Interesting little book. Have you ever seen it? I ran across a reference to it in one of the little sacred space devotionals I am reading. I was curious, so I looked it up. It seems that back in the 1950's, a Quaker woman named Sylvia Shaw Judson felt the need to communicate the sense of "divine ordinariness" - that sense of God in our everyday lives rather than in the spectacular and miraculous alone.
Ms. Judson selected artwork whose simplicity and daily applicability spoke to her, and included them in her book along with quotes by various individuals from George Fox to William Blake to Vincent VanGogh. It is a book one wishes to peruse at leisure, taking it up and pondering, putting it down, coming back often, savoring the impact.
I am not so sure I would have selected the particular artwork she selected, but it gives one pause to think - something we often take no time to do. Think, that is. Seek God in the mundane as captured by some of the great artists. Think how incredible is a bird in flight or a pair of comfortable shoes. Even though we see these things everyday.
Turns out there are more editions and they have been substantially changed. I will borrow the 2nd edition next and then the 3rd to see what has changed. But I will keep her soul idea for further consideration.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment