The Black Madonna: Mysterious Soul Companion

Beautiful. Wow. Fascinating. Refreshing. These are but a few of the words that came to mind as I read through Stephanie Georgieff's book The Black Madonna: Mysterious Soul Companion. I found that I was joining the author on a pilgrimage to explore the psychology, science, art, history, and theology in understanding what all these works of art known as the Black Madonna bring to the table. There were were so many new insights and refreshing statements made throughout this pilgrimage. In this literary journey Georgieff introduced a new idea to me that should be shared: That art is a method through which the spiritual world communicates to humanity. As I read those words I immediately thought, "well surely! If God can become incarnate as a human why wouldn't God use art to communicate to us as well now?"

As I continued on to travel through the pages, I could sense a desire to bring healing and The Kingdom of God to earth. I felt that this unearthing of the meanings and history of the Black Madonna led to more of a reason to love God, others, and the earth which we live on. I found that it was a reminder that society's ways of instant gratification and hedonistic self-indulgence is not the way that we were intended to live. Georgieff illustrates this perfectly when she expresses the truth in that, "If one fails to see in another being, or is even forbidden to recognize “The Christ in You,” one is capable of all sorts of immoral behavior." When we get caught up in the ways of society we can often overlook the Image of God that people were created in and if we cannot see that then we unfortunately will be more prone to treat them wrongly. She goes on later to express that, "Christ came to be the brother of humanity, to give humanity true freedom: through His deeds each human being is capable of becoming a working member in the community of the Divine, participating eventually as a partner in the Divine plan of creation. This new relationship is not one ruled from above by cosmic law, but one that is shared through truth and grace." Here again we see the importance of seeking first Christ's Kingdom and becoming co-creators and co-heirs with Christ once we choose that Way of Love and are adopted as God's Children.

As a Protestant reader I was drawn to what Georgieff had to stay about Mary, the Mother of Jesus. I sometimes wonder if the Protestant Evangelical Church has done us a disservice by not talking about Mary or the Divine Femininity much.  I, for one, loved how the author compares Mary as a representation of The Church as the Bride of Christ. She does so by explaining that "The Song of Songs is an allegorical poem showing the deep love between the human soul and the Divine, the longing that the soul has for the Divine, along with the reciprocal desire that the Divine has for the human soul." This is a stance on Mary I have recently been contemplating that she, as the Theotokos, the Human Mother of God, is a representation of Church, humanity, ought to be. Her actions are ones that humanity should have as well. She literally carried Christ within Her and brought Him into the World and we are called to carry Christ within us and share His Good News to all in the World.

There is so much truth, beauty, and healing found within this book. We are reminded of ourselves, of humanity, by studying the Black Madonnas. The Black Madonnas connect us to humanity and remind us of the work we are called to do because they "have suffered, endured great harm, and yet they persist. They are a model for all the downtrodden, the lonely and abandoned. The Black Madonnas offer hope of survival and healing to those who mourn from the pain of racism. The Dark Virgins also offer healing image of the Divine to the racist person, that God can be presented with different face, and that different face is Holy." The Black Madonnas are often shown as having big hands that are pointing downward as if they are saying, "get to work and do something. Plant the seeds of the future." The Black Madonnas are wonderful works of art that are not meant to be worshiped, but I believe are meant to remind us of our callings as followers of the Way of Jesus the Christ. It is to remind us to spread the seeds of His love in the world, work towards reconciliation and the healing of nations which will come in its fullness on the day of Christ's return.

As the book itself ends, I would like to ask, "Who is the Black Madonna? We, humans, are the Black Madonna." How can we get to work and do something about what's wrong in the world today?

Searching for Sunday

As someone who has grown up in the evangelical tradition, had an awesome upbringing, and since I have been in college has found a love for liturgy and the mainline traditions I have found that Rachel Held Evan's new book Searching for Sunday: Loving, Leaving, and Finding the Church was an incredible and refreshing read. This was an incredible read that was beautifully written and probably Rachel Held Evan's best book so far! I was not able to put the book down and found myself reading it every where I went. I loved how she so authentically shared her journey of leaving and then finding a church where she can belong and feel loved simply for showing up. Sometimes it can be so easy to get caught up in how the worship is or what kind of music they play, but at the end of the day it is completely about the people there. It is about the community and how loving they are. This past Sunday I visited a church in town and I was overwhelmed (in a good way) about how friendly and welcoming they seemed to be. I could tell that the church knew that my fiance and I were visitors and they wanted us to feel welcomed and as if this was a place we could return to and belong at. From the very beginning people told us that we should come, get involved, become members, and find our niche in ministry. We could tell that this was not a place of just coming to church on Sunday, but that it was a place we could belong to. We could tell all of this just from the people we met that day. It felt like such a blessing I almost cried--which granted is not a big deal for me, but still.

 The book did an excellent job at showing that she still loves evangelicalism and would never completely give it up. I felt this book emphasized the importance of denominations, the sacraments, and unity without uniformity. Searching for Sunday helps one gain a better appreciation for the sacraments of: baptism, confession, holy orders, communion, confirmation, anointing of the sick, and marriage. There were chapters I cried in, laughed at, and underlined in at least 10 times in. Most of the margins have notes and scribbles affirming what was read in the book. This may be the best book I have read in awhile and it is a great one for anyone questioning how they view the Church or even how the church should be. There are examples of so many types of churches. This is a call to not leave the church--or even to leave a particular denomination, but to find the beauty in the Church universal. To realize that the Church is messy, confusing, and ongoing, but it is the Bride of Christ. As Rachel so eloquently writes, "All we have is this church--this lousy, screwed-up, glorious church--which, by God's grace, is enough."

Interested yet? Searching for Sunday comes out on April 14th, tomorrow, so order it now at www.searchingforsunday.com 

Communion.

Christ's blood shed for you.

This is what I found myself saying to hundreds of college students as they walked down the aisle, took the small piece of bread, and dipped it into the grape juice filled chalice in my hands. I said it a hundred or so times and yet each time the words rang in my ears. This small act had so much significance to it. I saw some dip their bread and then rush back to their seats as soon as possible, some slowly take their time taking everything in, some looking me in the eyes and thanking me--as if the act of holding this cup and saying these words was something I was giving to them. It was an incredibly humbling process to help serve communion at my school's Cooperation in Grace Chapel Service. It reminded me of my love for the sacrament of communion.

Growing up I went to your typical Evangelical church where we took communion once a quarter and all the kids got excited because they got to get out of junior church early to try new bread and dip it into grape juice (like all good Nazarenes, we did not use wine)--at least I knew I got excited. I had no idea that there were whole traditions that took this sacrament on a weekly basis until I got to college. Since then I have attended and observed many different types of churches--Mainline, Evangelical, Liturgical, and Contemporary. I have attended large church services where they spent loads of money to have rain fall on the Worship team as they played in the spot lights, and I have been to small churches where the most expensive thing they had was a PowerPoint Projector and slides. I have been to churches that practice communion monthly, quarterly, and weekly. It was honestly not until I began attending the church I regularly attend now that I began to really appreciate The Eucharist for what it is.

When I was beginning my Sophomore year of college I knew that I had to decide what church I would be attending, because I had a scholarship that required I work for a church. Having been disappointed and disconnected with the church I attended all of my Freshmen year I was in need of finding a "good fit" for myself. Following the advise of a good friend I decided to email a small, local, Nazarene church that met in a storefront and called themselves Shepherd's House. It seemed pretty non-threatening and I had heard only good things about it. My first Sunday visiting I immediately noticed that they had more of a liturgical feel to them than a typical Evangelical church. It was evident that the worship was more than just music; the congregation participated through having people throughout the crowd reading the Scripture readings, they used the lectionary, they all recited the Apostle's Creed and Lord's Prayer together, and took communion. I was very impressed and then to top it all off, everyone was incredibly friendly and invited me to stay for a meal afterwards. We ended with communion for more communion. I would later find out that was their way of welcoming back the college students, but that every Sunday evening they had home groups and would eat dinner together before discussing the morning's sermon. This is what kept me there. It was not phenomenal preaching, it was not the free coffee I could get before church started, and it was not even the amazing worship music. It was the loving community, the fact that it was intergenerational, and it was the act of taking communion every week.

I have learned throughout my life that there are very different understandings and interpretations for the Eucharist and I have found that I tend to fall under the belief that it is something we should do whenever we remember. When we remember the good news of the Resurrection, when we are thankful to God, and when we re-member back together as a group. This act of remembering has become a vital part of worship and whether or not I can explain how, I believe Jesus is present especially in the taking of communion and it is an amazing place for all who come to the Table to receive grace. This sacrament that so many people just view as a "part of worship we sometimes do" is a beautiful, constant reminder of the eschaton, of the time when Christ will return and make all things new inviting all to a feast where no one is hungry and everyone are companions. In her upcoming book Searching for Sunday, Rachel Held Evans puts it perfectly when says, "The church is God saying: 'I'm throwing a banquet, and all these mismatched, messed-up people are invited. Here, have some wine" (Held, pg. 153). No matter what our background is, we are all invited to the Table and should all celebrate it as often as we meet. We are all invited to cooperate with grace, to accept this grace that is given to us and then go and show it to others; but first we must accept it.

Which brings me back to the Cooperation in Grace service I was a part of. This particular chapel service consisted of worship through music, confessions, anointing, Scripture reading, hand washing (in replace of foot washing), and finally communion. It was an incredible service and a reminder of how much we need God's grace. It did, however, make me wonder how great this would be if we regularly practiced receiving and giving grace. If instead of having one chapel service where we do multiple forms of cooperating with grace, what if we always cooperated with grace each time we gathered together. I wonder how much more fulfilling and grace-filled our lives would be if we made it a normal act to have communion through meals together with those we know, don't know, and even those we don't agree with. What would it look like to practice thanksgiving and grace in our lives today?