Naomi's Notes - 01/15/09
Earlier in January we observed Epiphany Sunday, singing "We Three Kings of Orient Are” during worship. Chuck pointed out that the wise men were astrologers, not kings, and that we don't know how many traveled to worship Jesus. The traditional “three” likely evolved because of the three gifts mentioned in the scriptures.
Traditional nativity scenes usually include the wise men along with "the holy family” and shepherds even though the Magi visited Jesus long after His birth. The backdrop for these scenes is often a wooden shed, despite research showing that domestic animals were usually kept in caves during that era.
Halos are traditionally seen in art and sculpture as a circle of light around Jesus’ head….and sometimes the heads of Mary, Joseph, and angels. We know that Moses’ face glowed as he descended the mountain, and that “the glory of the Lord shone round about” the shepherds and others from time to time. But there is no basis for our traditional concept of halos. [I did find one reference, in an obscure translation, to a halo that looked “like a rainbow,” but it had nothing to do with angels.]
Speaking to our XYZ group last month, I asked, “How many of you think that angels sing?” Everyone was hesitant to raise their hands, glancing at each other with expressions that said, “Is this a trick question…or is she just crazy?”
The only biblical reference to angels singing is in Revelation 5 where ALL of creation sings praise to God. Otherwise, scripture indicates that angels speak. Yet, our hymnal is replete with songs like “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing.” [Offhand, the only songwriter I can think of who gets it right is Handel. In The Messiah the soloist sings: “And suddenly, there was with the angel...praising God and saying, Glory to God..." ]
Our visualization of biblical scenes and concepts has been greatly influenced by American/European art over the last several centuries. Because of portraits of Jesus commonly used in Sunday School, (praying in the garden, etc.) we often think of him as having smooth, light skin and hair, delicate features, even blue eyes, despite the rugged Mediterranean culture into which he was born. We sing of his “nail-scarred hands” even though research indicates that nails likely pierced his forearms rather than His hands.
Many more instances could be cited where our traditions and culture color our biblical understandings. However, sifting through these shouldn't keep us from worshiping God and loving Jesus; we should just keep our focus on what's really important. ...So don't worry—we'll still keep singing about angels singing!
See you in worship this Sunday - Naomi