One of my favorite authors I studied in graduate school was Samuel Taylor Coleridge, the Anglican romantic author and poet. Coleridge loved symbols, and believed that symbols were the medium through which we encountered invisible realities. This is something the iconoclasts haven’t understood: in order to partake of invisible realities (such as love, etc), we must use some sort of symbol from the created order. Catholics and Orthodox have understood this, and made it a part of our theology.
A few days ago, to begin our semester on sacraments, I discussed symbols with the seventh graders. I think it is important to discuss symbol because it sets the stage for why Catholics believe that God uses earthly “stuff” to convey grace (for example the water of baptism). God doesn’t just magically and “spiritually” effect our regeneration, he uses a meaning-rich symbol from the created order in the process: water. One of the exercises I had for the class was to look at a relatively boring photo of my wife, sister-in-law, mom, nieces, and grandmother, standing on a road in a cemetery. I asked them to tell me all the symbols they see, and to tell me what invisible reality they symbolize. At first, the students didn’t come up with much. However, as they got started, they came up with ones that I didn’t even notice (for example, there were American flags on a few graves). After awhile, they began to realize that the world is full of symbols that we use to convey deep and invisible realities. I also helped them see that any great artist is going to appreciate and utilize the power of symbol.
And yet, as I was worshiping yesterday at a Catholic parish in the Cleveland area, I was noticing how purposefully empty the worship space was of symbols. The walls were white, and the crucifix was tiny and barely there. There was one banner that looked like it was out of the 1970s, that had a symbol that was intentionally made to look obscure (was it a candle flame? a sun? a child’s first finger painting creation?). In other words, if there was a symbol, it was designed to be unconnected to our experience. I remember thinking that in our natural world we are surrounded by symbols that point us to God, yet many of our modern churches purposely take these symbols away from us, perhaps seeing them either as distracting or out-of-date.
But are symbols out of date? The natural human craving for symbols hasn’t gone away, which is why even those traditionally cool to symbols, evangelicals, are discovering their value. My reading on brain waves suggests that non-verbal symbols stimulate alpha waves in the brain, which serve as a bridge to theta waves. When measuring the waves of individuals in deep meditation and spiritual experiences, theta waves are dominant. Whether you accept the science of brain waves and spirituality, nonetheless, the evidence suggests that words appeal to only one aspect of our brain’s capabilities, while visual, kinesthetic, olfactory, and auditory symbols touch us at a different level. In other words, I would argue that this is where the Gnostics erred: trying to escape the physical world misses the point. The incarnation demonstrates to us that God uses the physical world to give us grace (although obviously we must always remember the physical world is the vehicle, full of symbols, not God himself).
I truly believe that whitewashed churches devoid of sights, sounds, and smells leave us wanting more. Great movies, classic books, and even nature itself, are full of symbols, yet we have seen a period when Catholic churches have tried to strip away all their symbols. I believe that more symbols, saint statues, incense, stain glass, mosaics, etc, all help us connect to God, and correct the “symbol deficiency” many of us have sadly had to endure attending modern parishes.
David Bennett
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This past Sunday I worshipped in the Greek Orthodox church in Modesto, California. The walls were covered in icons painted directly onto the walls in vibrant color. Crosses were everywhere, as were lit tapers and votive lights. The priest, as all Orthodox clergy, was vested in richly symbolic garments. The chant was Byzantine, gloriously chanted, while the church filled with incense. A far, far different experience from many Catholic churches and Liturgies. I wept at the beauty.
And as the Church is losing a lot of its symbolism, we are being bombarded with symbols from so many other different sources. Try and think of a big corporation that does not have an easily identifiable logo. And children as young as three may not know how to spell or read MacDonalds, but they know the symbol for it very well.
Amen.
We learn that God uses the world
and the cosmos as His instrument
though it might seem He is a
bratty child strangling a cat
sometimes.
If we recognize symbology as a
gateway into His mystery through
Christ then we do learn to purify
the sensory information streams
that are surrounding us and moving
through us.
Pete.
I’ll wager the Mass you attended in Cleveland featured a homily of the type commonly referred to as a “sweet nothing”. Something that sounded good at the time, but which was immediately forgotten. A bland homily to go with a bland church, in other words.
People don’t know their faith because no one has ever told them about it, and because the place where they worship has no visual cues as to what they believe. It’s sad.
The Church I attend is pretty stark, with a circular design, felt banners on the wall and hardly a statue in sight, not to mention incense is only used on days like Christmas and Easter. As for the homilies, there is nothing of substance in them at all. When I compare the homilies I hear on audiosancto.com with the bland mush from my Church it’s shocking. No wonder many people don’t have the Faith anymore.
I think if there is a common thread to the comments (and my original post) it is that people want substance. Usually the argument is that bland homilies and whitewashed walls are inoffensive, and therefore will help grow a church. However, people are not on a search for blandness; they are on a search for meaning. We are not doing Christ or people a favor by offering them the blandest version of the faith possible. And, as Liz mentioned, society is bombarding people with symbols (many of them vacuous), and yet we often offer them nothing of substance in response.
[...] … Now as I was in the very midst of writing this entry, I stumbled upon what I thought to be an unusually perceptive entry in the blogosphere here and I hope the author David Bennett will not mind my quoting him a [...]
Thanks so much, David, for this excellent post. Alpha waves lead to theta waves? Didn’t know that. sweet.
Fr. J
Thanks for your kind words! I hope things are well for you in your new(ish) location.
From my readings, people who study brain waves say that alpha waves act as a bridge to the theta waves.