The Phos Hilaron prayer manifests itself in art.  When two thousand years ago family members dared to “draw God” in the catacombs, they defied a principal commandment and were moved to render beauty’s relationship with the divine.  To honor their departed loved ones, these early faithful had to paint, and they drew forms that burned within, their passion undeniable.

God is present in great art, drawing upon the existential fire which compels our most talented souls to create.  Their subject matter might be considered profane by some, yet the expressive spark honors God within, pointing these artists toward transcendence.  Consider this thread – one might call it an arc – stretching from initial impulses thousands of years ago to render the divine, connecting us to the masterpieces of the early twentieth century, the modernity of Matisse, Picasso, Modigliani, Mario Sironi and their contemporaries.  The genius of their line work hearkens to those magnificently pure illustrations adorning catacomb walls along Rome’s Appian Way.

We live in a frenetic time, bombarded by stimuli.  The simple, ancient prayer of Phos Hilaron is ultimately about the light.  We must see the light through the cobwebs of tradition and our own preconceived notions.

Bathe in the light.  Surrender to the profound message of hope for ongoing creation.  Allow the aspects of phos (light) and hilaron (gladness) to overtake you.

I caught the end of the movie “Sideways” the other night.  I guess most people recall the humor of it and all that talk about wine.  I liked the protagonist Miles’ obsession with Chateau Cheval Blanc, a bottle of which he was saving for the perfect occasion.  Morose upon receiving the sudden news of his ex-wife’s pregnancy by way of her new husband, that occasion became a burger & onion rings in a fast food joint.  Yet even in that forlorn circumstance, Miles’ beloved vintage 1961 Cheval Blanc was savored to every last drop in its perfection.

Plato saw this devotion to the Ultimate, the One as “heavenly eros,” humanity’s highest expression of perfection.  There is something to be admired in our exercise of stretching to the Ultimate.  Beauty is in many ways what we have to offer the Godhead.

There was a famous restaurant critic in New Orleans during the sixties, seventies and eighties – Richard Colin.  He & his wife Rima decorated the New Orleans firmament of food with elegant words of discriminating praise.  Richard called the finest entrées lovingly prepared in New Orleans best restaurant kitchens as examples of a “platonic dish.”  Chefs poured everything they had into their foods in order to earn such a designation from Richard & Rima Colin.

Perhaps God rejoices in our devotion to earthly delights.

In all creation, the most perfect symbol of God is light – Abbot Suger

Welcome to where faith and art meet.  GladdeningLight takes its inspiration from the lighting of candles to begin Vespers in the tradition of the eastern church.  It signifies a meeting point of night and day – an entry of light into darkness – providing us the illumination of a canticle blessing along the way.

“Oh, Joyful Light, of the Holy Glory of God Immortal.  Heavenly, Holy, Blessed, Jesus Christ, since we have come to the setting of the sun and have seen the evening light, we praise God: the overarching One, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  By fitting melody, it is proper for God to be praised at all times.  Oh, Son of God, Giver of Life, wherefore the world glorifies You.”

As God is found at the delicate point of light’s entry into night, so also is God at the convergence of the sacred and the secular.  God cannot be contained within liturgy, within four holy walls – indeed, contained at all.  God is experienced within and without.  The seed arises from the indwelling, where the burning lamp of God engages our creativity to express divine love.  The artist cannot deny it and when it emerges as pure impetus, often breathtaking art is born.

Let us celebrate humanity’s aspirations to render God.  Let us glimpse God at the nexus of great art.  Let us move toward Phos Hilaron – the gracious, O Gladdening Light.

GladdeningLight is a 501(c)(3) publicly supported charity whose mission is to explore the nexus of faith & art through spiritual retreat, hosted conferences and religious pilgrimage.  GladdeningLight is a progressive Christian initiative open to all faith disciplines, representative of thoughtful spiritual seekers both inside and outside traditional religious practice.