and great with thee Works in close conspiracy… The leafy dell, the city mart, Equal trophies of thine art… if God thou be, Unmake me quite, or give thyself to me!” (An Ode To Beauty – Ralph Waldo Emerson)
Prayer: Spirit of Beauty, I give myself to you.
Question: What is the art I author and how is it bringing forth Divine beauty in the world?
January 12, 2020 Gospel Matthew 3:13-17 Feast of Baptism of Jesus