I See Men as Trees Walking

Today’s gospel reading, at first glance, is a curious little story. Jesus had performed many healings, including restoring the sight of blind people, so why did he take this man out of the village, put saliva on his eyes and lay hands on him twice? Presumably Jesus could have healed him instantly. As with many of Jesus miracles, the answer lies in its symbolic significance … More I See Men as Trees Walking

Trusting in Jesus

One way to get to grips with the stories from the gospels is to imagine ourselves in them.  With his painting “Storm on the sea of Galilee”, Rembrandt did just that. He was just twenty-seven when he painted this picture, his only seascape. It is difficult to imagine its impact as it is over five feet high, and more than four feet wide. Sadly, you cannot go to see it for yourselves. No one knows where it is – it was stolen from a museum in 1990. … More Trusting in Jesus

Do We Live in the World of M. C. Escher?

C. Escher is an artist whose drawings challenge the mind just by looking at them. I have one here of architectural impossibilities so you can see what I mean. One thing that stands out is the water which just keeps going round and round without ever getting higher or lower it seems on the same level. Stairs that go every which way but at the same time, go nowhere. Escher’s drawings always evoke a double-take. You look at them, and they seem okay, but then it begins to dawn on you that something is not right with the picture. Things are not as they seem. Our world appears like this, we think it is normal; but it is not normal; it is not right. It is not the way God intended. Everything is upside-down and backwards. … More Do We Live in the World of M. C. Escher?