Newsletter March 5, 2008
From the Associate Pastor . . .
Yesterday I received an email entitled “pun art.” Included in the email were various famous paintings by the world’s most renowned artists with this humorous story as an addendum: A thief in Paris planned to steal some paintings from the Louvre. After careful planning, he got past security, stole the paintings and made it safely to his van. However, he was captured only two blocks away when his van ran out of gas. When asked how he could mastermind such a crime and then make such an obvious error, he replied, “Monsieur, that is the reason I stole the paintings. I had no Monet to buy Degas to make the Van Gogh!”
Well, I thought it was cute. And it reminded me of real life and the recent rash of robberies in Europe of famous art valued in the hundreds of millions. Someone estimated that if it were possible to put together a museum that would house the world’s stolen art just from the past couple of decades, it would be the greatest collection of all time.
Many articles have been written about art theft and museum security. Questions have been raised about the apparent ease with which museums in general seem to make smash-and-grab jobs possible.
Treasures, outside the comforts of vaults or a safety deposit box, exist perilously before a world of thieves and potential disasters. But this is what museums do; they exist to show the treasures of Monet and Degas and Van Gogh to as many people as possible. To hide the most valuable paintings of the world behind protected vaults would itself be a different kind of theft.
Jesus once noted, "No one lights a lamp and puts it in a place where it will be hidden, or under a bowl. Instead he puts it on its stand, so that those who come in may see the light" (Luke 11:33).
When a wiggly group of grinning kids sings proudly of their "little light" and their determination to "let it shine," my response lies somewhere between being captivated and feeling cynical. Of course, they don't fully understand what they are saying. The fog of life's questions and uncertainties, the daggers often aimed at Christian beliefs and believers, are realities that have not yet threatened the shining of their lights. And yet, the boldness with which they announce, "Hide it under a bushel; No!" is as convicting as it is hopeful.
In the mouth of a child, we hear the simple logic of which Jesus spoke. Like great works that hang in museums despite the dangers, light shines because it must.
There may be times when we feel a longing to retreat to safety--times when questions feel threatening or the fog of a fallen world is overwhelming. Times when the “treasure” of our faith is questioned or under attack. When temptation, corruption, and thieves seem to loom, we want the bowl and not the lamp stand.
But the thought of the theoretical museum of stolen paintings reminds us of the great chasm that exists between those who hide treasure and those who display it. In the hands of a thief, a painting is simply calculated in dollars. But for the true lovers of art, the longing is for art to be seen. As lovers of the Gospel, let us display the light of the knowledge of Christ as a treasure we long for all to see.
Pastor Mullinax