TLDR: Bezalel and Oholiab. Incredible creatives who were filled with the Spirit of God and carried out God’s plan. God invites us to join in the work of creating, learning, designing, constructing, managing and teaching.
My cousin Jill sent me a post from Instagram. The author said,
(I also want to throw this out to remember that ‘the principle of first mention’ can be helpful but we also need to keep all ideas, words, and doctrine of the Bible in context. ‘First mentions’ may be beneficial in the study of the Bible. The ‘law or principle of first mention’ is not a rigid standard, but a helpful guideline when used along with other rules of solid hermeneutics.) The author, Ian Simkins, then goes on to write,
Who??? That’s right! Two men were filled with the Spirit of God and carried out God’s plan for the tabernacle, God’s dwelling place on earth. My cousin reminded me that I wrote a paper about this in seminary and shared in with her years ago. I love this story! Exodus 35 says Bezalel was filled with the Spirit of God with wisdom... to make artistic designs, cut stones, and engrave wood for the tabernacle.
“Then Moses said to the people of Israel, “See, the LORD has called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah; and he has filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, with intelligence, with knowledge, and with all craftsmanship, to devise artistic designs, to work in gold and silver and bronze, in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, for work in every skilled craft. And he has inspired him to teach, both him and Oholiab the son of Ahisamach of the tribe of Dan. He has filled them with skill to do every sort of work done by an engraver or by a designer or by an embroiderer in blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen, or by a weaver—by any sort of workman or skilled designer.” Exodus 35:30-35 ESV
God cares tremendously about the creative process. I think that’s incredible. From the very beginning of this Exodus story, God invites us to join in the work of learning, creating, dreaming designing, constructing, managing and teaching.
Every person who ‘is, was and is to come’ is created in the image of God. Each human is full of dignity (remember our Baptismal Covenant where we agree with God’s help to respect the dignity of every human being? I love that part!). Each and every one of us are made with our God given abilities meant to point people back to Godself.
In N. T. Wright’s article, Wouldn’t You Love to Know? Towards a Christian View of Reality, Wright says,
“It (a knowing rooted in the love of God) works because humans are made to reflect the wise, loving creator into his world. Our knowledge and speech are designed vocationally to do two things which reinforce one another: to worship him by telling the story of creation and covenant, of new creation and new covenant, and then to bring his wonderful purposes to fruition in the world. That is what it means to be made in God’s image; we are angled mirrors, designed to reflect creation’s praises to the creator and the creator’s wisdom into his creation.”
I love this phrase: “angled mirrors.” Why? Because we are constantly reflecting God’s love for the world to see through us. Bezalel and Oholiab reflected God through the work they were called to create. And we continue giving our world an incredible view of God and God’s astonishing goodness through our creative endeavors. You were created by the Creator to create! Really, each of us make creative decisions every day.
Today, I want to share with you, dear St. Dunstan family, one of my favorite creatives. He is the American painter, Maxfield Parish. I love his imaginative creation, The Lantern Bearers. I loved this painting the minute I saw it years ago during art school. The whimsical nature of this piece makes my heart smile. A few years after graduation, Bill and I were visiting Bentonville, AR. We made a stop at the Crystal Bridges Museum to see their amazing collection of American art.I highly encourage all of you to go! As I was meandering through the museum, I walked from one exhibit to the next then an explosion of pure joy overwhelmed me. I came face to face with this lovely little painting.
Parrish credits his father for his inspiration. They traveled together visiting museums throughout Europe when he was only ten years old. You never know how a child will be influenced if you ever have the privilege to take a little one to an art exhibit. I just know those little Hebrew children were enamored with the creativity the Spirit of God unleashed using Bezalel and Oholiab.
Maxfield Parrish’s “The Lantern Bearers” continues to enthrall its admirers with magic and beauty. It has a timeless appeal. Parrish’s use of light, his choice of colors and the enchanting composition help delight viewers as they enter his mesmerizing world, full of wonder, imagination and discovery (three of my favorite words!). Instead of harlequins, I think of them more as tour guides on my life’s journey. Maybe they could be the guides of the three transcendentals: truth, goodness and beauty. A transcendental refers to something that exists beyond the time-space-matter world. They are showing the marvel of God’s world illuminated in the glow of man’s creativity and God’s handiwork... together. Which one is the moon or is that globe another lantern?
That is the joy of getting to interpret artwork- you are the one to give it meaning... then share your thoughts with others.
One reason why this piece is timeless is the painting speaks to Parrish’s ability to capture our imagination and awaken our sense of wonder. We all need wonder to be waken and evoked! I have experienced a sense of wonder here at St. Dunstan’s. It has been a blessing to witness the creativity of our Lord through listening and seeing God’s people. What about you? Where do you find yourself being creative? Where do you see wonder through using your imagination by discovering God’s gifts?
The Lantern Bearers, 1908, Maxfield Parrish (1870-1966),Oil on canvas mounted on board
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas
https://ntwrightpage.com/2016/09/05/wouldnt-you-love-to-know-towards-a-christian-view-of-reality/
