Holy Trinity Sunday

The Hands of God (Oil on Canvas) 2007, St. John Lutheran Church, Napoleon, OH

Lectionary Artwork of the Week

Genesis 1:1-2:4a
Psalm 8
Acts 2:14a, 22-36
Matthew 28:16-20

On Holy Trinity Sunday, we marvel at the work of the Triune God of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit that is attested in the creed to create, redeem, and sanctify us.

This painting was completed in 2007 for a class called "Teaching the Catechism with Luther" at Concordia Seminary. In the class, we were encouraged to come up aids and approaches to teaching Luther's Small Catechism. It was to be based upon our engagement with the original context of the catechism and Luther's aims in disseminating it among the pastors and laity. The catechism was created as a tool for the sake of teaching the faith and forming hearts and minds with the Word of God. It is a sort of snapshot of the key elements of the Christian faith as found in Scripture. The catechism has at times been referred to as an Enchiridion (Greek: Handbook). That is, it was made to be carried around in hand so that it could be referenced regularly. Around the time of the class, several things came leading me to think about how this "handbook" is made to point to the "Hand of God."

In the class, we learned that Luther emphasized God's activity through the division of the creed into the three articles. He speaks of how each article of the creed could be stated in one sentence. But he further distilled these sentences into titles of activity: Article One: Creator; Article Two: Redeemer; and Article Three: Sanctifier. I reflected on how each of these one-word titles was about the action of the Triune God. Action is something that hands naturally convey. Hands are the appendages with which we often associate the means of our livelihood and productivity. So it seemed natural to ask the question, "What are some visual ways to show God's activity for the world?" No metaphor or image for describing the Trinity is perfect. The same goes for this painting. Looking back on it, I may have executed things a little differently. The purpose of the painting, however, was to hone in on the activity of the Triune God to create, redeem, and sanctify. 

Here are the descriptions of the three paintings of my project:

1^st Article (God the Father): CREATOR

In this painting, the idea is to show that God’s hand in creation has made the world.  In an act of grace, God has bestowed to his people the world; all of creation.  In mere scale, it attempts to show his power and strength over creation.  By having the hand cupped around the world, this image is to evoke that God has not left his creation.  He is still present in sustaining and keeping it.

2^nd Article (God the Son): REDEEMER

In this painting, God’s hand is at work in the gracious gift of redemption for the world.  Christ’s hand has been pierced by the nail and he now shows his wound.  By having this portrayal of his hand, the resurrection is a present reality.  He now shows his victory over sin, death, and the devil for the world.  It is one in which he is still alive and present for the redeemed.  Christ shows his open hand to the world.

3^rd Article (God the Holy Spirit): SANCTIFIER

In this painting, God’s hand is at work in the gift of the Holy Spirit in Baptism, the primary means by which He calls, gathers, and enlightens.  This is the point in which the objective truths of the Creator and Redeemer become the subjective truth for the baptized believer who is sanctified.  God’s grace in Creation and Redemption is given by God’s provision in this act of water and the Word.  Now, the Christian is set aside and sanctified for a life that reflects on God’s provision.  The water streams down in three streams signifying the Trinitarian aspect of Baptism in which the baptized is brought up into the narrative of God’s hand at work in creation, redemption, and sanctification.