The Assumption of Mary

 

August 15th in the Western Catholic tradition is considered to be the festival of the Assumption of Mary. In the Anglican tradition, it is considered to be a devotional focus, but no formal dogma exists. In the Eastern and Orthodox tradition, the festival is at the end of August. 

Some traditions call it the Solemnity of The Assumption of the Virgin Mary, others call it the Dormition of The Virgin Mary. This commemoration has quite a history and is steeped in what many call the Apocryphal texts. 

From the beginning of the Christian movement, there were intense debates, theories and essentially confusion about the Christ impulse. For many, it was simply incomprehensible as to how a god could come to earth to be a human and live a mortal life. Why would a god, any god, but particularly the creator of the universe choose to inhabit a mortal body and suffer a public execution? This debate and confusion extended to the parentage of Jesus. What about that virgin birth thing, and also who was Joseph, and who or what was Mary?

How could a mortal human give birth to a god?

Many of the Apocryphal books of the Bible as well as books that were not included in the Canon we have today, try to explain the phenomena of Christ Jesus coming to earth and experiencing a human body as well as life. The Proto Gospel of James, The Dormition of the Virgin, and The Gospel of Bartholomew are just a few of the ancient texts trying to explain away the mystery of the Virgin Mary.

In the 5th Century, the Dogma of the Virgin as "God Bearer" became accepted  Christian theology. But what happened to Mary when she died was controversial in the Western Catholic tradition until 1950, when Pope Pius XII declared that the Virgin Mary was assumed body and soul into heaven upon her death.

At the heart of the controversy, is trying to make sense of a mystical spiritual event with materialistic reasoning.  The contortions and pretzel bending the ancient texts proclaim regarding where Mary came from, wether or not she was born from an immaculate conception herself, and what happened to her when she died, show the difficulty in trying to rationalize the suprasensible with the material. 

Mary is a mystery, and there is a beauty in this reality. Sometimes, it is OK to not understand something beautiful and good. Emil Bock in his book The Three Mary's says it the best. He points out that in the beginning of the New Testament, we have the image of Mary in the Luke Gospel. She reminds us of where we have been, our innocent paradisiacal beginnings. This is the attraction to Mary, she reminds us on the one hand of what we have lost, but what also is at the center of our being if we can access it. Bock goes on to remind us that at the end of the New Testament, we read about The Virgin of the Apocalypse in the Book of Revelation. This Virgin reminds us of what we are to become. 

As an artistic image, Mary is a symbol of the highest potential of the human soul. I think this is part of the mystery behind the Assumption of Mary, that the human soul, the essence of who we are, is infinite and everlasting. That our spirits as well, will ascend at the moment of our deaths. The word "Dormition" is considered "sleep" and the relinquishing of our bodies when we pass as going to sleep, is an image we should embrace and not fear. 

The images of the Dormition, especially in ancient Christian iconography of the East, shows Mary on her death bed. Above her is Christ who appears to be holding a baby. This is symbolic of Christ escorting Mary's soul to heaven. It is the completion of the arc of the Nativity images where Mary kneels before the infant Jesus who has come to earth.

 Assumption of Mary by Giotto di Bonone

How ever you perceive the Mary Mystery, you are invited to perceive it as a loving gesture towards human kind.

Blessings on your journey!

August Marian Festivals

August is an interesting month. In the Northern Hemisphere, it is a time aptly named "The Dog Days of Summer," apparently because dogs like being super hot and lazy. It is a time of a beginning of the harvest season in many places, and in others, there is this pregnant pause as fruits and grains ripen in the warm sun. Hot August nights are filled are meteor showers, and everyone is trying to enjoy the last days of Summer, before the business of Autumn.

There are two specific Marian festivals in August. 

St Mary of the Angels Chapel in Assisi

August 2nd is The Feast of Our Lady of the Angels, which is a Franciscan observance, marking the day that St Francis of Assisi witnessed a small chapel dedicated to Mary near Assisi filled with light. It is in this chapel that St Francis heard the charge to "Rebuild my Church," and Francis started repairing the 7th century structure, as well as launching his movement to bring Christian values to a world and church that was becoming more materialistic. It is on this day that La Negrita, the Black Madonna of Costa Rica was found in the early 1600's.

La Negrita, Costa Rica

The other festival is called The Assumption of Mary in the Western Catholic communion, and in the East, it is called The Dormition of Mary. This festival commemorates the death and bodily rising up to heaven of The Virgin Mary. Both the East and Western festivals are celebrated on August 15. The history of this festival is quite interesting, and is a reflection of the human grappling with the mystery of the Incarnation of Christ as well as how the birth of Christ could be related to a human being. Essentially, it is the difficulty early Christians had with comprehending how a god could become human and die an agonizing death. 

When one explores ancient iconography from the 4th Century onward, there are artistic representations of the Assumption of Mary, and there are legends pointing to how it happened and who were the witnesses. 

There were major arguments as to the nature of Mary, as to how a mere mortal of lowly status could birth a god. I will leave this argument up to scholars and theologians. For me the mystery of Mary is that her life was a template for the human soul. Artistically, she represents the human soul. The recognition that she was elevated into heaven upon her death, is a symbol of what we have to look forward to upon our human death. She was declared Theotokos in the 5th century, which means "god bearer." In fact, most Black Madonnas from the Eastern Church Iconography are called Theotokos.

Iveron Theotokos, Georgia

We too are bearers of the Divine, and I look forward to the day when it is universally recognized so that we can honor not only ourselves but all with whom we come in contact

Art and Culture

Madonna and Child by Kevin Wak Williams
https://artbywak.com/

 Here we are at the beginning of August, a month that has many festivals in the Christian liturgical year, specifically regarding The Virgin Mary. The art surrounding Our Lady, as so many call her is extraordinary. It inspires and comforts many. 

Why is that?

Rudolf Steiner tells us that art is the creation of organs of perception by which the spiritual world communicates to humanity. 

We witness many forms of art, and it can be said that there are many messages that are being conveyed. It has always fascinated me when cultures and religions restrict art. In some religions, art was and is banned as some sort of sacrilege. In Christianity of the 700's, particularly in Constantinople, it was thought that God was mad if religious images, and since the Christians were using them in churches and homes, and the Muslims were not, maybe if the Christians got rid of art, then God would help them win battles.

When Constantine V decreed that religious art was banned, then he won a couple of battles, and the rest we know of as history. It is of note that it took three generations of Byzantine empresses to reverse the decision, bringing back religious art, but not until after quite the theological and political fight for nearly three generations. Other great debates and even schisms have happened in cultures regarding whether or not art should be present in daily life. This history shows us how powerful image and art is in culture. 

Art, specifically religious art, has great influence.

What about modern art? Some would argue that television and movies are modern forms of art. The organization that gives out awards known as "Oscars" for movie performances and production, is actually called The Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Recently, a beloved actress from a very influential television show in the 1960's passed away. Star Trek, which has inspired generations of fans, numerous television and cable shows, as well as several movies, featured Nichell Nichols as playing an African woman in a position of power on the Star Ship Enterprise. This character was the first time a woman of color was seen in a leading roll, not based on a maid or American slave. The character allowed for the acceptance of women of color in healthy, educated and leadership positions. Nichols wanted to quit the role for various reasons, but was told to stay in her character by none other than Rev. Martin Luther King Jr, precisely because having a woman of color in such a position would influence the acceptance of Black women as full members of American society. While Star Trek was several centuries in the future, it showed that advanced cultures included people from all races as contributing members of society.

Obviously Star Trek and The Black Madonna are quite different in their core messages, but both are healing influences on culture because they show that humans, regardless of the color of their skin, have something to offer. In the case of The Black Madonna, she shows that Divinity has many colors, and that those who have much melanin in their skins, are Divine, just as those with varying levels of melanin. 

May these images, and art of all forms inspire us to recognize the dignity of all human beings.

Blessings on your Journey 

The Heart of the World

There are many ways to look at the world, especially in terms of energy. We are told that the human being is a macrocosm of the entire universe. Our Earth also is a mini cosmos, with the stars and planets imprinting themselves on our landscape.

The Earth can also be understood as a living being, with a physical body, and etheric and astral body, as well as an ego. Often thought of as a mother, this being has energetic foci similar to humans. The chakras are seven energetic foci each human has that connects their spirit to the broader cosmos. So does the Earth.

The Heart chakra on a human located at the heart level. It acts as a center of compassion, empathy and love. This chakra governs one’s senses of trust, fearlessness, peace, generosity, gratitude, and connectedness. The heart chakra is special because it is the fourth of the seven chakras, making it the exact halfway point of the system and the unifier of the physical and spiritual chakras. The heart chakra acts as the bridge between the earth and spirit.

Africa is considered by some spiritual researchers to be the heart chakra of the world. There are some of the most ancient civilizations on earth present in Africa, it is thought that the continent was the cradle of humanity. In South Africa, there are structures that archeologists date to over 250,000 years old, involving networks of circular buildings associated with gold mines. In the ancient traditions, this area is seen as the point where the sky god kissed mother earth and all of creation resulted from the union. 

The Madonna and Child of Soweto is a modern Black Madonna. Painted by Larry Scully in the early 1970's in the heyday of the Anti Apartheid movement, the image gave hope and solace to those trying to transform oppression of the South African government into a harmonious culture. In an effort to truly heal the deep trauma of Apartheid, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission was set up where victims and perpetrators could face each other, air their traumas and seek and give forgiveness.

This model is a pathway to the Beloved Community we all strive towards. No wonder it came from the continent that is the Heart of the world, no wonder it came from the connection between spirit and physical on Earth. 

Tune in to The Black Madonna Speaks to hear more about the inspiring story of The Madonna and Child of Soweto 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-black-madonna-speaks/id1622348404

Treasures of Darkness

Image from the James Webb Space Telescope

 

I will give you the treasure of darkness, riches stored in secret places so that you will know I am the Lord

                                                       Isaiah 45:3

This verse is one of the positive in the Bible regarding darkness. Every time I read it, I think of the night sky and the infinite vastness of darkness dotted with the jewels of stars and planets. A recent discussion regarding the nature of the human etheric body and darkness, my conversation partner questioned why darkness, black in fact, was in anyway beneficial. My response was that all life begins in darkness, that black is generative. 

The Southern Ring Nebula as seen by the James Webb Telescope. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, And STScI

Think of the seed germinating underground, how fertilization of eggs happens in the darkness of the womb, and black holes in space spew forth the basic elements that make up life. I often wonder why darkness, the color black has been used to describe evil, isolation and pain. Why is that really? I have been in places during the time of year when the sun barely sets below the horizon. It is almost unbearable, the intense light, and one can never really rest fully because the heavens are always illuminated. 

Our current time is one of great upheaval and transformation. As the infant becomes more cramped and restless in her mothers womb just before birth, she is enveloped in the warmth, security and darkness that will be forever shattered when she emerges through the threshold into life. It is terrifying for the infant as she has no reference for time, has never experienced anything but enclosure, now sounds are amplified, touch is new and the light is difficult to decipher. But many wonders, joys and challenges await in an unknown, unfamiliar future.

A star forming region NGC 3324 as seen by the James Webb Telescope. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, And STScI

We are experiencing the same thing as a global community. Our planet is transforming in ways we do not understand, our security is threatened, and the immature respond with violence, greed and theft. Is it not interesting that in the midst of all the upheaval the human imagination and intelligence has produced a new space telescope that is giving us glimpses into the infinite universe of which we are only a tiny speck? 

Life in general fascinates me. While I dislike the pain and annoyance associated with interpersonal conflict, I become completely mesmerized by the elegance of nature, the grander of the cosmos and the wisdom that holds everything together. The images of the Webb telescope bring to mind the verse in Isaiah. Have we used our human gifts of the mind and will to create a method by which we can see what Divinity has in store? Is the timing of this gift to remind us of what is truly real and worthy of attention? Our wars and conflicts, how do they compare with what we are seeing that lies beyond the edges of our galaxy? How can we be distracted by petty disagreements and ego clashes of one nation against another, if we would only look up to the heavens? 

We are so small, and yet we have every aspect of these treasures of darkness within. Every element that makes up our bodies is present in the stars, what animates us is love born out of wisdom. 

Mother of God of Ostra Brama

Most Black Madonnas have crowns of stars upon their heads. Are they Black and have stars to remind of us from where we have come? Are they present to remind us where we shall go if we can love enough to know what is true?

We have been given the treasures of darkness, the riches stored in secret places since our beginnings. May these images coming to us through the ingenuity of humanity, remind us of the Cosmic love that surrounds us all. 

NASA telescope's first cosmic view goes deeper than ever before | ABC News

Power

 

The Black Virgin of Rocamadour

“If I meet other people and criticize their weaknesses, I rob myself of higher cognitive power. But if I try to enter deeply and lovingly into another person's good qualities, I gather in that force.” Rudolf Steiner

Power, it is the defining challenge to human morality. 

There is an ancient Chinese proverb that states “May you live in Interesting Times.” I am not sure how much of either a blessing or a curse this statement is, for those of us who have been living though the past several years, at least myself, I am at “interesting” threshold, I would like to be a bit bored for just a little while, just so we could catch our breath. I do not know anyone or any place on earth these days that is having a calm relaxed time. Everything is in a state of upheaval, sometimes I look back just a decade ago when a naked celebrity dominated the news cycle for weeks, now major developments happen hourly it seems, and celebrity gossip is so passé, I must confess I almost miss reality TV information, now who has time for tabloid anything? 

But what is going on really? It is hard to put ones finger on any sort of issue to understand why everything is so chaotic these days on a level we have not really seen in centuries to be honest.

As you know, I view art as a reflection of consciousness. I have found movies and cinema an interesting commentary on culture, sometimes almost in a prophetic way. Take the absolute block buster cable TV show a few years back that captivated the attention of the entire world for an entire decade, only to deeply disappoint ardent fans with it’s ending that no one could see coming and that we all felt we knew what was going to be the case.

The story, as is really true about most of human history, was a tale of power and what people do to obtain it. The show, based on fiction inspired by Medieval European history, had an extra added dimension of magic and dragons. Sometimes I wonder if we don’t have either right now, to be honest. The basic story was the same. That was the interesting thing for me personally, while the ending was so odd, it was actually a profound take on true power, that a paraplegic young man would become the high king of the realm. This was in my opinion, a deep statement on that old Bible verse: "The Meek shall Inherit the Earth."

In fact the verse, found in Psalms 37:11 in the King James Version is 

"But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in 

the abundance of peace."

As an American, what I have witnessed in my culture during the last decade or so is a naked grab for power through any means necessary, particularly from a certain political party that does not start with a "D" or an "I" or a "G". There are many ways to interpret current events, but what seems different to me this time is the lack of shame or desire to be sneaky about such activities. As we watch all sorts of uprisings, wars, religious strife and political shenanigans all about the globe, when it gets down to it, it really is all about power.

If one researches power, the word power is quite telling. One can find all sorts of quotes and research articles on the subject. 

What does the word "power" mean exactly. Obviously there are several dictionary definitions. The definition that is most pertinent to our exploration: Power is the capacity or ability to direct or influence the behavior of others or the course of events. In this context power can be seen as coercive or inspirational. And you could also see that power may be inspiring others to be coercive.

A book that influenced me deeply was written by Russian Anthroposophist Sergi Prokofieff. The book is titled The Spiritual Origins of Eastern Europe and the Future of the Grail Mysteries. Prokofieff grew up in the last vestiges of Stalinist USSR, and read German books by Steiner in his basement as such literature was forbidden during those times. Obviously, he lived with the specter of an atheistic government where religion was outlawed and punished. So it was fascinating to me when I read his essay on the problem with a theocracy. A theocracy is a system of government of a state by immediate divine guidance or by officials who are regarded as divinely guided, such a priests.

I thought, wow, one would think a devout Christian living under such persecution would welcome a theocracy. But Prokofieff put it into context. He referred to the 40 days Christ was in the Wilderness. This was the time right at the beginning of Christ’s mission on earth, where he was getting used to and preparing for his ministry. As some of you may remember, during his time in the desert, he was visited by the adversaries and tempted three times. These temptations were part of his preparation to deal with being human, and the temptations were the three great moral challenges we all face during our own earthly sojourn. Twice Christ was offered earthly power, and twice he said no to earthly power. Why would he reject earthly power? It would certainly make his job easier if he had the cooperation of governments, and certainly he and his followers might have not been persecuted or executed with such power. 

Why on earth did Christ reject earthly power?

Because earthly power is coercive and does not respect individual freedom. And, the old adage, absolute power (and I will put a caveat on this statement) absolute earthly power, corrupts absolutely.

What is earthly power? It is a power of the material, meaning amassing material things, material wealth, material coercive influence over other beings. It is control over earthly things, the control over things such as air, land, water, food and people.

When Jesus Christ was betrayed, it was because the person who turned him in to the authorities wanted earthly power to get rid of the Roman occupation. The person thought they could force the situation and cause an uprising, or better yet, the Son of God would wave a violent wand and vanquish the occupiers. He was shocked when things turned out differently, and we all know how that story ended.

But the main statement of Jesus Christ during the aftermath, when he was being examined, and actually mocked by Pilate as to where Jesus got his power, his reply was "My kingdom is not of this world."

The Black Madonna is an example of extreme otherworldly power, the power to inspire, the power of endurance in the face of all odds. These images have been a staple in Christian art since its inception, and have stood the test of time. Black Madonnas have survived wars, revolutions, fires, shipwrecks. bombs, from brokenness, of being hid for centuries. Even when they are burnt to ashes, the reappear in a new form from a new artist who fashions them from memory. But the greatest power of these Madonnas is to inspire humanity to love and see others as worthy of love.

Our Lady of Jasna Gora

The Black Madonna as a symbol of the soul of humanity is a reminder of what true lasting power is all about. There is no violence, no coercion, no wealth, no oppression, and look at what these images have done throughout the centuries. 

"The day power of love overrules the love of (earthly) power, 

the world will know peace." Ghandi

All things pass away, but love never passes away. 

That is true, moral, universal power.

Such is the power of The Black Madonna