The God’s Gift of Charity

Today’s scripture: Ephesians 2:8 (NRSV) (The Message) (KJV) What might God be saying to me?

My thoughts (Ernest Disney-Britton):

Last month I was in Minnesota, and I took a peek at the “Martin Luther: Art and Reformation” at the Minneapolis Art Institute featuring sixteen paintings from the Lucas Cranach the Elder’s studio. The exhibition is part of the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther’s “Ninety-Five Theses on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences.” Lucas Cranach was a close friend of Martin Luther, “who “The Guardian” newspaper describes as having “more or less singlehandedly invented the visual vocabulary for Luther’s rebellion against the Catholic church.” The exhibition is rich with allegories supporting Luther’s belief in faith as the path to salvation, versus Roman Catholic path of indulgences.

What is the visual vocabulary of the Reformation? In general, the art of the Reformation focused on humble depictions of biblical scenes and moralistic depictions of contemporary everyday life. It avoided grand images of Jesus and his mother, and it downplayed the Saints and the senior clergy. The movement was guided by Bible verses like Ephesians 2:8 “For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift….” Appropriately, one of the most unusual but important examples from the work of Lucas Cranach is a small series of panels portraying the virtue of Charity as a naked and smiling young woman, surrounded by babies, with whom she breastfeeds cuddles and plays. I’m a Roman Catholic, but I was persuaded by this Protestant visualization of charity as a gift to the believer, as natural as motherhood, and not the result of good deeds or acts of service.

Thought for the day: How do you visualize the Christian path to salvation?

We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.