(And yes, of course, that's not terribly accurate; but most of the Nativities I remember from my life often featured a blonde Mary....more commonly Joseph did have dark hair and beard, but even he looked more European than Semitic. Then again - as the choir at church sang a couple weeks ago, "some children see Him lily white....some children see Him bronzed and brown....some children see Him dark as they..." and I can't really quibble with that idea; it seems right to me. So for me as a child, a blonde or light-brunette Mary with fair skin, though perhaps not historically accurate, might have been relatable...)
And yes, a lot of the Old Masters do tend to idealize - look at the light there, and the comparatively clean clothes - what was probably a dirty, and (for Mary) unsettling and frightening time.
A great deal is made - as it should be - that the One who could have come in any form (as a conquering warlord, which I guess is what some followers actually wanted) chose instead the vulnerability of infancy....and even more, an infancy started in a precarious and not-entirely-safe place.....
No comments:
Post a Comment