Reflections on faith and fear
In reading Scripture, the sea (water) is interpreted as the forces of life that we find ourselves in and are definitely not in control of. There is mystery, even death, in the unseen. A boat is interpreted as the church, which offers us a way of navigating our way in life. Today we look at two significant references to both: Jesus walking on water and Jesus calming the waters.
In reading Scripture, the sea (water) is interpreted as the forces of life that we find ourselves in and are definitely not in control of. There is mystery, even death, in the unseen. A boat is interpreted as the church, which offers us a way of navigating our way in life. Today we look at two significant references to both: Jesus walking on water and Jesus calming the waters.
Henry Ossawa Tanner painted his interpretation of Matthew 14:22-33 in 1908. In the reading, the boat is being tossed about by waves, but Tanner chose to show the boat becalmed. There are no oars or sails in use, and two men stand at the tiller. In fact, there is only the hint of a wake from the bow and the tiller, which shifts the focus to Jesus’ walking on water. He is the ill-defined figure at the top left of the painting and “When the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified. ‘It is a ghost,’ they said and cried out in fear.” (Mt 14:26)
With no visible horizon, we interpret the light reflected in the water as moonlight that illumines the scene during the fourth watch of the night. The men toward the bow seem to be looking down, the men at the tiller are looking away, but Peter is standing with his hand on the rigging looking down at the water. Is this just before he asks Jesus to command him to get out of the boat or is he about to do just that? By choosing this moment for his painting, Tanner lets us see the beginnings of Peter’s faith and belief in Christ. Knowing what you know, would you step out of the boat in deep waters?
The second painting is by a local contemporary artist, William Griffith. All three synoptic Gospels tell the story of Jesus calming a storm at sea. Here, Griffith displays a boat crowded with men and women whose faces show both fear and calm. Jesus sleeps in the center of the painting while in the darker background we see two men holding an oar that is out of the water, indicating their lack of control. The following wave curls ominously over the boat and will certainly drench the boat, if not capsize it. This is the moment before the boat takes on water. When they awaken Jesus, he will calm the sea and then question their faith. What would be your state of mind?
In these images, Jesus asserts his mastery over nature to make a point, but God may not regularly intervene in our lives like this. None of us escape suffering, but God’s presence in our suffering enables us to live, not without fear, but without succumbing to fear of death. When we look upon a crucifix, we see a man who has known great sorrow and suffering. In a real sense, the waters of baptism wash away our sin, we die to our old selves and rise to new life in Christ’s church.
Mark Landers is a parishioner of St. Austin Parish in Austin and a member of the Diocesan Fine Arts Council. He and his wife, Christina, own and operate Landers’ Studio, a woodworking shop and design studio. They design and construct custom furniture and high-quality architectural piecework.
