Thanksgiving and "Grace" by Enstrom
Have you seen this photograph?
You have likely seen it hanging in a church or someone’s home but with color. I think the first time I saw it was when my friend John picked up a copy from a thrift store. It is one of those pieces of art that is in countless homes and churches. It is one of the quintessential examples of popular Christian art. I’m willing to bet that if you were to search around any church that’s been around for 100 years, you would find a copy somewhere, kind of like Warner Sallman’s painting of Jesus.
When I continued grad school after seminary and was reading many books on art and theology, as well as art critics and scholars, I started to hone my taste in art a little more; which is great, by the way. But one of the things that can happen with a more refined art appreciation is a disdain for what critics label as “popular” art. This photograph could very well be classified by such critics as just one of those uninteresting common pieces of artwork that they would label “kitsch.” That is, it is just meant to strike up some emotion but not make you think. Certainly, it is problematic when kitsch art over-sentimentalizes the Christian faith, making it into something that is only about escape from the world.
But I don’t believe that this photo should be scoffed at it. Nor would I label it clearly as “kitsch.” Even if it is, there is a reason this photograph has entered the homes of so many people. There is a reason why so many people have found this photograph so moving that they want to see it every day on their walls. That is interesting in itself. I would not classify this photo as an escape from the problems that we face. This photo portrays a man who knows the hardships of life and yet turns to the Lord in prayer and thanks. I think that this photo has something for us for this Thanksgiving.
The photo is called “Grace” by Eric Enstrom, taken in 1918 or 1920. As the story goes, Charles Wilden, a door-to-door foot-scraper salesman, came to Enstrom’s studio in Bovey, Minnesota, and Enstrom insisted on taking a photograph of him. He arranged a book meant to stand in for a Bible, bread, a knife, and glasses on a simple table and told the man to pose in prayer. He paid him $5 to release rights to the photo. The man was never heard from again, even after Enstrom sought to find him. The photograph didn’t become popular at first. But by the 1950s, it was everywhere in its colorized version, first produced by Enstrom’s daughter, Rhoda Nyberg. Probably the biggest reason it became so popular among Lutherans is because Augsburg Fortress, a popular Lutheran publisher, licensed the colorized photograph, and soon it was in almost every Lutheran Church.
As some have suggested, for people who went through the Great Depression before WWII, this photograph was a symbol of contentment and stability in the middle of those tough times. It was a reminder of turning to the Lord in thankfulness for the Word of God and our daily bread as we pray in the Lord’s Prayer.
What does this now 100-year-old photograph have to say to us today? Whether in plenty or want, we are dependent on the Lord. It just so happens that hardship pulls back the curtain to help us see that while things in this world may fall away, the Lord has been with us all along in Christ Jesus. We have what we need before us as we call to the Lord in prayer and trust in His promises. We have the simple promises of Jesus that stand before us today. Jesus is present in His Word. This means that no matter what our holidays look like, we are not alone. St. Paul writes in Philippians 4: “I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” Paul reminds us that the “secret” has been revealed, and it is now no secret at all. It is Jesus Christ who died, rose, ascended, and is coming again for us. He has forgiven and redeemed us. He is with us today in the Word and Sacrament. We can count on that.
This photo is simple. It’s common and popular. But that is the beauty of it, and we should never scoff at it. In a year of ups and downs, it doesn’t mean that we just retreat from being involved in important conversations and being of service to those in need. However, this photo points us in the direction of life, with all of its weariness, to find solace and peace in Christ and to face the days ahead in humility, service, and love, all because Christ is our Savior who provides His Word and our daily bread. So we PRAY. We give thanks to the Lord for today. We give thanks today that His Word is ever before us. We give thanks that the Lord has given us daily bread. That’s always been the same, and it’s not about to change. The Lord’s Word is for everyone.
*You can read more of the story as told here: https://gracebyenstrom.com/story/
