to behold the beauty of the lord

7/28/2019 To Behold the Beauty of the Lord

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To Behold the Beauty of the Lord

By using the elements of this world, Art reveals to us a depth which is logically inexpressible

It is in fact impossible to tell poetry, to decompose a symphony, or to tear apart a

painting. The beautiful is present in the harmony of all its elements and brings us face to face

with a truth that cannot be demonstrated or proved, except by contemplating it. - Pau

Evdokimov

A while back, I suggested that the experience of Beauty was far more fertile ground foconversation (and conversion) than the various reasonings of what passes for theology. Thi

is both true because the experience of Beauty, even for the non-believer, is less laden wit

warnings, hesitations and arguments than the traditional language of belief, as well as the fac

that there is the possiblity for some level of mutuality of experience between believer and non

believer.

The immediate doubts and questions that some would raise: What do you mean by Beauty,

etc, is actually an abandonment of the conversation and a return to philosophy and argument

Rather than argue about the meaning of Beauty, we can simply ask, Describe an experience

you have had of something beautiful. More to the point, Describe an experience you hav

had of somethingprofoundlybeautiful.

It is a fertile ground for conversation (from an Orthodox perspective) because of the nature o

Beauty itself. Orthodoxy holds that Beauty is a revelation and reflection of God. Within som

of the Fathers, there is a Trinity of ideals: Goodness, Truth and Beauty. I have rea

treatments that use this to reflect on the Persons of the Trinity, but I will not pursue that here

Rather, I will offer this brief summary:

God alone is good and goodness only find its meaning within God. Truth is the Goo

presented for our understanding. Beauty is what Truth looks like.

In our modern culture, discussions of the good have become deeply fragmented an

politicized making them difficult if not impossible. Truth is at least as strained. Beauty

however challenged and relativized, still offers possibilities for conversation: if not for the
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discussion of a particular object of Beauty, then at least for our common capacity to perceiv

Beauty. The conversation becomes even more fruitful if we eliminate more moderat

experiences and concentrate on those that are profound. These are relatively few, but not s

uncommon as to make conversation impossible.

The experience of the profoundly beautiful elicits from us a response that is not far remove

from worship. Rudolf Ottos classic, The Idea of the Holy, speaks about the experience of th

numinous, the mysterium tremendum. His descriptions and categories could also be applie

to certain experiences of Beauty.

I first heard Rachmaninovs Vespers when I was in college (the early 70s). It was not nearl

as well-known or ubiquitous as it is today. My wife and I were working in our apartment whe

the Vespers came on the radio. We stopped what we were doing and sat transfixed for the

whole of the performance. I was no stranger to Church music, including the finest of the West

but I had heard nothing like Rachmaninovs Vespers. I waited carefully for the end of th

recording to hear the announcers description. I went out the next day to find the album (th

old Melodiya recording by the National Chorus of the USSR still the best performance

have heard).

Hearing the Vespers was an experience of profound beauty. I had tears. It awoke a hunger i

me that, to some degree, has to be credited with my conversion to Orthodoxy decades late

Nowhere else have I ever encountered such beauty in sound, in sight, or words. As S

Vladimirs envoys said of their experience of Orthodox worship in Constantinople, We did noknow whether we were in heaven or on earth. But we know of a truth, that there, God dwell

among men.

The continuity between sound, word and image is a hallmark of Orthodox Christianity. The

historical doctrines of the Church are generally stated in succinct aphorisms rather than i

lengthy works of qualifications and nuance. Poetry often carries theology in a manner superio

to prose.

Beauty has become detached from modern culture in general. It has not been abolished from

our lives, but has often been isolated. Its isolation reveals that we do not live our lives well

But the experience remains. The experience does not call forth words so much as silence.

has the power to draw us outside of ourselves. Beauty can create within us a deep sense o

peace and wholeness as we participate in it, or, conversely, create a great sense of our ow

emptiness. But it does not leave us unchanged.

The witness that in Beauty we encounter God or something deeply united to Him, is an article


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of faith. It is not a point of argument for the argument quickly distances us from the Beaut

itself. Rather, the witness points to Who God Is when Orthodoxy speaks of God. At Pascha

the prologue of the Gospel of St. John is read and we hear the witness:

And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as o

the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth (1:14).

It is similar to the witness of the Temple Guards:

Then the officers came to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them, Why have yo

not brought Him? The officers answered, No man ever spoke like this Man! (Jn. 7:45-46).

In part, the recognition of Christs divinity was found within the experience of His beaut

(words, glory, goodness, etc.).

It is this union of the Christ of history and the experience of Beauty that draws from the mout

of believers, My Lord and my God! Believers bear witness that in Christ, they hav

encountered the very content of Beauty itself. As such, the very fact of His existence bear

witness to the existence of God and the Goodness of God. If Christ exists, then God exists

And if Christ is God, then God is Good and Beautiful in all things.

But in our conversations, we need not be anxious and press others into the fullness of ou

own conclusions. In our day and time, it is often enough simply to stop and recognize Beaut

and the union we have with one another in that mutual recognition. There is so much histor

of a tragic nature that shapes the heart of atheism. As I have noted elsewhere, th

agnosticism and unbelief of many is entirely understandable and should not be judged. The

ugliness that mars the lives of Christians makes the mutual acknowledgement of Beaut

difficult for many. We do well to bear witness to the Light and offer fewer arguments. In th

mutual experience of the Light we may find a human vocabulary in which Christ can be

known.

The poetry of the Book of Job offers this observation of Beauty (in contrast to its many, many

words):

Then Job answered the Lord and said: I know that You can do everything, And that n

purpose of Yours can be withheld from You. You asked, Who is this who hides counse

without knowledge? Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, Things too wonderfu

for me, which I did not know. Listen, please, and let me speak; You said, I will question you

and you shall answer Me. I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, But now my eye

sees You. Therefore I abhormyself, And repent in dust and ashes.


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to behold the beauty of the lord

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