The Glenstal Abbey Christ ~ Will you join me?

This icon of Christ Pantocrator (Christ the Ruler) is venerated in the crypt-chapel of the the Benedictine Monks of Glenstal Abbey in Ireland.  So I begin the day, while it is still dark, silent before the icon which is teaching me the truth of Carl Jung's insight:

"We should not pretend to understand the world only by the intellect; we apprehend it just as much by feeling. Therefore, the judgment of the intellect is, at best, only half the truth, and must, if it be honest, also come to an understanding of its inadequacy."  C.G. Jung ~ Psychological Types

Join me in the gazing. In Christ, God now has a human face. It is an all-compassionate face. His eyes understand as he steps up to the window's edge where heaven and earth touch. His side is burnished; our side is charred. Did you notice?

In Christ, there is no longer earth-here and heaven-there. He blesses us with his right hand. His all-merciful eyes jump the gap. The opened Gospel book reveals the text: "Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest."  Mt. 11:28 

Many people visit the Glenstal icon and claim it to be a source of healing. I don't doubt it. But while we pray for our dear ones who are sick, may we also hope for our own healing—may we be healed of our confident indocility, energy-stealing anxieties, compulsions, addictions, indifference, resentments. Standing before the icon in cyber-presence, may we pray for the world and our nation, afflicted from within.

~ ~ ~

The compassionate eyes of Christ,
looking up—
seeing the vast crowd and
healing all the sick.

The tender eyes of Christ,
noticing
the widowed mother
and saying to her,
"Don't be afraid."

The pitying eyes of Christ,
greeting the kneeling leper,
excluded and shamed,
and saying, "I do will it; be clean."

The benevolent eyes of Christ,
stopping in all the towns and villages,
the marginal places—
shepherding eyes of inclusion.

Forbearing eyes of Christ,

shine light into the world's wounds
of militarization,
child neglect,
bio-destruction,
runaway greed,
gross vanity,
the feeble souls.

Warm eyes of Christ,
melt the hearts
frozen with hatred,
gross stupidity, 
blind loyalty.

Empathic eyes of Christ,
revealing your broken heart,
your deeply-moved,
pitying heart
for our en-flamed world,
our cultural suffocation.

Understanding eyes of Christ,
how have we come to this—
that we have so failed 
the planet-gift,
that the news we create is so cruel,
that we can't seem to get it right?

Curative eyes of Christ,
in our disorientation,
bewilderment,
misery,
unhappiness,
despite the braggadocio of 
greatness
and economic wonder.

Fellow-feeling eyes of Christ,
access to God's gut-churned heart
for our sickness,
our coarse humanity,
our savagery—
the president expands the use of landmines,
the punished boy found dead in the garage,
the swan kicked to death—
   her mate,
   her cygnets plying the stream, searching—
our idiotic sense of humor.

My desperate, crying heart knows your icon is the way.
And so I run to you this morning, 
God of hearts—
to meet you,
to greet you
in your caring gaze,
your merciful,
healing eyes.

Christ Pantocrator at a Young Age

Here is an icon titled, Christ Pantocrator at a Young Age. The Greek word Pantocrator means, Ruler of All. Jesus appears as a young man in this 16th century fresco painted over the altar at the Monastery of Koutloumousiou on Mount Athos. God, being born with the human face of Jesus, has become picturable. 

Jesus seems to be in motion here: on his way, setting out with purpose. He is beautiful and full of life. He is wide awake but serene. His face possesses an inner light. 

Christ's head is large ~ filled with the best human-divine thoughts. His eyes remain wide open to all the world's struggles. His nose, elongated and slender, with arched eyebrows suggests a palm tree offering protection, nourishment and consolation. 

The ears of Jesus are easily detected ~ he will hear my prayer, the expression of my heart-longings, my sorrows and joys, my thanks and praise. The line of Jesus' mouth suggests nothing carnal. Presently his mouth is closed, but he will open it with a word spoken to each of us. I will hear him if I am attentive, receptive and still.

The circle of light around Jesus' head keeps my gaze drawn to his face. The cross inside the nimbus forms the Greek initials for the Divine Name revealed to Moses: The Being. Jesus is the God-Man.

There are lively decorations of green and red within the nimbus too. Divine light radiates from the clothing and even the hair of Jesus. We know the old expression, You are what you eat. We might also say, You are what you look at.

Tomorrow there'll be a prayer here that we might enter before this icon. And of course, as with any prayer, poem or hymn found here, we can expand and adapt it as we are inspired.

Jesus Pantocrator and the Antichrist

HERE IS THE ICON of Christ-Pantocrator dating to the 6th century and kept at Saint Catherine's Monastery, Mount Sinai, Egypt. Pantocrator means - Who rules over all. But this Christ rules with a gentle face, his blessing hand and life-promising Gospel Word. 

Kathleen Norris in her book, Amazing Grace, writes about the word Antichrist. Religious people often use Antichrist as a dramatic shock word. I met some lean-right Catholics once who within two minutes of our introduction pronounced Barack Obama to be the Antichrist in league with Hitler and Stalin. 

Stupidity and ignorance (along with power and fear) are the prime spiritual enemies of the Christian, turning us into demonizing finger-pointers. This kind of religious person keeps the spotlight on others. They don't see themselves. Remember Michael Jackson's song, Man in the Mirror.

I'm starting with the man in the mirror
I'm asking him to change his ways
And no message could have been any clearer
If you want to make the world a better place
Take a look at yourself, and then make a change.

Kathleen Norris tells of asking a preacher man the meaning of Antichrist. He told her that the Antichrist is ME and YOU - when we hear the gospel word of Jesus and then don't do it. Talk about keeping things simple. It's much easier to blame someone else - to take an interest in every other kind of religious person, place or thing, but keep the Gospel at bay.

So here in the icon we see that Jesus' gospel book is closed. Forcing nothing, he waits to see if we will open it. If we were to open Jesus' golden, jeweled and illumined book our eyes might fall on this passage:

Jesus also said to them, "Is a lamp brought in to be put under a tub or under the bed? Surely to be put on the lamp-stand? For there is nothing hidden, but it must be disclosed, nothing kept secret except to be brought to light. Anyone who has ears for listening should listen?" (Mark 4: 21-23)

Each of us is the lamp, having received the Lord's teaching and inspiration. Jesus wants us living in light - bright inner light: faithful, repentant, attentive to and aware of spiritual things, true, just, teachable, unfettered and glad.

We're illumined, so to shine where we go. That little interior lamp, easily extinguished, needs to be protected. When I was a boy, after each Sunday Mass, the county police kindly directed traffic onto the main road at the exit of the large parish parking lot. At some point the police stop showing up, having been worn down by the abusive curses of parishioners who felt they were not being exit-ed fast enough. 

This little light of mine...let it shine, let it shine, let it shine!