Faces
The examining officer [in the prison in 1950’s communist Romania] was in a good mood today. You could sense it from the very beginning. There would be no beating. He just wanted to amuse himself with some pleasant conversation.
He asked me, "Do you believe that God created man in His own image?" I answered, "I certainly do." "Do you believe that you are in the image of God?" "Of course."
Then he took a mirror out of his pocket and handed it to me. "Look into the glass. See how ugly you are. You have dark circles under your eyes. You are all skin and bones. Your whole appearance is haggard, like a madman. If you are in the image of God, God must be as ugly as you are. Why should you worship Him?"
I had already seen myself in a mirror once since I had been in jail, and I knew that I was terribly ugly, I who had been considered a handsome man. I had been horrified to see myself in such shape. Now, my ugliness was being made into a theological problem.
Happily, Christians do not have to think beforehand what to answer. The words are given to them.
I said, "Yes, my God has an ugly face like me. In Hebrew there is no such word as 'face'. You can only say 'faces' -- panim. The word has no singular. There is a deep meaning in this, because no man has one face. He shows one countenance when he speaks to a superior, another when he bullies an inferior, one when he is grieved, another when he hears good news. Our God also has many faces. One is a face of complete serenity, the serenity of a Being Who has foreordained everything and can see from the beginning the happy end of the tortuous road. He has a face radiant with joy, sharing the pleasure of all who rejoice, even that of a little girl who has been given a new doll. But He has also another image, one of even worse suffering and ugliness than mine. We saw this face on Golgotha. His hair was disordered, His brow was disfigured by wounds. Spittle and blood mingled on His face. He had dark circles under his eyes. 'He had no form or comeliness' (Isaiah 53:2). This, too, is one of the faces of the Godhead. Christ is not ashamed to call me His brother."
I hope the communist officer understood at least something of what I told him.
[RW, IPWCS, 2000]
He asked me, "Do you believe that God created man in His own image?" I answered, "I certainly do." "Do you believe that you are in the image of God?" "Of course."
Then he took a mirror out of his pocket and handed it to me. "Look into the glass. See how ugly you are. You have dark circles under your eyes. You are all skin and bones. Your whole appearance is haggard, like a madman. If you are in the image of God, God must be as ugly as you are. Why should you worship Him?"
I had already seen myself in a mirror once since I had been in jail, and I knew that I was terribly ugly, I who had been considered a handsome man. I had been horrified to see myself in such shape. Now, my ugliness was being made into a theological problem.
Happily, Christians do not have to think beforehand what to answer. The words are given to them.
I said, "Yes, my God has an ugly face like me. In Hebrew there is no such word as 'face'. You can only say 'faces' -- panim. The word has no singular. There is a deep meaning in this, because no man has one face. He shows one countenance when he speaks to a superior, another when he bullies an inferior, one when he is grieved, another when he hears good news. Our God also has many faces. One is a face of complete serenity, the serenity of a Being Who has foreordained everything and can see from the beginning the happy end of the tortuous road. He has a face radiant with joy, sharing the pleasure of all who rejoice, even that of a little girl who has been given a new doll. But He has also another image, one of even worse suffering and ugliness than mine. We saw this face on Golgotha. His hair was disordered, His brow was disfigured by wounds. Spittle and blood mingled on His face. He had dark circles under his eyes. 'He had no form or comeliness' (Isaiah 53:2). This, too, is one of the faces of the Godhead. Christ is not ashamed to call me His brother."
I hope the communist officer understood at least something of what I told him.
[RW, IPWCS, 2000]
posted by CS at 10:48 AM
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