by Michael Winters
I’ve often wondered if there is such a thing as “Christian vision.” In other words, is there a way of seeing— a way of connecting subject, eyesight, and mind—that is uniquely Christian?
Among the first words spoken by Jesus in the gospel of John are, “Come and see.” Come and see. So much of the life of an artist, or anyone else for that matter, is directed by what we lay our eyes on. A few weeks ago, Pastor Josh Rothschild preached a sermon titled “You Become What You Behold,” in which he encouraged us to behold Jesus. I was curious: Along with beholding Jesus, can we also learn to behold like Jesus?
If there is such a thing as “Christian vision,” it could only be so in its likeness to Jesus’ own way of seeing. I recently read an interesting book that makes Jesus’ sight its subject. It’s called What Would Jesus See?: Ways of Looking at a Disorienting World by Aaron Rosen.
Rosen makes thoughtful observations regarding sight in the gospels. For example, in discussing Jesus’ declaration that “the eye is the lamp of the body,” Rosen writes, “By declaring the eye a ‘lamp,’ burning and emanating, he invites us to think about it engaging the world not as a passive recipient or even processor of information but as a dynamic force that engages the entire body and soul.”
Humans are not machines. Our sight isn’t like a camera that simply records the information into a box. Our sight is connected to the rest of our bodies and our actions. Like Rosen acknowledges, there’s a dynamism at work that Jesus knew and put to use.
While Rosen himself is not a Christian, but a practicing Jew, it’s clear he has great respect for Jesus: “Few people in the history of the world have understood as clearly and intuitively as Jesus that the way we look at people is intimately entwined with how we treat them.”
After discussing eyesight in the gospels, Rosen goes on to speculate about how Jesus-like seeing might function in our time and place. In drawing to a conclusion, he writes:
“This Jesus, more eagle-eyed, unpredictable, and brilliant than I expected, was not someone I recognized initially, and he still continues to surprise me. Ultimately, the enduring capacity of Jesus to stun and befuddle is a revelation in its own right. As clear as he can be at times—especially regarding how we should regard others—it seems that the Jesus of the Gospels does not want to be, or will not allow himself to be, completely recognizable. With uncanny foresight, Jesus not only avoided the full comprehension of his peers, he took evasive maneuvers for the future, many of which remain effective to this day. Our inquiry into how Jesus would see the world today must remain subjunctive, speculative.”
While this is true, it doesn’t make the question, “What would Jesus see?” any less provocative. It’s a question that will stay with me.
This post originally existed as a newsletter sent to Arts Feedback Group participants. You can learn more about Arts Feedback here.