Ahem.......have you ever seen St. Mark the Evangelist and author of the Gospel of Mark depicted in this manner? He looks like the lion from the Wizard of Oz......with wings. This is another stained-glass window from my church. Honestly, before I started blogging and taking photos, these unusual symbols just never registered in my mind at all, even though I sat beneath them almost every Sunday. These window images are situated way above normal eye level on each side of the church sanctuary.......maybe that's why I never took notice of them........it couldn't be that I was just plain non-observant.......yeah, sure. Also, it can be noted, that in 30 years of attending church here, I've never once heard a pastor offer an explanation of the symbols on these windows.
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At any rate, I don't wish to give away the characters used to represent St. Luke and St. John, but they are also of winged, non-human creatures. Of course, if you are curious enough, you can easily use an internet search engine to find the answer to why these four disciples of Jesus are depicted as winged creatures. Its from an ancient tradition based on descriptive imagery from the first chapter of Ezekiel in the Old Testament.
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On that note, here's a bit of info about Ezekiel.......excerpted from the introduction to his book in my NIV Bible:
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"Ezekiel was obviously a man of broad knowledge, not only of his own national traditions but also of international affairs and history. His acquaintance with general matters of culture, from shipbuilding to literature, is equally amazing. He was gifted with a powerful intellect and was capable of grasping large issues and of dealing with them in grand and compelling images."
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On the traditional church calendar, I believe today is The Sixth Sunday after Pentecost. A feast day is this week, The Nativity of St. John the Baptist, on June 24.
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May peace and contentment define your day!
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6 comments:
Funny the things you notice when you begin to open your eyes in a different light. Glad you're enjoying your photography, Jeannelle!
Sometimes when I start to study some of the people from the bible, I am amazed at how compelling they are. I always think, "Of course God could use them!" Then I have to study some of the others, the not so greats, and remember that God used them, too.
Hi, countrygirl!
Thanks for stopping in. Yes, taking pictures is so much fun, but I take too many, now.
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Hi, caution!
Thanks for the good reminder.....and there is that verse about "God's strength is made perfect in weakness".....
Jeannelle, check out Revelation 4:6-7: Around the throne, and on each side of the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes in front and behind: the first living creature like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with a face like a human face, and the fourth living creature like a flying eagle.
I think that might be another source of your four gospel windows. Very cool.
Ruth,
Thank you for giving the Revelation reference! I had long ago forgotten about the mention of those four living creatures there.
When growing up, in the Baptist church and in my particular household.....thoughts of the "end times" and Revelation were given prominence. Constant speculations were going on, trying to connect biblical prophecies to current world events. After I grew up I realized what a negative effect that has on a person.....adding unnecessary anxiety to your life. Thankfully, the Lutherans give little attention to such matters......that's one thing I will commend them for.
Thanks again.....that's just very interesting.
I agree. I ended up hating all that end times stuff that we heard in our Baptist church.
I realized when I was a teenager that the Jewish scholars thought they knew how to recognize the Messiah, and they missed it. I figured we probably weren't going to have any more success predicting the end times, and I just stopped trying. As long as you try to live each day in a way that is pleasing to God, that's all that matters.
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